Earlier today is here

After our busy morning at Graceland we were heading off to notch up a 6th state on trip – a quick jaunt ( 20 minutes) to Southaven in Mississippi.

Although we hadn’t seen everything at Graceland we felt we had given it a pretty good go and there was quite a lot that we had seen at the Elvis at the O2 exhibition.

So I didn’t feel bad about anything we missed.

Shopping heads on then



It was really quiet there




Purchases were made in Tommy Hilfiger




Tote Bags - $26.70 each , they are reversible and have a purse included ! Total Bargain. I have kept the beige one and the other two are Xmas presents



Shorts $20.99




Navy rain jacket $44.99



Fab black hooded raincoat that has a removable fleece zip inner lining $56.70



Short Sleeve knit top $19.49

This turned out to be my best haul of the holiday - much better than Orlando so I was pleased we went.

We left the outlets at 1pm – we were getting hungry by now but I wanted to eat back in Memphis .

It should have been a quick 20 minute trip back but as we missed a pic of the state line due to a massive truck going past, Andy turned round and we doubled back – so it was more like 35 minutes – all for a sign




We came back via the riverfront



I did have a word about the smeary windscreen

By the time we were parked up, full on hangriness was imminent.
Andy was saying he was tired and wanted a sleep.

I wanted to go to Sun Studios and the Gibson factory and was happy to do so on my own but he wasn't having that either so it was a bit tricky. I knew if we took a break now , we most likely wouldn't get out again this afternoon.

So we agreed we would not bother with Gibson but that we would go over to Sun as soon as we had lunch and then take a break before dinner.

A quick walk over to Kooky Canucks for lunch .



This was the home of the Sasquatch burger on series 1 of man v food. It's now the kookamonga challenge and the walls are lined with pics of people who managed it.



Not wanting to spoil our appetites for dinner this evening, We shared a Yonge Street Burger




It was delicious.

We went back to pick up the car and made a quick stop as we passed Starbucks to pick up a Memphis mug



and 20 minutes later arrived at Sun Studios



The parking behind Sun Studios is not very spacious but we managed to squeeze in and just prayed no one clipped the car trying to get past !

We hadn’t realised the tours were at specific times so we did hang about for 15 minutes or so waiting for the next one .

Our tour guide though was excellent – a real enthusiast and incredibly informative. He made it a thoroughly absorbing experience .

The tour starts upstairs and centres on Sam Phillips and his studios, how he initially passed up on the chance to hear Elvis and how his receptionist/secretary saved the day and what was happening in the music industry at the time



And then you head downstairs to the reception and into the recording studio







It was fab to be standing in that studio and we listened to music and radio recordings and learned more about both Elvis and others like Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis and that famous pic of the million dollar quartet.

It was fascinating - especially the part about drums not being ok on country music until the 1970s and how Johnny Cash allegedly got round that ...

And then you get to pose with the mic that all those artists use ( do hope they antibac wipe it now and again )

We had such a great time here .




After tipping the guide we left at just after 4.30 and headed back so that Andy could have an afternoon kip and I settled on the sofa to write up some trippy notes.



After a couple of hours we headed out to Main Street for dinner at Flight Wine Bar – proving it’s a small world we bumped into the lawyer we met yesterday as we were walking along the street !



This was packed when we arrived , thank goodness we had made a reservation. We sat upstairs.

Unfortunately we were right under an aircon unit and Andy was so cold he was using the tablecloth to cover his arms! Happily they turned it down when we mentioned it.





This was a hard place to take pics, super dark and every time I got the camera out, I got the deadeye from the table next to us .

So I darent use the flash.

The majority of people seemed super posh in there !

I had been a bit concerned that they wouldn’t allow Andy in his shorts , especially as you can just see some of his latest tattoo at the edges … but they were fine

Said tattoo…



Anyhow, given the stink eye from the tables nearby, I had to be secret squirrel taking the pics


So menu ones are crummy sorry.

The concept here is that you can have the recommended flight for the price on the left, or mix any three small plates taking the first price on the right per dish , or any single dish as a main for the second price on the right. Brilliant way to mix and match .





I went for the steak flight, Andy had the Chefs special flight



It was all delicious. I think the Bison ribeye was my favourite but the Elk was good too. I would never have tried these unless they were taster portions. The truffle mac’n’cheese was gorgeous too.

It was all very flavourful and perfect portion sizes.

We didn't go for the wine flights, just opting for a single glass each

Then on to dessert ... Only available as set flights



I had the traditional flight and Andy had the whisky flight





I started with the strudel as it was the only warm dish but my goodness it was filling. I could barely manage any of the cheesecake by the time I had got through the other two …

$139 bill but well worth it.



What a great concept. Excellent service, fabulous quality food, attention to detail and generally a 5* experience. We waddled back to the hotel feeling very full !

Miles travelled today - 89
The next day is HERE

I am not surprised that you were tired - quite a day!

Love the bags and raincoat! Great bargains! The visit to Sun Studios looks like it was fun!

Great menu! The desserts sound fabulous!

Hopping across the state line for a shopping spree...sounds perfect. Another fab day, I can't believe you had to double back to get a photo of the Tennessee sign. Sun studios does look fab, another amazing day.

Very cool to see Sun Studios! A lot of history!

Love the idea of flight meals! Wonderful! Xx

I'd love to go to Sun Studios. I'm a Jerry Lee Lewis fan, so that would be great. We were supposed to see him and Chuck Berry live a few years ago (in Croydon, of all places!) but Jerry was ill so we only got to see Chuck. Was still awesome. Chuck was well into his 80s and still rocking away (even if he left a lot of the more energetic guitar stuff to someone else in the band - I think we can forgive him for that!).

Not sure I could have missed the Gibson factory myself - my prized possession is my Gibson Les Paul Classic Plus

I love that you turned back to get the sign! Glad you enjoyed Sun Studios, we thought it was great as well. The tour is really well done. Nice shopping!

You are really packing these days full of amazing experiences! That burger looks amazing, and don't even get me started on how good the food at Flight looks!

Meant to say previously, I also failed a "must pass" module at Uni (I failed it twice actually ) and it didn't do me any harm. In fact, I'd say all the best people fail at least one

Looking back, it was a busier day than I realised !
Sun Studios as really great. So simple, just two rooms, but it was an awesome experience. Brilliantly done.
And dinner ... Heaven !

Taking photos of road signs is another eye rolling activity I gave up on it the following day to Nashville , hard to do at xxxx miles an hour
It was a fun day though and I've used all my purchases already so I definitely " needed" them

The Flight meal is brilliant , perfect size portions too. Sun studios is cool. Especially after seeing the Elvis stuff in the morning.

Ah that's cool, yep JLL pops up a lot around Memphis .. You deffo need to visit
We are not big on guitars so didn't feel too bad, I was more peeved we missed out on the Stax museum the next day as we ran out of time to get there. Needed another half day !

how sad are we with sign photos
This was such a fun day . Elvis, shopping and fab food, what more could a girl want

This as a top food day , even with the pumpkin Madeline afternoon treats sneaking in too . It was a fun day, I think maybe a bit too busy in the end as we were knackered in Nashville

I'm hoping that it's a one time experience on the uni stress. He has two " must pass" modules this year ... I'm pleased to hear it worked out ok for you though ( but I'm not sharing that with him )