Oot & Aboot: Walking in Memphis

It’s time to say farewell to Nashville. It’s a shame as I have really loved Nashville, but I am looking forward to seeing Memphis. I’m up for another flight on Northwest airlines. My shuttle picks me up at a reasonable time in the morning which is a nice change. I’m going through the usual panic about my luggage and the will I or won’t I get through without being penalized. I get to the counter at Northwest and notice the attendants are checking people on in front of the desks. It’s looking positive. I get a guy to check me in, so I try and act as nice as possible to stop him paying attention to my luggage. To my absolute luck he doesn’t even attempt to see how heavy my luggage is and just puts the tags on and wishes me a safe journey. What this guy doesn’t know is that I could have kissed him I was so happy. This huge relief came over me as I’m thinking, ‘awesome, I got through one more flight pain free’.

I get through security, where you have to always take off your shoes, and even jumpers if they look baggy. I had to take mine off leaving a thin white singlet with a bright bra underneath. It did not look good. I did fit the ‘white trash’ look of the area though. The plane is running on time so I just sit around waiting for it to show. I buy a couple of mags and try to stay awake. Well it’s on to the flight and I get to my seat and totally jam my carry on as I try and squeeze it in the overhead. Seriously, I am dam lucky it fit. I must thank lovely American men everywhere who are always in arms reach to help me with my luggage, and it’s been often!

After an exceptionally short plane ride, we are talking like half an hour, I’ve landed in Memphis. If I wasn’t sure where I had landed, I only had to check out the first shops that grab my attention. There is an Elvis store, which is adjacent to a Sun Studios store. Yes, I am in the land that Elvis built. I had a bit of a chuckle after I saw that.

I head out to find a airport shuttle to get to my hotel. I see a guy I recognized from the flight and asked if he knew where to go. He told me he was waiting for the Heartbreak Hotel courtesy shuttle. Well lucky I asked him as that’s exactly where I was to head to. So I wait with him and his friends until the shuttle shows. It doesn’t show for another 20 minutes, but hey, I guess it’s free so it’s worth waiting for. We get the shuttle and only five minutes later we are at the Elvis Presley Heartbreak Hotel. The hotel looks pretty funky and plays Elvis tunes and shows Elvis movies in the lobby. I’m there at about 12pm and I’m told I can’t check in until 4pm. Oh crap. Not even a smidge earlier, after i beg a little. So I go onto the internet to waste some time, then I head out to find some food somewhere. I end up at the Rockabilly Diner where I get myself a chicken burger. Yes, another burger. Well it was that or a fried peanut butter and banana sandwich, Elvis’s favourite.

I head back to the hotel after looking around shops and eating to fill in time. I’m asking for my room at 3.50pm and they say to me that they may have something ready. How can it take five hours to clean the rooms!? I’m told I’m lucky that my room is ready and I head upstairs to the third floor. The rooms are nice and large. Thankfully the hotel offers a free shuttle to Beale St, so I put my name down for the 7pm shuttle. I have some time between then and now so I get 40 winks, then shower and change. I head downstairs to the shuttle and make my way to Beale St. Beale St is the big attraction in downtown Memphis and it’s famous for its jazz and rock bars plus southern food restaurants. I decide on Blues City Café for some dinner. I figure that I should try the local food and choose some hot tamales and a cup of seafood gumbo. My food arrives a short time later and it looks…errr…interesting. I try and cut the tamales and have difficulty, but finally do and just as I eat a piece the waitress walks by and says, ‘you have to take them out of the paper first’ I almost died! I quickly looked around and hoped no one saw me eat paper. I felt slightly better when I overheard her saying the same thing to someone else 30 seconds later. I didn’t like the tamales all that much and wont be eating them again. My gumbo looks very much like clam chowder except with rice in it. I eat it and it tastes like chowder, but just has more ingredients. I don’t mind it, but can safely say I won’t be eating it again.

After dinner I walked Beale St. It was busy out, with many people drinking on the streets. I stumbled across some live jazz in a park along the street. So I buy myself a Beale Big Ass Beer and take a seat and enjoy the jazz. I talk to a North Carolina gentleman and we both laugh at the really wrong dancing by some serious drunks in front of us. I have a blast! Once the jazz players had finished up I headed to the closest bar to catch the end of an Elvis impersonator show. He does a great show and his costume is wicked. He tells me it was made by the same tailor who did Elvis’s. I get a photo with him and his autograph (I don’t know why I’d want that, it’s not actually Elvis) and tell him that no, I can’t go on his Harley with him tomorrow.

Well after a great night out on Beale I get myself back to the spot the shuttle will pick me up and get me back to the hotel.

What I learnt in Memphis today:

Memphis is music. That’s all there is too it.
Try the local foods if you can, but just don’t expect to always like them.
You cant go to Memphis and not get to meet an Elvis impersonator, they are a trip.