We left Memphis and drove up the I-40 across half of Tennessee to Nashville. Along the way, we crossed the Tennessee River, and spied the marina where we would be staying in less than a week at Cuba Landing. This was our first time in Nashville and it was even more of a spectacle to see than Memphis.

Nashville, named for Revolutionary War hero Francis Nash, quickly grew and became a prosperous port city on the Cumberland River in the early 19th century and was one of the first Confederate capitals to succumb to Union troops in the Civil War. We took a walk by the waterfront, where we could see the docks that we could have stayed at, right in front of the Titan's Stadium - and saw that there were several empty spots. Kind of annoying, but we later found out that only two of the available 4 slips had power - so it probably wouldn't have worked out so well anyway, given the cold rainy weather that greeted us and stayed with us our entire visit. The Nashville waterfront has some recreated log cabins that replicate the original settlement on the river.

Continuing up Broadway, the street came alive with neon lights, country music and thousands of revelers - all out on a rainy Thursday night. Nashville is supposedly the bridal party capital of the US, after Las Vegas - who knew? Right off Broadway is the famous Ryman Theatre, better known as the Grand Ole Opry building, when that was featured on TV regularly in the 60's and 70's. The Ryman Theatre has undergone an extensive renovation since the 1970's when it was abandoned and nearly torn down, and has a great self-guided tour. Of course there is also the Country Music Hall of Fame, in which one could spend hours and hours. Just seeing the two cities of Memphis and Nashville - so close to each other geographically, with very different musical traditions that have each become world-famous centers of musical innovation is really astounding. If you have never given much thought to Tennessee, you should come down here and see it for yourself.

The city also houses a major medical complex within the University of Tennessee in addition to major educational institutions like the Vanderbilt University (that it's own benefactor and namesake never visited). A major industry of the city is of course the music business and there are dozens and dozens of recording studios and music venues and convention centers and theaters. As the capital of Tennessee it has an extensive government complex right in the city overlooking the skyscrapers that make up the city scape. This is not a provincial country town, but a major cosmopolitan metropolis, hiding in plain sight.

There is a plenty of good food in Nashville too all along Broadway. One of the more unusual restaurants is site of the Woolworth lunch counter protests - where the original lunch counter is still in place within the surroundings of a hipper restaurant with an obviously updated menu. Another treat was the Standard at the Smith House, where Mrs. Smith shows you to your table, and treats you to a 5-star meal. The night we were there - a Halloween Ball was going on in the back, so we felt a bit underdressed.

After a great three days, we had to leave and go back to see the Salty Dog sitting by herself all week up in Kentucky. We missed her.