Adventures for Anyone

Wednesday, May 11, 2022

Drottingholm...Good One Jenn! Welcome to Stockholm!

Upon returning to my friends' bucket lists, I ran across one of Jenn's requests and couldn't resist. She asked if I could discuss a very specific site, Drottingholm Castle, the summer residence of the Swedish Royal Family. Well, being that it's on the outskirts of Stockholm, Sweden; one of the most fascinating cities in one of the most fascinating countries in Europe, how could I possibly resist?

First, we'll discuss the castle. Built in 1580 by Johan III for his wife, the queen; it stood on Island Lovon in Lake Malar just outside of Stockholm. Drottingholm literally meant Queen's Islet. Sweden was a powerhouse during that time, and having a grand residence to show how powerful they were was of utmost importance. After all, who's going to respect your power if you don't have a massive castle, inspired by Versailles on an island to spend your summers at? I don't know, but it sure has made life for us Europhiles traveling the continent grand and amazing. There's nothing quite like visiting a grand palace.

But, as happened with many works of architecture in pre fire retardant times, Drottingholm burned in 1681. It was eventually rebuilt, but then was sold to the state in 1777. The royal family still used it as a summer residence until 1818 when Charles XIV abandoned the palace during his entire reign. He died in 1844.

As with most ancient palaces in Europe, there was more to Drottingholm than just the main palace. There were elaborate gardens and grounds. There were other buildings, like the church built in 1746 and the Chinese Pavilion built during the reign of Catherine the Great of Russia who also fancied all things Asian and had a Chinese Palace of her own.

Oscar I revived the abandoned palace during his reign, and since then, it has been maintained and the royal family, although these days they are largely figureheads, have used the palace as their residence consistently since 1981.

The Palace has many areas that are open to the public these days, and there are about a dozen different tours you can take. Over the centuries, world renowned artists and architects, sculptors and painters, garden designers and horticulturists have worked tirelessly to produce the collective work of art that we see today as Drottingholm Palace. It's an amazing place with an amazing history, and Jenn has officially landed it directly on my bucket list.

And now, I need to digress. I have always wanted to go to Sweden, and Stockholm has always been on my bucket list. So, just a little information on the city that is home to the amazing Drottingholm Palace.

First, there are at least a dozen other amazing palaces and castles to see in the area, including the official Royal Palace of Sweden right in the city. If you love a good castle and palace like I do, this is a city for you.

Stockholm is a city we've all heard of. It's one of those happy countries that none of us Americans understands, because it seem that the weather alone would drive a person crazy. In the winter it is cold, dark most of the day, and people do take their snowmobiles to McDonald's drive thru. We've seen that on TV. In the summer though. Wow. It really doesn't get dark and the weather is largely sunny and warm. People go swimming in lakes in the summer, not just in the winter after running out of one of their world famous saunas.

Stockholm is the capital of Sweden and one of the most progressive cities and countries on Earth. During the pandemic, Sweden took its own path to deal with Covid-19 by not trying to stop the spread with masks and lock downs. They did restrict entry into their country, and they have a fabulous vaccine rate, but they decided that it would have to run its course. And now, Sweden does fall on the low risk list. Were they right? Who knows.

But, Sweden has been celebrating science, art, and forward thinking pretty much forever. They have a city that sits on 14 different islands, and they have many ways for the citizens to get around on public transportation. Can you have an underground in such a watery area? Why, yes you can. And not only do they have a subway system, the stations are works of art. A working art museum if you will. They also have an intricate ferry system to navigate all those islands. There's also buses, taxis, ubers and whatever. Bicycle rentals are very popular.

You might recognize the iconic city hall of Stockholm. There are only a handful of cities in the world that has a city hall that is world famous, but Stockholm has made that happen. Every year, the Nobel Prizes are announced in that hall, and they are the single most sought after awards on Earth. Being a Nobel Laureate is a dream of just about anyone.

Stockholm has museums as well. The Vasa is preserved in its museum and is the best preserved ship in the world from the 1700's.

There's also the Skansen Open Air Museum just outside of town. It shows you what life was like in the past in Sweden and is the largest open air museum in the world. Pretty impressive.

Art is tantamount in Stockholm, and Fotografiska is their photography museum. They showcase photography from Sweden and all over the world. Hold onto your hat. This is a chain that is producing museums all over the world. I've been to the one in New York City. It's a great place to visit if you love the art of photography.

Now, what else is Sweden famous for? What do we Americans know about it? That's right, we Americans love IKEA. That's right. Stockholm is ground zero and the flagship store is right in the city.

Not only can you shop at the original, but they have a museum too, and you can see all of the designs from over the years. Sweden had both modern and museum together all over Stockholm. It's a little bit of world wide combined with a lot of Swedish creativity and ingenuity. What we call the Nordic Countries are some of the most creative countries on Earth. They've taken what could be a problematic environment and turned it into an area of some of the most inventive cultures on Earth, and Sweden heads that list of countries.

I had to leave one of my favorites for last. The very first 45 record I ever owned was the very first piece of music I ever owned and I got it for my birthday. That record was Dancing Queen and so began my lifelong love of ABBA. Yes, they are Swedish, and yes, there is a museum in Stockholm. Honestly, that place would be my first stop. And, don't forget, ABBA put out a new album last winter. They're still going strong.

There's so much to see and do in Stockholm, and Drottingholm is the pinnacle of any trip there. You should tour that Palace and any others you have time to see. There's so much that you shouldn't miss in that city. Yes, you should take a tour on some kind of boat. You should check out the old town. You should take a ride on a bike and check out the amazing parks and gardens. You should definitely go to some one of a kind museums. Stockholm is also a world famous food destination, they have a massive music scene, and they have festivals of all kinds all year long. They have one of the largest pride festivals in the world.

Sweden is one of the most progressive countries in the world. We know their artists, their products, their food, and their happy lifestyle. They have a socialist outlook, a royal family, a democratic government, a creative nature, a go with the flow attitude, an eye for beauty and an ear for great tunes. It's one of the places that we know so much about, yet don't realize how much we really know. It's a country that has gone from warring with Russia to celebrating the world's greatest acts of peace and greatest genius.

So, take some time to think about visiting the capital of a country that battled Covid-19 head on with no fear. Come and see forward thinking in action. Come and enjoy the beauty that surrounds you. Come and study the past, see the future, sail all around it and enjoy!

https://www.kungligaslotten.se/english/royal-palaces-and-sites/drottningholm-palace.html

https://www.visitstockholm.com/o/drottningholm-palace/

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g19767947-d208281-Reviews-Drottningholm_Palace-Drottningholm.html

https://www.visitnordic.com/en/attraction/drottningholm-palace

https://www.historyhit.com/locations/drottningholm-palace/

https://www.getyourguide.com/drottningholm-palace-l3728/city-cards-tc101/?cq_src=google_ads&cq_cmp=377151465&cq_con=1247946168886853&cq_term=www.getyourguide.com&cq_med=&cq_plac=&cq_net=o&cq_pos=&cq_plt=gp&campaign_id=377151465&adgroup_id=1247946168886853&target_id=dat-2329796419836470%3Aaud-806416223%3Aloc-190&loc_physical_ms=44736&match_type=b&ad_id=&keyword=www.getyourguide.com&ad_position=&feed_item_id=&placement=&device=c&partner_id=CD951&gclid=fc9d7db674311c494a1f1fcd86c36204&gclid=fc9d7db674311c494a1f1fcd86c36204&gclsrc=3p.ds&gclsrc=3p.ds&msclkid=fc9d7db674311c494a1f1fcd86c36204&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=ct%3Ddsa%7Cln%3D29%3Aen%7Ctc%3Dus&utm_term=www.getyourguide.com&utm_content=ct%3Ddsa%7Cfn%3Df1

https://visitworldheritage.com/en/eu/royal-domain-of-drottningholm-sweden/a78b9947-7ad4-4cb1-aae2-891b103c2eee

https://www.castlesofsweden.com/drottningholm-palace/

https://www.britannica.com/technology/palace

https://www.routesnorth.com/stockholm/visiting-drottningholm-palace-from-stockholm/

https://www.virtuoso.com/tours/12635093/drottingholm-palace#.YnvzmZLMK70

https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/559

https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/drottningholm-palace/

https://www.roadtripsaroundtheworld.com/drottningholm-palace-sweden/

https://www.firebirdtours.com/welcome/sweden-tours?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=FT_Scandinavia_MISK_EN_US&utm_term=sweden%20tours&msclkid=a6f6262a62a4106f00d1445196be8aac&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=FT%20%7C%20Scandinavia%20%7C%20MISC%20%7C%20EN%20%7C%20US&utm_term=sweden%20tours&utm_content=Sweden%20Tours%20%7C%20MT%3ABMM

https://www.getyourguide.com/-l50/?cmp=bing&campaign_id=377864073&adgroup_id=1250145317866631&target_id=kwd-78134413584677%3Aaud-806416215%3Aloc-190&match_type=e&ad_id=78134229928632&msclkid=faeb4dea7859149e60252f918c438f13&loc_physical_ms=44736&feed_item_id=&keyword=stockholm%20sweden%20visit&partner_id=CD951&utm_medium=paid_search&utm_source=bing&utm_campaign=dc%3D43%3Ase%7Clc%3D50%3Astockholm%7Cct%3Dcore%7Cln%3D29%3Aen%7Ctc%3Dus&utm_term=stockholm%20sweden%20visit&gclsrc=3p.ds&utm_content=lc%3D50%3Astockholm%7Cfn%3Df3%7Cci%3D937%3Athings%20to%20do

https://visitsweden.com/where-to-go/middle-sweden/stockholm/

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g189852-Activities-Stockholm.html

https://sweden.nordicvisitor.com/?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=stockholm%20sweden%20tourism&utm_content=sweden+tourist+planning+208&utm_campaign=SE+m13+sweden+agency&msclkid=5038a8e8a18e138ecac1ca935594a398

https://www.airbnb.com/stockholm-sweden/stays

https://www.kayak.com/Stockholm-Hotels.9880.hotel.ksp

https://www.cheapflights.com/horizon/sem/flights/destination/c9880?lang=en&utm_campaign=Destination+-+SE+-+Stockholm+-+City%239880&utm_content=City+-+trip+to+stockholm+-+T%3Dnone+-+P%3Dtrips+-+D%3DCity%239880&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=bing&utm_term=stockholm+trip&skipapp=true

https://www.europeanbestdestinations.com/destinations/stockholm/

https://www.touropia.com/tourist-attractions-in-stockholm/

https://gocity.com/stockholm/en-us/stockholm-tourism

https://www.lonelyplanet.com/sweden/stockholm

https://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-guide/stockholm-sweden

https://alltouristmap.com/sweden/stockholm/

https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel-prize-award-ceremonies/

https://cityhall.stockholm/

https://abbathemuseum.com/en/

https://www.mammamiatheparty.com/se/en/the-party/

https://ikeamuseum.com/en/digital/the-story-of-ikea/ikea-in-stockholm/

https://www.visitstockholm.com/o/ikea-of-sweden/

https://www.visitacity.com/en/stockholm/activities/all-activities?activitiesSearchByName=hop&campaginid=428242986&adgroupid=1288628047379866&targetid=kwd-80539489246165:loc-190&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Stockholm%20ActivitiesM2X%20G-US-In-EUR&utm_term=stockholm%20hop%20on%20hop%20off&utm_content=hop%20on

https://www.visitstockholm.com/travel-info/public-transportation-in-stockholm/

https://www.booking.com/tourism/city/se/stockholm.en-gb.html?aid=1181029&label=msn-Ejb3n8EWRJZxqjzDCHEgtA-80126983909482:tidat-2331926723608638:aud-808219487:loc-190:neo:mtb:lp44736:dec:qsgetting%20around%20stockholm&utm_campaign=English_United_States%20EN%20US&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=bing&utm_term=Ejb3n8EWRJZxqjzDCHEgtA&msclkid=111bd7e48d1f16c9bc7ab59f755284fd

https://www.city-guide-stockholm.com/en/tourism/coming-to-stockholm/practical-advice/local-transport-getting-around-stockholm.html

https://stockholmtravelguide.com/stockholm-public-transport/

https://www.timeout.com/stockholm/things-to-do/stockholm-travel-tips

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurants-g189852-Stockholm.html

https://www.visitstockholm.com/eat-drink/

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Sweden.html

Wednesday, May 4, 2022

There's a Museum for Everything!

I'm taking a little time today to talk about museums. We've all been to the nearest large city's history museum. We've all been dragged to notable museums all over the place to learn about the history of the country, our revolution, the civil war, and whatever dinosaurs may have been wandering around thousands of years ago. When I was young, we did the Philadelphia Freedom Hall thing and the Washington D.C. Smithsonian thing and the Natural History Museum in Chicago and so on.

As a child, I wasn't too fond of museums, unless it was The Henry Ford with its Rouge Tour and Greenfield Village, or The Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. Point blank, there were cool things to do there.

As an adult, I've discovered something; there's a museum for everything. And, the more offbeat the better. I've visited prisons, military monuments and museums, forts, out of the way art museums, mines, trains, planes, and all sorts of things. I still love The Henry Ford and The Museum of Science and Industry, but there's so much more out there. So, don't say you don't like museums. Maybe you just haven't found the right one yet.

I love Russian stuff, except war. The Hillwood Museum and Estate in Washington D.C. is an out of the way hidden gem. There are tons of items on display that probably shouldn't have ever left Russia, but there they are in all their glory for us to see. Loved it.

I've also spent time looking at all the evidence of aliens at the UFO Museum and Research Center in Roswell, New Mexico. If you don't think that's interesting, you haven't been there. The famous cemeteries of New Orleans; that's a museum. Not joking. New Orleans does have a VooDoo Museum as well.

No matter what you're interested in or curious about, there's a museum about it. There's a museum down in the Grand Canyon, celebrating the Havasupai who live there. Someone parked a bunch of old military ships and submarines under a bridge in Fall River, Massachusetts and Battleship Cove was born. Fall River is also home to the Lizzie Borden House. Creepy but very cool. Also creepy is the Mutter Museum in Philly. You have to see that one to appreciate it. And, lest I forget, there's more than one museum on top of Mount Washington in New Hampshire's beautiful White Mountains. There's also a historic cog railway to take you up to the top where the museums are.

London Bridge is a living museum in Lake Havasu, Arizona. There are any number of Native American Museums around the country. There are farm museums, old civilization museums like Sturbridge Village and Plimouth Plantation. There are all kinds of museums. In Connecticut, where I live, we have a number of trolley museums, The Barnum Museum of the Circus, the Mashantucket Pequot Museum, Mystic Seaport, and so many other specialty museums. Lake Compounce is a living museum with roller coasters to ride. All you have to do is look.

Most sports have a hall of fame and museum. Basketball is in Springfield, MA. Baseball is in Coopertown, NY. Football is in Canton, OH. Hockey is in Toronto, Canada. Indy Car Racing is in Indianapolis, IN. NASCAR is in Charlotte, NC. If music is more your thing, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is in Cleveland, OH, as is The Christmas Story House; also a museum.

The Clark is an art school and museum, tied to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and you can't really even find it if you don't know where it is. They have Monets. Not joking. And all of the Dutch Masters. You can visit various Frank Lloyd Wright locations around the country; all museums. Homes from the Vanderbilts to Mark Twain to JFK and beyond are all museums to tour. There's a Dr. Seuss Museum in Springfield, MA. Lots of fun. Provincetown, MA has a pirate museum. The Hemingway House in Key West, FL is a museum with six toed cats. There's something for everyone.

Tower on a mountain top? Hubleing Museum, CT. Steamtown in Scranton, PA? Museum. Coal mines, observatories, The Alamo, Alcatraz? All museums. Mount St. Helen's has a museum. Fairbanks, AK has a gold mining museum. Sault Ste. Marie has a museum of the locks. Mackinac Island, MI? Living museum. You can't even drive a car there. You want to see what being Dutch was like? Go to Holland, MI. King Kamehameha's Palace is a museum in Hawaii. They're everywhere, and there are so many kinds.

Bowling Green, KY? The National Corvette Museum, complete with sinkhole. Surprise! Broadway in Nashville? It's all basically a museum, and there's a lot of little museums in the neighborhood. Don't forget the Grand Ole Opry, the original building. That's a museum too.

Pretty much every town and every county has a museum. If you happen to be in a town, and wonder what went on there or why the town was ever created, there's probably a museum to explain that. It's something that we use as a fallback plan for rainy days while traveling, but it's interesting. I went to visit my son in Lima, OH. It poured. We went to the county museum and learned about why the town exists. It was interesting, and I don't know how someone got a train engine in the little museum.

So, don't rule out the museum. If you're interested in something like the history of nuclear testing and atomic bombs; there's a museum for that in Las Vegas, NV. I promise you, there's a museum for everything; even the witch hunts in Salem, MA. There are museums about everything. Shipwrecks, magic, earthquakes, paddle wheel boats, American Girl Dolls, and so on and so on.

So, if you're planning a vacation this summer, remember that it can't be sunny and beautiful out all the time, so museums are a great back up plan. Wherever you go for your vacation, look and see what kind of museums are around. Who knows? A Ripley's Believe it or Not can be a lot of fun. And, it can turn a rainy family vacation into a whole new adventure.

So, pack your kids, your bags and your back up plan and enjoy!

https://www.corvettemuseum.org/

https://www.johnnycashmuseum.com/

https://armstrongmuseum.org/

https://www.hillstead.org/

https://www.profootballhof.com/

https://www.packers.com/lambeau-field/hall-of-fame/hall-of-fame-inc

https://baseballhall.org/

https://www.rockhall.com/

https://www.hoophall.com/

https://www.hhof.com/

https://countrymusichalloffame.org/

https://www.thealamo.org/

https://www.pequotmuseum.org/

https://www.bostonchildrensmuseum.org/#

https://muttermuseum.org/

https://www.thehenryford.org/

https://www.msichicago.org/

https://coalminetournepa.com/

https://www.nps.gov/stea/index.htm

https://www.fotografiska.com/

https://barnum-museum.org/

https://www.ripleys.com/atlanticcity/

https://www.osv.org/

https://expeditionwhydah.ecwid.com/

https://www.museumoficecream.com/new-york-city

https://imsmuseum.org/

https://www.roswellufomuseum.com/

https://titanichistoricalsociety.org/titanic-museum/

https://hillwoodmuseum.org/

https://lizzie-borden.com/

https://gallowshillsalem.com/

https://www.keywestshipwreck.com/key-west-museums

https://www.vanderbiltmuseum.org/

https://voodoomuseum.com/

https://www.neonmuseum.org/

http://thehollywoodmuseum.com/

https://www.coneyisland.com/programs/coneyislandmuseum

https://www.neworleans.com/things-to-do/attractions/cemeteries/

https://golddaughters.com/mining-museum

https://www.pearlharborhistoricsites.org/

https://sites.evergreen.edu/naturalhistory/mount-saint-helens/

https://www.califrt66museum.org/

https://www.visitnasa.com/

https://musnaz.org/on-view/native-peoples-of-the-colorado-plateau/havasupai/

https://www.battleshipcove.org/

https://www.saulthistoricsites.com/museum-ship-valley-camp/

https://www.nps.gov/alca/index.htm

https://www.mountwashington.org/visit-us/weather-station-tours.aspx

https://easttexasoilmuseum.kilgore.edu/

https://marktwainhouse.org/

https://www.clarkart.edu/

https://www.nascarhall.com/

https://nationalatomictestingmuseum.org/

https://www.niagarafallsundergroundrailroad.org/

https://www.jackdaniels.com/en-us/visit-distillery

https://www.spymuseum.org/

https://www.madmuseum.org/events/cbgb

https://www.atlasobscura.com/categories/museums

Wednesday, April 27, 2022

With One Last Notable Stop...Nashiville!

I have to say that by the time we reached Nashville, Tennessee on our cross country odyssey, I was sick from exhaustion, the weather was finally getting fairly warm and sunny, and we were on our last notable stop.

Did I, by any chance, stay in my room and rest? Nope. I took a covid test, which was negative. I took another one, which was negative. Then I realized that I could taste and didn't have a fever, so I said screw it, I'm in Nashville.

Nashville was kind of my husband's stop. I've been there a few times, even for work at one point. My husband is a huge "American Pickers" fan, so we had to stop and check out Antique Archaeology in Nashville. They have multiple stores, but they definitely have one there.

The store was in an old Marathon car factory just south of downtown and Broadway. The building has several unique shops to visit and some food options as well. The common areas between stores in the hallways are museum like exhibits of some of the old machinery and fixtures from the factory days. It is a beautiful building, beautifully preserved and an interesting stop away from most of the fuss in town.

Antique Archaeology is an interesting shop, however, most of the merchandise that's for sale are souvenirs. There are a lot of items on display that aren't for sale, and the odds that you'll see anyone who appears on the show are next to none. That's the way it always is if you visit a store or restaurant or any venue that is shown on TV. The owners and persons on camera very rarely are in the venues.

Following our nice and very interesting visit to Antique Archaeology and the Marathon Factory, we headed downtown to what has come to be known as Broadway.

Broadway is the historic, very musical neighborhood directly downtown in Nashville. It basically is a few blocks wide, up and down the hill and runs from the Cumberland River with the Titans Nissan Stadium just across the way to the east to the Predators Bridgestone Stadium at the west end. In between are enough western stores, country music museums, barbecue joints, souvenir shops, and bars with live music to keep you busy for days.

I will be perfectly honest, Broadway is busy. I don't care when you go there or what you intend to do. There were absolutely no signs of the pandemic anywhere, and when we arrived at one in the afternoon; well, most people were already a little bit drunk. I was blown away by that one, because even in New Orleans, they didn't really start drinking until late afternoon.

There will not be any street parking available. Best option is to park in the parking garage at the west end of the area by the hockey arena and just walk. I felt like crap that day, but walking was still the better way to go.

There are rules on Broadway. First and foremost is pay your tab! Oh my God! I saw signs about what happens if people don't settle their tab in every store, bar, restaurant and even in the parking garage there were warnings that if you didn't settle the bill in time, you would be charged for a whole 24 hour day. My guess is that there's problems with people settling bills. So, pay, will ya?

Fact, a lot of musicians got their start in the Broadway neighborhood. We stopped a few places and listened to the music. There's some fabulous live music there. It's worth dealing with crowds and crowded bars. We heard some good stuff.

We also had some good food. I can't say it enough. When you're traveling, try the local cuisine. In Nashville it's barbecue, wings, and barbecue wings. There are dozens of ways to try these things, and there were fewer pizza places on Broadway than anywhere else we visited. I found it refreshing.

We found a Johnny Cash and Patsy Cline museum. We saw a lot of interesting things. We shopped for boots and cowboy hats, because Nashville is famous for selling them. We talked to the people and saw a lot of art and arts and crafts for sale on the scene. It was a fascinating culture and a culture shock to us old people. Broadway is largely a young person's venue. Most of us old people can't drink like that.

We did find that all the drinking has brought about some interesting facts that you to will discover if you head out to Broadway. It's hard to find a draught beer. In most places you buy beer by the can or bottle. Not sure why that is, but it's common in the neighborhood. In several of the restaurants there are no choices of sides with your food. A side is assigned to nearly every meal and that's what comes with it. No substitutions. Be aware. Crowds are a way of life. No one is concerned about a pandemic, and if you are, don't go there. Always take your receipt. Everyplace gives a paper receipt and you don't want to leave any personal information sitting around.

Now, I am going to leave out some things about Nashville. It was too early and chilly to think about going to Opryland to catch a river cruise. It is a great resort and they have a great boat cruise on the river. We didn't take any of the multitude of tours available. If you are in Nashville and have some time there, by all means, take a tour. There are tons of them and they go to fascinating places and do interesting things. I recommend it, and it's not real expensive to take a tour in Nashville. There are a lot of cities that have far more expensive local tours. If you get a chance, check out a sporting event. The venues are great in Nashville.

And that's what we did. We headed down to the west part of the neighborhood and went to see the Predators play the Pittsburgh Penguins on the ice. My husband is a huge Penguins fan, and the timing was great. They just happened to be playing on the one night we were in town.

Inside Bridgestone Arena is a little museum honoring several local sports and athletes. It was interesting, but on to the main event. To be honest, it is worth checking out. We took some time before the game and looked around.

Notes. For one thing, don't be stupid like me. It was actually nice out that day, so I wasn't wearing a coat for the first time since I left Arizona. Why I didn't think about it, I don't know. Always wear a coat or other warm clothing to a hockey game. It's self explanatory, but I mention it anyway.

I don't talk about going to sporting events often, because we don't go often. However, it was an irresistible stop in Nashville. I recommend going to live sports events. Most sports I don't watch on television, but give me an opportunity to go to the game, and I'm there. You just don't get the real experience at home. If you've never gone, go. Whether it's hockey, football, baseball, basketball, soccer or whatever. If you can, go. You won't regret it.

Unfortunately for my husband, the Penguins lost that night. But, we had a really good time, despite my being cold and sick. It was still worth it.

Nashville is a busy city all day, all night. There's so much going on that one day just doesn't do it justice. If you like a multitude of options for activities, it's a great place. No matter what your preference is, they've got something that caters to it. I didn't have enough time or energy to show my husband all that the city has to offer. I wish that we'd been able to stay longer.

So, if you're traveling across the country, Nashville is a great stop. You can eat, drink, dance, and enjoy!

https://www.nhl.com/predators

https://www.espn.com/nhl/team/_/name/nsh/nashville-predators

https://www.tennesseetitans.com/

https://www.milb.com/nashville

https://www.nashvillesc.com/

https://www.nashvillekangaroos.org/

https://www.vacationsmadeeasy.com/NashvilleTN/activity/?msclkid=7ba5b48532af1bcdc0f3d6eca03255b6

https://www.visitacity.com/en/nashville/activities/all-activities?campaginid=418228910&adgroupid=1289727522163115&targetid=kwd-80608188424415:loc-190&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Nashville%20ActivitiesM%20G-US-In-US&utm_term=nashville%20guided%20tour&utm_content=guided%20tour

https://tickets-center.com/search?kwds=Grand+Ole+Opry&venueId=665&venueId=1484&tagid=233&nid=2&accid=140078697&cid=71880695309928&kwid=71881133147209&akwd=grand%20ole%20opry%20tickets&dmt=b&bmt=bb&dist=s&uq=nashville%20broadway&device=c&ismobile=false&msclkid=763bbd65b52f13f5d540df0c27fd15e7&loc_physical_ms=44736&loc_interest_ms=64811&exid=&vx=0

https://nashville.broadway.com/

https://nashvilledowntown.com/go/broadway