And I was Walking In Memphis...

Going in to my first trip to Memphis, I did not know what to expect. But I did know one thing...I was looking forward to visiting a new city for the first time in a while. The location of my hotel was not ideal...it was about a forty dollar cab ride to downtown...and it was in the "rough" part of town. We learned during our trip that there was a good risk of us witnessing crime in that area of town...which is why our hotel had a tall metal fence surrounding it from pedestrian traffic.

Nevertheless, after arriving in town we headed downtown and visited Beale Street. The street is closed to through traffic and is just full of bar-hoppers - beer can be purchased on the street and you can walk in and out of bars with beverages. Located on Beale Street is Morgan Freeman's club Ground Zero and several other happening spots. One of my favorites was Wet Willie's where the only drinks they serve are alcoholic slushies. I sampled Purple Haze which was a fusion of Sex on the Beach and Shockwave (a blue colored drink that was made with 190 proof grain alcohol). We visited another bar with dueling pianos and also a large outdoor dance floor and live music stage. It was here we met Sarah and Mike - Sarah went to Radford and was visiting Memphis on business as well. While waiting for the cab to take us back we came across a Memphis-native Quad...who had lost his cellphone and was trying to get in touch with his cousin and or his cousin's girlfriend...after facilitating a reunion we caught our cab and called it a night.

The next big adventure was to Graceland - the mansion and museum of Elvis Presley. We got to walk through the halls that the King once walked - saw his billiards room (with the same color couches as wall paper), his den (where he kicked it and watched 3 TVs at once), his jungle room (which had a waterfall, wood carved table and chairs, and was inspired by Hawaii), and where he played racquetball (which is now dedicated to his countless awards). Our tour also allowed us to see his meditation garden which is where the King now rests and also his personal jets, car collection, and numerous halls filled with memorabilia. Graceland was interesting, but it retroactively satisfied my desire for Elvis knowledge for my 22 years of life, and without a doubt satisfied that knowledge for the rest of my life.

After Graceland we checked out Huey's Hamburger in downtown Memphis. The burger was voted best in Memphis and it did not disappoint. We then drove around and saw FedEx Forum - Home of the Grizzlies and Autozone Field - Home of the Memphis Redbirds (Minor League). The rest of the week was filled with more delicious eating including The Butchershop which was located overlooking the Mississippi River. It had probably the first/second best steak I had ever had in my life. They cooked the ribeye on a large grill right in the middle of the restaurant - meat was so tender and flavorful!

Our final meal in Memphis was at Chalres Vergos' Rendezvous, home of world famous bbq. Celebrities photos were all over the large establishment including: Eli and Peyton Manning, Dick Vitale, Blake Griffin, Alex Rodriguez, Don King, Bill Cosby, 3 Presidents (Ford, Clinton, and W.), and also the Prime Minister of Japan. The dry-rub were absolutely excellent and the smokey brisket had a ton of flavor. The BBQ nachos that we had as an appetizer was superb...nachos, cheese, pork and chicken, jalapenos, and bbq sauce!

Memphis was a great town - the next stop is another Tennessee destination...Nashville!