Nikki Murray

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the jungle room - totally not what I was expecting

The visit to Graceland

Posted on 28 Jun ’10 by Nikki Murray

I don’t know what I was expecting, but Graceland didn’t really fit it. The house was beautiful on the outside and very gaudy 70s on the outside. The tourist ticket booth and shops are totally run down. They charge a small fortune to get in, so I’m not really sure where that money’s going but it certainly isn’t going into maintaining anything outside of Elvis’ actual property grounds. It definitely wasn’t a religious experience, just an experience.

the entry sign to Graceland looks a lot like the sign for a funeral home
the view Elvis would have seen walking out his front door
getting the front shot of the house (mine was full of ugly tourists, so I dumped it)
the formal living room, with music room attached
the formal dining room (still looks pretty normal, right?)
the kitchen, complete with mustard appliances and... carpet?
the jungle room - totally not what I was expecting
Elvis enjoyed the mirrors (maybe he was claustrophobic?)
do not touch the clowns behind the bar
but you may press #32 to find out about Elvis' creepy monkey
every wall was completely covered with mirrors, paneling, or textiles
another view of the furry jungle room
Elvis had a lot of gold records
Priscilla's mercedes
his momma's pink Cadillac
stopping in one of the many tacky eateries at Graceland for ice cream
I had my first banana split ever and discovered I hate chocolate and bananas
Terry likes it
we left with a little swag and a lot of tacky visuals

Everyone should make this pilgrimage at least once in their lifetime. Though I’m not a huge Elvis fan, I live less than a day’s drive and there’s really no excuse for me not to go. Tacky as it was, I’m glad I made the visit.

A temple of Athena... in Nashville. Weird.

A stop through Nashville

Posted on 28 Jun ’10 by Nikki Murray

Not really having any defined itinerary on our way to Memphis, we figured we’d stop in Nashville because it was there. The thought was that if we really liked Nashville, we’d stay there longer. Turned out that one day in Nashville was enough. I’m not a fan of country music and aside from the parthenon, Nashville really didn’t have anything I hadn’t already seen in dozens of other southern towns.

on the road
travel dorkness
hello, Nashville!
crossing the bridge in
hearse at the car wash: a first for my eyes
Nashville's millennium park
pink roses
goddamn geese
like candy
like candy
A temple of Athena... in Nashville. Weird.
A temple of Athena… in Nashville. Weird.
the anti-tourist pose
the Opry
Ryman Auditorium
not John Wayne in a dress (even though that's what this looks like, to me)
they DO exist!
not cheesy at all, nope.
and I ate almost all of it
and I ate almost all of it
Elvis is naughty

After our one day stop, we packed up our things and moved on…

Bye, Nashville!

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    My name is Nikki Murray and I’m a mother of two who has been buried neck-deep in code since 1998. I presently work as a user experience and interface designer for a health IT company during the daylight hours. When I’m not freelancing during my off hours, I am prowling around with a camera or recklessly maneuvering needles.

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