Hey, everybody. Took a couple of days off. Wish I could say it was for fun. A lot of home projects to do. Mostly painting, which always takes longer than you think.

Anyway, Jenn mentioned East Nashville, and just in case you’re an out of towner, I’d recommend checking out that area. It has some of the coolest, most interesting neighborhoods in the city.

Historic Edgefield is one of only two “historic preservation districts” they call them. This means anything they do has to be OK’d by the Metro Historical Commission, which gives it this great untouched feel.

Lockeland Springs is the other. It’s an old streetcar suburb about two miles from downtown. The tornado in 1998 did a lot of damage, but they’ve rebounded better than ever. Head to the French Quarter Café for a po’boy and some great live music.

Later,
Dane

Looking for something fun to do on May 17? I know that when you’re in town for business it can be hard to get yourself to exercise. So here’s an easy solution: the 2008 Tour de Nash!

It’s an annual Nashville walk/bike event that’s held at the East Bank Greenway right on the river at Titans Stadium. It’s not a race so it’s perfect for families or anyone who just wants to get out and see a bit of Nashville.

You can do the free 6 or 12 mile ride that goes along East Nashville and part of Shelby Bottoms greenway to LP Field. There are also longer routes of 27, 50 miles and up to 67 miles that highlight a lot of Nashville’s bike paths.

The walking option is also free and is a 2 or 4 mile tour of the East Bank Greenway and downtown.

Have fun!
Jennifer

People, I just got word that the Hotel Lucia in Portland, Oregon has officially hit Facebook. For anyone that doesn’t already know, the Hotel Lucia is one of our other Provenance hotels out there on the west coast. I just checked out the page and I must say that they have done a pretty stellar job putting it together. Maps, reviews, streaming blogs. The whole nine yards. Now it’s just gotta get some fans!

So here and now I’d like to declare my support for the Hotel Lucia (and I hope you do too). You can check out the page by searching for the Hotel Lucia on Facebook. Word is that they’ll be running some sort of promo codes on there sometime soon. Way cool!

If my fellow Nashville folk are looking for a trip out west, check out the Lucia Facebook page or either of the blogs from the Hotel deLuxe in Portland and the Hotel Murano in Tacoma. Cool beans if you ask me!

Catch ya on the flip side,
Dane

One of the best classes I had at MTSU when I was there was an art class. Part of it was the professor, who was awesome because he made it so interesting. But I really enjoyed learning about all those famous paintings!

And I love Monet. It was incredible to see how his painting changed when he began to go blind when he got older. I also liked when he painted the same thing but in different seasons, like the haystacks. Really interesting.

So I was excited to see that his work is now at the Frist. And he’s not the only one. The show has work from a lot of really famous painters like Cézanne, Dalí, Gauguin, Matisse, Picasso and Vincent Van Gogh.

But they’re only there till May 1!

TTFN,
Jennifer

If you’re going to be in Nashville on April 26, and you’re looking for something to do, why not lace up your running shoes and do the Country Music Marathon?  Hey, there’s a 1/2 marathon, too!

It’s actually a great event that the city is really proud of. I was a cheerleader, so you’ll see me on the sidelines. But if you do run, it’s a cool course that takes you around the Music Row Roundabout and past some of the city’s top sights.

And this is Music City, right? So all along the way there are like 50 bands playing. The music keeps going after the race too at the big after party. This year Steve Cropper and his band are headlining, which should be great!

Just think how good your bed at Hotel Preston will feel that night!

TTFN!
Jennifer

Movies, movies, movies! Every year I forget about the Nashville Film Festival but then get to enjoy the surprise when I remember about it! I love movies! We watch a lot on DVD, but there’s nothing better than going to the theater. It’s all about the popcorn!:-)

I just did some checking and didn’t know that the film festival is one of the longest-running in the country! And one of the largest in the region (though I’m not sure what they mean by “region”).

This year they received over 1700 entries and chose about 200. All the movies are at the Regal Green Hills Stadium 16 and run until April 24. And I looked at the list – there is every kind of movie you could think of! Opening night sounded like an interesting one with William H. Macy!

See you there!
Jennifer

Hey, while we’re on the subject of racing, if watching the NASCAR events around Nashville got your driving muscles itching, you should do a little racing of your own. I’m talking go karts.

Last year we did go karts for part of my nephew’s bachelor party and had a blast. There a few places around the city where you can go. I have only been to the first one, but I’m betting they’re all pretty similar.

1. Grand Old Golf – It’s out on Music Valley Dr. As the name suggests they’ve also got mini golf.
2. Europa Go Karts & Golf – On Old Hickory Blvd. Not sure why the combo of go karts and golf, but it seems pretty common.
3. Blue Ribbon Racing – Over on 4th Ave. South

Start yerrr engines!

See ya,
Dane

Yes! I love race time! It means spring and that summer is just around the corner! Seriously, even if you’re not all NASCAR and everything, which I’m not really, it is so fun to go out and just have a good time.

What’s the best? I guess it depends on what you like. I think it’s just great to be outside in the summer when it’s warm and having a few beers with friends. Usually when we go we go for the Friday night drag races, which are awesome! They’re at the Motorplex.

But Saturday has Saturday Night Thunder! I’m not going to tell you what it is. You’re just going to have to go and find out for yourself!

TTFN,
Jennifer

It’s NASCAR time, people! There’s nothing we get quite as excited about down this way than our racing. OK, music, true, but NASCAR has got to be a close second.

So if you’re down this way from now through the summer, you’ve got to go check it a race. Because this is big time. And from Nashville you have two really good options for seeing some first-rate racing.

Music City Motorplex ― This is a NASCAR Whelen All-American Series racetrack at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds. It’s also one of the oldest tracks in the country. It used to have the Grand National/Winston Cup.

Nashville Superspeedway ― This one is about 30 miles out of town in Gladeville. It was only built in 2001 and has races for the IRL IndyCar Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. And monster trucks!

See you later,
Dane

I looked back at our earlier postings and amazingly I can’t see where we’ve ever mentioned one of the very best things to see in Nashville, at least for a portion of us who love country music, and that’s the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum!

Yes, I did mention Studio B at least. But I guess I figured everyone knew the museum was right there. How could you know? How would know if I was going to Seattle or Santa Fe or anywhere I’d never been?

But the CMHFM is a must see. The Ray Charles exhibit, Elvis’ gold Caddy, all the gold records (look up). In the Hall of Fame Rotunda, you can even rub Kitty Wells’ nose for good luck. My favorite of course is the early roots and history stuff, which is great.

And stuff’s changing all the time. So check their website to see what’s new.

See ya,
Dane