Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree

Nashville.
Music.

For more than 200 years, the two have gone together as well as Thanksgiving and turkey or Christmas and Santa Claus. It's no secret to any traveler that when Nashville is on the list of destinations to go, an influx of country music will be among the stops to go and see.

The holiday season also serves as a great time to visit Music City USA (www.visitmusiccity.com). In between times spent with family, opening Christmas presents and eating Thanksgiving turkey, consider Nashville as a destination for a day, a couple days, a weekend or longer, during a period of time where the tourist numbers are lower compared to the summertime.

Nashville is a distinct, unique city compared to its southeastern United States counterparts. The Tennessee capital city's rich music history is smoothly mixed in with political center of the Volunteer State. Throw in a lively college scene in the West End District (Vanderbilt University, Belmont University and Lipscomb University are all minutes apart from each other) and Nashville becomes an eclectic mix, filled with a little something for everyone at all times of the year.

The world-famous Ernest Tubb's Record Store, located in the middle of the Broadway district.

It's hard to talk about Nashville without first mentioning its central entertainment district. The area immediately surrounding Broadway is the city's premier destination for music, dancing, dining and fun. Rolling Stone Magazine voted Nashville the best music scene in 2012--and it comes as no surprise-- with local bars and music establishments dominating both sides of the street. Walking itself is a great, and free, alternative to take in the culture of Nashville. Nighttime is the premier time to experience this area, but even during the daytime, local musicians of all kinds show off their talent inside (and outside, too). Some bars have an age restriction, but one does not need to enter to take in the music. Or just walk the streets and take in the rich history along the 'Honky Tonk Highway'


This New Year's Eve, Broadway will be rocking with their annual Music Note Drop (yes...a music note drops to ring in the new year...Welcome to Nashville) block party, featuring The Fray, Sixpence None the Richer, Love and Theft and Striking Matches. The concert is free and the party starts at 7 p.m.







The Country Music Hall of Fame (http://www.countrymusichallofffame.org) is blocks south of Broadway and is one of the top destinations to visit in Nashville on any given day. The official museum for everyone and everything country music is housed in a symbolically-shaped building, with architecture reminiscent of a piano keyboard, studio records and even stained-glass windows to show the influence that Gospel music has had on Country music's past. The museum itself takes visitors on a journey of the music that made Nashville famous and even offers a tour of the famous Studio B, where artists such as Elvis Presley, Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner recorded some of their hits.

The Wildhorse Saloon

Nightlife and dancing is also a major part of the Nashville scene and line dancing is all part of the act. One of the top places to dance it up, Nashville-style, is the Wildhorse Saloon (www.wildhorsesaloon.com). For a minimal cover charge, visitors can enter and dance the night away, with the help of line-dancing instructors and (of course!) some live entertainment. Some major music acts have graced the stage and this December, Big and Rich will make an appearance on Dec. 13. Either way, it's always a good time on Second Avenue. Who knows? Even a college junior from the North could lead an entire group of people in the Cotton-Eyed Joe.





Another famed music destination that is a must-see for any music lover is the Ryman Auditorium, the "Mother Church of Country Music." Backstage tours are offered at one of the first performing venues in Nashville, with acts dating back to 1892. Check the event calendar, as acts from Bon Jovi to Johnny Cash to Tony Bennett have, at one point, performed in front of Ryman audiences. Extra point of note: keep your eyes open...you could even catch a glimpse of a scene shoot for ABC's new hit show "Nashville" (appropriately named)

There is one other destination of noteworthiness for the holiday traveler just east of downtown. Yes, yes, everyone who knows anything about Nashville knows about the Grand Ole Opry (and yes, it is pretty cool to see it once--maybe more, depending on the person). However, the neighboring Opryland Hotel should be the intentional destination for the lights and the jingle bells and a taste of a Southern Christmas. More then two million lights, a ton of decorations, carriage rides highlight 'A Country Christmas at the Gaylord Opryland', running from November 16 to January 1 this winter. The kids will also be entertained, thanks to interactive activities, featuring characters from the movies Shrek, Kung Fu Panda and Madagascar.

It may not be a white Christmas in the South, but if a traveler wants a bit of a different holiday experience, it is not an unwise idea to avoid the long, expensive lines of bigger cities and, instead, make the trip to the banks of the Cumberland River to Music City USA...Nashville, Tennessee.

Holiday-themed caramel apples, anyone?

Shooting a scene of "Nashville."

The World's Eyes Fell Upon Knoxville

It's a cold, brisk, blustery afternoon in Knoxville. The sky is gray, gloomy almost, with the look of precipitation about to fall on the city skyline.

The scene is barren. On such a cold afternoon, no one, except for a few college students here and there, is outside in the open fields. The iconic fountains are turned off for the winter, but the waterfall across the way slowly sprinkles across the rocks towards the creek.

And then there are the eyes. The two big blue eyes glaring over the barren field, piercing one's soul, imploring one to ponder on the magic and wonder of art.

On such a cold November day, it is hard to remember or think about the history of this place. An area once full of kudzu-infested nothingness became home to one of the globe's biggest celebrations in 1982, completely revitalizing what was once such a dead zone in Knoxville. The park today isn't home to international tents and the ferris wheel that was once on Volunteer Landing isn't there, but the originally-named World's Fair Park remains a top attraction for visitors and citizens of Knoxville throughout the year.

Well, almost throughout the year.

The tents and the 'modern' marvels from the 1980's are all gone, but current Knoxvillians still enjoy timeless classics at the park. One of the lone remnants from the World's Fair, and the park's current centerpiece, is the Sunsphere, the fair's symbol. Once home to a restaurant and an observation deck, admission was set at two dollars until the Sunsphere was closed after the fair ended.

After being reopened for a short time in 1999, the tower was closed again after construction of the Knoxville Convention Center required the Sunsphere to be used as office space for construction staff.

2005 marked a first for the Sunsphere, as well as the nearby Tennessee Ampitheatre, An announcement by then-mayor Bill Haslam allowed the two fair staples to be renovated and reused for public use. In 2007, the observation deck was open to the public, this time with no admission charge, which remains today.

From the observation deck, visitors are able to see Knoxville in all directions, seeing everything from downtown to the Tennessee River, to the Great Smoky Mountains to the University of Tennessee.

There's a number of other sites a little closer to the tower.

Remember those eyes? With a message of "Open your eyes, open your mind", the Knoxville Museum of Art highlights a mix of local East Tennessee artists and travelling artists. A common theme to World's Fair Park, admission to this museum is also free, with parking located just down the road.

In case looking at local art causes a sweet craving, the park also features its own candy shop. The South's Finest Chocolate Factory may have its original shop out west on Kingston Pike, but the aptly named historic Candy Factory Building houses the World's Fair location, on the corner of Clinch Avenue and World's Fair Park Drive.

Right below lofts that look outward onto the park, the chocolate factory offers a wide variety of that sweet deliciousness (don't believe me? Check out the website...http://www.chocolatelovers.com/). No, the chocolate is not free, but you can get a free look at the chocolate being made in the on-site factory.


In the warmer months, expect to see more people hanging out on the center fairgrounds, throwing a frisbee, sunbathing or playing in the fountains, but no matter when you visit, there will always be something to do, and usually something free.

A Step Back into Knoxville History

In the city of Knoxville, Tennessee, the downtown section has been owner to a renovation. Once a place of old, historic architecture, the biggest city in East Tennessee is now home to urban agriculture, modern music and a more hip, current culture.

Despite this revitalization, the city is staying true to its historic roots.Just up one of the many Knoxville hills lies a reminder of Knoxville before the skyscrapers, the football stadium and the underground music.

A man named James White once served in the Revolutionary War. For his service, the government granted him several land properties. In 1783, the man from just north of Charlotte in Iredell County headed westward to Tennessee to pick up his grants. By 1800, he had about 125,000 acres of land in the Knoxville area and in parts of West Tennessee.

On one of his plots of land in the Fall of 1785, White, his two oldest sons and a couple family servants came to one area in Knoxville to build a simple two-story log cabin. He went on to plant the first crops, turnips, in order to have a form of sustenance during the cold winter. When the rest of his family moved to Knoxville, White added on to the property, building to accommodate for seven children, two adults and a number of servants.

In 1796, Tennessee became the sixteenth state in the United States and Knoxville became the first state capital. Governor William Blount had asked White if he wanted to give up some of his land to make a new capital city in the Territory South of the River Ohio. This was the beginning of Knoxville and today, the site where White built his house is now James White's Fort and has been a chance for visitors to experience early  Knoxville history since 1970.

White didn't stay on this property very long, leaving the growing city in 1793 to live on a more secluded plantation until he died. His property, however, remains as a symbol of what Knoxville once was back in colonial times. The fort is quaint, small in size, but big in terms of historic artifacts and serves as a chance to contemplate what life would have been like in the late 1700's.




The main house and the kitchen are original structures, with the exception of the doors, windows and roofs. The other buildings are restorations of what was originally there.

Inside each of the buildings, visitors will find many artifacts, or replicas in some cases, common to the home during that time and pamphlets of information are given to every visitor explaining each room and each building in careful detail.

The bedroom took up the entire second floor and could fit as many as 25 people in the multiple beds. The beds were placed on rope framings, sparking the phrase "Sleep tight. Don't let the bedbugs bite." Bedbugs were a commonality in this time period and would frequently make a home among the old straw or corn husk mattresses.



The kitchen was separately built from the main house, with the intention of preventing a catastrophe in case the kitchen the caught fire. Families tended to rise and get out of bed at around 4:00 in the morning and breakfast would be served an hour later. Dinner, what we call lunch today, would be served around 12:30, and an evening meal (our dinner) would be served around 5:30. Waking up early coincides with going to bed early, with bedtimes occurring at 6 p.m. for the children, 7:30 p.m. for the men and between 8 and 9 for the women.

The kitchen was considered the slave's area and was rarely used as an eating area for the family. The slaves even had their own beds in the corner of the kitchen. Through documentation, it is known that the family had a slave cook named Sally, who was the only slave to not be freed when White died. She eventually was freed in MIssouri by White's daughter, Cynthia.

Also included in the property is the family's well and smokehouse, which proved essential for watering the livestock and for providing pig roasts and other meats for the family. All parts of the animal were used by the family, similar to the buffalo out in the Great Plains. The blood was used for blood pudding and sausage. The head was boiled down for making souse or head cheese. The entails were used for food storage and even for children's toys. Even the bones were used, making great fertilizers when grounded up.

The final house in the loop of note is the weaving house where, as the name suggests, was used for making cloths and other linens. In an era where stores were not of great intake, making homemade thread for clothes, linens and bedding was essential for everyday life. For one garment, it took about three months from the moment the sheep was sheared to the time the finished product was complete. At one time, it was common for an average East Tennessee man to own just three sets of clothes.

It may be small, but James White's Fort is a great destination to step back in time a bit and get a taste for how colonial life in Knoxville occurred. The fort is one of several attractions in the greater metro area that strives to produce a closer look into the history of Knoxville before the days of Fulmer, Manning and Summitt, adding another dimension to the already mulit-dimensional city by the Smoky Mountains.

Knoxville's Diamond in the Rough

The small, narrow roads of residential East Knoxville are not part of the tourist center of the city. Located between the  shopping and dining downtown section and the theme-park and music jamboree-filled sections of Sevierville and Pigeon Forge, East Knoxville rarely appears in any guidebook of the region.

Traditionally, the area known as East Knoxville refers to the part of the city east of First Creek, located near the downtown loop. The area surrounds Magnolia Avenue, Dandridge Avenue and Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue and was once a separate city before being annexed by Knoxville in 1868. In the 19th century, residential areas were established when streetcars were brought to this section and development of the present-day Chilhowee Park began.

Since then, the neighborhood has been home to a mix of different races and ethnicities, while also being home to many urban renewal projects to liven up the community. The area is home to a couple of Knoxville attractions. The Knoxville Zoo is located just off of Interstate 40, but the other attraction has garnered attention as well.

A traveler just has to know where to find it.

Located down a small, two-laned street that should be a one-way street, the Knoxville Botanical Gardens and Arboretum is a beautiful, scenic breath of life to a part of Knoxville that could use a touch-up. Founded in 2001, the grounds span 200 years of plant life and history, while also providing spectacular views of Mt. LeConte and the Great Smoky Mountains. The gardens are home to a bamboo forest, a dogwood nature trail and the historical remains of the C.B. Howell Nursery, once the oldest continually operated nursery in Tennessee until it closed in 2003.

The main attraction for many visiting the park, however, is what happens when the plants are in bloom and it isn't 40 degrees and blustery.

In the spring and summer season, KBGA turns into an outdoor events ground, playing host to weddings and other outdoor events. The stone terraces, courtyards and meeting rooms, along with the aforementioned views from the Great Lawn, make a great and popular combination for engaged couples, business meetings and other events.

Marshall and Natalie Aldredge, a married couple from Knoxville, tied the knot at KBGA on May 31, 2011. Unlike a traditional church setting, the Aldredges wanted something different.

"We had a few criteria in mind as we were looking around," said Marshall. "We knew we wanted an outside wedding, a place to have electricity and a place for our reception that could handle live music.

"The Botanical Gardens fit all of what we were looking for and they had an availability on the day we wanted as well."



KBGA offers several wedding packages, ranging from $800 to $3400 for a more elaborate ceremony at the stone walls. The rental comes with tents, chairs, access to the many rooms around the area of the visitor center and a choice of location on the grounds, depending on the day of the week. For couples like the Aldredges, the location and pure scenery of KGBA made a major impression.

"Our choice for the Botanical Gardens was mainly because we love the outdoors and we wanted a beautiful background for our wedding," said Marshall. "We're outside so often that we thought it would be fitting to have an outdoor wedding.

"We thought the gardens fit a lot of how we wanted our wedding to look."



The rustic atmosphere and the unique dimensions of the multiple setup choices provide a different kind of wedding compared to those in a church or chapel. The sunlight shining through the trees at sundown create a magical, almost heavenly feel, making this a premier destination in Knoxville for celebrating a special occasion.

"The location is flexible, the grounds are well kept, the staff is kind and helpful and the place is beautiful," said Marshall. "That's really all there is to it."



Whether visiting for a wedding reception or for exploring a hidden Knoxville attraction, visitors of all kinds should make KGBA a spot to check out for a couple hours to get away from the city life. The numerous diverse types of trees and other flora, ranging from Kentucky Coffee Trees to bamboo to Lebanon Cedars straight from the Middle East, rival those of nearby nature centers such as Ijams, but without the external distractions to take away from the experience. Going during the warmer months of the year will enhance the experience more and provide a greater atmosphere when everything is in bloom.

Showtime in the Square

The city of Knoxville has its fair share of music history. While it might lack the popularity and limelight of its I-40 neighbors of Memphis and Nashville, East Tennessee's largest city boasts quite an impressive music community. The mix of bluegrass and old-time, traditional genres may seem ancient to younger generations, but it has breathed new life to Knoxville. The city of about 180,000 has benefited from many beautification projects that have changed the reputation of the city from "the ugliest city in America" (courtesy of author John Gunther) to the 17th best music scene in the United States, according to Blender magazine.

One area of Knoxville that has reaped many positives from these beautification projects is Market Square, a pedestrian mall that is home to many authentic shops and restaurants. Once a public marketplace where citizens of all races and genders traded and bought local goods, it was once called "the most democratic place on earth" by the Knoxville News Sentinel.

The music scene in Market square specifically is a must-see for visitors and residents alike who want a taste of local East Tennessee musical culture in a setting that has been a music venue for years. Market Square has been host to all kinds of musicians since the late 1860s. By the 1980s, bluegrass, jazz, folk and punk bands were performing within the square and now, Market Square offers three distinct music and entertainment venues that provide more and more life to a city that is growing each year.

In the back of Cafe 4, in an alley off of the main plaza, lies the Square Room, but don't let the obscure location deter from the potential experience. The state-of-the-art, hospitable environment has been host to local acts such as Brad Blackwell and Elenown, as well as more well-known artists like Elliott Yamin, David Cook and Gavin DeGraw, along with a number of underground acts.

It may be small, but the Square Room functions as a premier entertainment location in Market Square.

"Art is played in the Square Room; uncommercialized, small-scale artists playing for the enjoyment of it," said UT student Kaitlyn Darby.

"I have enjoyed the community that it brings. There is much fun and laughter going on," said Mike Zaczyk, a UT student who will be the DJ for the third annual Dance For Love in December. "There is never a lonely time while in Market Square, always surrounded by people."

In the middle of Market Square, more entertainment is on full display for less of a cost. At any time of the day, street performers take to the open-air stage to hone their skills in music, dance or a number of other talents. The fall series of "Movies in Market Square", spanning six consecutive Friday nights, has offered people of all ages a free night at the movies for the past nine years, adding to the fun atmosphere year-round.

"I have attended concerts and events in both Market Square and the Square Room; the atmospheres are surprisingly similar," said Darby.  "I enjoy these places because they are small and close in the middle of the city. They are artsy, fun, and affordable, separate but near by."

On the opposite end of Market Square sits one final music hotspot. Preservation Pub functions as a three-story, full-service bar that hosts live, local music acts, comedy hours and even trivia nights on Monday. The dark-lit first floor Smokeasy bar serves as an oasis from the sun and bustle of city life--that is, until nightfall hits when it hosts eclectic, rocking bands starting at 10 p.m. nightly. Just up the stairs is the non-smoking Speakeasy floor, featuring the most comfortable seating and most comfortable atmosphere in the building. This is also the home of the aformentioned comedy, trivia, variety and open-mic shows, which rotate daily from 6-10 p.m. The unique twist to Preservation Pub is up one more floor. Yes, that would be on the roof. Knoxville's first ever outdoor rooftop Moonshine Roof Garden provides one of the more romantic spots, offering up gorgeous views of Market Square and the immediate downtown area. 

The city that started out humbly as a country and traditional music scene has started to open up and become a force in the local music scene. A trip to any one (or all) three entertainment destinations in Market Square will give a sense of what has sparked Knoxville, Tennessee, culture in recent years. 

Get ready, America...it's showtime in East Tennessee.