Tennessee Wedding Vacation
Jun 02
Posted: under Anecdotes.
Tags: attractions, historic sites, Tennessee, vacation
My wife and I recently drove from our northern Illinois home to eastern Tennessee for our nephew’s wedding, and made a little vacation out of the trip. We don’t often get to take vacations, so we wanted to take in some of the sites along the way. However, we could only take a couple of days on either side of the wedding day, so we still didn’t get to do a whole lot. I had investigated a few attractions before we embarked, but we waited until we were on the road before deciding where our first excursion would be. I was leaning toward letting Mammoth Cave be our first stop, but Kathy wasn’t interested in seeing another cave. They all look the same to her. I know all you spelunkers out there will disagree. So we headed toward where one of my maps said Natural Stone Bridge was located, and found a motel a little north of there for the night.
I then went online to get more detailed directions to the Natural Bridge, only to find we were actually 100 miles south of it. The map I printed went to a lesser-known one that was a little harder to get to, and I did finally find the detailed directions to it, and discovered another attraction along the way. So we decided to stop at Cumberland Falls first and then if there was time continue on to the Natural Bridge.
After spending the entire morning there, we decided not to venture to the bridge, but return to the highway and on to eastern Tennessee instead. Once in Jonesborough, TN we toured the downtown historical district for a while, looked around in some of the shops, read some of the commemorative markers, etc. Then we had to get ready for the rehearsal dinner, so that was all the sightseeing we could take in for the day.
The next day, after a late breakfast at the pancake house, we decided to head toward Greenville to view the Andrew Johnson Historic site, but while we stopped for lunch we asked a local about directions to it, and found out that the Iris Festival was going on and it might make finding a place to park a little difficult. We thought he said Irish Festival, so we expected it to be rather festive, active, and crowded. Since we didn’t want to risk being late for the wedding that afternoon, we once again altered our plans, and went to Davey Crockett’s birthplace instead. This was a nice little drive in which we almost ran out of gas, with not a station to be seen along the way. From there we returned to the motel to change clothes for the wedding.
The next day was Sunday, and as is our standard, we went to church, having chosen one in walking distance of the motel, Central Christian on Main Street in the historic district of Jonesborough. When we arrived, three ladies were standing outside the front doors exchanging pleasantries, and interrupted their conversing to greet us warmly and cheerfully. They made sure we felt welcome at their little church. It was a wonderful service, followed by a baptism, for which we couldn’t stay because we had to check out of the motel.
After lunch, we returned to the Greenville area to take in the Andrew Johnson site and the Iris Festival we missed the day before. And although we expected it to be less busy than our perception on an Irish Festival, the Iris Festival is still a big deal in that part of the country. Then it was time to hit the road to return to northern Illinois. We dodged a dinnertime thunderstorm by stopping for dinner at Shoney’s, then drove on to a motel just a little south of Lexington.
Monday was the last leg of the trip, and we planned on stopping at the Ben Hur Museum, which we found to be closed on Mondays, and the Railway Museum, which is also closed on Mondays. Oh, well. I enjoyed the time I got to spend with my wife outside of the caves. After all, it’s not so much about the destination as it is the journey. Make the most of it. Stop and smell the roses. And love the one you’re with.
Tracy Henness
