karohemd | Entries tagged with memphis

It was raining so hard that I realised I would be completely drenched from the waist down after a block or two so didn't make it to Beale Street and not even the nearest restaurant so I got into the car and drove randomly towards Midtown where I found a random diner type place (had in mind to go to Tsunami but that was full) where I had a Caesar Salad with blackened catfish and really yummy hushpuppies. I didn't really have room for dessert but couldn't resist the pecan pie. OMG, and I'm glad I did eat it, best pie in ages. It was warm, crunchy on the outside, gooey on the inside and the generous scoop of vanilla icecream complemented it wonderfully. Yummy yummy food at small prices.

I'm sad that I'm missing another evening of music but this way, I can pack, write those postcards, update my diary/travel blog and get to bed early. Another long of driving tomorrow and then an evening chez

martinhesselius (or somewhere around town, I suspect).

Current Mood: sleepy
Current Location: Memphis, TN
Current Music: Hellraiser on TV

*squelch*
This morning wasn't too bad at first. I visited the Stax Museum of American Soul Music on the site of the former Stax studio where artists like Otis Redding and Booker T and the MGs recorded their hits. Very informative but less technologically advanced like the Country Music Hall of Fame. While in the HoF the music you heard was limited to the exhibit you were looking at, a lot of tunes overlapped at Stax but it was still good and very interesting indeed. Sorry Elvis, but in terms of custom Cadillacs, Issac Hayes wins. Peacock blue, gold trim, plush fur interior, TV and so on. This was the true and original pimp mobile. ;o) Incidentally, I drove through Hayes' hometown, Covington, yesterday, completely randomly.
Interestingly enough, Martin Luther King's assassination (in Memphis, no less) was the cause of Stax' demise as after the event, there was so much discontent and distrust towards white people that Stax (white owned but a place where there was no racial prejudice whatsoever) couldn't continue to operate and had to shut down...
When I came out, it was raining hard so I decided to go to Graceland after all.
It was actually a lot less garish than I thought it would be and I could take photos. So, especially for

cabd, here are two photos of Elvis' kitchen:

( Bigger )

The trophy room with all its Grammies, other music awards and gold and platinum records was very impressive and the outfits obviously rocked. Shame about the weather as it was pouring down so I got pretty drenched just walking from building to building and couldn't get decent shots of the outside or the gate. Oh well, it was still worth it.

Came back to the hotel to dry up, write postcards and sort out a route to Birmingham tomorrow.

If I go out tonight will depend on weather. Would be a shame if I couldn't make it...

Current Mood: content
Current Location: Memphis, TN
Current Music: food network

After 7 hours of driving through pouring rain and deluges, I've arrived.
I'm on the 11th floor and can see the Mississippi and the Pyramid from my window.
Now to explore a bit, come back and then wander down Beale Street tonight.