Elvis is Awesome.

After BBQ, there were naps.


Naps are cool. We don't get to do many of them, though, because napping is time you could spend seeing stuff in a place you've never been.




But after lots of BBQ, there must be naps.



And then we felt like we could go out and explore Memphis a little bit. Mike led us to the Flying Saucer, a bar right in the center of Memphis not far from Beale St.



They have plates everywhere -- Mom Morris, they covered the cieling in Willow plates. Really. (I know no one else knows what the hell I'm talking about, but Mom Morris used to collect them).




They also have a thing like a Mug Club, only instead you enroll and you get a tee shirt. Then you have to drink 200 beers to get your name on a saucer (read: plate). We met Dan who is about 137 beers into round one and nice as hell.

He bought us pint glasses when he found out we were on our honeymoon. In the background of the picture you can see the plates all over the place.

So anyway, we shut that bar down. And we woke up early for The King.




You may already know this, but Mom Schwind loves Elvis. I mean, super loves Elvis. The Schwinds even had a dog named Elvis. So there was no way we weren't going to hit up Graceland. (Mom Schwind: Look closely at Mike in the photo below).



Which is expensive. Yeah. $60 for two tickets.




And you don't even get to see the second floor. Yeah. They keep it closed off out of respect for Elvis, who never let any guests upstairs.



Ripoff.




But you do get to see a whole bunch of other stuff, like the costumes he wore and the long hall of Gold Records he received. Fact: Elvis only won 3 Grammys and they were all for his Christian songs.



Another fact: Elvis didn't write any of his songs, but he produced them all himself.



Yet Another Elvis fact: Elvis did not name Graceland "Graceland." The family that lived at Graceland before him did. Elvis liked the name so much, he kept it.





I could go on forever. You learn a lot about Elvis when you go to Graceland, but mostly you learn that Elvis was a super-nice guy. He donated a ridiculous amount of money to charities and causes. He loved his daughter and loved hanging out and having fun with his friends.




Elvis' Grave Fact: Flowers (real and fake) come almost daily to Graceland, and the folks who maintain the place put out every bouquet, wreath, etc. that's recieved and keep it at Elvis' grave until they wilt. Pretty cool, huh?





Mike was in charge of the camera, so we have approximately nine million pictures of Graceland, all available upon request. Mom Schwind, we know you will request :)




Still Another Elvis Fact: Elvis liked to be the family interior decorator. His taste is questionable even by 1970's standards. See pictures for details. The stone wall is an indoor fountain. That green shag carpet? Its also on the cieling. No, really.



Believe it or not, Memphis was actually the hottest city we visited on the trip. With the heat index it was 109 degrees, and it was humid. Painfully humid. We wanted to stick around and further bask in the glory of The King, but air conditioning was calling my canckles into the cool.





Off to Nashville...