15 minutes?

From Texas, our drive took us to the CRACKER BARREL!! Lol Just kidding! (see previous post) No, really, our goal was an RV Park in Kentucky but on the way we drove through Arkansas…

And then up into Tennessee, a NEW state for all of us!

We quick text our dear friends who know that area and asked them for any suggestions of any tourist sights that we might swing by. We didn’t have a ton of time but we were in NASHVILLE for Heaven’s Sake! You can’t just drive right through Nashville without seeing something, right!??! They gave us a couple suggestions and so we decided to just quickly stop by one of them…

If you know anything about the Grand Ole Opry, there is NO just stopping by! Lol So we put it into the GPS and followed the directions to the destination and then followed the signs for RV/Bus parking. At this point, we really can’t see where we are going, we really are just following the signs to some entrance. We park and walk towards this illustrious entrance, on the way we stopped and asked a nice parking attendant….’if you only had 15 minutes, okay, maybe 30 minutes, where would you go in the Grand Ole Opry?’ After she stopped chuckling at our silly question, she did give us a few suggestions but basically just pointed towards the door and we went.

We walked around a bit and then discovered there were basically four hotels all put together under one roof. Oh and I should point out, that I guess, well versed people know this as the ‘Opry Land Convention Center.’

And yes, I did take this just to have on my phone to help us navigate the place and stop walking in circles. I think entire families have gone missing in the place for months! 

There was everything you could imagine in this hotel, all under one roof! A river with a boat ride, a gazillion restaurants and every other store you can imagine, spas, gigantic conference halls, grand pianos, 9 acres of indoor lush gardens, and cool things like fountain concerts…

The day before we arrived, the KLOVE Fan Awards were just finishing up.

We did walk down the way and attempt to see the main and most well known Grand Ole Opry, where all the famous people have played throughout the ages. It seems to be an iconic country music stage, but I'm sure musicians of all genres have celebrated their arrival here. Unfortunately they only let us into the gift shop and otherwise you had to pay for a tour or be attending an event there.

So we saw what we could see and then walked across the street to a rather large mall.
I know, a mall, right? We didn’t really drive across the country to go shopping, not that there is anything wrong with that but, well ya, not so sure the driver would’ve been keen on that idea. What we WERE looking for in the mall wasn’t air conditioning, although that was a huge bonus, but our infamous Starbucks mug. If you aren’t aware, we collect the “We Are Here” Starbucks mugs as we travel. We walked through the mall a bit to find the Starbucks, maybe stopped at a few other stores along the way, I mean we were there already anyway. 😏

And then when it was time to go back to the tin can, the little people’s feet started rebelling in anticipation of the walk. Don’t forget we’d just walked through 4 hotels, out the other side to the Grand Ole Opry and then through the mall. Plus the heat, well, enough said…

If you haven’t gotten the drift yet, the AMAZING driver and the eldest volunteered to go fetch the tin can and bring it to US! Just AMAZING, right? I tell ya – he’s a keeper! The 3 youngest and I gallivanted around the stores a bit more trying to kill time until our chauffeur & his assistant showed up. And I was trying desperately to make sure all three of my minions stayed with me amidst the throngs of people at the mall.  It wasn’t Kansas, Dorothy. 😉 But there was packages and bags and LOTS o people! And so we came up with a little system to get from one end of the mall across the food court to the doors we should exit to find the chauffeur.

Reed held my hand, I had the bag in the other hand and Esther held my purse backpack strap and Tate stayed in front of me leading the way. And if I look tired & exhausted here - I WAS! Phew! 

No. 2 was a great help in herding the littles and making sure we all stayed together.

We entered the tin can to embrace the air conditioning and were greeted with a napping driver – hmmm! Lol 👀

Well I guess that was very clear sign #1 that I was up for driving! And so, I hopped in the driving seat and took us back on the road. So much for the QUICK Nashville stop, a few hours later, but it was worth it and a fun, unexpected experience. Thanks Grand Ole Opryland Hotel maybe we'll be back someday to see more and stay a little longer!?!