Memphis in one day, what to see and do in the city of Elvis

(This article details a stage of a coast-to-coast trip through the United States)

On our next stage of the trip through the interior of the east coast of the United States, we arrived around 14 p.m. at our motel in the vicinity of Memphis.

After cleaning up a bit and leaving our suitcases, we headed towards Graceland, the house where he lived Elvis Presley and where, furthermore, he is buried.

The best things to see and do in Memphis

Due to its visiting hours (it closes at 17 p.m.), we consider it more appropriate to return first thing the next day to be able to leisurely explore both Graceland, like all the different buildings, museums, shops and hotels (Heartbreak hotel), all with reasons and memories in tribute to Elvis Presley.

Visit of Graceland, Elvis Presley's mansion and museum

In this quick first impression we already detect that the shed mounted is very important. There are many tourists who visit Graceland, and that many jobs are supported by the figure of Elvis.

Although there are visitors who come from all over the world, the vast majority of tourists were North Americans. For them Elvis Presley He is still a great idol.

We then traveled by car several kilometers Elvis Presley Boulevard en Memphis looking for a supermarket Walmart, which we finally found quite far from Graceland.

What a Walmart hypermarket is like in the United States

El Walmart It's going to be like a big Carrefour, although with American touches: the hallways are much wider; cars with a slightly larger size; There are really huge family packages of almost every type of product.

Plus, with a great variety of each product, everything is very clean and very well presented.

We found clothing and electronics really cheap, but not food, which seemed more expensive than in Spain.

To highlight the almost non-existence of White marks in the Walmart, which perhaps explains why you don't find products with groundbreaking prices. And the euro/dollar exchange would favor being able to find products at a really good price.

The reading we do Aurora and I am that White marks Perhaps they are considered here a bit as fraud before the consumer, as it is a product that has been created and developed by another company.

In the United States there is great respect, and also copyright, about products, ideas, etc. developed and implemented by others.

When leaving the hypermarket WalmartAt the checkout they ask me for identification because I had bought two large cans of beer. I show the passport, they look at it and go ahead!!

Bit strange. I don't think I look like a fifteen-year-old, nor do I know under what circumstances I wouldn't be allowed to purchase alcohol.

Ah!  Aurora and I were the only white people in the entire hypermarket and the surrounding area. Without a doubt we must have been in an African-American neighborhood, as they say around here.

Also noteworthy is how easy it is. drive in memphis, and in general, drive throughout the United States and Canada.

Very wide streets or highways with very few prohibition signs. At intersections of streets or highways with 3/4 lanes in each direction, you can always turn left, sometimes using a center lane enabled for these turns.

It really is the ideal world for cars, few prohibitions, almost everything allowed. Of course, don't even think about breaking the speed limits!

After eating at a Friday's some delicious ribs, well watered by good Bud's, we walked for three hours through the city ​​of memphis, which is a little bigger than Nashville.

Memphis Grizzlies Stadium

We had the opportunity to see the outside of the stadium where the Memphis Grizzlies and we were able to verify through photos, posters and t-shirts Marc Gasol, who is a basketball idol in the city.

We also visited the guitar store Gibson, the very famous brand of electric guitars whose origin and main factory is in Memphis.

Beale Street in Memphis

Walking through the downtown (city center), we also passed through the famous Beale Street, a street converted into a pedestrian zone, where a multitude of bars and pubs take place, with live concerts throughout the day and night.

In the central area of Beale Street There was a large police deployment. We don't know if it's common, but there were quite a few police cars parked and two or three dozen police officers on guard.

You must know that, for the mentality of the North American citizen, the fact of a police presence on the street, or also in hotels and airports, conveys security and confidence. In Europe I think we consider it the other way around, and we don't really like this show of force.

Memphis Main Street

The center of Memphis extends along the shore of the Mississppi river.

La Main Street It has become a pedestrian shopping center, with vintage trolley buses and horse carriages becoming the mode of transportation in this area.

Near the center is the Peabody Hotel, which has a very original tradition: every day at 11:00 a.m. and at 17:00 p.m., the ducks of the Peabody, to the tune of a musical march, they make a parade to and from the fountain of the LOBBY to drink.

After American Civil War, many African-Americans were attracted to the growing economy of the memphis river.

La Beale Street, located near the southern edge of downtown, became the center of a vibrant community of black business owners and professionals.

At nightfall it transformed into a famous place due to the shows in many of its halls and sports centers.

Also next to bridge crossing the Mississippi There is a large steel pyramid, which was once a sports center where, from 2000 to 2004, they played the Grizzlies.

The advantage of traveling in the summer is that it gets dark late and the days are long. After walking around beale street, we took the car, our already beloved Potoo, and we crossed the Mississippi to Arkansas.

It was emotional for us to cross that great bridge, over that great river that appears in our memory due to the various films in which it has been the protagonist, such as the adventures of Tom Sawyer y Huckleberry Finn.

In short, an excellent day in Memphis on a very hot and sunny day.