Nashville, TN - Day 2
Sunday, May 1
Today, we spent a second day in Nashville. There are lots of things to do in this city that don’t revolve around downtown Broadway St., and Andi and I were excited to check a few of them out.
First stop was the Nashville Farmer’s Market for some breakfast and fresh produce. Nashville’s farmers market has a permanent location with an area called “the farm sheds” for food & craft vendors and a food hall eatery. There seem to be a lot of these food court-style restaurants in Nashville, which we love! There’s a lot of food variety this way, and everyone can get something they want. Andi ordered a breakfast sandwich for himself from Farm City Coffee, plus a piece of banana bread and a muffin for Tory and Aden.
After we ate, we wandered through both farm sheds to see what produce was available. May 1 is obviously early in the summer growing season, but was still a good selection of greens, strawberries, homemade seasonings, jams/jellies, meat, and sauces available. There were also flower/garden and t-shirt vendors. I saw some beautiful handmade turkish towels. We picked up a few couple for our house in Wisconsin.
Next, we decided to check out Opryland. This is a huge complex that includes the Gaylord Opry Hotel with beautiful manicured grounds covered by a glass-top atrium, as well as the Opry Mills Outlet Mall. We’d heard this is a great place to wander around, even if you’re not staying at the hotel.
Opryland is located on the northeast side of Nashville, so it took us about 20 minutes to drive there. We’re so thankful we have the Jeep to get around now! Traffic in Nashville is no joke, even not the weekend, and navigating around town in the RV would not be fun.
When we arrived at the Opryland Hotel, we realized how expensive parking was. It was going to cost $40 just to park our car and walk the resort grounds. Andi and I decided that wasn’t a good use for our money. Instead, Andi wanted to walk around the nearby Bass Pro Shops, so we headed over there instead.
Tory and Aden loved the fish tank!
We could have walked around the outlet mall since we were here, but the weather was so nice outside. That felt like cheating on Nashville. Instead, we drove to the Lockeland Springs neighborhood to get some lunch. Andi read good reviews for a restaurant called The Treehouse, but upon arrival we learned they were only serving brunch and that menu didn’t look very kid-friendly. What is it with Nashville restaurants only serving brunch in the afternoons? Is it because everyone here parties late and doesn’t get the day started until Noon?
Since we weren’t feeling a second breakfast, we walked a few blocks over to another food hall called Hunters Station. Again, we love this style of restaurant because everyone gets to pick the food they want to eat. Why don’t more cities have these awesome food halls?!
Aden wanted fried shrimp — he’s been talking about it since we left Ecuador two months ago — and Tory, Andi and I wanted tacos. We ordered our food and found a table on their huge outdoor patio. It was perfect!
Next, I really wanted to check out Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage. This is where General Andrew Jackson who was the 7th President of the United States lived with his family from 1804-1845. I personally find history to be so interesting, plus it was a gorgeous afternoon in Nashville and we all liked the idea of walking around the beautifully-kept estate.
It cost $25/adults and $15/kids for the full tour, but I thought it was worth it to see everything. It included a 20-minute guided tour through Andrew Jackson’s mansion which houses many original artifacts. There is also a museum on the property with a 20-minute video detailing the political and military life of the former general & president.
I’ll be the first to admit that I really knew nothing about Andrew Jackson before our visit, other than the fact that he was a former president and is featured on the $20 bill. That’s exactly why I love visiting these places when we happen to be visiting an area because our whole family learns a lot. Actually being there in person & hearing the stories ourselves makes history come alive.
When the tour guide learned we were from Wisconsin, he told us a funny & true story about Andrew Jackson. The 7th president was popular amongst Wisconsin farmers because he was seen as a “common man.” When Jackson was elected president, his Wisconsin supporters wanted to go to his inauguration but couldn’t find the means to get there (it was the early 1800’s after all). Instead, Wisconsinites pooled their resources and send a gigantic wheel of cheese to the White House. Jackson proudly displayed the cheese wheel and staffers and guests ate off the cheese for weeks. The smell from the cheese lingered far after the food was gone.
After the mansion tour, the four of us walked around the estate grounds. We learned about Andrew Jackson’s slaves and how the property used to be a working cotton plantation. I think it’s important to learn about aspects of our history — both the accomplishments of the former president, as well as the mistakes of the past.
Andrew Jackson, as well as his wife and four generations of Jacksons are buried on the property in the gardens. We walked through the beautiful flowers and saw his final resting place.
Around 5:30pm, we made our way back to Grand Ole RV Resort to make dinner & relax for the night. There was live music playing once again, but we didn’t go over to listen this time. Instead, Andi grilled two pieces of Alaskan halibut that we purchased at the farmer’s market which we paired with fresh, local salad greens. The fish was so good!
Tory and Aden helped us with the laundry.
What a fantastic weekend we had in Nashville full of music, good food, history and awesome weather. We will be back again someday! For now, we’re heading off to Chattanooga.
