Memphis - (Continued)
We started our day with breakfast at an IHOP. Then it was off to Graceland for the Elvis tour we had postponed. The parking attended honored the validated receipt we had received the day before. There are several tour packages offered at Graceland and they are not cheap. We purchased the Elvis Experience tour which came to $71/person after applying our 10% AAA discount. The tour started with us viewing a short film about Graceland before being let outside to board a shuttle bus. The shuttle bus took us across the street to Elvis' mansion. We were given a tablet and head phones that allowed us to hear pre-recorded commentary about each room we visited in the mansion. You walk through the home at your own pace. The tablet allows you to a choose a language for the narration. I decided to be adventurous and chose French. Learning to speak the language has been a hobby of mine for many years now. It was not too bad. The narrator did not speak the rapid French that I have heard on the streets of Paris, but still, I had to concentrate at times to understand.
The mansion was fun to explore. I especially liked the pool table room with its upholstered ceiling and walls. We explored others parts of the property such as the racquetball building where there is a racquetball court, a pinball machine, and other diversions that used to keep Elvis and his guests entertained.
Out in the yard, we saw where Elvis kept his horses. There were horses grazing in the field while were there. Finally, just before exiting the mansion grounds, we saw the graves of Elvis and several of his family members. It had taken Traci and me a little over an hour to visit the mansion.
We boarded the shuttle which took us back to the main campus of Graceland. This was when we realized just how big Graceland is. Over the next three hours, Traci and I would wander through museums dedicated to various aspects of Elvis' life. There was a building that showcased his extensive car collection. There was one that presented his military career. There was one dedicated to his costumes. There were many more buildings. There was even a museum dedicated to his daughter, Lisa-Marie. Traci really enjoyed the Elvis Presley's Memphis building. It contains interactive exhibits that allow you to insert yourself in a movie scene or concert with Elvis and then post your results to social media. In addition to the museums, there are restaurants and souvenir stores at Graceland. We did not visit everything that was offered on the campus. Before leaving Graceland, we took a walk over to check out Elvis' private planes. There were two of them. We were able to board them and learn about how Elvis and his guests traveled. Graceland turned out to be a pleasant visit. I recommend it regardless of whether or not you are an Elvis fan.
golden faucets inside Elvis' airplane
After leaving Graceland, the pressure was off of me as far as making sure we had a sightseeing itinerary for this trip. The rest of the weekend was dedicated mostly to Traci's running events. We returned the rental car to the airport and then took a Lyft to the Westin Memphis Beale Street hotel in downtown Memphis. It was one of the hotels recommended by the St. Jude Marathon. It was a great recommendation because it was in walking distance to all of the weekend marathon events in addition to major Memphis attractions. Even though the hotel is just around the corner from the sometimes boisterous Beale Street, our room on the 9th floor was very quiet. I was surprised to learn that Westin is now part of the Marriott family. This helped us earn more Marriott loyalty points.
That evening we walked to the runners' expo at the convention center so that Traci could use her running merchandise credit she earned for raising more than $3,000 to donate to St. Jude Childrens Resarch Hospital! The convention center is located about a mile from the Westin hotel. We had considered taking Uber or Lyft to get there mainly because we did not know what type of streets we would be walking in the dark. We decided to take our chances with walking when we saw that the ride share price at that time of the day to go 1 mile cost more than the 10-mile trip we had just done from the airport. Besides, we figured there was safety in numbers. The city was host to 17,000 runners from all over the country. The walk was not bad; however, we did witness two drug deals.
On the way back from the expo, we stopped at the Peabody Hotel for the St. Jude Heroes Pasta Party. It was the official pasta dinner for those like Traci who had raised funds for St. Jude. In addition to the pasta meal, there were presentations and awards. This was my first time in a large reception hall with hundreds of people since before the start of the pandemic. I felt uneasy since we were still in the pandemic. Traci and I kept our masks on. We only removed them briefly to eat our meal. Continue...
