They are known for their biscuits, but everything was good! Mitch and I watched a show on it before we left and they had a story on their biscuits and the famous "biscuit lady".
We weren't really expecting anything, but their biscuits we to die for!! They were so good... We ate one to many of them! On the show they talked a lot about their fried chicken, so thats what we both got, and well we weren't disappointed!
After lunch, we went to see the Parthenon. It is a replica of the one in Athens. It was really cool and we would recommend it. It cost a little bit to get in, but it was worth it. We went all through the museum and were amazed with everything in it.
The Parthenon was located in Centennial Park, so we went around that and it was so pretty. Not a lot of people were out since it was cold, but I can imagine it would be a busy place in the warmer months. After that, we just drove around, there were so many neat things to see. Since we are both huge country music fans, we were in heaven! We went and walked around downtown and there were tons of people there! It was such a fun atmosphere and we spent a lot of our time downtown.
That night we went to the Grand Ole Opry and the Opryland Hotel. It was sooo packed!! It took us about an hour to get in and get parked! But once again, it was worth it. I had never been before, but going at Christmas was amazing. It was decorated with lights and trees everywhere!
We spend all night inside and I don't think we covered it all. It was huge and had so many things going on. Inside the hotel was crazy. It felt like you were outside with all the rivers and trees.
It was so cool. We had heard that going at night was the best time because of all the lights and stuff, and they were right.. it was so incredible. All of Opryland was destroyed by the flood, so to see it back and just the same was so amazing! It seemed like nothing had ever happened!
That night we went to dinner at a place called J. Alexanders and it was a really cool atmosphere! I didn't get the best thing, but Mitch had a steak and it was wonderful! I would go again, but just try something different.
The next day was full of more sightseeing! We drove to a local area called Green Hills. They had a huge mall and it was a really fun area. There were lots of things to do and some unique restaurants. Since we had been downtown so much and we were eating their again that night before the concert, we decided to try a place in Green Hills for lunch. And then we just walked around the area and went and found Music Row. It was where all the recording studios and entertainment industries are located. It was neat to see, but we weren't that impressed. If we wouldn't of known we were driving through, we would of had no idea. It wasn't advertised well and the recording studios looked like old houses. But I guess it was neat to see. I tried to find Big Machine Records (Taylor Swift's recording company) but they had recently moved and we couldn't find a updated address. So we just found where it use to be.. Ha!
That afternoon we headed downtown and hung out there all day until the concert. Parking was crazy and so expensive, so we went and parked around 2 and didn't leave because we didn't want to have to pay again! We loved being downtown.. there were so many people, but it was so fun! Every store we walked by had some sign about Garth and we loved it!!
We waked around and did some shopping at the local stores and then went to the Country Music Hall of Fame! It was really neat... we probably could have spent a lot more time in it!
We decided to eat an early dinner because we haven't had less than an hour wait since we had been there. So we went at 4:30 thinking we wouldn't get seated until around 5:30. We got to the restaurant and it was packed!! We were glad we got their so early, but somehow we only waited 15 min and they called our name! It was nice to finally not have to wait, but we were going to be done a little earlier than expected!
Since we had some time to spare before the doors to the arena opened we stopped at a old fashion ice cream parlor. We mainly just wanted to get out of the cold and we had been in all the shops already and the only other thing downtown were bars. So went in and weren't even planning on getting ice cream, but the more we sat there, Mitch decided to get some. I am not the biggest ice cream fan, so I passed. They had very unique flavors and Mitch got Nutter Butter. I tried it and I loved it!! It was so good. I couldn't believe I liked it that much, so of course I then had to get some :)
During our wait we also shopped for our golf ball. We have a golf ball collection hanging in our office and everywhere we go, we get a golf ball. So we went and picked out one and we decided on the one with the Grand Ole Opry.
After ice cream it was finally the time we had been waiting for the past month!!!! The doors opened at 6 and we were there right at 6! We got in and walked around the arena, it was huge! We found our seats and then just had to wait. The show started at 7:30 and it was amazing! We were both so excited and I couldn't believe we were actually there.
I remember when Mitch and I first started dating, we got on the subject of music and it didn't take us long to figure out we were both huge Garth fans. We thought it was crazy we both liked him that much! I had went to one of his concerts when I was younger, so I would always give him a hard time, but I guess I can't do that anymore. I remember the concert when I was younger, but I don't remember the little details. I know I loved it, but the second time around was 10x better!! There was something about the concert, it was incredible. We were reading reviews on the concerts and Garth quoted, "If you are ever going to come to one of my concerts, this is the one to come to". He is so passionate about what he does and the fact that all the proceeds went to the flood, I think he was even more excited to be performing for such a good cause.
Everyone from him, his band, and all the workers at the arena were working for free. They also had special t-shirts made for this concert and all the proceeds from them went to the flood relief as well.
When the concert started, Mitch and I were both freaking out. We had took bets on what song he would open up with and we both said Rodeo and we were right!
He started out with some old stuff, which we both really liked and then played a lot of his main hits. At around 9:30 he played his last song and left the stage. We all knew he would come back out for an encore, and of course he did. He played a couple more then left again. He came back out for a second encore with no band and just his guitar and took requests from the audience, which was so fun!! He played 5 more songs then left. Right as he was about to walk off stage he ran back on and thanked us for doing our part, and he had to hold up his end of the deal. He said at the beginning of the concert, as long as he could tell we wanted more, he would keep playing. The crowd went crazy and then he goes on to say, "I know it's a Sunday night and most of you have work in the morning, but for the people who could stay he was going to bring the band back out and do more songs"!!!
He talked a lot while the band was setting back up and they all looked really confused, like this was unexpected and we just thought it was an act. But Garth kept saying, I usually don't this and I am trying to talk so much so my band can calm down. He said we have already played all the songs we've rehearsed, so from here on out they were going to wing it. They haven't played together as a band in over 10 years, except for the songs they rehearsed. We couldn't believe he was going to play more. It was awesome and we loved getting to experience that!
I honestly don't have words to describe this concert, it was more than we expected! He announced that he was going back on tour around 2014 for one last big city-to-city arena tour. We were both so excited to hear that and Mitch has already decided we are attending several shows on that tour.. Ha! I am not going to complain, that would be awesome and I have no doubt we will really travel multiple times to see him!
I got these tickets for Mitch for Christmas, but I'm going to admit... I wanted them just as bad! Ha! Mitch booked our hotel in Nashville for longer than what I expected and took me to do some really fun things while we were there, so this was my Christmas present too! I enjoyed it so much and I can't wait 'til the next one!!!
Sorry this was so long, we had a great time and I didn't want to leave any of it out.
I took a lot of video at the concert, so I thought I would share a few of them with you all! I hope you enjoy!
This is Friends in Low Places... I don't think I could pick a favorite that he sang, but if I had to this would probably be it!
This is Unanswered Prayers... Garth isn't singing and this is just the audience.. it sounds pretty cool!
This one is for my old roommate Katie... When I found out her and Tommy were dating, I would randomly play this song for her in our room... Ha! So I thought I would play it for her live now!
This is Shameless... it is one of Mitch and I's favorite songs by Garth!!!
These videos don't do justice for how loud and how much energy was in that arena, but I hope you enjoyed a little of what we got to experience this weekend!!
I can't believe Christmas is so close! We are spending Christmas Eve morning with Mitch's family, then heading to Tulsa that afternoon for Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas Day in Tulsa!! I can't wait!! Have a Merry Christmas and safe travels!
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