MAY 9, 2015
We took a tour bus today to see the sights in Nashville.
WE’RE BEING TOURISTS. As I mentioned a day or two ago, there is so much to see in Nashville that we’ve put on our best walking shoes and strapped on our cameras. We want to see as much as possible in the week we’ll be here. So, in order to get a good overview of all the city has to offer, today we took a tour on ‘The Dog.” (That’s a Greyhound bus tour.) We’ve done this in other cities and found that once we’ve had the benefit of the driver-guide’s remarks and narrative during the bus tour, it’s easy to decide what we want to re-visit later when we’re on our own. Although threatening off and on during the day, the weather cooperated and we were able to see all of the landmarks on the tour without dodging raindrops.
Honky Tonk Row in Nashville is a bit reminiscent of New Orleans.
DOWNTOWN DISTRICT AND “HONKY TONK ROW.” We enjoyed seeing the downtown area and in particular “Honky Tonk Row.” It’s an area chock full of little bars and restaurants featuring local “wanna-be musicians” who provide free live entertainment every day of the week. Our tour guide told us the joints open for business at 10 am and don’t close ’til 3:00 in the morning. So it’s a pretty safe bet that you can always take in a “live show” in Nashville, even if you’re doing it on the cheap. Finally, I was surprised to see that all the recording studio buildings are rather modest…actually quite nondescript. I had imagined that Studio B and the rest of them would be in large, snazzy buildings, almost befitting a red carpet! Not so.
STREET REPAIRS. What we didn’t much enjoy about downtown was all the construction and street repairs we saw. Progress demands construction, but the locals tell us that things have been all torn-up for as long as they can remember, with no apparent progress.
RIVERFRONT PARK. The new Riverfront Park is designed to provide attractions, parkland and waterfront access, giving residents and visitors a reason to come and enjoy both banks of the Cumberland River. When fully implemented, the park project will be ten times the size it is now. Future expansion will include features such as fountains, spray-grounds, boardwalks, overlooks, piers, performance spaces, wetlands, plazas, new docking facilities, increased bike-ways, and open play space. The Park isn’t even close to being completed, but I could tell that it will be a special place in years to come.
Riverfront Park in Nashville along the Cumberland River. It’s a work in progress.
THE PARTHENON. The Parthenon in Nashville is a full-scale model of the original Parthenon in Athens. It was built over a hundred years ago as part of the Tennessee Centennial Exposition. Today the Parthenon, which functions as an art museum, stands as the centerpiece of Centennial Park, a large public area just west of downtown Nashville. And just as it was in ancient Greece, the re-creation of the Athena Parthenos statue is the focus of the structure. Much of the city’s Greek-style architecture was inspired by the Parthenon.
The Parthenon is located in Centennial Park. It is an exact, life-size replica of the original in Athens, Greece.
Vanderbilt University in downtown Nashville. Our tour guide said the cost for undergraduate work is about $60,000 per year.
VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY. Vanderbilt is a private research university located on a 330-acre campus in the heart of Nashville, just a short distance from downtown. Despite its urban surroundings, however, the campus itself is a national arboretum and features over 300 different species of trees and shrubs. Vanderbilt enrolls approximately 12,000 students from all 50 states and over 90 foreign countries in four undergraduate and six graduate and professional schools, including a law school and a medical school.
UNIVERSITY’S HONOR CODE. As with all universities, Vanderbilt has an honor code and students must agree to comply with it. The Dean of Students explains the honor code to students this way: “Today I am going to give you two examinations, one in trigonometry and one in honesty. I hope you will pass them both, but if you must fail one, let it be trigonometry. For there are many good men in this world today who cannot pass an examination in trigonometry, but there are no good men in the world who cannot pass an examination in honesty.” Hear, hear!
COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME. Our tour guide turned us loose in the Country Music Hall of Fame for about two hours and that was just about the right amount of time for us to get a look at all the exhibits. If you were really interested in Country Music or a particular member of the Hall, you’d want to spend lots more time, of course. This stop on our tour was far and away the most interesting one of the day.
The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum has been the home of Country Music since 1967. Located on the west bank of the Cumberland River, just a few steps from the historic Ryman Auditorium and the honky-tonks of Lower Broadway, the monumental edifice invigorates the skyline in downtown Nashville’s entertainment district.
The foyer at the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Close-up photo of the mural at the entrance to the museum.
Another colorful mural in one of the exhibit areas.
Kim Carnes was on hand chatting about her music career.
“Bette Davis Eyes” was one of the biggest hits of the ’80’s.
All of the items on display have been donated by Country Music Stars. The Museum has not purchased even one item that’s on display.
The Museum is a treasure trove of historic country video clips and recorded music, dynamic exhibits and state-of-the-art design. A regular schedule of live performances and public programs, a museum store, live satellite radio broadcasts, and fabulous public spaces all contribute to an unforgettable Museum experience.
The alcove where Alan Jackson’s memorabilia is on display.
The Alan Jackson exhibit area.
Dolly Parton wore this dress in concert performing “Islands in the Stream” with Kenny Rogers.
Carrie Underwood wore this dress the night she won American Idol in 2005.
Gold and Platinum Records line the walls of the Museum.
After a couple hours inside the Museum, we met the bus driver right by this wall, boarded the bus again and were taken back to the campground where our motorhome is parked. Very convenient.
WE’LL SEE MORE OF NASHVILLE’S LANDMARKS WITHIN THE NEXT FEW DAYS. JOIN US AGAIN.
