I took a ride to Cincinnati either 2 or 3 weeks earlier for a Reds game then stopped in Nashville on the way home. Not worth a full post but a few pics are worth a share.
5/25- After a quick junk run in the morning, I hit the road to Memphis. It's a little less than 4 hours from home. I arrived just around 1:00 and got some fried chicken at Gus's. From there, I walked to Sun Studios on Union Ave. and got on the 2:30 tour. I then checked into my hotel then walked down Main Street toward the Pyramid and got some shots of the Mississippi River before heading to Beale Street for some tasty ribs.
After dinner, my choices were a minor league baseball game or a rooftop bar overlooking the city and the river. I opted for the latter and it was a good call. I met a guy from Birmingham and got a cool shot of the bridge all lit up just after dark.
5/26-
Probably the toughest drive of the trip. Memphis to Kansas City. I opted to take some country roads rather than go all interstate through St. Louis. It was more scenic and probably shorter even though there were a couple of 2 lane stretches. I did make one stop at a park called Mammoth Springs on the border of Arkansas and Missouri.
I didn't get into KC until 3 PM even though I left Memphis just after 7 AM. I hoped to see both the World War 1 museum and the Negro League baseball museum but only had time for one. I chose the latter and it was quite interesting. After another good BBQ dinner, I did see the WW1 monument and a twi-night view of the city from the Scout statue. It was a pretty view but unfortunately, the park is a hangout for stoners.
By night fall, I was dead tired and the nearest bar was a 15 minute walk. I chose to stay in for the night, which was probably a good call because I developed Candida symptoms after consumption of alcohol later in the trip. In the end, I don't feel like I did justice to Kansas City. I hope to be back in a few years when the Royals get a new stadium. I'll be sure to see the inside of the WW1 museum.
5/27-
A more leisurely drive with a few stops on the way. Top priority was the Dwight Eisenhower museum in Abilene, Kansas. I'd rank him as a near-great president and certainly a great man. I did make a stop in Manhattan and the capitol of Topeka and a pretty nice lake on the way to Nebraska. I made one more quick stop to see Nebraska's capitol in Lincoln. It was almost 6 PM when I finally arrived in Omaha.
I walked across the bridge to Iowa for a rather underwhelming view of the Omaha skyline but the bridge itself was pretty cool. After that, I did enjoy a couple of drinks out on the town back in Omaha. I say that I did enough in both Kansas and Nebraska to meet the strict standard for having "been to a state." That leaves only Alaska and North Dakota remaining for Round 2. While Kansas and Nebraska won't make anybody's list of most scenic states in the country, they are not nearly as flat and boring as you might expect. Give it a chance.
5/28-
Omaha to St. Louis. I drove on the Iowa side going south to Missouri before cutting back east on I-70 at Kansas City. I arrived just in time to see the Blues museum then it was a walk across the river to East St. Louis, Illinois for a photo op of the skyline. It was safe enough in the daytime. I walked around the Arch NP before dinner at a rooftop bar at my hotel. That was really cool even though I began feeling lousy after the alcohol.
When twilight descended, I went back to the bridge to Illinois but this time, I didn't cross it all the way. I went just far enough to catch the night shot of the skyline. Really cool. I also walked back through the Arch park at night, which had a different vibe.
5/29-
Didn't push it hard on the trip home. Route was I-55 S into west Tennessee before picking up US-45 to Tupelo then I-22 back home.
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