practising @ Apple

Fantastic photos Ad.  I sent you an email butToday I finally learned how to get back onto the blog and add photos this is from Berlin - I tried to send more but will improve.!

Kali - When can I see your new house? and you of course!
Chandra - I really loved being with you and the gorgeous boys last Saturday and seeing Syd and the family at the science fair - who's up for coffee?
Tues I see the cardiologist but otherwise am free next week
Much love to you all

Can't seem to leave Memphis

Wow, Memphis sure grows on you in a hurry! Today was jam packed with music and Civil Rights and a bit of art.

We jumped on the Backbeat Tour Bus for 90 minutes of driving round town, while the guide sat with his guitar at the front of the bus and we sang and played music as we toured the sights. Well, not really sights in that as they say "Memphis has torn down more history than most other cities have every had". We saw where Elvis grew up, and not 500m was where BB King lived. But because of segregation they never met there. We stopped in at Sun Records studio where Elvis recorded his first tunes, and Johnny Cash, and the list just goes on and on.

Then we wandered down to the Lorainne Motel - one of the only integrated motels in the 60's. So it was here that people like Martin Luthur King would stay, and in fact where he was assassinated in '68. It is now the National Civil Rights Museum. We went in but after a couple of hours had seen only a half of the story of the struggle for equality and freedom in the USA. As we were leaving they told us we could use the same ticket to come back the next day for the rest of the tour - such friendliness is commonplace down these parts. We had watched a movie called "The Witness" in which the story was told by the guy who was standing beside MLK when he was shot. Then amazingly we met this guy in person as we were leaving the museum. That was super cool. Reverand Kyles

Memphis - they'll put art on anything.

and more weird

We spent the morning at Graceland, Elvis' home in Memphis and got the sugar coated version of the Elvis story. Far too sweet for my taste buds and so we spent the afternoon digging up a bit of dirt - which makes for a much better story.

Elvis' living room

So since we wanted new experiences we took a walk along Beale Street last night - Blues and Jazz booming out from all the bars - and every outside nook had a band stuffed into it. Some really good stuff and some unfortunate too. But that is what we were hoping for. What we found the most surprising is the Fried Strawberries (pass) and the issue with firearms (really?)

Fried strawberries & pickles ??!!

Really?

Tennessee gets a bit weird

Stopped in at the Country Music Hall of Fame this morning. Was quite the show and a nice history of the genre, showing how it has adapted to ensure its popularity through time - notably the big changes brought about by trying to keep an audience during the explosion of rock n roll in the 60's. But couldn't help being a little perturbed by the repeated reference to "conservative values" - is it a necessary part of country music? In any case I thought this is exemplified by the famous (I guess) Alan Jackson lyrics...
"I watch CNN but I'm not sure I can tell you
The difference in Iraq and Iran
But I know Jesus and I talk to God..."

Defiant ignorance backed with moral righteousness. Yep, I've noticed quite a bit of that around here. Quaint and a little disturbing.

As we left Nashville we saw this sign ...

I guess if you've got a bunch of empty promises you might as well try to sell them?

We hit the freeway hard and headed to Memphis to get a more bluesie environment. Memphis is for sure a different world! Way less clean, way more black, and quite frankly a bit more scary - more like what we were expecting all over the south. Memphis though is all booked up - the Inn is full. We've had to stay in a remote hotel in a shopping mall district. Tomorrow we head to Graceland to get our Elvis fill, then the Civil Rights museum, and hopefully a few dirty blues bars before we move on...

Nash at the Grand Ole Opry

Had some fun exploring Nashville today. First went to the Frist Museum of visual arts - bought some stuff for the grandkids (including Nash the stuffy dinosaur). Then went to the Ryman Auditorium, venue of the Grand Ole Opry for many years, to watch/listen to Opry Classics. Vince Gill played in "The Time Jumpers" band for a couple of songs, and Larry Gatlin (of the Gatlin brothers) was the show's host (and gave a kick-ass Oh Canada). Hank Williams' grand-daughter sang a couple of his old songs, and the Riders in the Sky played some good toe tappers

At the Grand Ole Opry

strange things in Tennessee

huh? isn't that the Parthenon?
but I'm in Nashville

World's only life-sized replica, right here in the home of Country Music...

Misty morning in Georgia

Misty morning, a photo by Adrian Zissos on Flickr.

Charlotte & I came down to Georgia (for the first time) to take part in the US Orienteering Champs. We're staying on for a bit longer to explore this part of the country and check out the music scene, the civil rights history, and the civil war history. We've been quite surprised at how pretty it is here and how very nice (and normal) the people seem to be. They may have a back-woods Southern reputation, but they are pulling away from that so far as I can tell. Not to say there haven't been some dreadful experiences, such as at the coffee shop in Dahlonega when I asked for a latte and the "barista", to use the term lightly, squirted two blasts of brewed coffee into my cup then added some steams milk - yuk, the worst drink ever. And we were amazed at the Southern optimism and complete lack of reality as we hiked the 7.5 mile approach to the start of the 2100 mile Appalachian Trail - here we met all kinds of "through-hikers", people planning to take five months to hike the entire trail. One guy was on his fourth (!!!) day hiking and still had over a mile to go to get to the start of the trail (what was he thinking?) and that was just one example. We read that 83% quit in the first 20 miles - how is that for being prepared???

Now we're in Nashville having a bit of fun wandering around the Honky-Tonks and heading to the Grand Ole Oprey tonight

Thanks for beautiful photos of beautiful babies - They're really great Ad - Couldn't find others at Flicker  but look forward to seeing them. It was so good to be at Chand's and see everyone - especially the super stars
Hope that the trip is going well Ad and Char - you missed white-out snow - not nice but we need the moisture
Still trying to catch up with house and broken appliances - mail etc. letter saying that my type of pacemaker isn't as long lasting as claimed !! Trying to find out what to do with so many people away from their desks is rather a puzzle.
Babies lift the spirits
Mum, Gma, GGma

Great grandma & Alex together at last

IMG_5460.jpg, a photo by Adrian Zissos on Flickr.

Another fun day visiting the two grandkids yesterday. Great Grand parents, just returned from the Europe trip, were there to meet Alex. Alex is show more of his big wide baby blues and is more fun every time we see him. Michael is on the move and nothing is safe (including his head) that is less than two feet off the ground. Darren & Kali's house is almost ready for the move-in - but will the paper work be don ein time ... Stay tuned for more exciting developments

More photos on my Flickr site

MJ & parents visit Whistler

MJ 5, a photo by Adrian Zissos on Flickr.

Charlotte & I had a rather wonderful few days hanging out with MJ & the parents. Weather was a bit rough early on, but the skies cleared up and we had a run of great days ...

Michael did his first orienteering in the living room, got his first ski ticket and went up Whistler Mountain and on the Peak 2 Peak, and had his first cross country ski at Whistler Olympic Park. A pretty good holiday by any standards. He left today, to take his parents to the aquarium in Vancouver and then for a plane ride home tomorrow

More photos on AYZ's flickr account
(and more to come from Chandra & AJ from their iPhone I hope ;-)

Super Mike

Still trying to fly ...

Genius, it runs in the family ...