My top picks for Nashville

The beautiful Capitol and grounds

In my opinion, Nashville is the "NYC of the south" because it never sleeps!  It's exciting and the music never ceases.  I was a bit leery about going because I'm not much of a country music fan; however, that preference quickly changed after the first evening.

One mistake I made was going in the summer with extreme weather conditions, which made it difficult to get around on foot and public transportation.  Therefore, I didn't make it to some of my destinations, which simply means I will have to go back.

Here is a list of my favorite things (so far):

Tootsie's World Famous Orchid Lounge on Broadway -  Hot damn!  This place is so much fun and where I discovered I do like country music.   On my first visit, a 77-year old man jumped on stage and showed off his moves, putting the rest of us to shame.  The place is so inviting that I made a second trip.  There is no cover charge and the music is flowing all day and night.  http://www.tootsies.net/

My hero

She plays a mean violin!

Hatch Show Print - This is one of the oldest working letterpress print shops in the country, and an excellent place to look around and shop.  There were so many cool posters to choose from that I had a tough time deciding, so I purchased several.  There is a lot of history here and it's an interesting place to explore. 
https://www.facebook.com/hatchshowprint

So many posters, so little time....

Fascinating!

The Wild Cow - this is an extraordinary vegetarian restaurant with a killer menu that is a must whether or not you are vegetarian.  I chose the sweet potato & black bean tacos with a side of garlicky kale (who knew kale could taste this good) and a green tea/banana smoothie.  The food exceeded my expectations and was well worth the three hour round-trip bus ride from where I was staying.  http://www.thewildcow.com/twc/

So delicious and healthy!

The AT&T Building (better known as the Batman Building) - I literally became obsessed with taking photos of this cool building, and actually lost track of the number of shots I took.  You can see it every time you turn around, so it's also a good marker when you are in the downtown area.

Na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na Batman

The Station Inn - This is another bar I highly recommend, and let me suggest going for the Sunday night bluegrass jam.  There is no cover for this particular show, and musicians just show up and play unplugged for about 3 hours.  There were at least 15 people playing at once and it was outstanding!  It blew my mind how they just came together on every song.  http://stationinn.com/index01/

So much talent in one room!

Stroll along the Cumberland River - This is a great place to wander and get some photo ops.  You will find unique architecture along the river, the pedestrian bridge, boats and LP Field (where the Titans play). 

Love the architecture

Home to the Titans

Farmer's Market/Bicentennial Mall - The Farmer's Market offers a little bit of everything including a flea market, indoor food court, shops, farm vendors and AC!  The food court is quite diverse, and I had a tasty hummus veggie naan sandwich at am@fm with a side of Chardonnay.

Naan yum and a tall glass of wine

Because it was so hot during my visit, I didn't get a chance to see all that the lovely Bicentennial Park has to offer.  I did see the WWII Memorial and was very impressed with the rotating World Granite Globe, which I think is a beautiful tribute.   http://www.tn.gov/environment/parks/Bicentennial/

The incredible Globe

Despite the heat, I fell hard for you Nashville!  Next time I will visit during the fall or winter with my cowboy boots on!