Memphis, TN

When most people envision their Valentine’s Day, they think of a romantic candle lit dinner, chocolates in a red heart-shaped box, and a bouquet of flowers. Maybe they even think of spending it in front of a cozy fire at a ski resort. Well this year, Nisheet got free tickets on Megabus to Memphis. It was quite the experience for me to say the least. I’ve never taken a public bus trip before even though it is economically a great way to travel. We left Chicago really late at night and tried to sleep on the bus, but that really didn’t work out so well. Who takes rest stops in the middle of the night? Bright and early in the morning, we arrived in Memphis. Since it was way too early to even attempt checking into the hotel, we ate some breakfast in a cute little café and walked around with our backpacks all day. Exhausting, but fun!

First up on the list of attractions was Sun Studios. It is a bit of a walk, but it is easily accessible by foot from the downtown area. In case you haven’t heard of Sun Studios (I hadn’t before planning the trip), it is the birth place of Rock N Roll. You are shown lots of old memorabilia and you also get to pretend to be a star in an old recording studio.

Another must do is check out the Peabody hotel. At 11:00am, the ducks ride down the elevator from their home on the roof and walk the red carpet to the lobby fountain. Kind of cheesy weird but quite entertaining. You can also head up to the roof to see the city views and the ducks’ home.

As evening hit, we had one thing in mind. Beale Street! I expected a crowded street with music oozing onto the street. It wasn’t crowded. There weren’t lines. Maybe we hit an off weekend? It was still fun nonetheless. We nibbled on a masterpiece of bbq nachos while listening to some awesome blues music. We also stopped in another place to experience an Elvis impersonator. He came down off the stage during one song, and I got a kiss!

The following day, we visited Graceland. It blew my mind. I grew up in Tennessee and had always heard so much about it, but I had never had an interest in going. It was just Elvis’ home. Who cares? But, Nisheet talked me into checking it out, and I’m so glad he did.
Before I get into how wonderful Graceland is, I need to give some travel tips. (1) We did this whole trip by public transportation, and that didn’t stop when we went to Graceland. We took the bus. I’m not sure I would recommend taking the bus, especially if you a young female going by yourself. However, we made it there and back without an incident, so maybe I’m just paranoid from all the terrible things I heard about Memphis growing up. (2) They have lockers, so if you are carrying a backpack (like us since we had to catch the bus back to Chicago), you can just put them in a locker and not worry about them for the day.

Now onto the details of Graceland. There is so much more to Graceland than the house. We started off in a car museum. This was my least favorite part, so I was happy to get it over with. I know everyone loves to see the pink Cadillac, but really, I couldn’t have cared less. It was a car. It had wheels and a body just like every other car. Nisheet loved it though and could probably have spent hours more looking at the cars and watching the short films if I let him. Then, we did the cool stuff, like touring Elvis’ airplanes. They have two on display. And, they aren’t regular airplanes. One of the planes had a gold sink in the bathroom and a queen bed in the master bedroom.
Elvis’ house was even more impressive than his planes. One of the first things you come across in the house is a 15 foot long white sofa in the living room. Who needs a sofa that long? It was elegantly bizarre and only a taste of the eccentricity to be encountered on the rest of the tour. For example, his billiard room was entirely covered in a pleated fabric with an intricate design, and he had a jungle room complete with horrid furniture, plants, and waterfall. You just have to see this house for yourself to understand the unique craziness.

After a long day at Graceland, it was time for a quick snack of fried okra, and then back on the bus to Chicago.