The Explore All 50 States Project
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The Hermitage is the beautiful homestead of the 7th president of the United States and Tennessee’s favorite son, Andrew Jackson. These 1,000 acres were transformed from frontier forrest to a prosperous farm that sadly deteriorated into post civil war dilapidation. Finally rescued it is now preserved as a public museum and a National Historic Landmark. As a president Andrew Jackson was both loved and hated and … [Read more...]
My kids and I have never been to Greece, but we can say we visited The Parthenon — in Nashville near the Vanderbilt University campus. This incredible structure is a full-scale replica of the original and was built in 1897 as part of the Tennessee Centennial Exposition. You might recognize it from the movie The Lightening Thief as they used to to film many of the scenes here. Unfortunately, we got there too late … [Read more...]
When we travel, I always look for restaurants that really cater to the local flavor, have a loyal following, and something unique that's a must try and Nashville was no exception. The place everyone seemed to rave about was Rotier’s Restaurant—a hole in the wall and a Nashville institution know for their delicious burgers served on french bread. Apparently this place gets super crowded but since we arrived … [Read more...]
You don't have to be a huge fan of country music to appreciate why Nashville is also known as Music city. Singers and songwriters gravitate here to seek fame and fortune and one of the most iconic places to witness it live is the Grand Ole Opry which depending on what time of year you visit will either be at the Grand Ole Opry House across from Gaylord Opryland Hotel or in Downtown Nashville … [Read more...]
The Tennessee State Capitol Building sadly was one of our least favorites of any we've seen on any trip. I think the building has the potential be be something really special but as it is right now it's in desperate need of some TLC. The colors were super drab, and there were few decorative details except in the legislative chambers. It was super disappointing because our travel buddies Yvonne and her kids had … [Read more...]
Often times traveling with kids can present a challenge when you are searching for some fun activity in the evening especially when you're in a city that has a lively music scene for which it's famous for. We were thrilled to discover that the Wild Horse Saloon was a family friendly place so we put on our cowboy boots and headed over after dinner. Driving past all the neon signs and hearing the live music on the … [Read more...]
I’d promised my kids a trip to Dollywood Splash Country after they’d seen some show about it on TV about the top 10 water parks in the country and it's all they could talk about they were so excited. Sadly, it did not live up to everyone’s expectations which is what usually happens with these large over hyped activities. As we do at every water park, we staked out our chairs and the kids were off and running. … [Read more...]
Pigeon Forge, in addition to lots of family fun amusements, also has a crazy array of wonderful and weird dinner shows. You just cannot visit here without seeing at least one of them. We thought about the Hatfields and McCoys’ dinner show, which I am sure was just a hoot but instead opted for the Great Smoky Mountain Lumberjack Feud Dinner Show. It was a rainy evening so it was perfect since it was all … [Read more...]
It's really hard to explain Pigeon Forge. It's sort of like the Vegas strip but instead of casinos, it's chock full of kitschy entertainment built for family fun. The traffic during the summer was just ridiculous along the main drag as we headed to the Titanic Museum taking about 20 minutes to move about a mile. Thankfully I had already reserved our tickets and if you go I suggest you do the same as this place had … [Read more...]
Juneau, Alaska's state capital was a huge gold mining town in fact the entire town was built on tailings-the gravel and sand left over after the gold is extracted from the ground. Though no more mining takes place in Juneau, we struck gold when we discovered The Twisted Fish. While there are a few dining options in Juneau we found none better than the Twisted Fish and ate 2 lunches and a dinner there and each … [Read more...]
