TheFunTimesGuide.com Hooked Us Up!

How We Met

We had exchanged a couple of emails -- them asking questions about the area, and us encouraging them to move here.

Beth also sent me a photo of them with their dog (...which I posted in our dog photo gallery).

Fast forward several months, and their trip to Nashville for the purpose of exploring places to live was this week. They flew in on Monday (then back out on Tuesday). We met them at their hotel near the airport.

Here's how things went...

I'm Jim, And I'll Be Your Tour Guide

Jim is always excited to put on his best "this is your captain speaking" voice and drive visitors all over town -- everywhere he thinks someone who's never been to Nashville might enjoy.

The entire way, he's pointing out landmarks and trivial nonsense.

"Ahem, and on your left you'll notice the world's largest fishin' store." (Bass Outlet store at the Opry Mills Mall -- which I'm proud to say Bruce correctly referred to as "the guy mall" after reading this.)

"And on your right, is Printer's Alley. It used to be an alley full of printers. Now it's an alley full of bars."

So we showed them all around town -- mostly the Country music end of things. (Note to Jim: We need to add a non-Country-music version to our tour!)

Where We Went:

Up & down Music Row (Sony, Curb)... past Musica... through West End and the Vanderbilt area... to the Country Music Hall of Fame... past the GEC... and all around the many side streets of downtown Nashville (mostly just looking for a parking spot -- on the road -- Jim's personal preference).

Our destination: Nashville's honky tonks!

We usually toss in a sidetrip to Alan Jackson's house too, but we never made it to the south end of town this time.

Nashville At Night Down On Broadway

We only go to the downtown clubs for music & drinks when visitors are in town. I'm not crazy about cover bands, and that's usually what you get there these days. So when it's just us, we tend to hang out at the songwriter clubs instead. (Note to Jim: We need to add more songwriter clubs on our tour itinerary.)

While the honky tonks aren't really my thing, I must admit, it's kinda cool to think you're in the same clubs that many of the legends got their start in.

So, we did our very own version of a "pub crawl":
Enter through the front door of one place (like Legends); then exit out its back door. Enter through the back door of the next place (like Tootsies); then exit out its front door. And so on.

Fortunately, we found one (of the half-dozen or so "acts" we saw this night) who was worth writing about.

A Word About Craig Campbell

Craig Campbell was playing at The Second Fiddle on Broadway. We'd never heard of him before, but we knew on first listen that he and his bandmates were much better than your typical bar band.

His voice is strong ...professional caliber. And his keyboard/piano skills are amazing as well. Plus, I realized one of the reasons I enjoyed watching Craig and his band play for so long was the fact that they ALL looked (and sounded) like they were having FUN!

Often, the singers in places like this (where they only play for tips!) are struggling to connect with the audience. And you can tell they're frustrated that they still have to play all these gigs to such small crowds. Crowds filled with people who usually aren't even there to see them. They're typically just tourists passing through, and they probably won't remember who is was they saw the night before anyway.

But Craig Campbell was different. Beth and I both wanted to know who he was. (By the way, why don't they ever put a sign up in front of the stage so those of us who are enjoying the music inside will know who we're listening to? There's often a sign on the outside of the building, but never inside.) So she went back inside and asked the bartender. I'm glad she did, too. Because Craig Campbell is one to watch! Check this out.

Some "Must-Do" Things In Nashville

So, after crawling in and out of a handful of pubs, we hit the road so I could get my beauty rest before getting up for work the next morning.

Beth & Bruce had the next day to explore more areas of town before they flew out that evening. We reminded them of a few more "must-do" things:

• Pancake Pantry (for breakfast)
• Noshville Deli (for lunch)
• Country Music Hall of Fame (more than just a drive-by)
• Opry Mills Mall (ditto)

Future Fun Times Together

Beth and Bruce are pretty convinced they'll be moving here -- sooner, rather than later. They're looking forward to selling their overpriced condo in San Diego and buying a bigger, more reasonably-priced house here... on some land... at ONE-THIRD the price!

I look forward to Beth & Bruce being "our friends with the boat" (...and the jet-skis... and the scuba gear!). Plus, they're thinking about getting another Jeep Wrangler, too.

Maybe by the time they get moved and settled in here in Nashville, we'll have figured out what we're going to do about building our new house. And maybe, just maybe, we'll be able to use our Jeep to trailer our pontoon boat to the party!

Don't have a pontoon boat (we don't either... yet!), check out all the great reasons to RENT a pontoon boat.

Thinking about moving to the area? Just ask, and we'll see if we can fit you in on our next trip: "Personal Tours of Nashville ...hosted by The Fun Times Guide".

Jim... What do you say?