Wednesday, April 5, 2010
We had another day off today in Memphis. It seems like we have had quite a few off days recently, but then again, there is a lot more to see around here than middle-of-nowhere Texas. And, after riding over 200 miles in the last two days, our bodies were incredibly grateful for the day off the saddle.
We had a Global Health Day at University of Tennessee and afterwards we stayed downtown and explored the city. On our walk from UT to downtown, we passed by Sun Studio.
Sun Studio is a recording studio in Memphis where Elvis Presley first recorded his music. 
Other famous musicians to record at Sun Studio were BB King, Ike Turner, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee, and Roy Orbison. We opted not to go in for the entire tour, but were still able to look around. It was really neat.
We stopped at a restaurant for a delicious lunch and then headed to the eastern side of downtown to see the Civil Rights Museum.
The Museum is located at the Lorraine Hotel, the hotel where Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot. It’s actually a pretty chilling sight. You turn the corner and right in front of you is the hotel that you have seen in countless pictures of MLK, Jr. 
We explored around the outside a bit and then went inside the museum. We wanted to actually tour the entire museum, but, unfortunately, it was closing in less than an hour and we would not have nearly enough time to see everything. I guess I’ll have to come back another day.
We walked back downtown to the Peabody Hotel to see the “Famous Peabody Ducks.”
I had never heard of the ducks before, but could not stop hearing about them once we arrived in Memphis. We couldn’t understand why there was so much fuss over a few Mallard ducks, so we decided to go check it out. And, oh my goodness, was it a spectacle.
The history of the Peabody Ducks dates back to the 1930’s. The general manager at the time had just returned from a hunting trip and thought it would be amusing to leave his decoys in the fountain. Apparently it was a hit and the tradition began. Every day at 11:00am, the ducks are escorted from their penthouse home, on the Plantation Roof, to the lobby via elevator. The ducks are accompanied by the Kind Cotton March (by John Philip Sousa), then proceed across a red carpet to the hotel fountain.
The ducks swim around in the fountain all day until, at 5:00pm, the ducks are ceremoniously led back to their penthouse amidst lots of photo-taking. All and all, the “march of the ducks” wasn’t actually that impressive. I mean, really. Ducks got out of the fountain, they waddled down a red carpet, and then they got in an elevator. Woopty-doo. But it was quite entertaining, nonetheless. And after all, I was one of those silly tourists that got suckered in to seeing these famous ducks.
To end our evening, we all went to see the Memphis Redbirds take on the Albuquerque Isotopes. Yes, the Isotopes. I thought the name was pretty pathetic, too. Oh no! Watch out! Here come the Isotopes. EVERYONE RUN!!! It was a minor league baseball game.
And, for the cheap price of the tickets, it was pretty entertaining. We ended up leaving before the game was even over (we have to be to bed at a reasonable time…), so we aren’t even sure who ended up winning. But when we left, the Redbirds were winning by one. Fun game. Go Redbirds!! 
It was Heidi’s birthday today (one of our national riders). To celebrate her birthday, she (along with three other riders) participated in a “quesadilla challenge” at the ballpark. (It’s usually the hamburger challenge, but in response to Cinco de Mayo, they made it the carne asada quesadilla challenge). They were divided in to two teams, with each person being dressed up as a tortilla (or a hamburger bun). They then had to assemble the quesadilla by running to get the pieces and putting it together. The first to assemble their quesadilla was the winner.
Since it was her birthday, I thought the other team might be nice to Heidi and let her team win. However, the “other team” consisted of Maggie and Justin. And Justin is perhaps the most competitive person I have ever met. So, needless to say, Heidi did not emerge from the competition victorious.
End of the thirty-fifth day. And it was exciting.
We had another day off today in Memphis. It seems like we have had quite a few off days recently, but then again, there is a lot more to see around here than middle-of-nowhere Texas. And, after riding over 200 miles in the last two days, our bodies were incredibly grateful for the day off the saddle.
We had a Global Health Day at University of Tennessee and afterwards we stayed downtown and explored the city. On our walk from UT to downtown, we passed by Sun Studio.
Sun Studio is a recording studio in Memphis where Elvis Presley first recorded his music. Other famous musicians to record at Sun Studio were BB King, Ike Turner, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee, and Roy Orbison. We opted not to go in for the entire tour, but were still able to look around. It was really neat.We stopped at a restaurant for a delicious lunch and then headed to the eastern side of downtown to see the Civil Rights Museum.
The Museum is located at the Lorraine Hotel, the hotel where Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot. It’s actually a pretty chilling sight. You turn the corner and right in front of you is the hotel that you have seen in countless pictures of MLK, Jr. We explored around the outside a bit and then went inside the museum. We wanted to actually tour the entire museum, but, unfortunately, it was closing in less than an hour and we would not have nearly enough time to see everything. I guess I’ll have to come back another day.We walked back downtown to the Peabody Hotel to see the “Famous Peabody Ducks.”
I had never heard of the ducks before, but could not stop hearing about them once we arrived in Memphis. We couldn’t understand why there was so much fuss over a few Mallard ducks, so we decided to go check it out. And, oh my goodness, was it a spectacle.The history of the Peabody Ducks dates back to the 1930’s. The general manager at the time had just returned from a hunting trip and thought it would be amusing to leave his decoys in the fountain. Apparently it was a hit and the tradition began. Every day at 11:00am, the ducks are escorted from their penthouse home, on the Plantation Roof, to the lobby via elevator. The ducks are accompanied by the Kind Cotton March (by John Philip Sousa), then proceed across a red carpet to the hotel fountain.
The ducks swim around in the fountain all day until, at 5:00pm, the ducks are ceremoniously led back to their penthouse amidst lots of photo-taking. All and all, the “march of the ducks” wasn’t actually that impressive. I mean, really. Ducks got out of the fountain, they waddled down a red carpet, and then they got in an elevator. Woopty-doo. But it was quite entertaining, nonetheless. And after all, I was one of those silly tourists that got suckered in to seeing these famous ducks.To end our evening, we all went to see the Memphis Redbirds take on the Albuquerque Isotopes. Yes, the Isotopes. I thought the name was pretty pathetic, too. Oh no! Watch out! Here come the Isotopes. EVERYONE RUN!!! It was a minor league baseball game.
And, for the cheap price of the tickets, it was pretty entertaining. We ended up leaving before the game was even over (we have to be to bed at a reasonable time…), so we aren’t even sure who ended up winning. But when we left, the Redbirds were winning by one. Fun game. Go Redbirds!! It was Heidi’s birthday today (one of our national riders). To celebrate her birthday, she (along with three other riders) participated in a “quesadilla challenge” at the ballpark. (It’s usually the hamburger challenge, but in response to Cinco de Mayo, they made it the carne asada quesadilla challenge). They were divided in to two teams, with each person being dressed up as a tortilla (or a hamburger bun). They then had to assemble the quesadilla by running to get the pieces and putting it together. The first to assemble their quesadilla was the winner.
Since it was her birthday, I thought the other team might be nice to Heidi and let her team win. However, the “other team” consisted of Maggie and Justin. And Justin is perhaps the most competitive person I have ever met. So, needless to say, Heidi did not emerge from the competition victorious.End of the thirty-fifth day. And it was exciting.
The Mississippi was pretty darn dirty, but it was still a momentous occasion for all. 
Mississippi was not very kind to us, though. Apparently they don’t support shoulders on the side of the road, so we were stuck riding in the road throughout the day. Well, to be fully honest, they do have a type of shoulder on the side of their roads. But this shoulder is composed entirely of gravel, with about a 3 inch drop-off from the road. This is not conducive to safe riding…
Memphis is known for its BBQ, and I guess this is one of the most popular places in town. I did not partake in the BBQ ribs, but did have delicious red beans and rice. Everyone else seemed to love their food.
We had so much fun listening to music, dancing, and people watching. 
The “Beale Big Ass Beer” was also a welcomed addition to the evening – 32 ounces of cheap, cheap beer. Yum. 
The Big Dam Bridge is the largest solely pedestrian and cyclist bridge in the country. It is 4226 feet long, spanning the Arkansas River. 
It was pretty dam cool. It is the Big Dam Bridge because it is, rather obviously, on top of a dam.
Once out of the city, the scenery was pretty at times and incredibly boring at others. We rode past some gorgeous woods, right next to ugly farm lands. I guess that’s the way it is in Arkansas.
After being in a large group for over five weeks, we all thought it might be best for our collective sanity if we split up a bit. I wandered around the river district of Little Rock by myself, taking in the sites. 
I eventually found myself sitting on a park bench reading my book/drifting off for a while. It was great to have some alone time to feel like I could really “regain” myself. I know this sounds strange, but when you are constantly surrounded by 21 other people every single day for 5 weeks, you start to go a little crazy.
Heifer Village is the main campus for an organization called Heifer International. This is an incredible organization. Basically, what they do is provide livestock to families in developing countries, with the ultimate purpose of alleviating/eradicating hunger and poverty around the world. With the supply of these livestock (heifers, goats, chickens, and sheep) to impoverished families, Heifer International is providing these families not only with food, but also with a means of profit. 
The only requirement is that each family pass on one of their offspring to another family, in an effort to keep the program going. It really is amazing. We also learned about some of the other organizations that are working in developing countries. 
It really is inspiring to see what other people are doing and how they are trying to make a different in small, but meaningful, ways.
I did, however, have to deal with lots of problems out on the road. I was in the middle van, which is really only supposed to be for water stops and lunch, but we did a lot more than that today. Within the first 10 miles of the route, we had already picked up one person (he was having problems with his tire) and helped fix two flat tires. Exciting morning. We arrived at the first water stop just a few minutes before the riders started coming in. While we waited, we went searching for bullfrogs. Fun times for all. 
We had to stop a couple more times to help out with flat tires and other little problems, but overall, nothing major. And, probably best of all, we were able to avoid the terrible weather that was looming across the radar. (We were, however, bombarded by these storms later in the evening).
The similarities to a lobster boil: crustaceans are boiled with potatoes and corn, all food is thrown on a table, and the food is doled out to hungry onlookers. Differences from a lobster boil: crawfish are just plain scary. They have beady little eyes that stare you down. 
Granted, I am veggie so I did not try the crawfish, but I definitely watched people (suffer through) eating them, and it was a humorous site. Crawfish have very little meat – I guess this meat is located in the tail area. But it seems to me that much more waste is created from attempting to eat a crawfish than is really worth the effort for the measly portion of meat. We were also entertained by a terrible cover band. They had no musical talent whatsoever. They were also terrible “dancers.” But they were highly entertaining, nonetheless.
