Memphis Botanical Gardens and Neely’s BBQ

Oct 19^th

Well the cold front finally arrived but the rain is gone. We had the temps set low but the heat still came on most of the night. Up at 6:30 AM with the kids – “…time to go out Dad”. So out we went, in jeans, sweatshirt and vest. I should have worn gloves. It was probably 42 or 43 degrees out.

Entrance to the Memphis Botanical Gardens

We took it easy most of the morning, no sense in getting out in the cold too soon. By 10:00 AM we were all set to go so we loaded the kids in the car and drove to the Teachers Credit Union for some cash. From there it was an easy jaunt to the I55/I-69 N, then onto the I-240 east and the Memphis Botanical Gardens (http://www.memphisbotanicgarden.com/). 

My Big Backyard Garden

The Gardens sit on about 96 acres and includes 23 specialty gardens, the largest of which is “My Big Backyard” which offers a place for jumping, splashing, digging, creating, and discovering the joys of time spent outdoors. Because it was a chilly day we were fortunate, we practically had the place to ourselves.

Tree House Play Area

Our first stop was My Big Backyard. With lots of places for kids to play, water features and garden art, this garden was actually the most enjoyable as it appealed to the senses with whimsy as well as beauty!

Part of the Japanese Garden

We were in the gardens for about two hours and rather than give a blow by blow account of the various gardens we went to, go to our photo album page and check out the pictures of the Iris Garden, Japanese Garden, Butterfly Garden, fountains and sculptures (http://picasaweb.google.com/mjdolanski).

Neely's Bar-B-Que Restaurant

Leaving the Memphis Botanical Gardens we drove to downtown Memphis to have lunch at the “Neely’s Bar-B-Que” Restaurant (http://www.neelysbbq.com/). The Neely’s are famous for being on Food Networks, “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” as well as their own show on the Food Network, “Down Home With The Neely’s”. 

Tina enjoying her ribs

It’s just a small place on Jefferson about a mile from the Mississippi but it was good eats, as Alton Brown would say. We had a late lunch – Tina had ribs and I had a pulled pork sandwich. Both were excellent! And by 2:00 PM we were headed home. With luck it’ll be a little warmer and sunnier tomorrow for our Mississippi River Cruise.

The rest of the afternoon we read and relaxed. Tina fixed dinner around 7:00 PM and by 8:00 PM I was done with the dishes and working on the blog while Tina relaxed with the kids and TV in the bedroom (no cable so we pull in digital stations from the antenna – the front TV is analog only).

To see all our photos, go to:

http://picasaweb.google.com/mjdolanski