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Elvis Lives Tour

May 2016 - August 2018
May 2016 - April 2019 Read more
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  • Elvis LivesElvis Lives Tour
    Day 28

    Solid As A Rock

    June 13, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    So we eventually tore ourselves away from the incredible Smokies and headed west, albeit a little more creaky than when we arrived. We stumbled upon a small state park that allowed camping that we thought might do for a quick overnighter before heading off early, but instead we were treated to an incredible spot with an AMAZING swimming hole. It's so hot and sticky that more than a couple of dips per day was mandatory.

    There was also the 100 waterfalls trail that we were convinced would be more than a slight exaggeration, but in the end I think they might have under egged it!

    Loved this spot but eventually we thought we'd better move on otherwise we would still be there for 4th of July celebrations!    Read more

  • Elvis LivesElvis Lives Tour
    Day 29

    N, N, N, Nashville (Open All Hours)

    June 14, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    Didn't really know what to expect of world renowned music city but as soon as we got into the locally named Smashville we loved it! Not just a live music joint on every corner, but also every place inbetween and on every level.

    We spent the first day trying to avoid going into every bar we saw, but we didn't do a very good job! We had a fantastic bbq at Pucketts, thanks to Jo's ex-colleague Suzanne's local recommendations. We were pretty full after mains but the Pecan and Caramel Cobbler wouldn't let us leave without it, and doing much of anything after that was tough!

    The following morning we went out to the Hermitage, the plantation of Andrew Jackson, the 7th President of the US. It was really interesting place, but wished it told more of the slave's stories like the excellent Monticello (Thomas Jefferson's country home) did. Sounds like politicians being wealthy is not a new thing, but to be fair Mr Jackson was a self-made man whose father died before he was born & became an orphan at age 14, that said a lot if his wealth was built upon the back of slave labour.

    That evening we hit the town and took in as many bands (and beers) as possible! We started fancy in a local urban chic bar (amazing cocktails) and then went full on Smashville on the main strip. Surpringly to us our favourite band were playing 50/60s rock and roll classics.

    We crawled into bed in the small hours and crawled out again a few hours later for the 8am England v Wales game. We got to 'The Pub' hoping for some atmosphere but we were the only ones there. Fortunately Vardy and Sturridge didn't disappoint in the end so the headache didn't seem quite as bad. This was a roaster of a day hitting 100F so we had to spend the day hunting out aircon and avoiding the bars. The Jonny Cash museum was pretty interesting, but the film was much more informative (if you haven't seen it, do). We had a really nice evening with Suzanne and Eric, Jo's (ex) work mate and husband, in a funky chicken joint (FYI Nashville Hot is pretty hot!) and ended up in the brewery next door.    Read more

  • Elvis LivesElvis Lives Tour
    2
    Day 33

    Sweet Home Alabama

    June 18, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    OK, so the title is a little misleading as we were only in AL for about 2 hours but it was too tempting to refuse.

    From the craziness of Nashville we've been cruising down the very tranquil Natchez Trace Parkway, which follows the route of old trails from back in the pioneers days. I have to admit that although it's very pleasant it's not overly impressive scenery or historical points of interest, but it is nice to unwind a bit after all the partying.

    Undoubtedly one of the highlights was Loveless Café. I thought it might be a bit touristy and was prepared to give it a miss, but in the end we thought we'd stop off for a quick bite. We emerged having gorged ourselves on homemade ham, bacon and the most incredible 'biscuits' (aka scones) with homemade 'jelly' (jam). They were fresh from the oven and reminded my of my mum's amazing home cooking.

    We stayed in David Crockett State Park last night, which had a good little museum explaining about back-in-the-day politics. From what I understand the way to win an election was to make up lies about your opponent, hold debates without inviting them, and the winning move is to buy everyone whiskey!

    The other incredible thing about that place was the Trail of Tears ran through it. This was when the native Indians were forced off their ancestorial lands and had to walk to Oklahoma where they were resettled. It took 89 days and thousands died en-route. Davy Crockett fought strongly against this - effectively ruining his political career, but the all powerful (and future president) Andrew Jackson forced the bill through.

    After skirting with Alabama we headed into Mississippi, and tonight we're on the outskirts of Elvis's hometown.    Read more

  • Elvis LivesElvis Lives Tour
    1
    Day 36

    Taking Care of Business

    June 21, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    So we can't decide whether we are in Tennessee or Mississippi at the moment, hopping between the states on a daily basis.

    With the van being called Elvis (due to the number plate) Graceland was an obligatory stop and didn't disappoint. We didn't know much about it and we're expecting some grandiose mansion dripping in luxury but it was a pretty normal, albeit a decent size and pretty decked out, home. He wasnt a huge party animal and the first thing he did was move his parents in. Some of the rooms were pretty cool, like the jungle room and the pool room, and given us some ideas next time we own a house (green shag-pile floor & matching ceiling - classy)! Little beknown to us, TCB (Taking Care of Business) was his catchphrase.

    We needed to get me some more of that southern fried chicken and found a fantastic place called Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken joint. It was so good we ate there both days & they showed the footy so at least one good thing came out of the Slovakia match!

    After watching the Peabody duck parade - fun but pure touristy nonsense, everyday the Peabody hotel Duckmaster leads 5 ducks to & from the hotel lobby fountain, we wandered around town. Beale St was a cool place - much like Nashville with live music but a lot more down and dirty. We decided to try boondocking, which is basically parking up in a car park for the night, and there is a massive Pro Bass camping store right downtown that permits it. We had a really fun night on the town, culminating in an amazing Blues show where different musicians signed up and rocked the joint as if they had been playing together for years. Boondocking was absolutely fine, although the hangover wasnt so much fun when it's 30C+ when u wake up at 8am. In fact I don't think we've had a day not in the mid 30s (~90s F) for a couple of weeks now.

    Our last stop in Memphis was the National Civil Rights Museum based around the motel where Martin Luther King was shot. It's an incredible museum starting out with the African slaves coming over and how they've had to fight for every single right they have today. Even though the 13th, 14th & 15th ammendments supposedly freed all slaves and made all men equal the federal government never really forced the application through and in the deep South they easily found loopholes & created 'Jim Crow' laws keeping African Americans as second class citizens with inferior education, unable to vote & daily humiliation eg having to give up their bus seats (in fact the whole row) to white people. The bravery of the individuals who did the sit-ins at all white establishments and more so those who took part in the Freedom Rides, who allowed the world to see what was really happening and force through change was unimaginable. The stories of the young girls and boys who went to previously all white schools with military escorts was just gut wrenching, even though they didn't all realise the significance of what was going on at the time they had to deal with the full vitriol of racism.    Read more

  • Elvis LivesElvis Lives Tour
    1
    Day 37

    Ol' Man River

    June 22, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    The next couple of days were spent winding our way down Great River Road, which follows the Mississippi River from the Canadian border to the sea. I think we did Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas (only for an hour, but had to be done) and Louisiana in one day! To be honest it wasn't the most exciting journey with long straight roads cutting through fields of maize, barley and (possibly) tobacco.

    We got back onto the Natchez Trace Parkway and wound our way down to Natchez, taking in emerald mound. Although impressive, this earth mound isn't a patch on what the ancient incas used to build. After lunch at Fat Mama's House (tamales covered in chilli) we cruised on down to New Orleans.    Read more

  • Elvis LivesElvis Lives Tour
    Day 38

    N'awlins

    June 23, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    I finally make it to New Orleans (or N'awlins around here). Jo's been for a work conference and we've been trying to come for a long weekend but never made it. We're finally out of areas that were once British influenced, and instead only the French and Spanish squabbled over, and it shows. Actually it seems as the French is the over riding force, and I'm not complaining with croissants plus coffee & beignets on offer!

    We explored the French Quarter, taking in all the touristy spots that the locals wouldn't be seen dead in. The museum on Katrina and Rita was pretty horrifying but good to see things in a bit more gory detail than we got on the news back home. We ate in a grungy dive bar with acclaimed food, and have to admit the gumbo and rabbit & sausage jambalaya was pretty good. We then did a ghost tour but it was pretty lame snd it seemed every tourist in the city was on a similar tour. Even at 10pm at night it's still hot and sticky (above 30C).

    The next day we lazed around Bayou Segnette State Park as it was so damn hot, and then hit the fiercely air-conned World War 2 Museum. The yanks are amazing at putting on good museums and this place made us feel like we were in 'Band of Brothers' or 'Pacific' (if you haven't seen, watch!), and the Tom Hanks narrated film with vibrating seats and ever changing set was incredible. We had our first fancy meal out (5 weeks in) although we still did BYO, and the creole food was gorgeous. We spent the rest of the evening hitting the bars down Frenchman's Street and checking out more live music. The best was the jazz band in the street and the light bike tour - Happy Friday!    Read more

  • Elvis LivesElvis Lives Tour
    Day 40

    Swamp Thing

    June 25, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    We headed west from N'awlins and stayed off the big roads exploring Cajun Country. Finally found some decent signal (hate to do it but have to go back to Verizon) and had a good yatter with the family back home. Not feeling homesick but now we do feel that we have totally and properly reeelaaaaxed, and only have to think about what to do that day and where we are going next. People are really friendly round here and we are liking Texas much more than we expected we would.

    We found an amazing state park that was basically a swamp, complete with alligators, snakes and slimy things. It was cool walking around in twilight, although we did freak ourselves out a bit once the light went and we had to pick our way through the dark creepy woods home!    Read more

  • Elvis LivesElvis Lives Tour
    Day 42

    Houston, we have had a bit of a problem

    June 27, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

    Isn't it funny how famous phrases are often not quite right, but above is what the actually said (although maybe not what Tom Hanks said).

    Although Houston itself didn't peek our interest (too many big cities over the past few weeks) the Space Centre was hard to miss out on. Again an impressive museum with massive imax theatres, and real rockets to explore. Not only did we touch an actual piece of moon rock, but also one of the capsules that hurtled back from the cosmos.

    We also jumped on a tram tour, which was basically a journey through the working space centre car park, but we did see the actual mission control room as it was in the 60s and where not only those famous words were uttered but also the first words (the eagle has landed) & last words (Houston we're coming home) from the moon were transmitted to - a pretty cool place. It was all abuzz about the next mission the current astronauts in training are preparing for - the first mission to Mars - they reckon sometime in the 2030's!    Read more

  • Elvis LivesElvis Lives Tour
    Day 43

    We have a problem

    June 28, 2016 in the United States ⋅ 🌧 24 °C

    We don't have a problem... It's just that we were in Houston. Didn't mean to upload this yet - sorry if we worried anyone!

  • Elvis LivesElvis Lives Tour
    2
    Day 43

    People Are Strange

    June 28, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    After a hot night in a Walmart carpark (the state park we'd driven to was closed due to flooding, and the two other RV parks looked like the set of 8 Mile), we hightailed it to Austin so we could watch the England vs Iceland match. The less said about that debacle the better... Only positive is we watched it whilst eating doughnut burgers - so wrong, but sooo right!

    We toured the state Capitol & were surprised to find out Texas was part of Spain, France, Mexico and was even an independent country for 10 years.

    Again it was melting hot (has been for weeks) so we spent the next day swimming in McKinley Falls State Park - such fun jumping in off ledges and swimming up as close as you could to the waterfalls before being swept away. We then headed to SoCo (South Congress St) to the legen(... 'wait for it'...)dary, Continental Club where local favourite Toni Price was playing - think Amy Winehouse in 20 years time. It started slowly but ended up being a surreal night once we got chatting with the locals and embraced the true Texan way...    Read more

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