Saturday, May 4

Odometer Reading: 46, 236 Food Supply: Still Great

After a yummy free hotel breakfast (unfortunately, one of the few we had on the road) in Tupelo, Mississippi, we headed out to find Elvis' birthplace. We got there before it even opened. It's not really very exciting, except that fans have made so many contributions that a huge Elvis church has been built right next door. We were told that this is a very popular site for fans' weddings and receptions. Matt put our Elvis tape in the tape deck and cranked it up as we rolled on down towards one of our favorite cities, Memphis, Tennessee.

Unfortunately, this was a bad day to visit Memphis. A huge music festival was going on and had closed down Beale Street. And even worse, there was no parking to be found that wasn't at least $15.00. As you can guess, we were on a tight budget so we just ended up driving around and reminiscing about our past trip--the one that gave us the road trip idea in the first place. We also went back to Graceland to pay our respects to the King.

Memphis is such a great city. It really is. If you've never been there, you should go. There's so much to do, just on Beale Street alone. Lots of great restaurants and night clubs, most with live blues and/or jazz. And tons of neat little shops, including an old-timey drug store that sells love potion and overalls big enough for a giant to wear, line the streets. I can't recommend it highly enough. And the tourists, especially the Presley fans at Graceland, are the nicest of any you'll ever meet. No kidding! Go visit and see for yourself! (As a side note, please visit my Road Trip to Graceland page for neat pictures of Elvis' gravesite and other sights around Memphis).

We left Memphis around 2 and drove into Arkansas, which also was the state I was the least impressed with. I did like the fact that it had the cheapest gas prices anywhere, however. Arkansans are very proud of the fact that Bill Clinton hails from Little Rock. Every one of their road signs mention this in some way. There is one thing that the state should be even MORE proud of, though--the "Booger Hollow" double-decker outhouse in the middle of the Ozark Mountains. This place was great! We got there kind of late, and a chain fence was blocking off the outhouse. We just climbed right over. Hey, we traveled all that way, and we were going to see that damn outhouse! (Matt went a step further and used it). As we approached the outhouse, I started to get a whiff of this awful smell--the worst smell in the history of mankind. Other people actually used the outhouse! Gross! I was ready to get out of Arkansas now, so we drove like crazy through the Ozarks (and passed the mountains and a couple of nuclear power plants) and cruised on into the barren plains of Oklahoma.

Bugs. That was my first impression of Oklahoma. My windshield was covered with tons of 'em. I think the air in OK is made of insects. But as we traveled down the interstate, I began to develop this special "understanding" of the state. This was the farthest West I'd ever been, and there was something so mysterious and threatening about the wide open plains. I was amazed at the scenery. Oklahoma is something you have to experience. Oklahoma is a beautiful place.

Keep On Truckin'

This page was created, designed and written by Louisa Moore.