Saturday July 19th, 2008: For a trip that was planned only 12 hours before go-time, we are really pleased with the results.
On this Trip:
1. Stones River Battlefield - Murfreesboro, TN
2. Nashville's Farmer's Market - Nashville, TN
3. Opry Plaza Party! - Nashville, TN
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Limited Saturday started at 9:00AM and gas was at $3.79/gal. Our first stop was an hour away to a place we visited not too long ago: Stones River Battlefield Park in Murfreesboro, TN. But this time it was all about the roar of the cannons and the Union vs the Confederates.
Time of arrival - 11:30AM. Nowplayingnashville.com indicated that shows run every half hour. Not true. Next performance wouldn't go live until 1:00PM so we decided to unpack our lawn chairs and wait but with the humidity at almost 90% and a temperature of 91 and rising we were back inside the Murano in no time.
The show was nothing "wow" and only lasted 30mins. Five different cannons aligned facing the battlefield were shot by military men (well, people in uniform from the era at least):
It was definitely an experience! The narrator warned the crowd to cover their ears and of course, yours truly was trying to take pictures with the new Nikon gambling between taking the picture or just save my hearing capability.
The show started with the firing of the cannons one by one followed by a short summary of the events that took place on this area on December 31, 1862. After that, the firing continued for one last time with all cannons at the same time. Only one of them failed to perform according to standards and we witnessed the correct procedure to re-fire a cannon by the crew.
Time of departure: 1:45PM
enroute to Nashville's Farmer's Market.
Of course, downtown is nothing less than a labyrinth decorated by tall buildings and green parks. In other words, we got lost thanks to Google Maps and by the time we got to our destination it was 2:30PM. This means that the Summer Grill Party was done and over with, the whole purpose for this stop. But we were glad we did since this was our first time at the market and we found out that it is three different buildings with something for everybody: first the market, the second one is kind of a food court (kind-a), and the last one is a huge flea market zone with everything from AVON deodorants to crappy incense oils. We're definitely coming back (at least for the produce!).
Time of departure: 3:30PM
enroute to the Grand Ole Opry for the Opry Plaza Party.
Lost again. Google took us to the Opryland Hotel which is NOT the same as the Opry Plaza. To our suprise it sits right besides the parking lot for the Opry Mills Mall.
But this time we made it on time! (or so we thought). The details for the event said it was scheduled to start at 5:30PM and we were there at 4:30PM. Again under depressing humidity levels paired with a very hazy sky that hour of waiting felt like an eternity. A BBQ sandwich ($5) and chips ($1) and a potato salad for Kari ($1.25) to support the event since entrance was free. Sodas were "only" $3 for a 20oz and that's when we decided to stop our support since we were lucky enough to have some left back at the truck. So, we made like 5 trips back-and-forth to get more soda and Kari to get moist towelettes through the whole evening to keep ourselves hydrated.
Show finally started at 6:00PM and the first segment featured Mary Sue England and Victoria Banks:
They really do rock but we both agreed that Victoria Banks is definitely the one that shines on this group. Amazing voice and extremely good lyrics.
At 8:00PM it was time for Tift Merrit and we aplauded because everybody else did since we didn't have a clue who she was... but after her performance all we can say is that she is GOOD! Multi-talented (played the guitar, piano, harmonica, and of course, vocals) and very, very active on the stage. Wouldn't stop moving! But that hour and a half really grabbed me by the horns and made me a follower. Kari said she couldn't understand her but for me it was all about the Alanis-eque voice that captivated and made me a fan.
Time of departure: 9:30PM
enroute back home!
As the title of this post reads, these were 14 hours of getting lost without a clear plan but at the end we ended up with extremely satisfying results! Expenses were less than $100 ($35 of it on gas) and we finally got home at 11:00PM all sticky, sweaty, and with a clear idea in mind: jump in bed and call it a day (we did by 12 midnight).
