We like to go on a trip for our anniversary, so we decided to knock out two states Kris hadn't visited yet - Mississippi and Arkansas. It was cheapest for us to fly into Memphis on Southwest.
Memphis, Tennessee
We visited Beale Street at about 2:00 p.m., and it was lonely. Very few people, not much open, and we didn't see anywhere we wanted to eat. We searched 'best BBQ in Memphis' and it directed us to Central BBQ. There was a line outside, which we knew was great. Then I ate a fantastic, delicious pulled pork sandwich, which I haven't eaten since I was a child. We then drove to ...
Jackson, Mississippi
We have friends who have spent time in Jackson, and they gave us tons of ideas of places to go. Unfortunately, those weren't walking distance from our hotel, and when we're in cities we like to walk because then we feel like real, live city-dwellers. We checked into our downtown Hampton Inn and the front desk gave us bottles of water and a glass of champagne. This has never once happened to be before at a Hampton Inn, and I don't even particularly like champagne, but YOU CAN BET I accepted it. What a surprise! Everyone working was so friendly and talkative and nice. I waited for Kris to park and soon enough I knew about all of their histories and suggestions on where to go in the area.
We walked to Iron Horse Grill, which was full, fun, and had good food. Kris suggested we go for a nightcap at Johnny T's, and we proceeded to walk down abandoned, empty streets toward it. I told Kris that all of my instincts that had so far kept me alive told me NOT to do that, but we did it anyway. They wouldn't serve us a drink without buying an entree, so we did the walk of shame out. Ha!
The next morning we ran to the capitol building and war memorial. The rest of the city was pretty empty, and we left to drive to ...
Hattiesburg, Mississippi
We didn't really mean to go to Hattiesburg, but we wanted lunch and there was the promise of a rose garden at The University of Southern Mississippi. The rose garden was on beautiful grounds, but short on roses as it was WINTER. We happened upon a perfect southern breakfast place (and we had not had coffee, which was a recurring theme on this trip) called Midtowner. It was not even ruined by the phone call that at home one of our tractors was on fire. And you know that's a good breakfast.
Biloxi, Mississippi
White sand! Ocean! Sunshine! I love going to the ocean anytime, and this place is beach oriented. There were many, many hotels right along the beach, and we stayed at the Hampton Inn. Inexpensive and just one road between you and the water!
We walked on the beach toward the casinos, which look like Vegas places inside and out. There was still apparent hurricane damage from years ago, which you could especially tell because docks were half gone and the boardwalk was missing 25 percent of its boards. It didn't diminish my enjoyment at all, because it was beautiful. We walked all around downtown, in and out of the casinos, and along the beach.
We drove a little bit to Ocean Springs, which reminded us of a little Michigan beach town. Lots of shops, lots of outdoor restaurants. We stopped at a few, and the locals were all so friendly and talked to us. We especially liked Mosaic.
We went in our hotel hot tub and met people from two different countries, then went for a late dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe in the casino. Kris and I don't gamble and don't especially love casinos, but ... it was packed full of people! It was New Year's Eve, we were looking for a fun place to be, and during a pandemic apparently casinos are the place to be! They had a DJ, people were dressed to the nines, and it was awesome. Kris and I were the only two people who cared about it turning midnight. The crowd in the casino looked up from their gambling for only the 10, 9, 8 ... yelled happy new year, kissed their partner, and then turned immediately back to gambling. Funny!
At 12:19 a.m. as we got into our Uber, I got my first swimming lesson registration, since I open it on Jan 1. People are ON IT.
On New Year's Day, we ran along the beach and did a polar plunge to start the new year, as is our tradition. However it was really cold and we didn't think the hotel would appreciate us walking through their lobby, dripping. We went up to our shorts. Close enough.
We drove through Gulfport and it had a much more kid-stuff, touristy, Myrtle Beach kind of vibe. We also went there for coffee, because the south just doesn't have coffee shops every two blocks like the north. We went there on our way to ...
Lake Chicot State Park, Arkansas
I couldn't get over the trees that were emerging from Lake Chicot. They were very unusual, and later a friend identified them as bald cypress.
Little Rock, Arkansas
We didn't know what to expect in Little Rock, and we didn't even know if we were driving all the way there, since this was a freewheeling vacation, but we're so glad we went! Little Rock's nightlife was great! So many people out, so many cool places. Lost Forty was the first stop we made. They told us that since it was New Year's weekend, they were serving brunch all weekend. We had a first-for-me breakfast pizza with a fried egg right in the middle of it. We also loved the atmosphere of the place. We next hit up Flyway Brewing which was okay but empty, and then landed on Fassler Hall, a lovely German-themed place! We ate our giant pretzels and ordered giant mugs and reminisced about the time we went to Oktoberfest in Munich. They had music and picnic style tables and a ventilation system that is exactly what we have in our calf barn at home. Delightful place.
We ran to the capital building in the morning, and then went downtown for coffee and the sculpture park along the water. It was raining, so we took our time, but then I was itching to get on a hike. It kindly stopped raining long enough for us to hike up ...
Pinnacle Mountain State Park, Arkansas
I loved this hike, and it is one of the highlights of the trip. It was as if someone just dumped rocks on a mountain. It was SO rocky. Sometimes you go on a hike and they say it's challenging, and it never is. I actually slipped and fell on this hike - I can't even remember ever falling on a hike! So yes - AWESOME hike. Great path, gorgeous view at the top, and it even started SNOWING on our way down. Thus the slippery rocks. I love, loved the hike.
We checked out and ate in trendy East Little Rock and made our way to...
Big River Crossing
This is the country's longest pedestrian bridge, it's right along a train track, and it connects Arkansas and Tennessee! So, right after we crossed into Tennessee, we parked and walked on this ... right back to Arkansas. It was a beautiful walk and view right over the Mississippi River. We then checked in our downtown Doubletree, which was walking distance from ...
Beale Street
This was a complete and total different scene than it was during the day. Much like Nashville or Austin, there was live music pouring from every place! It was lively and fun, and everyone walking around was having a good time. We listened to awesome music in one place, then even better music in another, and so on until late. I love cities like this that are just designed for music and people who love it!
We left our hotel at 3:30 a.m. the next day to head to the airport in Memphis and begin our real lives of 2021.
As for numbers - this is our 19th anniversary, Kris' 47th and 48th state, and he has one more before we both hit 49. For us, 2020 was a great year of travel, and we look forward to many more!
