The Parthenon in Nashville, Tennessee

It has been decided that I must return to Nashville. I made that decision as soon as I realized all the things I didn't get a chance to do. Add it back to the list! But for now...

My adventure to Tennessee was really to spend time with my friend, Aggie. She lives outside of Nashville near the Kentucky border. Literally. We were driving around her town and she said, "On the other side of that power truck is Kentucky." Things are much more compact on the eastern side of the country, I guess.

I knew I loved Tennessee the moment we headed out of the airport. A collection of white wooden rocking chairs sat in the arrivals lobby, filled with loved ones awaiting the arrival of a family member or friend. It was beautiful and what I imagine to be a physical representation of the Tennessee spirit. If I had been smart about things I would have had my camera out of my carry-on and ready to take the classic picture, but instead I snapped a shot of one of these chairs on my way out of the state. If only I could have brought it home with me...

The biggest thing on my list of places to see in Nashville was the Parthenon. Yes, you read that correctly. Nashville is known as the Athens of the South, and they built a Parthenon to prove it. Actually, the built the thing out of wood back in the day for the Centennial Anniversary as a symbol of strength and prosperity. They later had to redo as wood wasn't the best building material for an exact replica of the Greek monument. All I can say about the Parthenon is it is SO BIG! Like, really big. Huge! I still can't wrap my mind around the sheer size and volume of that place. And inside is a statue of Athena as tall as the building! We didn't get to see it as we were on a trolley tour of the city, but I will be back someday! And it has inspired me to visit Greece to see the first Parthenon. Aggie wasn't as impressed as I was because she drives by it on the way to see her baby doctor. Well, I think I was gobsmacked enough for the both of us.

We had visited the Parthenon as we were on a trolley tour of Nashville. You may laugh at this, but let me tell you, it felt all right to be a tourist in Nashville. The tour guides wanted us to learn about their city, to share the culture and stories that go with every building, street and sculpture. Otis took us on our first tour, the trolley ride of Nashville. Otis taught us all about the history of certain parts of Nashville and quizzed us on our music knowledge on the ride back. He told us the real reason Nashville is called "Music City" and showed us where Taylor Swift lives. He showed us the best BBQ in town (a place called Jack's on Broadway) and pointed out where to find the best burgers (he pointed to at least four places).

We stumbled into our next tour by accident as we de-trolleyed and inquired about the Ryman Auditorium. Jill took us to see the path musicians follow before they play a gig at the famed former home of the Grand Ole Opry. We stopped into Hatch's and learned that it's unlucky to get your posters printed anywhere else, as well as saw the famed Hatch's cats (well, the big one, at least). We walked by the place to get your guitar, and hoped to see Keith Urban or Brad Paisley in the parking lot as apparently happens sometimes. We didn't, though. We walked up to the Ryman, toured the dressing rooms and backstage, learned the rules for the Opry performers (1. Never come late; 2. Never swear backstage), and learned that you only get two shots before you're banned for life. Hank Williams Sr. is still banned. We walked down the alley where Willie Nelson sold his first song, "Crazy," which Patsy Cline hated at first. We went into Tootsie's where Brad Paisley and Kid Rock like to jam with a reggae beat in the background, that was painted orchid because the painter didn't know what color taupe is. We went into Ernest Tubb's Record Shop, where every night at midnight they host a Midnight Jamboree, although it's moved locations and hours.




















We had lunch at the Wildhorse Saloon, which would be a great place to take in a show. Horse caricatures are literally everywhere, as well as horse murals and horse heads made out of license plates and horse replicas hanging from the ceiling. We learned (twice) that Broadway, the heart of downtown Nashville, is split into smoking and non-smoking sides of the street. Stick to Tootsie's and Jack's if you're like me, allergic to smoke and everything about it.

The thing I enjoyed most about our tours was the stories. It's like everyone in Tennessee knows all of the stories ever told about the Music City. Otis was pointing out where Kenny Chesney got his start and the place that Elvis recorded his albums and his buddy sitting over by the restaurant Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman ate at over the weekend. They love their state! When you walk through the airport even the big names in music welcome you to their town. Plus, they have boots and hats you can buy at every other store.

If you're going to visit Nashville, definitely stay in the downtown area, and definitely take a Gray Line tour or two. Not only was it cheaper ($15 for a tour of the Ryman that was probably better than the $17 tour from the Auditorium itself), but you also learned a lot more about other areas tied to a show and got to see a lot more. Plus, you still get to stand on the stage and sit where Keith Urban sits before shows (but no Keith, darnit). Walk around and visit the different areas of Nashville, from the honkytonks on Broadway to the studios on Music Row (maybe you'll see Taylor Swift heading to the studio) to the monuments and sculptures around the Capital and Bicentennial Park.

Facts we learned on our tour of Nashville:
Nashville got the name "Music City" from the Queen. That's right! The Frist Singers performed for Her Majesty and she wrote a letter back to Nashville saying that she was so impressed with there performance that it must be the music city.

Elvis was booed off the stage the first time he performed at the Ryman and refused to ever play Nashville again. He never did, although he was willing to record a few hit songs in the city.

Dolly Parton sends every child born in Tennessee a book every month for their first five years. Jill the tour guide said that her daughters have all 60 books. We wondered how to sign Aggie's baby boy up on the list.

Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson slept (still sleep?) on the roof of Tootsie's because Tootsie didn't want them sleeping on the street.

Tim McGraw is on the bad boy list at the Ryman. He swore backstage and he got his first strike. If he breaks any other rules he's banned from the building for life! And yes, they do have a hall monitor to watch for rule breakers.

Johnny Cash is the only person who was allowed back into the Ryman after being banned for life. Hank Williams didn't show for four consecutive shows and was banned. And the only excuse they take for being late is if you were in a Nascar race.

In preparation

I pretty much spend my time thinking about where the next large monument or statue will be seen.

For example, I walked through Barnes and Noble today to get to the mall. The first thing I saw on the display table in front of me was the Guinness Book of World Records for 2011. This, I thought to myself, is exactly what I need for my adventures. I could look up the official "world's largest" and make sure I was actually seeing the world's largest whatever.

I looked up frying pan, but I didn't see it in there. I did find the world's largest gnome, though, located in Poland. I need to go to Poland now.

But I decided that I need to find some official records or these places I visit, to make sure they are the official record holder. I suppose either way I'm seeing something really big and out of the ordinary, which is pretty awesome, but I'd like to see the officially biggest of these roller skates or rocking chairs.

I spend quite a bit of time on the following websites, as well. I recommend them if you are looking for the world's largest duck or what have you:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roadside_attraction/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_World%27s_Largest_Roadside_Attractions/
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/

I also google a lot of the world's largest. Sometimes this gets me into trouble, like the time I tried googling "world's largest bra." It came back with a lot of big chested ladies, but I know I saw a picture of an overly sized bra in my searches and I have yet to find it.

Also, I applied to be a Finnair Quality Hunter. It would be the perfect opportunity to go international to see some of the world's largest. For example, the world's largest gnome in Poland! http://rethinkquality.finnair.com/about/

Take a look at the competition; it's pretty entertaining: http://rethinkquality.finnair.com/entrants-gallery/

Origins

You may be wondering why I went to visit the world's largest frying pan. You may not care. For those in the former group, here is the answer to your question. And this may look familiar if you read Dutranation, so sorry for the redundancy.

In 1996, a John Travolta film hit theaters. Well, actually, a couple probably did, but it is this specific movie that inspired me to visit these roadside attractions. That movie was Michael. The story of a fallen angel that agrees to be interviewed by two tabloid reporters as long as they take him to see a couple of American originals, such as the world's largest ball of twine.

I still recommend the movie, whether or not it inspired me from my childhood to now. In fact, I should watch it again. And it's not just a story about a fallen angel visiting really big things. It's got Andie McDowell, William Hurt, Oliver Platt, and an adorable dog.

In July I went home to visit my family. Sitting on my bed I usually find a collection of items my mom has collected because she knows I'll appreciate them. Included in the pile that month was this clipping:


I don't think she remembered me talking about this after watching Michael, and I am not sure why she kept this clipping, but boy did it make my day! I finally had a place to start my adventures!

I continued to research different large sculptures and statues from around the world. I found the closest one was in Long Beach, Wash., and decided to make that my first American original to visit.

You may ask yourself, why even bother to visit these places? My answer to you is: why not? Clearly someone in that town or city built these structures to attract foreign visitors. In my research I found that there is actually a documentary in production about the efforts of small towns to attract tourists.

I don't know if I'll be able to visit every one of these tourist attractions, as many of them are in cities I've never heard of or seen on a map. I'm going to try to visit as many as possible, and even go overseas if I can. As an employee of an airline I have the added bonus of transportation at my fingertips. There are also multiple claims to fame of similar objects. For example, there are apparently three world's largest balls of twine.

Put it to my quirky personality to have me look for these objects. I mean, who in their right mind would intentionally hunt for the world's largest roller skate? But it's more than just seeing the claim to fame of the city I visit. I'll be contributing to the local economy, bring back stories of a place I would not have ventured to if it weren't for the landmark in their fair city, and hopefully I'll bring back some great pictures.

World's largest frying pan

Ventured out to Long Beach, Wash., this past Sunday to see the "world's largest frying pan." It is definitely quite large.

Long Beach is about two hours northwest of Portland, Ore., on the Washington State coastline. It's similar to many coastal towns in it is trying to attract tourists with souvenirs and claims to fame, but we must have really picked a special day to visit because there was something different about this place.

It was the weekend of the Rod Run to the End of the World. The city's main drag was covered in people of all kinds who had come to Long Beach to see the many "hot rods" on the strip. I use the term hot rods loosely, as there was a 1990s Ford Mustang that some teenager had tried to make more rod-like, as well as other suped up cars that should have stayed the way they were.

Observers sat in stadium chairs on the sidewalk, toured in and out of a variety of stores and restaurants, and admired some of the cherry cars driving up and down the street.

Long Beach is also home to Marsh's Free Museum, which is home to Jake the Alligator Man. It's basically a museum of the weird and old combined with a souvenir shop. The walls are covered in taxidermied animals of the game and non-game variety. They had quite a few "What type of lover are you?"-o-meters. Think kitsch merchandise and you've got Marsh's Museum in a nutshell. And lots of Jake the Alligator Man magnets and bumper stickers. It's also free to visit.

There is a carnival in the middle of town. A merry-go-round, tilt-o-whirl, and bumper car carnival. Go cart racing is down the road a bit if you're looking for that.

The famed "world's largest frying pan" is located on the other side of the strip from Marsh's Museum. It's on the same patch of lawn as an orca statue and the "world's largest squirting clam." These three unique statues are next to a store that provides the services of espresso and tanning in the same place. There was a third item, but I forgot to take a picture and therefore forgot the third item, but it did not go well with the other two. See Megan below standing in front of this lawn patch at the intersection you should go to if you're looking for these statues.


Overall, it was definitely an interesting trip to Long Beach, Wash. I do not think I would have visited if it were not home to the "world's largest frying pan." Well, actually, it's home to apparently one of six of the world's largest frying pans. I think I may have to go back to Long Beach some day when the weather is a little better, when there aren't gear heads strolling up and down the street, and to see the gray whale skeleton (we got a map that was difficult to figure out, and it showed the gray whale skeleton as a point of interest).

We got to Long Beach via US-26W and Highway 101N from Portland. An exciting feature of this route was driving across the Astoria Bridge, which is apparently four miles long! It's quite big and scary, and on the way back we had a bit of a slowdown on the bridge due to signal light sequences. It's not fun to be all the way up there and slowed down to an almost stop. But it is definitely an impressive bridge.

The next adventure is not yet known. Perhaps it will be the Parthenon replica in Nashville, Tenn., where I will be visiting at the end of this month. Or perhaps there will be more roadside attractions to be found throughout this great land. Until the next adventure!