Nashville like I have never seen it.

I have been to Nashville many times and enjoy the many restaurants more than anything.   The drive to the nearest airport is longer than the flight to Music City.  I usually stay in the downtown area within walking distance of the main attractions.  This most recent trip sent me to the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention center.  I had heard of the place and knew that it had suffered some serious flooding a few years ago.  I had no idea how large the facility was.  It's a city in itself.  The area covers over 100 acres and there are rumors that a water and them park may be built in the near future.

The Opryland hotel is a short distance from the General Jackson Showboat landing.   Our agenda had reservations for dinner and a concert on the showboat.  The concert was a history of country music with some talented artists performing many covers.  The food and drinks were very satisfying during the cruise.

The visit to Opryland was great, but I still had the urge to take a trip downtown to see familiar sites including Demos Steak House and Wildhorse Saloon.

Demo's was also great as usual and my next trip to Nashville will require another meal from the restaurant.  This most recent trip was the first time that I did not have to wait for a table.  I am not sure if that was a sign of the poor economy or just good timing.  As we left the line had formed, so I am guessing that we timed the visit perfectly.

The Wildhorse Saloon was the next stop during the downtown walk.  Wildhorse also has delicious food and great drinks!  I was happy to see that a band was on schedule to perform just after we arrived.  I was shocked when the band was announced.  McKenzies Mill was due to hit the stage at anytime . The guys just happened to be from a town 20 minutes north of Rockingham.  The band put on a great show and I was happy to provide them with photos from the concert.

Several years ago I made my one and only television appearance at the Wild Horse Saloon. The Wildhorse Saloon Dance Show, hosted by Katie Hause was in production the first time I visited Nashville. During a break the host asked me if I wanted to be on television. Of course, I said yes, and she instructed me to think of my favorite country song. Well, I didn't have a favorite country song or any country song that I could think of on the spot. When the time came for me to answer in front of the camera I said "Don't Rock the Jukebox!" If I had known 30 seconds sooner that she was going to ask me to sing the song, I would have declined to offer. It was too late and all I knew to sing was the title of the song. After I belted out "Don't Rock the Jukebox!" I just stood there and looked at the lovely host. She asked me if that was it and I couldn't do anything but shake my head and say "Yes." I still go a free pair of hiking boots out of the 15 second gig!

The stay at Opryland was very nice and I would love to visit again soon.

 

Copyright - Jimmy McDonald Photography

This shouldn't happen!!!  That's all I have to say about that.

Taking the long route to Cherokee

 For  the past two years my family has traveled to over 70 counties of North Carolina to visit and take a picture of the current and previous courthouse buildings.   Most of the remaining counties are in the western part of the state.  We planned a trip for June to locate courthouses for the south western section.  I mapped out that we could drive to approx 11 different counties in one day with our final destination just south of Cherokee in Dillsboro.    A point "A" to point "B" trip would  have been appox 4 hours.  The modified route had us on the road for 11 hours.  With prints outs of each county seat and iPhone GPS we took a very scenic route through the Blue Ridge Mountains.  We made stops in Murphy, Brevard, Hayesville and several other towns.   It's interesting to see how many small towns have been  though or in the process of revitalization.

The route took is up and down winding roads past steep cliffs and waterfalls.  We all slept well after the long day of riding.

The following day was spent site seeing the area including tubing down the Oconaluftee river, indoor putt putt and Paula Deans Kitchen at Cherokee Casino.   Site seeing continued the third day as we visited a few more courthouses with the final destination of the day being Asheville.

We arrive in Asheville in time to get the Buncombe County Courthouse photo and walk around downtown for a couple of hours.  Downtown Asheville was lively as usual with plenty of street performers and bakeries to slip inside for a snack.

You call that roughing it?

Memorial day provided an opportunity for my sister and brother in laws to show us their new camper.  They setup at nearby Sycamore Lodge Campground and offered to keep all of the young kids over night.  Actually, the two brother in laws spent the night.  Sis in law was smart enough to head back to a house with plenty of space and no bugs.

Growing up, I spent many summers with my grandparents and their camper.  I do not remember their camper having an outdoor kitchen, flat screen TVs, cable!!!!!, and part of the camper that slide out to make space.  campers have come a long way!!

I didn't spend the night either.  I preferred the beds in the house.

Farm for sale.

I have passed by this location several times while visiting in Huntersville, N.C.   When I pass by older buildings, I sometimes wonder what they are being used for or what purpose they served in the past.  This day was dreary and the rain was slowly moving away.   As the clouds thinned the sky brightened just in time to allow me to catch a shot of the farm. At the time this farm was for sale.  Hopefully the land will not be purchased for "other' development.

Enjoying the spring season and longer days.

It's much easier to get outdoors during the Spring seasons.  I enjoy walking out of the house each morning and not being slapped in the face by cold wind.  I also like to take advantage of the longer daylight hours to capture new images with the cameras. I enjoy seeing the landscapes fill with color and provide many photo opportunities.  April also means the beginning of a busy wedding season and scheduling some summer vacation trips as often as possible.

I love beach sunrises.

Nearly every time that I get the chance to spend the night at a beach, I attempt to wake up early to drag out a camera and tripod to capture the sunrise.   The photo below was at Myrtle Beach on a cold march morning.  Waking up early and suffering cold wind is worth the view.

Copyright - Jimmy McDonald Photography