374. See the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville

When the hubby decided we could spend two days in Nashville so we could see everything, I was like have to go to the Grand Ole Opry. What is even better it was going to be Saturday night at the Opry so it was the live radio show.

The Grand Ole Opry is the nation's longest running radio show. It's been on the air for over 90 years. It started at the Ryman Auditorium and then moved to the Grand Ole Opry house in the '60s (I believe). I was couldn't wait to go.

I won't lie buying tickets hurt. We spent over $200 on tickets and tour for the Opry, Ryman tour tickets, and parking. I supposed that is pretty cheap considering all we bought and the potential stars we might be seeing.

Unfortunately we saw no big stars of today. Carrie Underwood was there the night before for two shows. Our line up included stars of yesterday: Mike Snider, John Schneider, Jeannie Seely, and Connie Smith. There were no words to describe seeing some of these people on stage. I may have been disappointed with the line up but trust me it was still awesome.

Lillie Mae made her Opry debut and she was probably shaking in her boots. You could barely hear her.. I heard her back up singer more. I was not impressed. It felt like she was lip syncing.

I did find a new favorite group.. Old Crow Medicine Show. Think Alabama. It is a string band complete with a banjo and fiddle. Those boys wanted to make me get down and kick up my boots. I will see them in a show any day.

Fiddler Jesse McReynolds rounded out the line up. The man is over 90 and still playing fiddle at the Opry. He still has it. Connie and Old Crow Medicine Show played a number with him.

After a 90 minute show, we went a backstage tour. You can do the tour before or after the show. We opted to the post-show tour because of our schedule.

There were a lot of people that were there for the backstage tour. What they did was split the large group into small groups of about a dozen each with their own tour guide. Each group started at a different point backstage so there was no waiting around. It was actually very well done.

We saw each of the dressing rooms. Each star has their own dressing room named after or for famous Opry Family members. All stars making their Opry debut gets the same dressing. Each dressing room has it's own them. There are spread around the backstage area.

While we were on tour, Connie Smith walked out. Most of the stars were gone. A few were around but she was the only one that was close enough to us.

We also got to stand in the Circle.. the same circle they took from the Ryman. It is where all the stars stand while on stage at the Opry. I stood where Garth, Keith, Vince, Darius, Dolly, and many others stood.

We saw the green room where the stars and their guests relax before going on stage.

One of my favorite stops was the post office where all the fan mail goes. Each Opry member has their own mailbox.

Also all the Opry Members (220 or so) have their name on the wall. Darius Rucker touches his every show. Those are his fingerprints.

This was probably my favorite part of the entire trip (except maybe for surprising "Dad"). It can leave you speechless. I have the say though the benches aren't all that comfy but they are true to the Original Opry.

Even if you don't see a show at the Opry or not into Country Music, go and tour the Opry. It is a piece of history. I'd even recommend seeing a show if you can. They have shows either at the Opry or the Ryman just about every night of the week. I'm hoping next trip through Nashville we might be able to catch another show at either the Opry or Ryman.

4217. Go to Cooter’s Place in Nashville

I stumbled upon Cooter's searching for something else for our trip to Nashville and decided we HAD to go. Luckily it was by the Grand Ole Opry so we didn't even have to go out of our way.

Cooter's Place is a museum and gift shop ran by Ben Jones, who played Cooter on the Dukes of Hazard. There are replica's of all the cars out front and inside for you to take pictures of along with oodles of Dukes of Hazard Memorabilia. There is no admission to the museum but if you want to sit in the cars, there is a picture taking fee. You can take pictures of the cars from a distance for free. We opted to pay $10 each to have our picture taken in each of the four cars with our cell phones. You could have get a picture package from them for more.

We got to sit in Cooter’s Tow Truck

Daisy’s Jeep

Rosco’s Patrol Car -- the hubby's favorite

General Lee

The museum was literally the back of the store and it was filled with all sorts of memorabilia from the show along with other collectibles. There was even a replica of the village.

The shop itself is a typical souvenir shop. Packed with everything and anything to do with the Dukes of Hazard. I expected it to be not busy but on an early Saturday evening it was packed. Everyone was getting their Dukes of Hazard souvenir. 

A couple of tips if you decide to check it and any Dukes of Hazard fan should

1. Be prepared to wait to check out. Only one register and there is probably going to be a long line. 

2. You must wait in said line to purchase tickets (or show your tickets your bought online)

3. If you decide to go with the picture taking experience, it probably only takes 5-10 minutes depending on how many are in your group and how many cars you want to sit in. 

4. The parking lot isn't very big so you may have to park in the hotel or restaurant lots nearby.

With that being said, go check it out. The hubby doesn't think it will be around for more than 20 more years or so.. plenty of time. It's quirky nostalgia for anyone that grew up watching the Duke's of Hazard or the reruns.

4211. See Johnny Cash’s Grave in Hendersonville

While helping a coworker plan a road trip to Florida, I stumbled upon the location of Johnny and June Carter Cashs' graves near Nashville. Knowing the hubby is a big Johnny Cash fan, I saw that this was totally doable, slightly out of the way but fit in the schedule.

Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash's graves are located in Hendersonville about 20 minutes outside of downtown Nashville. Depending on the time of day and traffic this little jaunt could take an hour or more. Because we went on a Saturday afternoon and were headed away from downtown we had no issues. 

The graves are located in Hendersonville Memory Gardens. They are relatively easy to find.. if you actually read your Googlemap directions correctly. They are pretty much at the front of the cemetery. There is a very short little walk up a slight incline to the the actual graves. You can't miss them. There are usually other people paying their respects to the man in black.

If the hubby wasn't such a big fan, I probably won't even have thought twice about going here but since he was we made the trip and the hubby was able to pay his respects. Any Johnny Cash fan should put this on their bucket list. It is a quick stop to pay your respects. You can leave flowers if you choose to do so.

4278. Visit Jack Daniel Distillery in Lynchburg

The hubby wanted to go to Jack Daniel's Distillery in Lynchburg if it wasn't out of the way. I think it added an hour of drive time.. maybe. Really not of out of the way. It actually broke up the drive between Atlanta and Nashville.

However, like I said in a previous post, the hubby didn't want to taste any Jack. Luckily for us and the the teetotalers in the world, Jack Daniel Distillery offers Dry County Tours which basically the tour without the tasting at the end. They also offer several tasting tours. The tours used to be free but now they start at $15/adult. We bought our tickets ahead of time on line to guarantee the time slot we wanted to fit everything in.

We checked into our tour 30 minutes or so before hand like they require. Then we waited... and waited.. and waited. While we waited we checked out the few exhibits in the visitor center and browsed the Jack Store. The only thing you can buy at the gift shop is Jack Daniels Whiskey. You can get bottles engraved as well. If you are looking for other souvenirs, you need to hit up the General Store or official Jack Daniel's Store in the town square where you will get a free shot glass or two with a $10 purchase.

Finally they called our tour. They were several tours that were leaving around the same time. You had to make sure you went with the right group. A pre-tour photo was required. I am not sure where you could buy those pictures afterwards but I'm sure they were somewhere in the visitor center. Then we boarded a bus to take us to the beginning of the tour.

The entire tour is a walking. It does include hills and stairs. You start off learning the history of Jack Daniel and how he learned to make whiskey. You learn the history of the distillery as well.

The tour takes you to the cave where Jack first set up his first still and still has the ice cold natural spring water flowing through it which is still used to make Jack Daniel's today.

We saw Jack's office and learned how he eventually died. Jack and a safe got into a fight... Jack eventually succumbed to his death from the wounds his sustained in the fight.

The infamous safe

After the history lessons, we moved inside to the actual distillery buildings. We could take any pictures inside the buildings.. something about technology and alcohol fumes and not wanting to go boom. I suppose that would be a big liability.

I wish I got a picture of the hubby smelling the mash. Let's just say it will clear up your sinuses.

Our last stop was one of the many barrel houses on the property where we saw the whiskey aging in the barrels. Each barrel weighs about 500 pounds so it is not easy to sneak one out of there. The placement of the barrels in the barrel house determines the type of whiskey that is being made. It has to do with the heat in the barrel house and other factors.

It was a great tour. I recommend it to anyone passing through the area. The tour itself is about an hour and 15 minutes. I still wish the hubby wanted to do the tasting. That would have made a perfect day. Maybe one day I can convince him.