So I spent the weekend in Nashville....

[Guest rj8806]

It was first time to the Nashville area and must say, I wasn't impressed. My daughter is a cheerleader in the Young Champions of America organization and Saturday was the State championships. Their squad came in 1st place and we are now going to Nationals in St. Louis MO. on July 26th.

We stayed in a Hotel on Royal pkwy, one exit south of Briley off of I-40 and I was glad I had a carry permit and my trusty Kimber 1911 on my side. I suppose every city has their "good parts and bad parts" to them, this must have been the "bad part of town". My daughter was very uneasy and stayed attached to my side the whole weekend. I did enjoy the Opryland Mall and we ate at the Aquarium restaurant. The theme of the restaurant was great but the food was terrible and horribly overpriced(as I expected).

The competition was down in Franklin and on the way back to the hotel we must have made a wrong turn because we ended up in down town Nashville. Very confusing city with interstates running every which way.

I hate to judge a city on first impressions but......

Richard

[Guest nraforlife]

Nashville is a nice city, you were just in the more 'seedy' side of it. Hindsight being 20-20 you should have stayed in Franklin/Brentwood

[strickj]

Thats over by the airport isn't it?

Last time I was in Nash I stayed over off of West End Ave by Vanderbilt for a tennis tournament.I thought it was an alright area.I ended up using the sidewalks about as much as my car along side of everybody else in that area.

Not really sure of the name of that area,but I think its on the other side of town from where you were.

[Guest sling]

Briley pkwy is shady anyways. I second that part about should have stayed in brentwood\cool springs area. The interstate isnt confusing necessarily... well except for that part when i first moved here and constantly got confused about 440 versus 40. :-P

[Guest ColdEspresso]

That area isn't all that bad. Mosly lower priced airport hotels. I would CC in that area and I live near there.

Edited June 2, 2008 by ColdEspresso

[Guest ColdEspresso]

You can always check out crime stats here:

http://data.tennessean.com/v2/bin/crimeMap/display/index.php

As you will see there was little to no crime in that area (at least last week).

[Guest darkstar]

Any time you are off the interstate in areas rife with hotels it can be a bit seedy.

Also we make the interstates confusing here on purpose to keep tourists in the city longer to spend more money.

[Guest rj8806]

The cheerleader coach made the hotel choice as we wanted the whole team to stay at the same place. Yes, it was right next to the airport. Friday night, after checking in to the hotel we ventured out to find something to eat. The only thing we could find that wasn't fast food was a little chinese restaurant. While sitting there, a couple of "questionable looking" guys came in and one of them spent the whole time staring at myself and my 12 year old daughter. Made me a little uneasy and I kept my hand down near my side next to the Kimber. Needless to say, we took the food to go and went back to the room to eat.

I didn't have alot of time to go sightseeing as we arrived Friday night about 10CST and the competition was at 4pm on Saturday at BattleGround Academy in Franklin. Afterwards we went to the Opryland Mall which was quite nice but then made the mistake of eating at the Aquarium. My daughter loved it and that's all that counts but me, I was a little nervous the whole weekend.

Richard

[Guest jfountain2]

Come spend the weekend in Memphis... we make the worst parts of Nashville look down right civilized.

Got our 70th homicide this year just last night!

[Guest db99wj]

Come spend the weekend in Memphis... we make the worst parts of Nashville look down right civilized.

Got our 70th homicide this year just last night!

Hell, parts of Memphis make Fallujah look civilized!

[Guest VandyZ]

I have been to my fair share of cities, and i might be biased, but Nashville is a great city. I know i have felt the same way you felt, visiting some other cities. I guess its just a comfort thing, and knowing the area. But as far as "in general", Nashville really is a great all around city.

Most people that visit me, always go on about how great it is. Maybe its because i was their security blanket.

Oh well, better luck next time. Give it another chance, its a very likeable place.

[Guest jfountain2]

Hickory Hill is such a lovely area, almost as nice as Orange Mound.

[Guest darkstar]

The cheerleader coach made the hotel choice as we wanted the whole team to stay at the same place. Yes, it was right next to the airport. Friday night, after checking in to the hotel we ventured out to find something to eat. The only thing we could find that wasn't fast food was a little chinese restaurant. While sitting there, a couple of "questionable looking" guys came in and one of them spent the whole time staring at myself and my 12 year old daughter. Made me a little uneasy and I kept my hand down near my side next to the Kimber. Needless to say, we took the food to go and went back to the room to eat.

I didn't have alot of time to go sightseeing as we arrived Friday night about 10CST and the competition was at 4pm on Saturday at BattleGround Academy in Franklin. Afterwards we went to the Opryland Mall which was quite nice but then made the mistake of eating at the Aquarium. My daughter loved it and that's all that counts but me, I was a little nervous the whole weekend.

Richard

Understandable feeling the way you did. It's tough when your in an area your not used to. If you ever decide to come back to Nashvegas PM someone in here from Nashville and we'll give you the low down on what parts to avoid.

[Guest rj8806]

I have been to my fair share of cities, and i might be biased, but Nashville is a great city. I know i have felt the same way you felt, visiting some other cities. I guess its just a comfort thing, and knowing the area. But as far as "in general", Nashville really is a great all around city.

Most people that visit me, always go on about how great it is. Maybe its because i was their security blanket.

Oh well, better luck next time. Give it another chance, its a very likeable place.

Your probably right...like I said in the first post, all cities have the good parts and bad, guess I was just in a "questionable" part, I don't know. Some of the ads we saw on T.V. looked really cool so I am sure I will give it another try one day.

Richard

[ShaunM]

Your probably right...like I said in the first post, all cities have the good parts and bad, guess I was just in a "questionable" part, I don't know. Some of the ads we saw on T.V. looked really cool so I am sure I will give it another try one day.

Richard

Make sure when you come back you have plenty of time to actually see the city, there are all kinds of fun things to do. I enjoy the live msic at the saloons. I live just down the road from Nashville and I go all the time. Never had a problem with anyone yet.

[Guest rj8806]

Make sure when you come back you have plenty of time to actually see the city, there are all kinds of fun things to do. I enjoy the live msic at the saloons. I live just down the road from Nashville and I go all the time. Never had a problem with anyone yet.

That would be great but I cannot stand country music, it puts me to sleep. I'm more Metallica. But you're right, I did see several ads on the tele for cool things to do and even told the wife I wanted to come back, this time with the whole family, to go to Nashville Shores waterpark. That looked amazing.

By the way, anybody know what kind of school Battle Ground Academy in Franklin, is? That's where the competition was and I was very impressed by it. It was huge and well maintained. I am assuming a prep school or soemthing of the sorts....?

Richard

[EMTRN]

I feel like I've gone to the promised land every time I go East of Memphis. My favorite post title ever was the recent post about "Where to shoot an AK in Memphis." Can you hear automatic weapons in Nashville every night?

[Guest I_AM_WOOD]

Nashville is great once you figure out the bypass system, if you get lost no big deal. I get lost every time I go to Memphis and in just one wrong turn you enter a 3rd world country.

[clipslinger]

next time let us know and well show ya the good parts and maybe even a good metal band.

[Guest ColdEspresso]

BGA is a prep school. They are a very highly rated and their students excel in academics as well as sports.

[BrandonTN]

The cheerleader coach made the hotel choice as we wanted the whole team to stay at the same place. Yes, it was right next to the airport. Friday night, after checking in to the hotel we ventured out to find something to eat. The only thing we could find that wasn't fast food was a little chinese restaurant. While sitting there, a couple of "questionable looking" guys came in and one of them spent the whole time staring at myself and my 12 year old daughter. Made me a little uneasy and I kept my hand down near my side next to the Kimber. Needless to say, we took the food to go and went back to the room to eat.

I didn't have alot of time to go sightseeing as we arrived Friday night about 10CST and the competition was at 4pm on Saturday at BattleGround Academy in Franklin. Afterwards we went to the Opryland Mall which was quite nice but then made the mistake of eating at the Aquarium. My daughter loved it and that's all that counts but me, I was a little nervous the whole weekend.

Richard

Hey, that's where I went to school...next time you'll know to stay in the Brentwood / Cool Springs area, tons of choices there as far as eating and hotels go . Opry Mills is slowly becoming overrun with gang activity and you're right about the Aquarium. It is right on par w/ the Rainforest Cafe...great scenery, but horrible and overpriced food. Glad you survived and don't let your experience overrun your thoughts on Nashville. Parts of it are great, especially areas south of the city (Brentwood & Franklin) or Belle Meade, Green Hills, West End, etc. PM me when you head back and I'll answer any food or activity questions you may have.

Edited June 2, 2008 by BrandonTN

[DWARREN123]

It does seem that cities are going down hill. Nashville at one time was a very friendly city, now certain parts are. Always be aware of your surroundings.

Wish it could have been a better visit for you and your daughter.

[Guest rj8806]

......Wish it could have been a better visit for you and your daughter.

Actually, getting 1st place in the State competition made the trip all the worth while . Nothing bad happened, just a little nervous.

Richard

[mdlave]

A lot of the touristy places here suck. Get a local to make some itinerary suggestions next time, and you'll have a better meal experience.

BTW, I live in the Donelson/Airport area. I've come to think of the "questionable characters" here as charming.

[Guest rj8806]

A lot of the touristy places here suck.

Tourist places everywhere suck. I was born and raised in South Florida. Try going to Miami or Orlando. Those places make Nashville look like Disney World.

There is alot of history in Nashville and from what I saw, it looked like it had potential, just not where I was staying. I should've known when I pulled into the hotel and saw that it was a Motel 8. I do want to go back one weekend with the whole family and hit the waterparks and stuff, those looked pretty good.

Richard