New Thing #25 - Nashville

For this week, my new thing is Nashville, TN, and maybe a little bit of Kentucky. I took a mini vacation with the family courtesy of my brother's family and their timeshare. I rode down on Wednesday with my parents and came back on Saturday. We only really had two full days in Nashville, so we jam-packed them with lots of sight-seeing. It was busy, but it was fun and nice to get away and be with the fam for awhile.

I have to start my trip with a note about Kentucky. On our way to Nashville on Wednesday, just past the KY state line, we stopped at a truck stop for a quick potty break. And I saw something there that made me laugh the entire trip. In the ladies' restroom on the wall, was a cologne machine. It was called "Cologne at a Touch." I kid you not. For 25 cents, you could dial the "perfume" of your choice and get a palm full of fragrance to do with what you want. The choices available were White Diamonds by Elizabeth Taylor, Eternity, Obsession, Sunflowers and Liz Claiborne. I guess this is Kentucky's version of a shower. ;-) My brother said he's seen cologne machines in men's restrooms before, but this was definitely a first for me. And no, before you ask, I did not buy any cologne that day. I didn't think any of those would mix well with the Victoria's Secret perfume I was already wearing. Nor did I want to smell like an old lady.


Cologne at a Touch....when you need to freshen up on the road...


Your perfumes choices.


It's a bit blurry...1. Insert Coin. 2. Rotate Knob to Desired Fragrance. 3. Cup Hand Over Selected Spray Nozzle. 4. Push Plunger Firmly for Desired Spray. (Only 25 cents, that's a steal!)

Thursday morning was spent waking around the Opry Mills Hotel. Good gravy that place is huge. After 2 or 3 hours, I don't think we even covered a quarter of it. It was not only full of extensive Christmas decorations, but it was also filled with lush vegetation, gold fish ponds, waterfalls and a rotating restaurant. All things you wouldn't normally see in such magnitude at a hotel. But then again, I don't usually stay at posh hotels, so what do I know.


Me in front of the giant Christmas tree...some of those ornaments are as big as my head!


More Christmas decorations at the Hotel.


One of the many waterfalls we saw.

It was here that we caught a glimpse of the Vine Lady. And let me tell you, had I not heard the concierge talking about her, she would have scared the hell out of me. This chick is completely decked out in foliage from head to toe, including green face paint. She has stilts attached the her arms and legs, but they are camouflaged by her costume. And she likes to lounge on the walls, posts, etc. for a few minutes, then make slight movements. And, if you didn't know she was there, you'd be in for a creepy surprise. I have to give the girl props, she had to be in excellent shape to contort her body the way she did, and she kept the same serene (i.e. creepy) look on her face the whole time. But, I just wonder how she got the job...did they advertise for a vine girl, or did she apply at the hotel saying she could dress up like a vine and entertain the tourists?! Either way, I can honestly say I've never seen anyone like her!


Look closely and you'll see her face.


Here she is up against the wall. See how easily you could walk right by her and not even notice her?


Going for a stroll...you don't see that every day.

Here's a video of her doing what she does:


Thursday afternoon we headed to downtown Nashville to tour the Ryman Auditorium, the original home of the Grand Ole Opry from 1943-1974. It was originally built in 1892 as a tabernacle for Reverend Sam Jones to preach. After a renovation in 1993, it has been used as a performance hall. The acoustics are second only to the Mormon Tabernacle, surpassing even Carnegie Hall. That's pretty impressive.


A view of the stage from the balcony.


Another view.


Here's a shot of the balcony.

You can even go onstage and sing a bit if you want. Naturally, since my brother-in-law Shawn was with us, we urged (and by urged, I mean forced) him to get onstage and belt it out. How often would he get an opportunity to sing at such a prestigious historial location? He didn't really want to do it at first, but finally gave in and sang the Lord's prayer. If you've never heard Shawn sing, you're in for an amazing surprise. You'd never guess the voice that comes out of him. And whenever he sings the Lord's prayer, it brings tears to my eyes. And that day was no different. He paused mid song to stop, but we all yelled at him to finish. And what a finish he had. The staff at the Ryman were setting up lighting and sound for the show that was going on that night. They all stood transfixed as soon as Shawn started with the first notes. The lighting guys even got in on the fun and adjusted the lighting effects to go with the crescendos of the song, especially at the end. That was pretty cool. He got a standing O from the dozen or so people in the auditorium and the staff even yelled for an encore. I'm glad we went and I'm really glad Shawn sang. I didn't record the whole song, because I figured it would be too large to upload. So, forgive me that these few seconds is all you get!



Friday we were up and out to the only full scale replica of the Parthenon in the world. Yes, you read that right, the Parthenon. As in, ancient Greek building. It was originally built for the 1897 Tennessee Centennial Celebration and International Exhibition, along with dozens of other buildings. They were all made out of brick, wood lath and plaster, meant only to be temporary structures to be torn down after the celebration. The Parthenon and its surrounding buildings were meant to represent Nashville's reputation as the "Athens of the South". All the rest of the buildings were in fact demolished, but there was a movement to save the Parthenon. In 1920, the Parthenon was decaying, so the city authorized the reconstruction with more permanent materials. Through the years it has been renovated and added to. It includes an art gallery in the basement that houses a permanent collection, along with rotating exhibits. But, the most impressive thing is the building itself. I've always wanted to visit the real Parthenon, but for now, this will suffice. (Plus, this version is whole and hasn't been destroyed by war like the real one has.)



The front facade.


It's quite large.


These are the front doors. There is a matching set at the back. They are 24 feet high, 7 feet wide and 1 foot thick. They weigh 7.5 tons each. They are considered to be the largest matching set of bronze doors in the world. Because they are balanced on steel hinges, with ball bearing collars at the top and bottom, they are incredibly easy to move. The front doors, shown here, rarely open, but the guide said they do open on special occasions. (i.e. weddings, etc. Yes, you can get married here.) The front gates are to keep people/animals from marring the door fronts.


The doors in the back part open and close daily, and we were able to see just how easily they could be moved.

Included inside is a 42' 10" statue of the goddess Athena. The original statue, created in the 5th century BC, was destroyed thousands of years ago, but the statue in Nashville was created based on historical data and research of that era. The Greek Parthenon was home to the statue, so naturally, they made the new statue the main focus of this Parthenon. She's made of gypsum cement with chopped fiberglass reinforcing on a steel frame. It took 8 years to build and was unveiled in 1990. In 2002, 8 pounds of 23.75 carat gold was used to gild and paint her.


Here she is!


Up close. Oh yeah, and that is a statue of Nike in her hand. He stands 6'4" tall.


A view of the back.


Me with three of my nieces in front of the statue. If you look to the right of my head you'll see part of her foot.

The Parthenon also contains recreated statues that were removed from the Acropolis in Greece and taken to the British Museum in London. They are direct casts of the sculptures created in 438 B.C. While they may not have been the real thing, it was still cool to see. Although, I had to explain to my nieces why some of the statues were naked and none of them had heads.



We followed up with a trip to the Country Music Hall of Fame on Friday afternoon. I should also mention that even though it's the end of December, it was 70+ degrees in Nashville that day. It was quite blustery, but it didn't take away from the fact that it was a gorgeous day. The CMHF is also quite extensive and starts from the very beginning of what we view as country music, all the way up to modern artists. I like museums like this, but there's just so much information to absorb, that unless you have hours upon hours, you'll never soak it all in.

For lunch, we headed to the Opry Mills Mall and ate at the Aquarium, a restaurant with a 200,000-gallon salt water fish tank directly in the middle. There are no windows to outside or into the mall, the entire restaurant looks like you're submerged underwater. From the reef-like outcroppings holding the booths, to painted murals on the ceilings, to the sting rays, sharks and fish in the tank, it's definitely unique. My nieces were super excited about the sting rays, and had we had more time, we would have went next door to the Sting Ray Reef where they could have pet them.


Here I am at a store in the mall with Charlee and Remi, my two oldest nieces. I couldn't resist the moose hat. I'm a hot aunt!

That completed our vacation to Nashville. I couldn't write up everything that happened, but this hits all the high points. Thanks my brother and sister-in-law for inviting us all to join them, as well as the rest of my family for making this an enjoyable vacation. Love you guys!