Love Me Tender

The theme of the day was: Elvis Presley.

Since we had found accommodation in Tupelo, Mississippi, we spent the night in the city where the King of Rock 'n' Roll was born on January 8, 1935. In the morning, we didn't have far to go to his birthplace. The small white house that his father and uncle built no longer exists. Instead, an exact replica now stands on the same spot as a pilgrimage site for Elvis fans. Some signs gave us a first impression of what we would learn about Elvis Presley throughout the day. A statue of 13-year-old Elvis and the original church (!!) that Elvis regularly went to as a boy with his family could also be viewed. The church originally stood elsewhere and was later relocated. We diligently captured everything in photographs.

There were only a few people here besides us this morning. Maybe it was still too early... Maybe it was also due to the drizzly rain that accompanied us. There was also a museum in Tupelo, right next to the 'birthplace', but we didn't visit it. After all, something big awaited us: Graceland was the second item on the agenda for the day. After taking a photo in front of the 1939 Plymouth (probably not the original, but a similar car that the Presley family used to move to Memphis in 1948), we headed towards Memphis.

We reached Graceland around 12.00 after about 1.5 hours of driving. We decided on the 'Elvis Mansion and Elvis Experience Tour' (or something similar) and paid a proud $65 per person. Phew, but you have to see it. We had some time before the house tour at 13.45 to visit exhibitions of Elvis' stage costumes and other belongings.

Then we lined up in the first queue. After a few minutes, we took a seat in a small cinema and watched a short film about the King of Rock 'n' Roll. After the film, we went out on the other side of the hall and lined up again in a huge queue. We waited here for 1 hour and were equipped with tablets and headphones until we could board one of the small transport buses that took the guests to the villa on the other side of the street. In front of the villa, we lined up again in a queue for about 45 minutes... Groups of about 20-25 people were let into the house in bursts after a brief introduction. It was 16.15 by now. Well, it was our own fault for showing up on a Saturday.... But we couldn't change it anymore. We don't even want to know how crowded it will be during peak season.

We entered the villa and stood directly in the hallway under the sparkling chandelier. On the right side, the living room presented itself in radiant blue/yellow. Then we went to the parents' bedroom with the audio guide. The first floor remains closed to tourists, so we only had a view of the staircase. Next to the living room, we went into the dining room and further into the kitchen. This played a big role in the Presley's life. Next, a staircase led downstairs to the basement, which was converted. An entertainment room with seating area, bar, and TVs was on one side. In the other room, there was a pool table and seating. Then we went back up to the ground floor, where we were first presented with the so-called Jungle Room. Taste is subjective, but it was definitely interesting.

At the other end of the villa, we came out and walked through more rooms like Elvis' father's office, where he worked with several secretaries, processing fan mail, for example. In other buildings, we were shown the racquetball court, where Elvis liked to spend time. Right next door was a piano. Elvis sat at it and played for friends on the day of his death.

After strolling past more exhibits, we finally passed the kidney-shaped pool and walked through the meditation garden. Elvis' grave is also located here. I have to say, I actually got goosebumps. (Steffi... Stefan, not so much)

After the tour, we took the transport buses back to the other side of the street and looked at a few things that we didn't have time for before, such as Elvis' cars and motorcycles.

After a total of 6 hours, we were exhausted and went to our previously booked accommodation in Memphis. We crossed state lines again: Welcome to Arkansas. We checked in and had the funniest receptionist ever.

A short rest and then we went to Central BBQ for dinner... so Stefan also got his share.