Day 1: November 24, 2005
Louisville to Nashville
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At some point on the expressway drive toward Louisville, a white mini-van started to pass me then slowed down. It took a tap on the horn to get me to turn my head to see a high school classmate waving from the passenger seat. I didn't even think of the camera until Tom was well past me so got just this shot of the van's rear. It pulled off at the next exit to, I assume, go through the woods after having successfully gone over the river. A nice "small world" moment 50 miles from my home and 150 from his.
I left the expressway in Louisville and got pictures of some of the biggies there. First up are the two big bats on Main Street, then there is the giant whiskey bottle near Broadway, and the fairly large coffee pot on Barret. Lynn's Paradise Cafe, home of the coffee pot, gets two pictures so I can show the really big working (I tested it!) kaleidoscope.
Once I left the expressway, I stayed off and headed toward Nashville on US-31E. Much of US-31E is marked as a scenic byway and, even with leafless trees, it looked pretty good. A couple of Lincoln landmarks were among the many placed closed for the holiday.
A bit of scenery about fifteen miles south of Lincoln's birthplace.
In Nashville, I headed to Broadway with a vague idea of eating at the Big River Brewery. But, despite having its name up in neon, the brewery was closed. Scaffolds covered the side of the building but I couldn't tell if the brewery is being refurbished or if the building is being turned into something else. The brewery wasn't the only place that was closed but plenty were open with music oozing out the doors. I started at Tootsie's and, although I stayed on the first floor, I could hear that the upstairs stage was going, too. Then it was across the street to Rippy's where a very good duo was performing. That's where I had my Thanksgiving dinner. I've read that the Pilgrims did not have turkey, the centerpiece of most of today's feasts, at their first celebration but did add it the next year. I guess it must have been another year or two before pulled pork barbecue was added.

I returned to the Honky Tonks after dinner and caught several songs from the band at The Second Fiddle and a few more from the group in The Stage. In The Second Fiddle, I heard a pedal steel guitar perform the horn part in Ring of Fire for the first time in my life. I heard it for the second time in my life half an hour later, in The Stage. The recent release of Walk the Line seems to have made Johnnie Cash tunes a little more popular and the lack of trumpeters in Nashville may make pedal players a little more popular, too.

ADDENDUM: False alarm on Big River Brewery. Either it was just closed for the holiday or I didn't study it closely enough. In either case, it was in operation on Friday.

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