Saturday, April 26, 2008

Other Stuff To Do In Nashville

There are many things to see and do in Nashville. I have run out of time, and have only glimpsed a few of “tourist attractions”. I feel compelled to at least mention a few of the other things you might be interested in when you visit the city.
Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theater

As I mentioned before, this is the capital of Tennessee and the Capitol Building is open for touring. The American Volkssport Association has a walk which includes the area around the capitol building.
Christ's Church Episcopal Cathedral

Tennessee Performing Arts Center has a full schedule of performances, some of which are major productions. One of the most memorable things I have ever done was see Yul Brenner in The King of Siam performed at TPAC. The Nashville Symphony also performs regularly at Schermerhorn Symphony Center. For a more casual live performance, check out what’s playing at Chaffin’s Barn Dinner Theater.
Sommet Center where the Preds play

For all you sports fans, Nashville has three professional teams. For the football fans there are the Tennessee Titans, for baseball fans we have the minor league team--the Nashville Sounds, and for hockey fans there are the Nashville Predators.
Union Station

For history buffs, there are countless historical sites in Nashville and the surrounding area. A fair number of Civil War battles were fought in the area. The battle of Nashville is well documented with historical markers. There are regular re-enactments at Stones River National Battlefield in Murfreesboro, as well as in the communities of Springhill and Franklin, TN. The Heritage, home Andrew Jackson, the 7th president of the United States is located on the outskirts of town.

Customs House
For state history, the Tennessee State Museum is located in downtown. It is a nice facility, but a state museum never the less. What can I say? I call these places “state attics”—a place to put all that stuff you don’t use anymore. However, our state museum does have an area for traveling exhibits and has had some very interesting shows. One of my favorites was the Anne Frank Exhibit.

For visual arts Nashville has Frist Center of the Visual Arts as well as Cheekwood Botanical Gardens.

The train station has been renovated and is now a Grand Hotel. The old Customs House on Broadway is still occupied by federal judges and a courtroom just as it was in 1882. There are many churches located in the downtown area. Christ’s Church Episcopal Cathedral built in 1894 is a great example of Victorian Gothic architecture.
Bat Building

Just driving along the streets, particularly in the downtown area, offers the visitor plenty to see. If you look carefully you may see a catfish, a guitar, or even a horse. And don’t forget to look up. Perhaps the most distinctive building on the Nashville Skyline is the Bell South tower, lovingly referred to as the “bat building”.

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