722. Fearlessly Failing: Nashville & Memphis Travel Guide

Righto! I was luck enough to spend 3 days in Memphis and an Afternoon in Nashville. I'm a bit of a music nerd so this is very much an musical adventure. Here's my itinerary and handy travel tips:

3 DAYS IN MEMPHIS:

DAY 1:

• Mum and I met at Memphis airport
• I got a 6AM flight out of LA then flow into Austin Texas and got a connecting flight to Memphis, all up it took about 6 and half hours.
• Explored Beale St which is full of bars and music venues
• It’s located in downtown Memphis
• Renowned for its deep roots in blue music
• Then we headed to Blue City Cafe which is known for its famous ribs, which naturally I had to try, they came with coleslaw and spies beans, so yum!
• Mum got the seafood gumbo (which comes with okra) and she got “Larry’s greens” which was more like collard greens and absolutely delis.
• I had a Tennessee whiskey and mum had a Pino Grigio from California

DAY 2:

• Sun Studio tour, ok this was incred, its $20 and you legit get to stand where Elvis and Johnny Cash wrote so much magic
• So its a rock-n-roll recording studio and it’s legit still there, the sound proof tiles in the ceiling and walls, the same piano with a cigar burn in it.
• Sam Phillips created Sun Studio and built it up to be what it became.
• They even have one of the microphones Elvis used
• This has been the place so many iconic artists have written music; Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash started their careers
• Fun fact: its also a coffee shop and the coffee is delis (local roasters called French Truck Coffee)
• In this arvo mum and I split up, she really wanted to head to the Civil Rights museum and its also the location where Martin Luther King was shot.
• I went to the STAX museum of American Soul music its where Otis Redding recorded a bunch of music. It was an old movie theatre converted into a recording studio.
• Isaac Hayes also wrote his famous Shaft theme song here, and this museum houses both his Oscar and Grammy, oh and don’t forget his Cadillac.
• I’m so glad I visited this museum, it felt really special
• Then I met mum for dinner at Flyway brewery and I had a really nice local whiskey called “Old Dominique” I got a bowl of Brussels sprouts, then mum and I shared a plate of pickles and she got some cheesy dip situation.

DAY 3:

• It’s Graceland Day!
• We pre-booked our tickets for an 11AM start time, now if you’re staying downtown like us then you’ll def need to uber to this location
• We met for a coffee first, went to a little cafe called French Truck Coffee (local roasters)
• Then we headed to Graceland, straight out of the gate its HUGE! It’s like an Elvis Disneyland and they’ve thought of absolutely everything. There’s 6 different gift shops and 10 museums outside of the the Graceland house.
• We spent the whole day here, legit didn’t leave until it closed at 5PM so my first tip is plan to spend the day if you want to see everything.
• It started with an audio guided tour of Graceland and the mansion is as you would imagine it, exactly how he would have had it. The dinning room is complete with silverware that was gifted to Elvis and Pricilla from their wedding.
• My two favourite areas were his “jungle room” which was green and inspired by his time in Hawaii, and complete with an indoor waterfall.
• I also loved his meditation area which is also where he’s been buried, along with his parents, great grandmother, daughter and grandson. I found the memorial meditation area really emotional. I popped my hands on the grass where his grave is and thanked him, I also made a secret wish.
• If you’re an Elvis fan then this place is an absolute must!
• Then we went to dinner at an Elvis inspired diner called “Marlowe’s” just down the road, I of course had to try the ribs, they were insanely good, I tried a Kentucky whisky this time. It was $5.50 and the brand was Kentucky Deluxe.
• The ribs, beans and coleslaw were all 10/10
• Then we headed home and mum packed for Chicago while I packed up for my Nashville adventure tomorrow. Thanks for having us Memphis! Next up is Nashville!

• 1 DAY in NASHVILLE (well more like an afternoon)

  Here’s how it started:

  - I caught a bus from Memphis to Nashville, its about 3 hours and 15 mins, I booked via the company “Vonlane” its a luxury bus service so you get blankets, snacks, a meal, coffee and wifi. I was a happy camper! It’s really pretty countryside too, so lush and green and lots of river systems.

  - My grand plan was to hit the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum first then head to the Johnny Cash Museum and end with some famous Nashville fried chicken. My flight wasn’t til 8PM so I figured I could cram a lot into 5 hours! Here’s how it went:

  - I got dropped off downtown Nashville and the hotel I was dropped at stored my suitcase for me, that was a huge help and I high tailed it to the Johnny Cash Museum first, because that was my top priority, I really wanted to make sure that happened. And I’m so glad I did it!

  - JOHNNY CASH MUSEUM is a must if you’re a fan of his music. Give yourself a good 2 hours if you want to take the time to see everything. I had no idea he was an actor as well and he had his own TV show (The Johnny Cash Show). There’s so much magic there, def pop it on your Nashville list.

  - Then I just explored Broadway for an hour or so, it felt like the Times Square of Nashville, so much hustle and bustle. Lots of live music, bars, cowboy boots and hats. Very fun atmosphere, it would be such a fun place for a Bachelorette or Birthday celebration!

  - Then I headed to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. This place is pretty huge (it’s a self guided tour), when you get in they take you up to level 3 where there a special Dolly Parton exhibition on, then the top level is all the older music (thats my fave to be honest), they had other one of Elvis’ Cadillacs, this one was gold plated, complete with a TV and telephone inside it. There was a little bit go Johnny Cash, June Carter and Maybelle Carter things too, but not as much as the Johnny Cash museum. Then when you head downstairs you get to explore the current artists, lots of Tay Tay and a whole section just for Luke Combs. Really cool, I love the Post Malone bit too. Then my fave part was the rotunda which is the very end of the tour which is where the hall of fame bit comes into play, this is where those that have been inducted have bronze casts of their faces, and there’s wishing well here too, the energy feels really special and the sound is so perfect in there. I stood in the middle of the rotunda and made a wish for the Bosso and then one for me. Def worth a visit in you’re into music, def a lot more current stuff.

  - Then I still had an hour before I had to head to the airport so I went to this famous hot chicken placed called Hattie B’s and it only exists in Nashville, I got a chicken sandwich (which is really a burger, thats just what Americans call it) with fries and a diet coke (I saw someone on TikTok call a diet coke a fridge cigarette, lol thats exactly what it feels like on the rare occasion I sneak one in).

  - After that delish meal, I got an uber to the airport, the flight from Nashville to LAX is about 3 hours and 45 mins, so not too bad at all. I got a snack at the airport, there’s this donut place called “Voodoo Donuts” I got a maple bar and a Romeo raspberry, both unreal!

  - On the plane home I watched Landman, brilliant series by Taylor Sheridan. On the way there I watch Lioness, also created by Taylor Sheridan.

  Righto, hope you loved my Nashville & Memphis travel guides!

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