MONDAY - We hung out at our campsite until around 11:00AM this morning waiting for the rain to stop and then we had a small window of no rain, so we finished the outdoor stuff in preparation for leaving.
Today was only a short 72-mile drive due north, back into the state of Tennessee and specifically the city of Memphis.
We are staying at the Graceland RV Park & Campground which is located on Elvis Presley Boulevard just two short blocks from the Graceland Mansion.
We are also aware that Memphis is so much more than just the hometown of Elvis, but we're only here for two days, so everything Elvis is what we're going to concentrate on.
By 1:00PM we had arrivied at the campground only to find the check-in office had already closed for the day, must be nice! They did however have a board out front for arrivals to find out which campsite they had been assigned to and instructions to return to the office in the AM to check-in and pay of course.
Turns out they placed us in a pretty good site for us, a rear view of the woods.
After lunch we both took an unlimited hot water shower. While I was in the shower I secretly made arrangements for a ride to dinner and surprised Tricia with a Pink Limo ride to Marlowe's Restaurant about a 1½-miles up Elvis Presley Boulevard from the campground. She thought we were going to walk there and back, I don't think so.
The restaurant has FREE shuttle service that picks up at four nearby lodging accomodations. Fortunately the campground was one of them, with as you can see, door to door service.
Upon arriving at the restaurant we saw they too have an Airstream, only their's is pink and no where near "roadworthy".
Their 1950s era Airstream Safari looks like a pig, complete with nose and tail.
Inside you can tell we beat the crowd by having dinner at 5:30PM. It was pretty well packed by the time we finished dinner an hour later.
Marlow's is famous for their Memphis Style Dry Rub Babyback Ribs, so we each ordered a half-a-rack with beans and coleslaw. I also ordered a Loaded Baked Potato with Pulled Pork on top to go with my dinner.
I'm sorry Dewey and Vanessa (our two Foodie Followers), but when my food arrives at the table the last thing on my mind is to grab my cell phone and take a picture. We did take this photo as an after thought, but as you can see, dinner has already begun.
TUESDAY - Last night the temperatures got down to the freeze line (32°F) and were still in the mid-30°s when we finally left the heated comfort of THE POD to start our day of sightseeing at 8:30AM.
First things first though, we went to the campground office to check-in and pay the bill. Now we can "walk" over to the Graceland Ticket Office, just a few hundred yards from the campground, and purchase tickets to tour Graceland.
There are many different levels to the ticket pricing here at Graceland. If all you're interested in are the museums, collections and memorabilia on Elvis you can pay $50 and see all that, but if you want to see the inside of the Graceland Mansion and the gravesites in the Meditation Garden you'll have to shell out an additional $30 each like we did.
GRACELAND MANSION
SLIDE NUMBER
1
OF
22
Elvis purchased the 13.8 acre Graceland Mansion in 1957 at the age of 22 for $102,500.
SLIDE NUMBER
2
OF
22
Just inside the front door are the stairs that lead to the top floor which is currently, and probably always will be, off limits to the public.
SLIDE NUMBER
3
OF
22
To the right of the front door is the living room, and behind that the music room.
SLIDE NUMBER
4
OF
22
Towards the back of the house is Elvis' parents ground floor bedroom.
SLIDE NUMBER
5
OF
22
Towards the left of the front door is the dining room.
SLIDE NUMBER
6
OF
22
Down a short hallway from the dining room is the large kitchen.
SLIDE NUMBER
7
OF
22
Downstairs in the basement is the media room...
SLIDE NUMBER
8
OF
22
...and the game room.
SLIDE NUMBER
9
OF
22
This is the famous Jungle Room off the side of the kitchen.
SLIDE NUMBER
10
OF
22
The Jungle Room is where the Presley's spent most of their time together.
SLIDE NUMBER
11
OF
22
This wall once had an indoor waterfall feature.
SLIDE NUMBER
12
OF
22
Outside in the large back yard the property goes all the way back to the white fence.
SLIDE NUMBER
13
OF
22
This is the business office where fan mail would go and the estate was managed.
SLIDE NUMBER
14
OF
22
There are still a few horses on the property even though no one has lived here since 1993.
SLIDE NUMBER
15
OF
22
The back side of the Graceland Mansion.
SLIDE NUMBER
16
OF
22
Off the south side of the mansion is the kidney shaped swimming pool.
SLIDE NUMBER
17
OF
22
There is also an outbuilding which houses the indoor racket ball court.
SLIDE NUMBER
18
OF
22
There is a comfortable spot to wait your turn on the court.
SLIDE NUMBER
19
OF
22
Just beyond the swimming pool is the Meditation Garden.
SLIDE NUMBER
20
OF
22
The Meditation Garden is the location of all the Presley family gravesites.
SLIDE NUMBER
21
OF
22
(L to R) Elvis's grandmother, then Elvis with his father and mother on the far right.
SLIDE NUMBER
22
OF
22
An hour later we were back out front again and it's time to get back on the shuttle bus.
With the mansion tour completed in about an hour's time we now got back on the bus to head across the street to explore the museums, collections and memorabilia that is The Elvis Experience.
FYI - Tricia took 341 photos today and I'm only sharing 48, so there are many more things we saw and experienced.
Even so we were back in THE POD by 1:00PM, so we took about 4-hours to see and do it all.
THE ELVIS EXPERIENCE
SLIDE NUMBER
1
OF
24
The famous 1955 pink Cadillac Elvis bought for his mother...
SLIDE NUMBER
2
OF
24
...even though she didn't have a driver's license.
SLIDE NUMBER
3
OF
24
There were many other cars on display, but none as famous as the pink Caddy.
SLIDE NUMBER
4
OF
24
There were also several of Elvis' motorcycles on display.
SLIDE NUMBER
5
OF
24
These are the gold records from Elvis' first four years of recording.
SLIDE NUMBER
6
OF
24
There were many of Elvis' concert costumes of display...
SLIDE NUMBER
7
OF
24
... and when I say many, I mean many!
SLIDE NUMBER
8
OF
24
From the floor all the way up to the 30' ceilings.
SLIDE NUMBER
9
OF
24
Elvis' three Grammy Awards, all in the gospel catagory.
Elvis purchased the 13.8 acre Graceland Mansion in 1957 at the age of 22 for $102,500.
Just inside the front door are the stairs that lead to the top floor
To the right of the front door is the living room, and behind that the music room.
Towards the back of the house is Elvis' parents ground floor bedroom.
Towards the left of the front door is the dining room.
Down a short hallway from the dining room is the large kitchen.
Downstairs in the basement is the media room...
...and the game room.
This is the famous Jungle Room off the side of the kitchen.
The Jungle Room is where the Presley's spent most of their time together.
This wall once had an indoor waterfall feature.
Outside in the large back yard the property goes all the way back to the white fence.
This is the business office where fan mail would go and the estate was managed.
There are still a few horses on the property even though no one has lived here since 1993.
The back side of the Graceland Mansion.
Off the south side of the mansion is the kidney shaped swimming pool.
There is also an outbuilding which houses the indoor racket ball court.
There is a comfortable spot to wait your turn on the court.
Just beyond the swimming pool is the Meditation Garden.
The Meditation Garden is the location of all the Presley family gravesites.
(L to R) Elvis's grandmother, then Elvis with his father and mother on the far right.
An hour later we were back out front again and it's time to get back on the shuttle bus.
The famous 1955 pink Cadillac Elvis bought for his mother...
...even though she didn't have a driver's license.
There were many other cars on display, but none as famous as the pink Caddy.
There were also several of Elvis' motorcycles on display.
These are the gold records from Elvis' first four years of recording.
There were many of Elvis' concert costumes of display...
... and when I say many, I mean many!
From the floor all the way up to the 30' ceilings.
Elvis' three Grammy Awards, all in the gospel catagory.
The Elvis library of music.
More of his gold and platinum records on display.
I'm getting hungry, let's eat at Gladys' Diner, Elvis' mother's name.
We arrived too late to snag the White Cadillac booth with the red interior...
...so we both ate our Grilled Peanut Butter and Banana (Elvis' favorite) Sandwiches nearby.
Outside was Elvis' full sized jet, The Lisa Marie, named after his daughter.
Inside the jet looked to be still airworthy, but I doubt it.
The powder room.
There's still plenty of seating on the plane...
...plus a conference/dining table.
There is also some private seating options...
...and of course a bed for those longer flights.
Right next door is Elvis' commuter jet named The Hound Dog II.
It was in a lot rougher shape...
...but the passenger area still looked to be in good condition.
