Country Music~Soul Food~The King

Celebrating our 10 year wedding anniversary, Ross & I planned an amazing vacation back east to Tennessee. Our first stop was to visit my brother, Bill and the beautiful resort of Sundance, Utah. After an incredible meal at the Foundry Grill, we enjoyed a bottle of Sundance wine at the Owl Bar. A quick tour of this beautiful & quaint get-away, makes us eager to visit again to ski the fresh powder during the winter months.

Day 1 of our Tennessee trip took us to the Country Music City of Nashville. Walk any downtown street and you can hear live country music pouring out of every open door. Blazing neon signs make decisions hard of which joint to visit, like the famous Cadillac Ranch, Tootsie's Orchid Lounge & the Wildhorse Saloon. We soon found out the best joints are the one's locals recommend, where fake cowboy hats are pinned to the ceiling & locals rock out to the next big country stars.

Day 2 took us to Lynchburg, TN. You may not have heard of this small town, once housing a population of only 361, but if you’ve ever enjoyed a Jack Daniel's Whiskey you know just where it's made. A free 2 hour tour of this famous distillery does not require the need of drinking, but knowing the process and seeing for yourself the love put into this company leaves you with the desire to sip this sweet nectar. A dry town can leave you parched for the sour malt, but a quick walk around this small lonely town, leaves you to appreciate the fine people of Lynchburg.

Day 3 began as a road trip. Headed north into Kentucky, we enjoyed watching the lush greenery slide by. An unscheduled stop led us deep into the country of Abraham Lincoln's birthplace. Impressed by the story of our 16th presidents childhood, we took a moment to sit in rocking chairs on the porch of the small log cabins that have been built to size of the original home. The humidity helped us decide to move along north towards Louisville, KY. A lucky chance scored us some concert tickets at the famous Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby. Sitting on the finish line, we belted out tunes with the talented Jason Aldean & ever amazing Kenny Chesney.

Day 4 was a random flip of a coin to see where fate would take us. Heading south-west we crossed hundreds of miles of corn fields, vine covered forest & brick churches dating back to the 1860's. Ending up at the Mississippi River in the history rich City of Blues, Memphis, TN, where an Elvis impersonator sang The King's ballads while we chowed down on the best rack of pork ribs. Best ribs E.V.E.R! After learning the history of how bbq came about, you can not help but appreciate the food even more then where it originated. A late night of live Jazz finished with a cold beer, chased away the heat of a very long day.

Day 5 one word: Graceland. Splurging on VIP passes zipped us to the front door of Mr. Elvis Presley’s home. An audio tour provided the juicy details of The King’s modest, yet awe-inspiring home. To walk through his kitchen, sit on his back porch and even sneak a look into Elvis’ closets sent you back to those early years of Rock-n-Roll. Makes for missing a man you never knew, but honored to know his life and how it changed ours forever.

Day 6 headed home. A quick stop on the famous Beale Street, for some of B.B. King’s pulled pork sandwiches & live blues, left a great appreciation for the vacation we took. Not only did we get a chance to learn more about local history, but we were able to reconnect & appreciate the beautiful 10 years of marriage we created together. Thank you Ross, for not only being my best friend, but for loving me unconditionally & giving me the most full life possible. I love you.