How I Spent My Summer Vacation - Memphis, Tennessee

We arrived in Memphis (Cordova, actually) around 9pm (that's 10pm for us Eastern time zone folks). Karole greeted us with 2 cold beers. Breezy had to settle for water. Worn out from the drive, we only had energy to sit and talk. Carol, Ann, Dianne, and Verne told us about the wedding. We told our traffic jam story.

The next day, we drove down to Beale Street to have lunch and be tourists. The temperature was in the mid 90s. The humidity was off the chart. So, we tried to keep the walking and outdoor-time to a minimum.

After Beale Street, we rode by the Pyramid (a giant musical venue that resembles the Luxor in Las Vegas), and then the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. They have a civil rights museum there. But, there was a woman across the street protesting it. She had a sign that said "The Civil Rights Museum is a Tourist Trap!" Turns out she's trying to stop the development of high-priced condos in the area, and wants more money to be put into refurbishing the existing homes and surrounding buildings. She's been living on the sidewalk out in front of the Lorraine for over 190 days.

B.B.

We had lunch at a little joint called Blues City Cafe. It was right across the street from B.B. King's blues club. There's not a whole lot to see on Beale Street. Just a handful of souvenir shops, another handful of bars, statues of Elvis here and there. The street was fairly desolate. But, they were getting ready for a big Independence day party and concert that night. My favorite spot on Beale Street was a place called the Center for Southern Folklore. It had lots of cool art, including a 25-cent vending machine that lit up and played music. Inside it were little pictures of famous couples. Everyone from Priscilla and Elvis to Lucy and Ricky to Bill and Hillary to Sonny and Cher.

Kenny G

Beale Street has its own Walk of Fame. Near the Orpheum theatre, you'll find permanent memorials to such notable B-list celebrities as Kenny G and Steve Lawrence.

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