Is the cargo carrier still on???

We landed in Jackson, Mississippi, were received by our AirBnB host, Mysty, and informed that we had been upgraded to their fancy apartment above the garage instead of the small guest room in the house. Southern hospitality at its finest! We have a private balcony that overlooks a pond in the back, full of gators no doubt.

I'll start with dinner as it's the freshest in our minds and bellies. We took our host's recommendation and ventured to the local reservoir boardwalk to dine at Cock of the Walk. That's right - you heard me. Anyway, our seats were on the lower level overlooking the water, and we were lucky enough to enjoy our meals across from a gaggle of 10-year-old girls. They were loud, but harmless (Erik was afraid). As far as food goes, they only offered two simple options on their menu - chicken or catfish. Before the waitress came over, we had already decided that I would get chicken and Erik would get catfish. She asked us straight up, "What'll it be - chicken or catfish?" I was tempted to facetiously tell her that we needed a feeewwww more minutes to decide, but we were hungry so we ordered. Our meals came with fries, hushpuppies, slaw, and fried onions. WE IS FULL.



Our big meal at "The Cock" was a perfect ending to our eventful day. Having traveled on Hwy 40, and then down Hwy 55 South to get where we are, we spent our afternoon at the halfway point: Memphis, Tennessee. We had been to Memphis once before with my family, and had already done a lot of the touristy stuff (Graceland, Mississippi Riverboat ride, Beale Street, BBQ, etc.), but Erik and I were looking forward to doing the couple things we had missed on our previous trip. First stop was the National Civil Rights Museum, which is located at the Lorraine Motel - the site of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination. The experience is surreal. My breath was taken as I walked up to the balcony and stood in the very spot where he was shot, while Mahalia Jackson's voice rang out from the speakers singing "Take My Hand, Precious Lord:" his favorite hymn. What an important legacy he left us, and the work is far from complete.



After the museum, we rushed over to Sun Studio. I had some songs in my head that I just HAD to lay down. Just kidding. But we really did go there, and it was really cool. You walk inside, and it's a little diner/soda shop with memorabilia and souvenirs everywhere. We could've done the studio tour, but the next one didn't start for another 45 minutes, and we had to get on the road. We've got places to be, people!! So we said "catch ya later" to E, J and R (Elvis, Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison, duh) and put the pedal to the metal.



It's early to bed for these kids tonight, cuz tomorrow we're going to AUSTIN! (It's like Portland....but in TEXAS!) Goodnight, Y'all!

-M