Nashville - I had no idea what to expect

What was I expecting when I drove into Nashville, definitely not my first view.  This is a bustling city with amazing skyscrapers, beautiful waterfront and great architecture.

Our hotel was called the SoBro Guest House, which is situated in SoBro, which means south of Broadway.  A lovely little one bedroom with a kitchen, which we were too busy to use, other than coffee in the morning.  It used to be an industrial area which is now a bustling community.  Nashville kept growing and this area was perfect to expand too.  Still walking distance to everything.  We dropped off our stuff and headed down to the river to stretch our legs and have a wee walk-about before we had our first beer.  

Perfect timing a train just pulled in and a colourful electric bus was charging, getting ready for it's next trip.  The buses are free in town.  They are doing their best to stop people from driving.

This was the start of a 11000 step afternoon.  It didn't take us long to find Broadway, the busiest little street in the world :).  Once again I wasn't sure what I was expecting but it wasn't this.  The waterfront and the first few streets are pretty original, ie OLD.  And every little store front is basically a honky tonk.  Bands of 5 people were performing on a stage not much bigger than a kitchen table with the drummer right in the window.  From 1 person to 5, guitarists, fiddlers, drummers, music coming from the establishments and also on the street corners.

 

It felt like every 5th store was a boot store.  Every possible design you could imagine.  And very expensive.  No I didn't buy a pair, I was very sensible, I left my cowboy boots at home and brought my walking shoes.  Very stylish :).  I figure at my age, no one is looking at my feet.  LOL

  

Now if I was 20, one of these would definitely have been coming home.  

No I did not get drunk enough on this trip to kiss the Cowboy Buddha, but if I arrange a girls trip, watch out :).

  

Back to the hotel for a little break and then we were off to dinner.  The Southern Steak and Oyster house was just up the road and perfect.  Nothing better than sitting on the patio eating a beef tenderloin on their famous southern biscuits.  Jim and I both just ordered appetizers.  Delish.  Yes served with a glass of wine.

Jim said I was as infatuated with the AT&T building as I was with the Eiffel Tower.  Everywhere you walked it just seemed to loom overhead.  At first it reminded me of the bat signal and then I was picturing the antennas being used to build the next Frankenstein.  :)  Nothing like a good imagination.

The Predators were in town, so lots of people walking around with their hockey jerseys on.  Again a beautiful building.

 

We saw some amazing acts, the fiddlers were amazing.  Some of the bars had bands set up at both ends.  So when one took a break, the other was ready to go.  These also switched them up, so might have 4 different acts during a day.  From what they were saying they only get paid in tips.  I guess with so many to choose from the bars could do that.  

 

                                                       
This was Thursday night and the places were hopping.  Standing room only.  A word of advice don't go to the Honky Tonks if you are a wine connoisseur .  Jim ordered a beer and I asked the girl if she had red wine, YEP we have MERLOOOOOOOOT.  Do you have others, YEP we have white.  OK I'll have a MERLOOOOOOOOOOT, served straight up in a plastic glass.  :)

FYI we left on the Wednesday night stayed in a great little Holiday Inn Express in Medina (just south of Cleveland about 4.5 hours), right off the highway, and then 7.5 hours down to Nashville the next day.