OVERVIEW

Memphis, so much heart! I had so much fun here. I would definitely go back. Yummy southern cuisine, lots to do. Really nice city with true southern hospitality.

THE TRIP

Airports, they are just never, ever fun! If I am writing about the trip there (or back), its usually not to say what an outstanding job the airline did of leaving on time and getting us there.

We get on board, taxi to the runway and sit on the tarmac for 2 hours. What a mess! Someone invoked the passenger bill of rights, and thank goodness for that. We didn't end up leaving until around 5-ish. We were suppose to leave at 11am. YUCK!

One day, I will do what Kalon on the bachelor did on his season with Emily. I'm just going to show up with my own helicopter. (So maybe that's wishful thinking, indulge me!)

THE HOTEL

We stayed at the RESIDENCE INN downtown. It really nice, its more like a mini apartment than an actual hotel. You have all the amenities, a kitchen, dining room, everything! You can even get groceries delivered to your room.

PS. EVERYONE gets the "upgraded room" that's a little bigger with the "free DVD player". Only bad thing, is no wireless in the room, what century is this??

FRIDAY NIGHT

Dinner. So its a little bit of a blur. It was like 8:30pm, and we were so tired at this point! We went to Feclia Suzanne's. Apparently she is the ex-wife of a famous chef named Emerald.

The food does not disappoint! It was amazing. Salmon deviled eggs and turizo encrusted scallops over pumpkin risotto. WOW! So good.

Greg got butternut soup. It was so well made, even though neither of us are squash fans (does that sound funny? lol).

We liked it a lot. The coolest thing? They give you a coke out of the fancy old fashioned glass coke bottles.

PS. When ordering soda, DO NOT ORDER PEPSI PRODUCTS. They don't have them and its kind of sac-religious. Coke is Atlanta based, they own the south. Make sure you order COKE, not soda or Pepsi. Just Coke.

Also, there is an outdoor waiting area next to this man-made water pond thing with a mini water fall. Overhead they have string lights so its kind of romantic and just super relaxing. A++ on the atmosphere. We waited outside, and besides it being a little chilly, I really didn't mind waiting for our indoor table!

SATURDAY BREAKFAST

Cock-a-doo. No, I am not imitating a rooster. Its actually a place! And its one of my favorite breakfast places, ever! Problem is, there is always a wait. But it is SO worth it.

WHILE YOU WAIT.

Check out the Minor League baseball stadium AutoZone Park. The gates were open so we just walked around. You know you are in the south when there is a sign on a baseball stadium that says "No Fire Arms Permitted."

Its a pretty neat stadium, especially for a minor league team. It was open and completely empty so we just walked all the way around. I was tempted to run on the field and get pictures but Greg talked some sense into me.

Good thing too, we passed the security office on our way out! Want to go AutoZone Park? Its located on Stadium Court! Walking distance from breakfast!

BACK TO BREAKFAST

COCK-A-DOOS. This place was recommended by locals for breakfast. We walked in with Greg in his Flyers jersey. Oops! They joked they were seating us next to the bathrooms. They didn't though!!

If Greg's jersey and our non-existent southern accents didn't tip them off that we weren't from Memphis, then at least I remembered how to order Iced Team like a southern-er. It's SWEET TEA (the way your are suppose to drink it) or UNSWEET TEA. There is no ICED TEA in the south. It doesn't exist.

If you've ever been to the south, you know that breakfast is not breakfast without biscuits and gravy. Its a must! Some would say grits too, but been there, done that and not doing it again!

Food was yummy. Think of a cinnamon sweet flavor with corn bread biscuits. Different from other places I've been, but definitely decent. Its a must-try.

LATE MORNING

After breakfast, we took a mini walk. We saw this bar with crazy looking dancing and singing fish on the walls. Literally, those crazy fish on plaques covering the walls! Push a button and they usually say something funny.

We also saw the outside of the Peabody hotel. Its an old hotel, and a historic landmark people use for reference and maybe a little bit of a mini-big deal.

RIVERBOAT RIDES

MEMPHIS QUEEN RIVERBOAT. We bought our tickets and got on board! Apparently you need to get there really early for these things. Most all of the seats were gone! We got one of the last remaining ones and planted ourselves next to a railing.

There is a lot of history. Apparently, the Mississippi starts in Minnesota and it goes through over 30 states. It also goes through parts of Canada too. It was discovered in the 1500's. Memphis was purchased from the Indians for $1,000.

They took us to a point in the river where we sat in the center of three states! Tennessee, Arkansas and Louisiana. Very cool!

Apparently, the Mississippi River gets significantly higher and lower each season. There are times when the water recedes and it leaves the soil super rich and fertile. People try to grown things they aren't suppose to and they end up in jail!

Oh, and there never used to be gators, but now there are. There was a momma gator that had 12 babies, so swim at your own risk.

Not that you'd want to swim, it looks likely green moldy milk. Get this, there is enough river to supply everyone in Memphis with drinking water for 100 years!

There's also an old baseball stadium the shape of a pyramid. They've since left town, so now its just an old blue pyramid.

MEMPHIS TIGERS vs. EAST CAROLINA PIRATES

ONLY stadium I've ever been to where the police has MIO's, machine guns. It was crazy! I wanted to get a picture but I was worried. They are scary looking!

Stadium food - YUM. Where do I start? Memphis loves their barbecue sauce. "Sweet and Spicy Tender Love": think chicken, cinnamon, black pepper and some other stuff (who knows) dipped in ranch.

Oh! And no dippin' dots. Its Mini Melts. We got the cookie doe, yum! No hot chocolate, not cold enough!

Barbecue nachos - think nacho cheese with barbecue sauce and red peppers over a bed of nachos. Does it sound scary? Its so crazy good.

I loved Memphis stadium food. Chili cheese dogs - go to the stands that have the kids, they douse even the bun in cheese & chili! All I have to say is NAPKINS, lots of napkins.

Final score! 35, 17 E. Carolina. I was wearing purple and secretly routing for them. They seemed happier and in general they had more fun on the field. That's what football is all about right? They deserved to win. Memphis, maybe its time for another Coach? Oh, and since the Pirates won and Greg lost his bet!

SUNDAY

BREAKFAST at Cockadoo's, again. This time on the 2nd floor, but with the same waitress. This time I got the best cheese omelet ever. And the biscuits were not as sweet. I liked the regular biscuits better than the ones we had Saturday.

BEAL STREET

Eh, OK. Its all bars. It might be fun at night. We walked down there during the day. It smelled disgusting. Like a bathroom, and I was trying not to breath through my nose. I had zero interest in going back.

MEMPHIS ZOO & AQUARIUM

Zoo is highly OK. They did have panda bears, but it was not even half as nice as Atlanta.

The best thing was the night time animal exhibit. We saw bats up close. There is even a vampire bat that only drinks blood. So gross!

I saw a porcupine for the first time. It was a sleeping under this log thing and it looked relaxed. I wanted to see full on porcupine mode!

They jaguars were pretty neat. All black and super scary roars.

Nothing interactive, so no touch or feed zoo spots when we were there. Also, kind of small. Overall neat to see lion fish, angel fish, electric eels, piranhas, and lots of other fish.

The aquarium looked like the souped up fish pet store. It had some neat fish but everything was so small. They need to get some funding to get bigger exhibits and places for the animals!

DINNER

PEI-WEY. Part of PF Changs. Yuck! Memphis reminds me of childhood days in Berks County when everything was closed on Sunday. All the stores, restaurants and even the parking garages!

We ended up going to P.W.'s because it was close to the theater. My thoughts are way overpriced (maybe they raise their prices on Sundays?? That would actually be brilliant!) crab ragoons, overcooked pasta (lo mien) and dry sweet and sour chicken. Nothing is worse that high priced crappy food.

THEATER - MALCO PARADISO

Super cool! Wish we had one in Reading! Its like a new version of a fancy old theatre. They have a 2nd floor balcony, and a 1st floor lounge with TV and super comfy seats. LOVED watching a movie here. Malco - come to Wyomissing, please?

MONDAY

We ate somewhere, I really can't remember the name of the place. Neither does Greg! /: I got the French-Southern version of beef & provolone dip sandwich. It was good!

MONDAY AFTERNOON TOUR - "BLUES TOUR"

We took the City Tour instead of the tour that involved in depth views of Graceland (Elvis' home). Next time, maybe we'll check out Elvis' house, but wasn't really a fan and neither was Greg, so maybe next time!

Elvis purchased the estate from a wealthy couple who named the estate after their Aunt. The only condition for purchase was that he keep the name. So, even to this day, it is known as Graceland.

We saw the outside of his home, which is huge. We saw his two planes, the GBT (with a lightning bolt right after the letter) - "Get Business Done, in a flash," and The Lisa Marie.

We also saw the Methodist University Hospital Transplant Institute where the CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs had his liver operation.

We got to see St Jude's Hospital. Most hospitals are non-profit, but St Jude's focuses on all children. They take in the kids that other hospitals deem lost causes or have cut off, and they just don't stop. They are the best children's hospital in the USA.

They actually lose money because the work they do is not profitable. They function primarily on donations. Thank goodness for places like this!

PEABODY HOTEL - Still on the tour! We got to walk in the Peabody Hotel and it is so beautiful! Super old-fashioned and super fancy. The owners used to be obsessed with duck hunting. One day, they decided to bring the ducks back to the hotel. And now, the tradition continues!

The hotel brings several ducks into the their fountain in the lobby and lets them walk down a red carpet (surrounded by a gazillion people) then into the elevator. The ducks walk, flap their wings and show off. Its super cute.

DINNER-

We went to ACRE. Everything there is homemade. Its a suburban, country atmosphere with a friendly staff. Portions are awesome. A+ but still a step below Felicia's. I got lobster lasagna, scallops and fig cheesecake. YUM. <3 sweet / unsweet tea!

FINAL THOUGHTS

Memphis reminds me of sweet tea, barbecue omelets, barbecue sauce covered nachos, and well, barbecue everything. If you're looking for amazing southern food, Memphis is the place to go! Memphis was a fabulous southern experience.