Dollywood

Today was a day I'd been looking forward to for a long time, as I finally got to visit the amusement park created by one of my all time favourite singers/celebrities. We started the day moderately early as we wanted to be sure we would be at the Park for the opening, before the crowds became huge. As it turned out, the park never ended up being too bad anyway, which made the day a lot more enjoyable.

Dollywood is so different to any other amusement park we've seen - it's almost like Disneyland meets Timber Town. There was a lot of emphasis on local arts and crafts and traditional country fare, without the animated characters walking around the park. There was even a chapel there if you wanted to attend a service. It took a while to get used to but truthfully, I loved it. It was great to be in an amusement park that had a lot of charm and character to it.

One of the good deals we got was the photo card, which once purchased, meant that every photo taken in the park was inclusive. This meant that Ted and I never passed up a single photo opportunity! We went on the majority of the rides too, except the ones that were catered mainly to kids. There were also a lot of attractions centered around Dolly too, including seeing her tour bus, and the story of her life and achievements. Food was definitely not a problem either as we found an awesome buffet restaurant with all that low-fat food that the south of the USA is known for!

After riding on the Snowy Mountain River Rampage we were completely soaked, so we relaxed in the sun before continuing through the park. Since we were able to return to the park if we wanted, we headed into nearby Pigeon Forge to have a look around. We are glad we didn't stay there instead, as it is really huge. It is almost like a low-grade Las Vegas, with its endless hotels and attractions. Whilst Gatlinburg is easy to walk around, Pigeon Forge would be impossible without a car.

Ted dropped me off at the Titanic display whilst he went to look around town. The Titanic display was wonderful (and still better than the Queen Mary at Long Beach)! I've always been interested in anything Titanic, and this attraction recreated cabins from the ship, told stories about the passengers onboard, gave an idea about life on the ship, and presented a timeline about the ship's fateful journey. It was definitely worth the entry and I would consider seeing it again some day.

Since Dollywood was open in the evenings for its "Halloween LumiNights Display", we went back to the park to see it all lit up. Unlike during the day, this was one time when the crowds were huge! It was still great to see even though the throngs of people were everywhere. Ted and I went back to another buffet style restaurant for dinner. I am so glad we did because we got to meet Miss Lillian the Chicken Lady, who sang a song for me on her banjo and gave me a chicken blessing. I was very honored!

Dollywood turned out to be better than we'd expected, so I'd definitely consider coming back again. Tomorrow we continue our journey to the state of Tennessee!Read more