You know, it’s amazing how things work out sometimes. Last night I went bowling and began contemplating how my first day was going to go. Then suddenly I remembered, if I left Greenville at 6 am, I would be in Atlanta at 8:30 and could spend my whole morning in traffic. So, either I had to leave immediately after bowling Thursday night, or I would have to leave really early Friday morning.

Elvis' Birthplace (Tupelo, MS)

As a result, I woke up at 3 am. Blurry eyed and not completely coherent, I started the journey on three hours sleep.

The morning drive went extremely well. There was moderate traffic when I reached Atlanta at around 6 am. By 8 am I had moved into Central Time and was traveling quickly toward my first stop in Tupelo, MS. Along the way I saw both an eagle and a white fox that were both roadside.

During the drive I decided to investigate a possible itinerary change. If I could move my Graceland trip to Friday afternoon instead of Saturday morning, it would allow me to enjoy my drive through Missouri wine country and up the Great River Road instead of rushing to Kansas City at breakneck speed. I called Graceland’s 800 number and they easily made the switch. So getting up early worked to my favor.

BB King's Club on Beale Street (Memphis, TN)

My first stop was the town of Tupelo, birthplace of Elvis Presley. As you can see by the pictures, Elvis’ house was very small…around 450 square feet. The house cost $185 to build and everyone slept in the same bed. The Presley’s were poor however and they defaulted on the payment. Elvis only lived there for three years. I knew none of this information prior to my visit, but the lady that works in the house was very nice and answered many of my questions.

While there is not much to the house, it was a nice place to visit. There was also a museum that houses a collection of Elvis memorabilia (collected by a friend of the family). No pictures were allowed though. There was also a chapel, but it was being refurbished so I couldn’t go in.

Elvis' World Famous "Jungle Room" (Graceland)

You’ll notice by the statue of Elvis there is orange netting. This was also part of the construction. They were having trouble getting tour busses in the parking lot so they are reworking the entrance.

All in all, it’s a fun place to visit. And, keeping with small town America, you’ll notice the yard sign that the squirrel is admiring is for Larry Presley’s re-election campaign. I found out that Larry is Elvis’ cousin and that many of the Presley’s are in law enforcement. Larry took over for his brother who was killed in the line of duty during his last term. Something tells me the brother will win the job.

Tupelo also offered other attractions like an automobile museum, but I knew I had a lot to do in Memphis so I hit the road.

All That Gold in the "Trophy Room" (Graceland)

Through the day of travel, I never really felt fatigue, until I was about 10 miles from Memphis. Then I suddenly started getting the stares. For those of you that don’t do a lot of late night traveling or always take short trips, the stares are when you notice you have a hard time moving your eyes (or it’s the lack of will to move your eyes). I think that’s what my Dad meant when he talked about being in the Army and sleeping with your eyes open. It only occurred once, but I knew I was going to have to either do some walking or get to my hotel.

I opted to go downtown and walk a bit. Finding Beale Street was not too difficult, but dealing with the millions of trucks on I-55 was another story. Traffic in Memphis on Friday is no cakewalk, not when there are hungry, lunch bound Tennesseans around.

Elvis & The Eternal Flame (Graceland)

I easily found a parking spot and was impressed by how much tourist activity was available downtown. The only issue I had was the large amount of homeless people and panhandlers I had to deal with. Aggressive ones that come up to

you and ask you for money. When you are alone and carrying a $400 camera in your hand, a stranger checking you out is not a comfortable situation. After taking some shots of BB King’s Club and the store Elvis used to frequent, I decided to have some lunch at a local favorite. It was a hamburger establishment that said it’s burgers had been famous for almost 100 years. I must say, I’ve had White Castle’s that were better. I left hungry and down $8. Oh well, I know better next time.

Sun Studios (Memphis, TN)

As I drove out of town, I passed Sun Studio’s on Union Avenue. Then made my way to the hotel.

After checking in, I crashed on the bed and took two short 15 minute catnaps. Refreshed, I took off for Graceland.

My first thought, when the shuttle bus dropped us off at the mansion is…”this is it?” It was much smaller than I had imagined. But once you got inside, the place just went on and on. My first surprise was the Jungle Room. Much bigger than I had imagined, and it was upstairs. I always thought it was a cave-like room in the basement.

My two favorite rooms were the Trophy Room, where hundreds of gold and platinum records lined the walls – and the Racquetball Room which had been converted into an additional museum of gold and platinum to commemorate Elvis’ posthumous 20th anniversary.

By the time I reached the graves and eternal flame, it felt like I had a better understanding of the man. Seeing the graves brought a tear to the corner of my eye. No folks, I'm not converting from a Beatles fan to an Elvis fan. But, I definitely know why he was so adored.

After a crazy, rush-hour drive across Memphis I made it to a local eatery for some pasta (a personal fave) and a beer. While I ate, three men at the bar were having a friendly argument about one of the man's friends. It seems he was 400 lbs. of pure muscle on a 6'6" frame. I have heard of some tall tales (sorry for the pun...it's late).

Tomorrow, off to the west!

> Day Two