Traveling (and eating!) in Memphis

From Guest Blogger, Shawn

Getting off the Ground
and underway

As indicated in previous posts to this Blog, my trip to Memphis started out with a bit of excitement. I should have known better than to keep going whn my poor little car chugged the first time. But then I thought, "Who in the world wants to hear from me at this time of day?" So on I went. Then the poor thing died completely after a brief puff of white smoke and all electrical going dead. Just inside an interstate construction zone as well. Well CRAP. I called my wife and the guy I was travelling with called his house. His mother, viziting from Newfoundland, Canada, says she'll come and get us, and my wonderful wife proceeds to take care of getting my car off the interstate before it gets towed.


Flying Down
and boy did my arms get tired!

From here I get on the plane to arrive in Minneapolis/St. Paul airport, continuing on to Atlanta, Georgia. Holy Humidity, Batman! I only thought it was humid at home. Images of parting the Red Sea in order to breathe came to mind . . . but I did come to my first Popeye's Chicken in I don't remember how long. Being in the airport, it was almost twice as expensive as it should have been, but I paid for it anyway. New Orlean's style fried chicken, redbeans and rice and the best biscuits anywhere. Our layover was long enough to enjoy lunch, browse the bookstore, (where I discovered Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card; it is now being turned into a movie!) From Atlanta, we got to fly back to Memphis, arriving in time to start the festivities kicking off a week.

The BIGGEST and LONGEST conference
I've been to, ever!!

We started the week by a trip to the Pink Palace. If you ever get down there, they have - with the recipe published - a genuine shrunken head. There were finger appetizers and drinks aplenty, but the heat and humidity outside and noise and confusion of 600+ people inside (on the heels of travelling all day) tainted my experience a bit. Back to the Hotel. Since my room was on the 12th floor, all I will say is thank goodness for elevators. . .

The conference begins . . .

Why am I here again?

I wasn't feeling too well that first morning, so I skipped breakfast. Even though there were Hogwart's portions of sausage, bacon, scrambled eggs, fresh-cut fruit and all kinds of other things . . . I had to skip them. Needing something to else to do to keep me away from the buffet, I happened across just the ticket, (even though it was on an XBox 360 - Microsoft was a key sponsor after all).

After a day of presentations by folks who are using the same system we are, we got the treat of a lifetime:

Graceland!

Okay, so maybe it wasn't the treat of MY lifetime, but enough folks back home would have choked me if I hadn't gone that I felt compelled . . .

It wasn't the vision of magnitude that I expected. Opulent: absolutely. Extravagent: not really. The grounds were beautiful and the house was very richly furnished, but it wasn't the sheer volume that I expected for the reputation that Graceland has about it. What suprised me most was the location is was in. Tough neighborhood. Though, I will also say, I have never seen shag carpet used as a ceiling covering before. Let me know if you want to see more pictures of this event.

After this, we get trucked back to the hotel for night of sleep. Here is what the view from my room looked like.

The Rest of the Week

was all a blur of food, Beale Street and breakout sessions!

I had the opportunity to eat so much southern cooking, it was amazing. I've lived in a lot of places in this country, and there is not a 'category' of food I like better. Bar none. These pictures were originally intended to prove to my poor wife at home that I can eat good for me when I am away from home, but I gotta tell you: That lasted about a day and a half. That's when I met Polly's Chicken, right on Beale Street. Yes, that is a hot, buttered waffle, turnip greens and the best fried chicken you are likely to find in Downtown Memphis.

If you haven't visited any of the other links, you need to see the Gibson Guitar Factory site. The few pictures I took just don't do it justice. And you can't hear it. This tour was absolutely worth the $10 and hour wait to get in. I won't go into detail because their site does a much better job (and I don't type so quickly), so just go there already!

I also got the chance to see a AAA baseball game, the hometown Redbirds agains the Portland Beavers. Couldn't pass up a match like that. The park was awesome, but the home guys were getting spanked. Add to that the ambient air temp was 92 with almost 100% humidity, and my friend and I were just melting. We couldn't take any past the middle of the 6th (4-0) so we took off.

The Trolley system on Main Street was awesome, but slow and loud.

Beale Street was amazing - after 5pm. Prior to that, you could fire a cannon down the street and no one would hear it or care. The Hard Rock is about the southern end, and every

Wednesday is Biker Wednesday. At the north end is the infamous Orpheum. What a place . . . live music in every store and in every alley in between. It was amazing that there was really very little interference from one set to the next.

On the whole, it was a fabulous trip. I have more pics to share if you are interested, just let me know. I am very glad to be home!

Shawn