Back on the Water

Due to popular demand (ok 1 complaint on the blog) and after 9 weeks on the road through the Eastern US and Canada we are finally back on the boat and on the blog. It was a great trip, but being on the go just about every day, meant we got back here knackered (for those with limited Australian that means tired). It took about 3 days but then we started compiling “The List”. 

Now the boaters will know what the list is – it’s the things we have to do before we can move, and those things we should do before we move and those things we would like to do before we move and those things we are unlikely to do before we leave and those things Karen wants me to do before we leave (and I am unlikely to get round to and will never be forgiven for not doing...). Anyway this is a perpetually growing list and no matter how many things you cross off in a day, there seems to be more on the list at the end of the day!

To give you an example, on our list was replacement of our watermaker membranes which meant finding a local supplier (Karen’s job) of the membranes. While Karen was doing this I decided to pull the membranes out from under the guest head (bathroom) floor to make sure there was nothing else I needed – an easy but uncomfortable job requiring 7ft arms. Well to cut it short, yes the end caps were totally corroded and unserviceable. So, on the list simply:

• replace the membranes

became: 

• discuss problem with manufacturer of water maker (as this shouldn’t happen)
• argue with manufacturer that there agents installed the membranes under warranty and as this caused the failure repairs should be at their cost
• research possible local replacements for the membranes and pressure vessels as the French ones were very expensive
• research the possibility of replacing the whole unit with a new one
• negotiate an agreeable outcome with manufacturer
• order parts
• rebuild pressure vessels 
• replace membranes

We had a similar issue with our last warranty claim with Lagoon – I thought would just be a trip to St Augustine with the boat on our way south to repairs some small cracks in the narcelle (small middle pointy bow of the boat) has become a dismantle of the trampoline and rebuild of the fibreglass work and some stainless reinforcing which will be done here – with me doing a lot of the dismantling and reassembly work. I also noticed that the tramps were starting to fray so Karen got a job of sourcing new tramps for next year while I stitched up the old ones!

Needless to say, with the other items on the list (maintenance on the engines, replacement of mixing elbows, building new cabinets in the owner’s hull, maintenance on the sailing gear and rigging checks, cleaning and polishing etc etc) it is unlikely we will be leaving Georgia until late November, and then it will be back to the Bahamas for winter.
Meanwhile we are trying to make the most of our time here partaking in the First Friday night entertainment and learning new ways to drink rum aboard John & Jeri’s boat SV Ahyoka. Also, the wayward traveller who went further north this year are on their way south, so we may have visitors.

The first of them came through this week in their land yacht. Guy, Christine and Princess dropped in and spent 3 days with us with their friends Marcel and Joanne. Guy and Marcel were one of the first people we met when arriving in the Caribbean almost 4 years ago in Martinique. At first I thought they were a gay couple (well there were no girls on the boat at this stage and Guy is a really good cook). But Christine put that thought to rest on Guy and now that I’ve finally met Joanne, Marcel is now in the clear. We spent the weekend touring St Simon’s and Jekyll Island, having a few quiet drinks, lunch at Fins and of course playing Dominos.



So over the next month I will update the blog for the time between when we left The USVIs. I might do this in a random order as the mood takes me so check the blog out occasionally.

Nashville – I could spend forever here (or at least a week or two)

It’s been a long road trek and by now we are getting tired of living out of the van and tired in general, so we have decided to leave Graceland and Memphis until next year and concentrate on Nashville before heading home. Karen spends most of the night on the internet in the hotel room searching for a hotel room in or near the centre of Nashville, for a couple of nights, cheap of course but cannot find anything suitable, meanwhile I help out by watching HBO (which I have now decided I am pretty good at).

Next morning, we pack, have breakfast and while Karen has her shower, I take up the task of finding a hotel room for tonight and within 10 minutes I have found the answer, close to town, reasonably priced, and it is “where the stars stay” – the Drake Motel. So I book it for 2 nights – I am not missing Friday night in Nashville...


Not a bad job eh? Historic site etc etc.

Anyway after a short drive from Bowling Green we arrive early afternoon and check in next to Dolly Parton (well a life-size signed cut-out of her dedicated to the staff of the Drake anyway) and the girl behind the counter is very friendly and helpful and tells us how to get into the city, and since it is a Jim Beam party weekend, we should wait until a bit later and catch a cab in to see some of it. So we decide to chill in the room and catch up on internet time, some laundry etc before heading into town.

The room is unique – Room 107 – “Thing Called Love” Room...




So we decide to find out a bit about this place, what movies where filmed here etc. The first site we hit on was the Trip advisor review site (apparently Sheryl Crow stayed here) http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g55229-d98141-Reviews-Drake_Motel-Nashville_Tennessee.html and we were a bit worried about what we had paid for – particularly after reading the one titled “Creepy”, but we payed our money and we thought we would give it one night at least, particularly since we had the room where Sandra Bullock had shot “Thing Called Love” in what I believe was River Pheonix’s last movie. (Later we watched the movie and I can’t say I recognise the room and I thought she stayed in 108, but we had the sign).

After getting over the reviews, we caught a cab into town and stopped to check out the prices for the Jim Beam festival – about $80 a day we decided to see what was in town first before committing the cash. We wandered up 2nd street and started our introduction to Nashville in the most appropriate place I could think of – a pub with live music @ 5:30 in the afternoon – The silver Dollar Saloon.





Now the band was okay, the bar wasn’t packed so we thought it had to get better, so we kept wandering past other likely named bars such as The Wild Horse Saloon (where Air Supply with be playing in early October??), Wild Beaver Bar, Doc Hollidays, Coyote Ugly, Buffalo Billiards and BB King’s Blues Club.

On the way we hit Rosie’s Bootery to do the necessary boot review and hat try on. I almost cried when I saw the price of boots (3 for the price of 1 or 2/3 off if you didn’t want 3) and thought of how much I paid for my vintage boots back in Prahran that I had just got rid of due to mold, rust on the point and the fact that after 5 years of not wearing shoes they didn’t fit any more.


I could have had both these snakes skin and alligator boots for less than I paid for my ones back home – but Karen talked me out of buying things that are going to rust and mould on the boat whilst never being worn. A hat now, that’s a different story...


Well try as I might, I couldn’t find just the right hat – people always told me I have a big head (my wife in particular), but it is only when you try on 20 hats, that you start to realise what they mean.

We skipped BB’s Blues Club as we were in “Country” country after all but did have a look at Coyote Ugly but there was nothing happening there, so we stopped in at Hooters to rest our feet and quench our thirst (mind you my eyes got a fair work out). They must teach the bar maids to lean over every time they talk to you or give you a drink. Fortunately their uniforms are well engineered and nothing falls out.

The next bar we saw going past us (yes that’s right – going past us) is, I would have to say quite unique – but seriously seems like just too much work to get a drink. In fact I would expect to get the drinks for free doing this much work!


The music coming out of the Benchmark Sports Bar behind us as this was going by sounded quite good so we settled in at the bar to have a listen. I was keen to try the local drink, but thought I had better leave that til later at night.


Well, the music was so good we moved from the bar, to a table and then eventually a booth. We even grabbed a meal while we listened.


Now I swore I would remember these guys were, but it ended up being a long night, so all I can tell you is the two on the left hand end were a couple of song writers, the bass player sorta looked like Bruce Willis and the guy on the cut out acoustic had a name starting with something like R maybe. Anyway, they did have Tex come in and jam for a bit on his sax and his voice would have made Johnny Cash proud.

After their session was finished, it was about 10, that’s right already after cruiser’s midnight, so we decided we had better venture down Broadway and visit the honky tonks down there. We queued for a while and made it into one honky tonk just in time to see the band pack up and wait for another to arrive, the second was pretty much the same, but in the queue we did hook up with a bachelorette party from Alabama. A bit disheartened we headed across the road to the Wheel to maybe have one last drink and here we were not disappointed – the band was great and the singer was a very talented and looked a lot like a girl I had a crush on in high school (heck maybe it was her grand-daughter), so we stayed there until they were packing up.


But now that I look at the picture in the light – she looks nothing like her....

Now you are probably think old folk like us would be ready to head off to bed by now , but when we left the Benchmark, we were told that the best drummer in Nashville was playing in the next band Chris Somebody or other. Now being an ex-drummer from the Toogoolawah State Primary School Recorder Band, I thought it was a must we went back and saw him perform. So well after normal mid-night we trekked back to 2nd Street.

Here the band was more metal than country, so it wasn’t what we came for but the drummer did give a 10min solo in the song or two that we caught which was pretty amazing. I tried to video it but the pocket camera didn’t really capture it well. When he played just the bass it was  pretty unbelievable.

Anyway then it was time to stroll back down Broadway and catch a cab home. Needless to say, I slept well, never felt like people were looking over me nor did I hear the hookers next door – if there were any.

Saturday, after a gradual rise from the comfy bed, we decided today was the day for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum and Studio B, maybe the Ryman. Before we left we checked out what was on at the Grand Ole Opry and found Loretta Lynn playing so I spent some time trying to get tickets but lucked out. So it was onto a bus and into the city again.

We hit the museum and was told that the Studio B tour was full so we booked for Sunday and took off through the Museum, which believe it or not was full of country music memorabilia, guitars pianos, costumes and of course boots. There was even the Man in Black’s black stuff. Luckily, to keep Karen interested there was also Elvis’ Solid Gold Cadillac.


And Webb Pierce’s customized convertible – check the silver guns out!


After the museum we decided to just check out a couple of bars and get a bite to eat before having a quiet night in at the Drake so we headed to Hooters for a drink (don’t know why Karen wanted to go there again), then a couple of sets at BB King's Blues Club and had some Mexican on 2nd Street after trying to find just the right hat for me. No luck with the hat unfortunately.

Sunday it was up early and into town for the Studio B tour – there was some sort of football game on so parking was a bit hard but we managed and arrived with plenty of time for the tour bus walking past bars that were already open, full and with live music. Now Studio B is nothing to look at, but it has a pretty amazing history having seen Elvis, Dolly, Waylon, Willie, Charlie and the Everly Brothers record here. Over 35,000 songs recorded and over 10,000 of those Top 10. Elvis alone recorded over 100 hits in this little space.  A lot of the equipment is still in place and it is still being used today.  In fact I got to sit at (and pretend to play) the same piano that Elvis used in all his recordings!


Nashville was great, could have spent a lot more time here, but it was time to move on to get to Chattanooga by sunset. We tried a couple of camp sites on the way as it was getting warmer again but  we didn’t do so good and ended up in a hotel room just north west of Chattanooga near Ruby Falls.

Ruby Fall is an underground water fall, about 1000 feet below the surface. We took a lift down to the falls in a small group of about 12 people and trekked underground to the falls. You can tell people that cave obviously are very special when you look at the named formations like “Donkey”.



Apart from that Ruby Falls was pretty spectacular – particularly with the lighting in the chamber.


From there it was onto Chattanooga to check out the Choo Choo (apparently a significant part of the Civil War). We arrived at the transit station to get the electric shuttle into town and it was then I realised I truly was in America.


$345 for a basic divorce and it is done – just dial 1-800-DIVORCE!

Chattanooga was a pretty little river town, but after lunch there was not a lot to keep us there with the boat calling out to us, so we hopped the shuttle back to the van and started the last leg of the trip to Brunswick – of course there was one more hotel room and just one little margarita on the way
 
COMMENT:

 AUTHOR: paula 

DATE: 11/19/2012 10:11:22 AM 

Thanks Guys for the blog makes me want to go to nashville. hey Matt r u still listening to 3RRFM as you have been mentioned on Brian Wise's show recently
take care Pxxx