Memphis in Photos - April 2010

FINALLY - I am able to give you my Memphis Trip in PHOTOS!!! I know its taken me almost a whole week to do this post, but there were over 400 pics that we took, and I still didnt even get the best ones.. But I wanted you all to see my outfits (a few of which were duds) and view all the amazing experiences that we had too.. so, here goes!

THURSDAY
We arrived in Memphis early in the morning. The first stop was the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Hotel.

Airplane and Museum Outfit

Grey jeans - AshleyStewart

grey tank - ???

Purple cardi - Old Navy

grey purse - Aldo

sandals - FashionBug

yellow scarf - ???

The National Civil Rights Museum was amazing. They have truly taken alot of time to really teach about the civil rights movement and how it started and then sadly ended in Memphis in April. Actually, Dr King was assasinated on April 4 and the museum was preparing for a special dedication. The entire experience was very motivating although it was a sad time in American history.

Our lunch was a stop that we found from The FoodNetwork Show - Diners, DriveIns and Dives. This little place called Alcenia's was a dream! The food was delicious and the hospitality was so sweet. It was like having dinner in your grandma's dinning room. All of our food was delicious and freshly made to order.

The last stop for the evening was.. the ducks~ We went to The Peabody Hotel to watch the "marching of the ducks" There is plenty of ritual to this experience and a lenghty history that you can read here if you wish. But it was cute, and definitely an experience to be striked from the bucket list, lol!

FRIDAY

Well, the next day we were off to see the other "king" of Memphis- Elvis Presley. I had mixed thoughts about what this tour was going to be like. But the main reason that we selected Memphis was so that my aunt could get to Graceland. She is a huge Elvis fan, so this was a big dream of hers to get to Graceland.

Elvis Outfit

Jean leggins - Ashley Stewart

Pink Tunic - FashionBug

Flats - Macys

(I wasnt to fond of this outfit, but it was very comfortable and even easier to pack which was great!)

Surprisingly Graceland was an amazing tour. It was like a Disneyland operation. And being in the midst of Graceland really evoked an era and time goneby. It was like Elvis died, and then people just started touring his home the next day. Everything was exactly the same and you were really close to alot of the artifacts. One of the biggest things that really intrigued me was the impact that Elvis had on so many people's lives. I have this one pic of his Racquetball Room that has been transformed into a shrine of sorts for many of his gold albums. Its massive and seeing all of this really made you think about how much larger than life Elvis really was... YUP, I felt good to be able to cross that off of my bucket list.. I saw Elvis!

Our next stop for the day was lunch/dinner. We went to another well known resturaunt from The Food Network, The Neely's. Their barbque is amazing. The only issue I had with them was that there wasnt many veggies on the menu. I cant eat all that meat, all the time. (But it sure was good while it lasted)

Ok, so the day was still not over after all of that. We went to an NBA Basketball game -

The Memphis Grizzlies vs. New Orleans Hornets.

I wasnt as excited about the actual basketball game. But the I do love live sports. There is something about the excitement in the air that gets me excited too. BUT, after the game, was a FREE CONCERT _ KIRK FRANKLIN!!! now that was exciting. We didnt know when we got the tickets that it would include a free concert, but it was so good. Kirk put on a really good show.

SATURDAY

Our last full day in Memphis, yup, we packed it with yet more things to do. We all wanted to see that new Tyler Perry Movie "Why Did I Get Married 2" and I thought it was pretty good. The theatre was packed, but my cousin and I are excellent at logistics, so we were in and out of there, no waiting in line and we got great seats. Its amazing how well we work together.

Movie Outfit

Hubby jeans - FashionBug

Yellow and tan striped cardi - Old Navy

flower pins - Old Navy

flower necklace - Scottsdale, AZ

(this was my favorite outfit of the weekend!)

After the movie, we went to lunch at Texas de Brazil (another meat resturaunt, it was getting rough). The food was tasty, but I was done with eating all the meat. I was ready for some chicken, fish, seafood, or event a vegetarian dish! It was waaay to much for my stomach to process in one weekend. After we left the resturaunt, we walked down to the famous Beale Street. It was so lively and fun. There was plenty of shopping for junk and souvenirs to take home. All in all we had a fabulous time.

Sunday

We got up pretty early and we were home back in Bmore by 11am!

Thanks so much if you actually took the time to read all this. I know it was long post!