Day 1
My mom and I left Texas Aug. 5th around 9am and spent most of the day driving to Memphis, TN. The waterfront park along the Mississippi provided a commanding view of the river and a glimpse into the rich history associated with the area. I resonated with Mark Twain's words, "Along the Mississippi, every hour brings something new....there are crowds of odd islands, woods and villages--everything one could desire to amuse the children." What vitality a river brings! The view of downtown was beautiful as well...oh and that pyramid in the photo is an indoor sports area. Mark Twain would get a kick out of that!
My mom and I left Texas Aug. 5th around 9am and spent most of the day driving to Memphis, TN. The waterfront park along the Mississippi provided a commanding view of the river and a glimpse into the rich history associated with the area. I resonated with Mark Twain's words, "Along the Mississippi, every hour brings something new....there are crowds of odd islands, woods and villages--everything one could desire to amuse the children." What vitality a river brings! The view of downtown was beautiful as well...oh and that pyramid in the photo is an indoor sports area. Mark Twain would get a kick out of that!
We also visited the famous Beale Street - hundreds of sweet motorcycles lined the street, which were only visible by the plethora of 1950's neon signs. Music filled the air with bands playing everything from blues to jazz to rock. Beer and jello shots were sold like hot dogs from store front windows. It was quite an experience!
Day 2
Drove to Gatlinburg, TN and camped in the Great Smoky Mountains! We reserved a tent site in the Elkmont campground and found a site within a few feet of a babbling stream - it was incredible to say the least. The night was made even more interesting as my garage-sale-tent did not come with a rain fly...and clouds were on the horizon. Luckily, we didn't wake up to pouring rain. The woods were breathtaking though. I recommend everyone go camping in the Great Smokies at least once in their lifetime. You won't regret it!
Driving to our campsite was another story though- we had to drive through two heavily commercialized towns that made me cringe. Imagine a street lined with with overlapping theme parks complete with mini-golf courses, water parks, carnival rides, and dinner shows like the Black Bear Jamboree . I assumed that the Great Smoky Mountains were awe-inspiring and entertaining enough...sorry ancient mountains rich with life and history, mini-golf and water parks create more revenue. But to me, I would pay for these views over any theme park.
Day 3 -4
Drove to Nellysford, VA which is close to Charlottesville (home of Monitcello and University of Virginia). We accidentally drove into North Carolina, but the drive was absolutely gorgeous! Well worth the 30 minutes of back-tracking. My mom and I stayed in a small town B&B (a way of rewarding my mom for smiling through the camping experience - she is not a camper). The town was filled with fruit orchards and wineries along with an amazing little known Fr
ench bistro/Wine and Cheese shop called Basic Necessities. They work with a local farm to use the freshest produce for their dishes. The atmosphere of the petit bistro was delightfully serene, full of people sipping wine sharing stories and laughing about the day. A guitar player set up close to us after we sat down, which made me nervous because the music could either ruin or preserve the lovely ambiance established. When he played a James Taylor song, I automatically trusted his taste in music, which proved to be quite good. The food was beyond amazing! The most memorable dish for me was the goat cheese appetizer. There are not enough words in the English language to describe how much I love herbed goat cheese atop crispy French bread.
Day 3 -4
Drove to Nellysford, VA which is close to Charlottesville (home of Monitcello and University of Virginia). We accidentally drove into North Carolina, but the drive was absolutely gorgeous! Well worth the 30 minutes of back-tracking. My mom and I stayed in a small town B&B (a way of rewarding my mom for smiling through the camping experience - she is not a camper). The town was filled with fruit orchards and wineries along with an amazing little known Fr
ench bistro/Wine and Cheese shop called Basic Necessities. They work with a local farm to use the freshest produce for their dishes. The atmosphere of the petit bistro was delightfully serene, full of people sipping wine sharing stories and laughing about the day. A guitar player set up close to us after we sat down, which made me nervous because the music could either ruin or preserve the lovely ambiance established. When he played a James Taylor song, I automatically trusted his taste in music, which proved to be quite good. The food was beyond amazing! The most memorable dish for me was the goat cheese appetizer. There are not enough words in the English language to describe how much I love herbed goat cheese atop crispy French bread.The Blue Ridge Mountains are right next to Nellysford and offered a beautiful view everyday. But just down the road from our B&B was an even more idyllic scene - a red barn and stable with horses idly standing around djacent a placid pond. When I was little, I remember staring at this picture nearly every day during December vacation when my father and I would work on puzzles. I would work on putting the obvious colorful pieces of the puzzle together, like the barn and stable, while my father preferred the more elusive edge and corner pieces. We were quite the puzzle-duo and solved several puzzles that looked like this gorgeous Nellysford area.
Day 5-6 To be continued...
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