Date of trip: September 2006

I am a huge Elvis fan and I hadn’t been to Graceland since Elvis Week 1998 so I was anxious to return and to bring Will who had never been. I really do love Memphis! It’s raw and real and has such amazing history and culture. I hope some of you will read this and be inspired to visit because it is a great place!

Highlights:

-Well I have to start with Graceland because that is what everyone thinks of when they hear Memphis. Let me tell you, it’s quite a place and everyone should visit. At the mansion you are given an audio tour which you listen to at you own pace as you walk through the rooms, the grounds, the trophy building and the garden where Elvis and his parents are buried. You don’t have to be an Elvis fan to be fascinated by the way he lived. It doesn’t end with his home either! You can tour his private planes, check out a museum of his cars and visit the small collections of memorabilia across the street. At the gift shops you can buy Elvis anything and everything and no visit is complete without a meal of fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches, the king’s favorite snack!

-Sun Studio is where Elvis was discovered and recorded his first album. Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis are among other famous Sun artists. Although it is still a functioning recording studio and a favorite with many current artists, it is a historical landmark and as such remains unchanged. Tours of the little studio end right in the spot where Elvis himself stood and you can even pose with the microphone all the Sun artists sang into.

-There is another famous recording studio in Memphis where soul music got its start. You all know Isaac Hayes and Otis Redding right? Well, they began their careers at Stax Studio which today stands as the Stax Musuem of American Soul Music. There you can learn all about its history, listen to some tracks and see memorabilia and even check out Isaac Hayes superfly gold-trimmed, fur-lined Cadillac.

-There are only four zoos in the US with pandas; D.C., San Diego, Atlanta and the Memphis Zoo. If you’ve never seen one, this zoo is a must visit. Even without the pandas it’s great.

-Walking on Beale Street is an interesting experience. It’s a little thrilling and a little scary. There are some shady characters, but on a Saturday night it’s full of blues and jazz and more alive than any other place you will find in the city. As long as you are aware of your surroundings, it’s safe and fun.

-The Cotton Museum is small but very informative. We don’t really think about a city being built on cotton and it sounds weird, but there would never be people in Memphis without cotton…black or white. Both came because of the fields, some by choice and some as slaves. The music born here also was greatly influenced by the songs sung the fields or the blues sung by the poor workers. The rich made their fortune trading cotton in the early stock markets. Today, cotton is still a major export here and driving through Tennessee you can see miles of the fluffy white plants.

-At the Gibson Guitar Factory you can watch electric guitars being made and even play some rare guitars in the store up front. Did you know it takes three weeks to make one guitar and the factory in Memphis only completes about 40 each day! No wonder they are so expensive!

-The Peabody Hotel is an institution and has been around in some form since 1869. After a fire, it was built in its present form in 1925. In 1930, it started a tradition which draws tourists from far and wide. After a hunting trip and some extensive drinking, the original manager and a friend decided to put live decoy ducks in the lobby fountain as a joke on the guests. To their shock and delight, the ducks loved it and stayed in the fountain for hours! Today, the Peabody ducks are their most famous residents. They live in a Duck Palace on the roof of the hotel where you can visit them while they are off duty. Between 11-5pm you will find them on-duty, swimming in the lobby fountain. They ride the elevator and walk a red carpet to and from work led by their keeper in top hat and tails. The lobby is the perfect place to have a drink and the march of the ducks is something not to be missed!

-If you’ve never seen the Mississippi River, Memphis is the place to see it! A little island called Mud River Park splits the river in two and you can take a monorail over to it from downtown for some of the best views in the city. There is also a cool museum and a replica of the entire river on the island.

For more pictures, please visit my Photo Gallery or click on any of the photos posted above.

Memphis Links:
Memphis Official Site
Graceland Official Site
Sun Studio
Stax Museum of American Soul Music
Memphis Zoo
The Cotton Museum at the Memphis Cotton Exchange
Gibson Guitar Factory
The Peabody Hotel
Mud Island River Park