Don't step on my blue suede shoes

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We got to Graceland at 3:40….we got tickets and audio equipment for the tour then took a shuttle to the house. We were dropped off at the front steps of Graceland. The house was named after the original owner’s Aunt Grace….Elvis liked the name so much that he kept it. He bought the house when he was 21 for $100,000.00.

We were very fortunate that we arrived so late in the day because it was virtually empty. This enabled us to move at our own pace. After a brief intro from an employee we entered the house. Once inside, our first stop was the living room. From there we saw the dining room and the kitchen and then headed downstairs to the entertainment room and the billiards room. We went back up and saw the “Jungle Room” which had green shag carpet on the floor and the walls, along with some funky furniture, a handcrafted waterfall and some tacky dead animals scattered throughout. We wandered the grounds and saw the office his father worked out of, the pool, the horse stables, the awards room and the racquetball court. Our last stop was the meditation garden where Elvis, his father, mother and paternal grandmother are buried. There was also a memorial plaque for his twin brother who died at birth.


We stopped in the gift shop for some postcards and a magnet and then drove over to our motel. When we pulled up it was REALLY shady looking, and since we didn’t have to leave a credit card # for a reservation, we thought it best to find someplace else to stay. We found a Quality Inn a few miles away that was reasonably priced and SAFE. We dropped off our stuff, put our hats on and headed down to Beale Street for dinner. We drove alongside the Mississippi River, parked in a lot and walked over to Beale St. I love the Marc Cohn song, “Walking In Memphis” so it was exciting for me to stand on the very street that he sang about.

The street was packed with people, you could smell the fried catfish and hear the great blues music coming from the restaurants. We walked around, taking in the sights, smells and sounds and then decided to eat at Miss Polly’s. We started with some fried green tomatoes, then I had the Flat Tire Special which was chicken fried chicken (it’s the lazy way to eat it…no bones), mac and cheese (which congealed after 5 minutes), jalapeno corn bread and mashed potatoes. Jared had the same sides, but with two pieces of fried chicken. It was finger licking good 😉

After dinner we went to an Irish Pub (we just can’t stay away from them!) and listened to the dueling piano’s. I have been to many dueling piano bars, but this one guy there was the best I have ever seen/heard. He was very entertaining, with a great voice. He played “Summer Highland Falls” for me, and a Jimmy Buffet song that I requested as well.

We left Beale Street fairly early b/c we knew we were getting up early the next day to make it to New Orleans. On the way back to the motel I pulled into a parking lot and we sat on a bench and watched the barges floating down the Mississippi.

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