Inspire Traveling Part II
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| The Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center (photo/Kasy Long). |
Last year, I wrote about my adventures in Nashville and judging from that prior experience, it shouldn't be surprising that I recently returned to Music City for a wonderful week with my family. I stayed at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center, which is basically an indoor rainforest. There is so much to do and see at the hotel that you don't really need to leave the place during your vacation. You can explore the entire resort, go shopping, eat delicious food at multiple restaurants, go swimming, and more. Really, you don't have to leave the resort at all to have a good time.
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| The historic Ryman Auditorium (photo/Kasy Long). |
But, we eventually left to visit some new places in Nashville, including the historic Ryman Auditorium. Also known as the Mother Church of Country Music, the Ryman was the first home of the Grand Ole Opry. It was amazing to visit the birthplace of country music--and much of Nashville's rich history.
Take a look at my compilation of photos below, and experience for yourself the wonder of the Ryman Auditorium. It was an amazing experience to tour the building that has been home to religious church meetings, ballet performances, singing, guest speakers, and more. If you ever visit Nashville and you care about history, you have to visit the Ryman. It's a requirement.
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| I made this photo collage using PicMonkey. |
Our vacation also took us to the Madame Tussauds Nashville Attraction--a wax museum focused on music. This was actually my first time ever visiting a wax museum, so I had no idea what to expect. I didn't know how interactive wax museums are! You can get your photos taken with the figures, and they really resemble the celebrities!
Take a look at my compilation of my favorite photos below, and experience for yourself just what a wax museum--specifically the one in Nashville--has to offer. Now, I ask you this: Which wax figure looks the most like its celebrity?
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| I made this collage using PicMonkey. |
It's always a tradition to visit the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum whenever we visit Nashville. The museum changes out its exhibits every year, so there's always something new and exciting to see. This year's exhibits focused on country music icon Loretta Lynn, Shania Twain, Little Big Town, and more. But those three were my favorite.
It was incredible to view the archives of these country music icons and learn about their lives. I especially enjoyed learning more about Loretta Lynn, who is my mom's favorite classic country music artist. I had no idea she was so poor--came from almost nothing, but she rose to stardom because she never gave up on her dreams.
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| Loretta Lynn's exhibit (photo/Kasy Long). |
I also enjoyed the exhibit on Little Big Town, my favorite country music group. I had no idea the group began recording music almost 20 years ago, and that it took them so long to get a #1 hit on the radio. That's amazing!
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| The Little Big Town exhibit (photo/Kasy Long). |
The museum's exhibits present a wide variety of informative material, and it's truly an experience to witness so much history in one place. It's always important to conclude your trip to the museum by visiting the Country Music Hall of Fame, and seeing just how many iconic artists are in the Hall of Fame. They're all together in one place...forever and ever. Because, like they say, will the circle be unbroken?
No. Not ever.
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| (photo/Kasy Long) |
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| Visiting the Hatch Show Print (photo/Kasy Long). |
We also visited the Hatch Show Print company at the Hall of Fame. This letterpress company makes custom posters for the Grand Ole Opry, the Ryman Auditorium, and others. It's a national company and everything is done by hand. Artists carve into the wood, lay out the prints, get the ink color just right, and finally roll the prints through the letterpress to make a stunning poster design.
I loved everything about touring the company because (not surprising) I love letterpress designs. I love studying the history of letterpress, and it was fun to make my own poster during the tour! This was definitely one of the many highlights of our trip, for sure.
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| Visiting Landmark Booksellers (photo/Kasy Long). |
For this trip, we also visited Franklin, Tennessee--a small town about 30 minutes south of Nashville. My sister and I wanted to visit Landmark Booksellers--the actual secondhand, rare books bookstore that inspired Karen Kingsbury's book, The Bridge. Maybe we're nerds, but we always seem to find a cool bookstore wherever we travel.
And I'm glad we did! It was a quaint little bookstore nestled in a small town, but there were so many books. There was more variety in this secondhand bookstore than most chain bookstores offer, which is why I love to shop local. There's nothing quite like the atmosphere of a small bookstore.
It feels like home.
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| Visiting the Grand Ole Opry House (photo/Kasy Long). |
Finally, we can't visit Nashville and not go to the Grand Ole Opry. After all, it's primarily the reason we visit and love the city. For this trip, we went to two shows at the gorgeous music hall. You haven't been to a show until you've been to the Grand Ole Opry. Even if you're not a fan of country music, you'll have a great time. The music is lively, the artists are so talented, and everyone is there to have a good time.
At the same time, you're witnessing a live radio show--because the Grand Ole Opry is historically a radio show. So, as you applaud the musicians on stage, the listeners at home tuning into the Grand Ole Opry radio show are hearing your applause and cheers. Isn't that amazing? The Grand Ole Opry is the show that made country music famous--and it's an amazing night.
We saw Chris Janson at the Opry and boy, he's talented! I listen to his songs on the radio, but seeing him live onstage at the Opry was a whole new experience. He can play the harmonica, piano, and guitar--but he also knows how to "bring the roof down." Seriously, if you're not a fan of Chris Janson, what are you doing?
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| Chris Janson (photo/Kasy Long) |
I hope I have inspired you to travel to Nashville sometime. It's truly an incredible experience. Nashville is a booming city once again with rich history, passionate musicians and artists, and plenty of fun adventures.
Even if you don't plan to visit Nashville in the nearby future, I hope I have at least inspired you to travel somewhere. See the world. Go outside your comfort zone and go on adventures. I love how carefree I feel when I'm on vacation. I can relax, not have any cares in the world, and I'm happy and content with the people I care most about in my life.
Go travel. Seriously, you won't regret it.
-KJL-
I enjoyed taking this summer adventure with you!
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