Travel By Scott Grody

Memphis and Graceland

The birthplace of Blues, Soul and Rock n Roll …Memphis, a city of fewer than 700,000 residents, is spread over a remarkable 296 square miles hemmed in by Interstate 240. Downtown hugs the Mississippi River on the city's western edge. Beale Street bisects Downtown perpendicular to the river. Midtown (where you'll find the artsy Cooper-Young District) borders Downtown to the east. The Pink Palace and the Dixon Gallery and Gardens are located in East Memphis, although many tourists only stray from Downtown and Midtown for a jaunt to Graceland, 9.22 miles south in Whitehaven.

Memphis proves the rule that barbecue is best served hot. Air-conditioning is required all summer long, and there's really only one reason to endure August's sweltering temperatures: Death Week, the annual commemoration of the passing of the King. Winters are mild but wet. Spring and autumn are the best times to visit.

ELVIS PRESLEY'S HEARTBREAK HOTEL
If you cruised into Memphis clad in a gold-belted white jumpsuit, hankerin' for a fried peanut butter-and-banana sandwich, you'll probably feel right at home at the Heartbreak Hotel. It's easy to be first in line for a tour of the King's mansion with this location—which is, in fact, "down at the end of Lonely Street," directly across from Graceland on Elvis Presley Boulevard. The 124 guest rooms are decked out in flashy royal blue and gold fabrics with black-and-white photos of Elvis on the walls, while the four themed suites are an exercise in excess, each styled after an important aspect of the Elvis mystique—Graceland, Hollywood, Gold and Platinum, and Burning Love. If that's not enough, flip to the in-house television channel that screens "all Elvis movies, all the time" or take a dip in the heart-shaped outdoor pool. If ever a hotel was fit for the King, this is it. "And although it's always crowded, you still can find some room…"

AND IN THE EVENING HOURS TRY THE HI TONE CAFÉ
At this funky, 1950s-themed bar in Midtown, beer-swilling twenty something hipsters and older music obsessives take in Memphis's current crop of music pioneers. Both regional favorites, such as emotive singer-songwriter Garrison Starr and bluesy rockers the North Mississippi Allstars, and national acts take the stage. Elvis—Costello, that is—filmed a 2004 concert video here with Emmylou Harris. The small stage area gets jam-packed at concert time; arrive early, or you might not get in.

If you’ve been everywhere….put Memphis on your list of places to visit!