Cars, a President and B. B. KIng's

What a diverse set of attractions filled our day on Thursday. We had some plans to stop along the way to Nashville from Louisville. Besides being a train enthusiast, Terry also is a big car fan. So, of course, we had to stop by the National Corvette Museum - even though Terry didn't care much for the car after the 1962 model. But, we made it through - without purchasing a classic car. (Thank God!) Terry has the ability to identify almost any car by year, make, and model. Me - I'm lucky to get the color right. We capped the visit off with a lunch at the Corvette Cafe, modeled on a luncheonette from the 50's. Very neat and the food was even good!

The slave Alfred's cabin

The Hermitage

The next stop was to The Hermitage, the home of Andrew Jackson, our seventh president. Coming from a childhood of a great deal of loss, it was remarkable that he achieved what he did. His father died during his birth. By the age of fourteen he had lost his mother and brothers. He became a man of contradictions - championing democracy for white men, but unwilling to include women, blacks or Native Americans. His heroic success in battle in the War of 1812 led to his eventual election as president. We toured the mansion and strolled the grounds, viewing this step back in time and the evidence of a life that included Jackson's privilege and the lot of the enslaved people who worked under his rule. Our visit ended with a siren going off and all having to evacuate. Terry had stepped inside and I was hoping that he hadn't decided to take a souvenir. Terry emerged without anything unusual and the all-clear was given. We were all free to go. 

As we entered the city of Nashville proper, I had the sense that geographically this was one very large city. The downtown area is compact, but the city extends way beyond that. Navigating rush hour traffic to reach our hotel reminded me of something that would rival the 5:00 p.m. trip out of any of our cities up north. That was a surprise. 

The hotel staff was helpful and  friendly - good old Southern hospitality at its best. After settling in, we followed a recommendation from the gracious lady who checked us in and headed to B. B. King's for dinner and entertainment. She must have known that we were party people - of course, our party tends to end between 9:00 and 10:00 (Well, at least it's p.m.) We walked the route to get to the club, getting our first introduction to Broadway - a street filled with people, music and the aroma of the offerings of the clubs and restaurants. We enjoyed a good meal and a fantastic performance by the group, B.B. King's All-Stars. I even got the big guy up to dance a slow one and fought the urge to join some other ladies when they played some fast ones. Nice way to begin our Nashville experience.