Grand Ole Opry really is grand!

Dave and I just spent 5 days in Nashville. Our son and daughter-in-law, along with Daves brother and sister-in-law, joined us and we had such a good time. We started off our day with a little sightseeing in Nashville proper. I highly suggest doing this prior to spending an evening downtown. It was great to get a feel for the place before the day light is all gone. As you are walking along, most of the bars have windows that open up onto the street and you can hear live music from almost all of them as you walk along. Good music at that! (You will notice fewer pictures in this post because most of them include all of us together having fun).

What we didn’t think about is that the “party” streets of Nashville are right in the middle of downtown. People are working in the very buildings we are seeing even though the bars and live music are all within a few blocks. You can be standing on a rooftop deck enjoying an adult beverage and businesses just continue to operate all around you. Another amazing thing we saw were the number of bachelorette parties that take place in Nashville. I never knew how popular this location was to ride around in a party bus and just have fun. It was quite amazing to see all the tops of the buses filled with women dancing around and having a good time, day and night. (Nope – no pictures of that!)

Night in Nashville is an experience to behold. Dave and I kept thinking it would be similar to the French Quarter and Bourbon Street in New Orleans, and actually, it’s nothing like that. There is a large police presence that is there if you need them but stays out of the way if you don’t. They close down the street around 9 pm for all the visitors to walk between the different bars and to hear the musicians. The streets are very clean and there is a ton of space, so you don’t feel crowded as you walk along. And the music!!!!!! So much music is just pouring out the open windows and doors. They can be right next to each other, and both are playing loudly, yet you can tell which musician is in which bar. It is crazy loud as you walk along and yet somehow it all works together to be an enjoyable experience. We found a few bars that we tried out and of the 4 we visited, there were 2 that topped our list. Crazy Horse was by far our favorite. It’s large, has plenty of seating, and you can actually get out on the dance floor for a little line dancing.

Our last night there, we went to the Grand Ole Opry. I remember my folks listening to this on the radio when I was a kid and after attending a show, we can honestly say it is one of the best experiences we have had to date. The variety of music and comedy makes the 2 1/2 hours just fly by. The seating is comfortable, and they have large screens that are mounted so you can see close-up what’s happening on the stage, even if your seats are a little further back. We had Grammy award winners performing, new singer debuts, current performers and comedy. We laughed so hard when Gary MuleDeer did part of his routine. We had never seen him before, and his act is worth the price of the ticket alone. It was a wonderful evening and when, not if, but when we go back to Nashville, we will most definitely see another show. Every show is different, and you never know who will be performing.

Dave and I spent Sunday night in Nashville after the family had left, just relaxing and maybe napping. We will be headed to Paducah, KY on Monday for a week, or maybe longer, if it’s still cold in Northern Minnesota. The only negative about Nashville is where we stayed. I was extremely disappointed with our site and the cabin we rented for the family. For the price, we could have stayed in a nice hotel and been much more comfortable. Think about that if you are traveling to Nashville yourself. (I provided a review for the Nashville KOA and for some reason it’s not showing up on their website. I am thinking they may have a way to limit what reviews people see on their website and that’s why it’s rated high vs. the actual review rating it should be showing).

Nashville is such a small part in overall Tennessee, so we’ll definitely be back to actually spend some time in the state itself. From what we saw so far, it’s definitely worth our time and I can’t wait to explore it further in the future.

See ya on the road,

Dave and Theresa