Oh Memphis!

So wow!  What a day.

Yesterday we had just about enough of the Thousand Trails Cherokee Landing campsite.  While the vegetation was gorgeous, and the pool the largest we have experienced so far, the campground was very neglected.  The "comfort centre" wasn't fit for a dog let alone a human.  It is obvious that this is not one of the Thousand Trails that has had an injection of capital. Compared to Verde Valley in Arizona (10/10), this was a 0/10. Our campsite was a pull-through but it sloped downhill right outside the front door of Harriet.  So we couldn't set up any tables or chairs or sit outside and we had to watch our footing all the time.

So, we made a decision to leave early for the next campsite, also in Tennessee, which meant we needed to experience Memphis today.  And did we ever!

We knew we wanted to hear some live music but weren't sure if there would be a venue that Aidan could also come into.  We were thrilled to find B.B. Kings Blues Club right on Beale Street in Memphis.  We had experienced the BB King Blues Club at Sea on our Alaska Cruise and had loved it.  And this one had a kids menu!  They had two shows, one at 2:00 pm and the other at 4:30.  The one at 2:00 was a solo act and a trio was scheduled at 4:30.  We thought we would park and wander Beale Street and eventually end up at BB Kings.

We were surprised that the city was basically asleep at noon.  Then Tony reminded us that musicians don't get up until noon LOL.  I'm sure Beale Street comes alive at night. So we had no problem parking, only encountered one questionable character (who seemed high) that we managed to avoid, and then made our way to Beale Street.

There were many photo opportunities.

The Peabody Memphis is a historic luxury hotel in Downtown Memphis, Tennessee, opened in 1925. The hotel is known for the "Peabody Ducks" that live on the hotel rooftop and make daily treks to the lobby. The Peabody is a member of Historic Hotels of America, a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Hard Rock Cafe.  Photo op only.  We didn't go in.

It was hot and muggy so we decided to go to BB Kings at about 2:15 and see if we could sit through both shows.  They happily obliged.

The first act was Memphis Jones.  He reminded me of the Memphis version of our own Jeff Stevenson from Brentwood Bay. A very versatile musician/singer with lots of stories interwoven, we loved his act.  We found out during his stories, that he is a senior Pastor at Cornerstone Church in Memphis.  He ministered to the crowd throughout his set. When he was promoted to Senior Pastor he was going to quit his side musical gigs, but the Church encouraged him to stay because of the ministry opportunity. Very cool.

We had a front row seat, and Aidan couldn't hide his enthusiasm for the music.  Thankfully there was a dance floor for him to get expressive on and it was the best place ever for a boy who loved music and needs to move to express it.  He was the life of the party and Memphis Jones even called out a blessing for him.  It was actually precious.  Aidan happily transported the donations to the bucket on stage and soon others enjoying the show asked Aidan to give their money as well.  This kid was in his element.

Memphis Jones

Next up was the Trio (actually a quartet)

Front row seat

Memphis Jones said to Liz "I take credit for him falling asleep at 6 p.m. tonight".  Ha ha..

This kid was moving! There was a whole lot o' shakin' goin' on.  It's not something any of us will forget any time soon.  And the BBQd chicken dinner was superb too. 

Then we headed back to the campsite and began packing up for tomorrow's departure.

Mavis