Camped on the Mississippi

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We are right across the river from St. Louis, in East St. Louis, IL, with a great view of the landmark Arch, but more on that later. St. Louis is a mid-sized city with many suburbs fanned out around it. The city itself, like too many we have seen, has a great many empty business buildings and abandoned warehouses. In the downtown, it also has several stadiums and convention venues, lots of restaurants, and a rising skyline.

We started our visit at Citygarden, a small but very good sculpture garden in the middle of the downtown.

Finding the weather rather pleasant, we decided it was a good day to go to the zoo. For those of you old enough to remember, Marlin Perkins used to have a tv show, first from the Chicago zoo and later from the St. Louis Zoo, where he introduced us to the exotic animals of Africa, Asia and South America.

The zoo he made famous is one of the three free zoos in the country. It is divided into sections based on we don’t know what, but the displays are quite good.

We both loved the penguin display, especially listening to the keeper and watching her feed the Humboldt penguins. The temperature in the penguin house was 45 degrees to make the Kings, Emperors, Rockhoppers and others feel comfortable. Being close to the penguins distracted us from the cold.

The aviary is housed in one of the few remaining buildings from the 1904 World’s Fair.

We visited the Insectarium out of respect for son-in-law Dave and it was worth it. Many of the displays were cleverly presented.

The next morning we took a 10K volkswalk through historic Webster Groves. The walk started at a rec center that should be a model for all towns. The center has pools, gyms, an ice rink, tennis courts, a skateboard park and more. The parking lot was full, the participants of all ages and cultures. Our walk took us past Century Homes, homes built in the mid to late 1800s.

The “new” Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, built in 1907, sparkles and glows. Eight-three thousand square feet of walls, floors, ceilings, and additional art works are done in colorful mosaics. Cardinal red and gold, representing happiness, predominate. The central dome and many side areas are awesome to behold.

This 14th century hymnal was for the choir members to share.

We returned in the evening to Chesterfield, another suburb, for a concert in Faust Park. At least two thousand people, old and young, diverse in background, sat on lawn chairs enjoying a local band play dance music. It was true Americana.

Memphis Moments and Monuments

We were again fortunate to find a wonderful farmers’ market and stocked up on bread, vegetables and fruit. Each of the markets we have visited has had its own unique flavor and this one had location as an asset. It is near lovely townhouses overlooking the Mississippi. The townhouses replaced a blighted industrial area. The neighborhood also includes many lofts in old commercial buildings.

After our purchases were stowed away, we went to Elmwood Cemetery.

Established in 1866, the eighty-acre cemetery has several tours. We took the standard audio tour purchasing a CD in the Carpenter Gothic Cottage. Fifty leading gentlemen of Memphis created Elmwood as a rural cemetery that now is the final resting place for more than 75,000 souls and is also an arboretum and social gathering place for lectures, parties, weddings and funerals.

Our tour took us to both simple markers and creative stones of the famous and infamous. We heard stories of civic leaders, madams who helped the sick during the plague, a wife who killed three of her six husbands, philanthropists, military heroes, and the first Duck Master of the Peabody
Hotel.

This tree trunk symbolizes a life cut short. It is entwined with ivy representing eternal life. The monument behind it was used in the film The Firm.

The Superintendent of the cemetery placed this swing near the grave of the father of a five-year-old to ease the sadness of the young orphan.

Our two-hour drive was fascinating and educational. We learned that the dead do have stories to tell.

On the advice of Mark and Ellen, we visited the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Hotel where Martin Luther King was assassinated. This museum has done an excellent job of telling the story of King and the movement he led. We were pleased to see many young people there. The tour starts with a film narrated by Rev. Billy Kyles, the man with King on that tragic evening. We were privileged to meet him as we left the museum.

The tour includes King’s hotel room (the one with the wreath on the door) and James Earl Ray’s room across the street.

We spent three hours reading the many quotes and articles and could have stayed even longer.

We spent our last evening doing the obvious, strolling Beale Street. After clearing security, like at the airport, we wandered up and down the street. Competing bands blasted, beer flowed and spilled, and everyone was in a good mood.

One surprise on Beale Street was an exhibition of the work of black photographer Ernest Withers. He took photos of the leading black sports and entertainment stars of the 1940s and 1950s, including Negro League players and such stars as Lena Horne who was staying at the Lorraine Hotel. He chronicled the civil rights movement but, according to recently discovered documents not mentioned in the exhibit, was also a spy for the FBI.

The sunset behind the Interstate 40 bridge spanning the Mississippi gave us a colorful ending to our time in Memphis.

Addendum by Request

It appears that we missed a needed photo from the aquarium that we visited a few days ago. Here is a picture of the seahorse that you requested.

Graceland

The first time we came through Memphis several years ago our son Jeff was with us. We went to Beale Street for dinner and visited the National Metal Museum, but avoided the most obvious attraction, Graceland. We also stayed in a weird campground where Anna Lee was glad to have two big men with her.

Since then we have heard several times that Graceland is worth visiting so we decided to see it for ourselves. We are even staying at the Graceland Campground right across from Elvis’ home.

The rumors are right; the home is definitely worth a tour. A mansion when constructed in the 1930s and big when he bought it in 1957, it is a nice two story home by today’s standard.

What catches the eye is the decor, green shag carpet, wild animal upholstery, Asian pottery, and South Pacific wood carvings. Here is his living room:

Elvis' TV Room

Elvis' Pool Room

What tickled us were the Franciscan Apple pattern dishes, just like Jerry’s mother’s.

The pool, billiard room, and stable were rare back then but less so today.

The cemetery plot with Elvis, his parents and grandmother is a fitting tribute to such an icon.

Thanks to the audio tour, we left the mansion with an appreciation for both the person he was off stage as well as the phenomenon he was on stage.

The tour includes several other venues. His auto collection and two planes were interesting for the flash and wealth they represented.

Elvis motto appears on the tail of his plane. TCB meant "Taking Care of Business". The Section on Elvis as a newsmaker was quite good, especially for those of us old enough to remember how he shocked adults with his gyrations.

The other displays were of less interest to us. One thing to note, all exhibits lead to shops.

In keeping with the kitsch of the day, we rode in a pink Cadillac limo to Marlow’s, a bbq restaurant recommended by Guy Fieri of Diners, Drive Ins and Dives.

The chicken and beef were really good and the mud cake good enough to lick the plate.

48 Years

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When we first arrived in Memphis we took a 10K walk about the city. We went along the very high and muddy Mississippi, through historic parks, along Beale Street, past the Civil Rights Museum and by both abandoned buildings and fabulous river front homes. From a walking perspective, the difference between Memphis and Chattanooga is that Memphis seems older and a bit faded while Chattanooga shines.

This day, June 23, was our 48th anniversary so we went out to celebrate. We started with drinks at the Peabody Hotel.

This grand hotel has had some celebrated permanent residents since the 1930s. A flock of ducks live on the roof and spend part of the day in a fountain near the bar. The hotel has duck master to take care of and lead the ducks. They even take the elevator to change floors. Crowds gather daily to watch this amusing performance.

Our dinner at Felicity Suzette was fabulous. We shared a capressa salad with fried green tomatoes. The seasoned oil dressing was so light, the flavor seemed to float. Jerry’s veal with crab was rich and tender and Anna Lee’s crusted lamb chops could be cut with a fork. The bourbon bread pudding was a bit disappointing.

Memphis does have one thing we have found in other cities, but is even better here. It has a great tramway system. Using old streetcars, these trams take visitors and residents throughout the city.

We enjoyed the downtown loop ride at the end of our day.

Tennessee Aquarium

One of the main attractions of Chattanooga is this great aquarium. We don’t mean to betray our love of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, but this one is also wonderful. We spent five hours in the two sections of River Journey and Ocean Journey and took a two-hour ride on the Tennessee River.

In the River Journey, a long switchback ramp replicates the flow of a river down the mountain into the ocean. In addition to walking past displays filled with river fish of various ecosystems, side rooms lead to tributaries and adjacent streams. The displays captivated us with realistic settings though we would have liked more information on the fish and habitats.

The River Gorge Explorer, a high speed catamaran, took us around the horseshoe bend of the Tennessee River up to what they call their Grand Canyon.

In the past, the river was wild and unpredictable. During the Depression of 1930s, Roosevelt created the TVA and directed them to build dams that would provide electricity, prevent flooding and make the river commercially navigable. Today the catamaran sped at fifty miles per hour on a tamed and commercial river to the canyon (not like the one in Arizona). Blue Herons and turtles sunned on logs near the shore. We drifted quietly past lovely homes and forested land.

After energizing ourselves at Rita’s custard and Italian ice shop, we returned to the aquarium to tour their second building, Ocean Journey. First Anna Lee needed a bit more quiet before our visit.

As in the River Journey, the Ocean Journey has visitors begin at the top of the building and walking down through the various floors. We started in the tropics and saw fresh water sting rays. Then we were greeted by large macaws. Next we went through a small and lovely butterfly display. We also saw alligators and turtles.

Next came the jellies and the amazing dragon fish. As always, these displays are enchanting. Nearby are several displays by artists, including Dale Chihuly, who created glass work inspired by jellyfish and coral.

Foremost for us was the penguin display. While we may be partial to this flightless bird, we can assure you that this was one of the best penguin exhibits we have seen.

Two points stand out, the posters of ten things that distinguish penguins and the excellent backdrop of the penguin rookery which was more realistic than any we have seen outside of Antarctica where we saw the real thing.

Cheryl, our natural history museum daughter, influences the way we look at museums and this one earns a “do not miss rating.” We would try the “behind the scenes at the aquarium” tour rather than the catamaran next time.

Anna Lee confesses a serious character flaw: she gets hungry for fish after visiting aquaria but not for meat after going to the zoo. To satisfy her hunger we went out for really good sushi.

While enjoying our dinner, the increasingly warm and humid weather changed and the skies began to pound and pour. Jerry had to wear a garbage bag to slog his way back to get the car. (No photo).