Opryland

Donna and I went to Nashville last week for our yearly week-long vacation. It was the first one in almost 20 years that we went on by ourselves. We couldn't bring ourselves to go to Myrtle Beach, so we just went somewhere close (Nasvhille). We didn't do a whole lot. We went to see Dave Ramsey's studio (see previous post). We also went to see the Parthenon (upcoming post). We also made a couple of trips to the Opry Mills Mall.

I know some people won't like this, but I am not very enamored with the Opry Mills mall. There are a few things I like. The Tony Roma's is good and there is a place where you can buy fried donuts. I also grab a Strawberry Julius whenever I am there. I don't like how narrow the aisles are. The layout is funky. It has two main pathways and you have to walk all the way to the end of end to get to the other (no cut throughs that I could find). There aren't any stores that just blow me away. I detest how I feel like I am in a carnival with hucksters. There are too many vendors trying to drag you over to sample their wares. Donna walked up laughing just as some girl grabbed my hand wanting to look at my nails.

I think a lot of my prejudice stems from my memories of what used to be. When you come into Nashville, all of the directional signs mention Opryland. This constitutes the Gaylord Entertainment Conglomerate (Orpy Mills, Grand Ole Opry, the Opryland Hotel, General Jackson steamboat and I am sure other stuff). Opryland will always be something entirely different to me.

I remember going to the theme park there. We went in the early seventies to the theme park. They had characters dressed up musical instruments. I distinctly remember Yancy Banjo (for obvious reasons). It was only two hours away, so it was easy to pop down to for a day of fun. I remember going with Chris Leaver and his family one Saturday. We rode the Wabash Cannonball something like 16 times (it was one of those corkscrew type coasters). Donna and I went on a Saturday with Rick Alvey and his girlfriend when we were dating. We went again after we got married. I remember even going there on our honeymoon. The rides were closed for the season (it was March). But, Ralph Embry did his daily show there and we got to be in the audience for that. I remember it being a family oriented kind of place.

Alas, just before the boys got old enough to go (1996 I think), they abruptly decided to close the park. I've read various reasons why. One is the park had no room for growth. It was bordered by the Cumberland River, Briley Parkway and Opryland Hotel. They had to rip out old rides to put in new ones. I also remember hearing that Gaylord Entertainment just wanted to stick with hospitality type services (whatever that means). There was some rumor they were going to keep a few of the rides, but they didn't.

It wasn't widely publicized outside this area. I've even heard that tourists still show up at the site looking for the theme park (given the area is still called Opryland).

This is a good site with all sorts of info including old maps they gave you when you came in plus TV commercials. If you ever went to Opryland, you'll really enjoy exploring it.