Memphis and Graceland

09/04/2019 - Today we drove 228 miles to Memphis.  We parked in Elvis Presley Blvd. RV Park.  What a horrid park--- unlevel spots, no pool, no dog park, no trees (only gravel and dirt), a wi-fi that doesn't work, and proprietors who don't seem to care.  TripAdvisor will hear about it, so will my RV Trip Wizard software guys.  On top of all that, it was 102 degrees with 60-70 percent humidity.   When Trish went to hook up, she had to pull an empty water bottle out of the sewer connection.

After we all got hooked up and dogs settled, we were all worn out .  We stayed in and stayed cool.  I fixed the ravioli for dinner.



09/05/2019 - Today is our tour of Graceland. 
It is only 1/2 mile from the campground. We entered the visitor center, a large complex of buildings built in 2017 for $22 million.  It housed several museums, a cafe, and the visitor where we got our tickets for the mansion.  We waited in line for our 10:00 tour, then boarded a shuttle that took us across Elvis Presley Blvd to the mansion.
Graceland Mansion

Elvis bought this house for $102,000 in 1957 when he was only 22, and 1 year after he became a star.  It included the house, a garage,  and 13.8 acres of land.  The original owners built it in 1939, and one of the family was named Grace.  That is how it got its name.

The house is really not a mansion, although people call it that.  It is a two story house of 17,500 square feet.  We only saw the main floor.  Since Elvis died in 1977 in his master bathroom on the second floor, it is closed to the public.  The furnishings are from the 70's .  I took several pictures.

A picture of  the home he was born in, in Tupelo, TN
The Living Room
opposite side of the living room
Front entry - notice the "P" over the front door
a side view of the house
Taken early.  Notice that he was a natural blonde.
He dyed his hair black for his entertaining image
His grave behind the Meditation garden

While we were shuttled back to the Visitor Center, the driver told us that Graceland is the second most-visited house in the US, behind the White House.  We looked at some memorabilia and some cars, then had lunch in the cafe. It was a pretty bad buffet.
Elvis' famous pink 1955 Cadillac


At 5:00, we all left for the Bass Pro Shop in Memphis, a glass pyramid.  A couple we met at the campground told us about it, and said the elevator to the top was a must.  It was $10, but if you had dinner up there, they gave you a credit of $10 on your dinner.  They also said the food was pretty good.

t was originally built as a sports arena, but a couple of originators of the Bass Pro Shop made a bet that if anyone could catch a 30 pound bass , they would turn it into a Bass Pro Shop.  Well, I guess you know the end of that bet---A very big Bass Pro Shop was born inside the glass pyramid.


09/06/2019 - A driving day to

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