katy
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Post by katy on Mar 28, 2019 13:04:32 GMT
Ok so we have a rough route but VERY open to suggestions. This is just the route google maps spat out so v rough. I'm keen on the Hill Country area but boyfriend is desperate to go to New Orleans and don't think we can fit them both in (unless you have any ideas where we can!!) big fan of country music and generally enjoy nature and pretty views lol.. The only thing I've booked so far is flights in and out of Nashville and tickets for a show at the Opry on our second night. We have 10 days.... It's been over 40 years since I've been to Nashville. So, I have no recommendations. Obviously you have to stop in Memphis. I've done a lot of work in the Memphis area. In the pic below, I'm installing microwave antennas on top of a grain elevator. That's Memphis in the background. Graceland is a pretty popular tourist attraction. Also, everyone winds up on Beale Street at some point. If you do, I would recommend the baby back ribs at Blues City Cafe. I've sent a lot of people there and nobody has been disappointed. I've spent a lot of time in Texas. Never had any fun. It was always business. But, I can recommend a couple of places to eat. I wouldn't say it's all about the barbecue. It's everywhere and most of it is very good. There is a lot of great Mexican food and steakhouses. There is a chain called Taco Cabana. It's authentic, fast and reasonable priced. I like it. The best filet mignon I've ever had in my life was at a place you have to drive within 300 meters of, on the way into Dallas. The Texas Land and Cattle Steakhouse is right off Interstate 30. The rib-eye steak will melt in your mouth and the garlic mashed potatoes are awesome. I've done some work in Louisiana. All I can tell you is, I love Cajun food. It's not rip your lips off hot, but it is somewhat spicy. I like "blackened" anything. Especially sea food. Never had a bad meal there. I hope you have a great time. Thank you! Pics looks great, I can’t wait. You’ve completely sold me with garlic mashed potatoes, will definitely try to stop there!
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Post by Deleted on Mar 28, 2019 14:09:25 GMT
Hi Katy, still working on some itineraries for you. Good news is there is plenty to see, much fun to be had and also you'll get a whole new perspectives on "The South" the " Deep South" and Texas where you will experience different ideologies, people, accents and food favorites. If you can me give me a budget range, say what you want to spend per day for food and lodging, or if you are camping and working on conserving money, I can help you better since I've traveled both ways. Do you like to splurge on a nice meal once a day? (By splurge I mean $75-100 total US dollars for a meal for two.? Don't worry, you can eat well for much less. Same with hotels. You can get a decent hotel for $140 or less total for the both you. You can get less (not as nice) (or much more) or you could camp in your car, Your route in size and scope equivalent To driving from Madrid to London then down to Paris and Milan. So you understand well how different these places are. Are ya'll pretty young so that driving 8-9 hours is ok? The longest leg will be from Texas back to Nashville. You could take a break in Memphis for a night. So you could do 3 nights in Nashville, 2 in New Orleans, 3 in Hill country, 1 in Memphis and the have 1 night back in Nashville before crossing the pond the next day. Just an idea...... So let me know your preferences and I'll quickly line you up a nice adventure. Feel free to email me (I think they publish our emails) or if you like we can sykpe or talk on the phone if that's better for you. You will miss our home in Florida by a few hundred miles but you could alway swing by for a visit if you like. We'd love to have you and we have plenty of extra room. Then you could report back to the group and just maybe they'd take down my 20% percent warning for behavior that pissed someone off somewhere. Hahahah Budget wise we’re pretty flexible. On our last trip we only really splashed out on hotels in Vegas and near Bryce NP, we didn’t really know how far we’d get each day so just stopped as motels as and when. We tend to do a mix of ordering a pizza to a motel room and a nice hotel with good food, we’re quite laid back with all that. The only hotel we *need* to book before we leave is Nashville cos we have to put in our first nights accommodation for our passenger info. That looks pretty similar to what we’re thinking so glad a local agrees haha! We don’t mind a lot of driving. We had to spontaneously do New York to Orlando a few years ago because a snowstorm got our flight cancelled - we did it pretty much non stop so not sure how we made it alive/awake but still here to tell the tale!! Just been reading about Fort Worth Stockyards - worth it or just a tourist trap? We went to Oatman in Arizona and it looks similar. #removethewarning Ha, love the hashtag. With this new information I have a much better feel for how you guys like to travel and it's similar to how we do it, as well. We like it somewhat unstructured, flexible and spontaneous. We like to avoid the "traps" and mingle with the locals. The fiction and travel writer Paul Theroux wrote, "What's the difference between a tourist and a traveler? A traveler doesn't know where he's going and a tourist doesn't know where he's been." Working on some ideas now that I know your style but right off the top, The Stockyards use to be where the cattle came in and was sold. Even though it does have a tourist vibe I would still recommend it if only to sit on the saddle bar stools. Here's the deal with Texas: It is Ginormous, like the size of France, and some stretches of highway don't have much to look at except the sky. The sky is big in Texas. What does that mean? You'll see;). Download HotWire. It's the best hotel finder we've found for traveling around the US. Start with 5 stars to get a feel for what's available and the cost and work down to no lower than 3 if necessary. You will find incredible deals when you book close to your desired check in. You can make the drive down to New Orleans in one day and I would recommend that to maximize time there and not some dinky town along the way. Same way from New Orleans to San Antonio (more on that later). When are you leaving? I'll be back with some more details.
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katy
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Post by katy on Mar 29, 2019 8:23:36 GMT
We fly on 19th April!
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Uncle Bob
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Post by Uncle Bob on Mar 29, 2019 11:27:12 GMT
I think artists should give us a two hour show considering what fans do to get there. A few years after Woodstock, I saw Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. They did a two hour acoustic set. Had an intermission. Then a two hour electric set. They really earned my $7.50.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 31, 2019 21:28:17 GMT
Here are a few suggestions for your trip, or “y’all’s” trip as they say in Texas. The weather should be really nice. You will deal with pine pollen and in Texas the occasional hail storm or tornado Nashville is an amazing city. There is so much to do. Last time we were there we saw Keith Urban at the Bridgestone Arena on Friday and Taylor Swift on Saturday at Nissan Stadium across the bridge. You like country music? You are in the right place! Keith brought out Carrie Underwood as a guest performer and Kelsea Ballerini opened for him. Tim McGraw and Faith Hill joined Taylor on stage. You can walk to all those venues and along the way you’ll see the historic Ryman Auditorium as well as Music Row where all the stars own bars and the local free music is astounding. We ate at Blake Shelton’s place (Ole Red) and it was pretty decent. We splurged and stayed at the Fairlane Hotel. It was pricey but if you want to be able to walk everywhere most hotels downtown are. Parking is tight and most hotels charge you. You could always stay further out and use Uber. We ate breakfast next to the hotel at 417 Union. Excellent and highly recommend. If you walk across the bridge to Nissan Stadium you will get an awesome view of the city, especially at night. I would spend my time catching as many shows as possible. At the bars it’s free. The drive down to New Orleans is pretty uneventful until the bridge over Lake Pontchartrain. New Orleans, however, is very eventful. Haha. Do you like to drink? You are in the right place! The town will blow you away. You might think you’re in a lessor part of Paris until the Creole accent snaps you out of that. It’s all about Jazz, music wise, in New Orleans. And food. Last time, we were there for a football game at the Mercedes Benz Superdome (where Taylor Swift played as well) and we stayed at the Nopsi Hotel. Of course you will party on the infamous Bourbon Street. But be sure to eat breakfast at the Cafe Du Monde where the beignets are legendary. Also sample the seafood gumbo (best with crawdad heads). For lunch try a muffuletta sandwich with a side of rice and beans. You can’t go wrong with Sea Bass for dinner, they do it right down there. There are great museums, schools and gardens all around the area for you to enjoy. Another hotel consideration is the W. It’s right in the French Quarter: www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/msywh-w-new-orleans-french-quarter/Onward to Texas! I’ve included an alternative route to consider and although it’s a few more road hours it would give you a much better feel for the whole Texas experience. Your Google Map shows you going to Dallas but that is 45 minutes east of Fort Worth. This route will have you coming into Fort Worth from the west. You’ve come this far, might as well get your money’s worth! It does not take you through Austin and for good reason. Austin used to be one of the best towns in America. Now it’s a crowded mess. 6th street is where everybody goes but it doesn’t have anything you won't see on the strip in Nashville. It has the bats from under the bridge (google it) and Lake Travis but I still think you be better off bypassing it. Besides, the highway from Austin north to Dallas/Fort Worth is under construction and a pain in the ass. If you decide to follow this plan you will get to San Antonio just in time to catch a bite to eat on the Riverwalk. If you can stay at or near there it is a great time. Walking or taking a boat tour is pretty cool. You are in Tex-Mex country so cold beer, margaritas and enchiladas with tortilla chips and salsa is the staple. Don’t forget to visit The Alamo! From here you can decide to take the scenic route to Fredericksburg and on up to Fort Worth or, if you must , take the busy highway up to Austin. We have stayed many times at B&B’s one block off the main drag in Fredericksburg for very reasonable rates. It is a unique town with quite a history and it has a Pacific WW2 museum there that is unexpected. It’s about a 4 hour drive from there to Fort Worth and it is very nice in spots. You are now in the heart of Texas BBQ country and if you see a roadhouse joint be sure to stop for a bite. I hope you are not a vegetarian. If the place you find has shared picnic tables with red and white checkered tablecloths you are in the right place. Texas style BBQ means slow smoked beef brisket served with white bread, pickles and onions and plenty of iced tea. It’s really good. Once you get to Fort Worth the perfect place for dinner (I insist you go!) is Joe T Garcia’s. Here is the address: 2201 N COMMERCE ST. FORT WORTH, TX 76164 It looks rough on the outside, but have no worries. There are great art museums there if you have time. Also, Bass Hall performance hall. On your way back to Tennessee you will pass through Arlington Texas where the Dallas Cowboys football team plays at the AT&T Stadium. It is huge and guess what? Taylor Swift ended her Reputation Tour there with two sold out shows. Ha!. Dallas is next, and it is a skyscraper city compared to Fort Worth. Completely different vibe. The cool spot is the Lower Greenville district. That’s where the music and bars are. Check out Gloria’s restaurant if you have time. From there the drive back to Nashville is pretty boring until you cross the Mississippi River and it starts getting hilly. If you spend the night in Memphis the best pork rib BBQ is Central BBQ downtown. The Gibson guitar factory is nearby. By the time you roll into the airport for the flight home you’ll be ready for a nap. Have fun and reach out if you need something while here.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 31, 2019 21:33:07 GMT
Oh, here is the route. Attachments:
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katy
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Post by katy on Apr 1, 2019 20:43:26 GMT
Thanks so much! Gonna try to sit down this week and finalise it all. Thanks so much for all the routes and info - very helpful especially as we’ve decided to do this so last minute
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mike17
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Post by mike17 on Apr 15, 2019 3:23:04 GMT
Thanks so much! Gonna try to sit down this week and finalise it all. Thanks so much for all the routes and info - very helpful especially as we’ve decided to do this so last minute haha i been to oatman, az many times when took a break from the blackjack tables in Laughlin
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katy
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Post by katy on Apr 22, 2019 0:48:32 GMT
ok whataburger feedback - impressed. don’t really like beef burgers but their buffalo ranch chicken is fab. prefer in n out but a solid 7/10
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UnderAlexSkin
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Glory to Ukraine! Slava Ukraini! 🇺🇦
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Post by UnderAlexSkin on May 5, 2019 14:17:38 GMT
Haven't found a Bebe Rexha's special thread but you obviously should take a look at this... What a great motivational tweet from her
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TomX
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Post by TomX on May 9, 2019 1:25:03 GMT
Since this is the random discussion thread, I thought it would be a good place to ask this: Does anyone know what happened to Harvey? He used to be very active on the forum and now even his account is deleted. I know he was going through some tough times as he posted, but I never really knew what happened to him in the end.
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Post by Deleted on May 9, 2019 1:46:14 GMT
I wonder as well. Good guy. Thought is was a health issue?
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Post by Deleted on May 13, 2019 10:40:25 GMT
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Jinkxx
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Post by Jinkxx on May 14, 2019 11:18:32 GMT
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muchformyhappyending
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Post by muchformyhappyending on May 14, 2019 14:49:30 GMT
thanks. here some more lol
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