Duval Street

Duval Street had just bought me seriously undone. I am sitting in a hotel in Miami because it is pouring rain having got a grand total of 2.5 hours sleep after drinking with the locals. I may have to move here. 

It started innocently enough. I got talking to some people in the pool, two were a nice retired couple who were very sober and responsible and two guys who were dating and having their first mini break away together. The two guys went to go catch the sunset, and the older couple were deciding where they were going to eat. I showered, changed into some fresh clothes and hit Duval Street. While I was deciding what to do I thought I'd grab a hot dog and wander the street to see what's up.

Key West is a bit upscale so not only does it have the cheap souvenirs and t-shirt shops but designer boutiques and fine art galleries. What all of these tourist places have in common though is the big chain restaurants. I'm thinking Hard Rock Cafe, Margaritaville, Hog's Breath, that kind of thing. I am always bemused when I see them full. It is a totally white bread experience. Come to an exotic and unusual location and eat at the place you go to when you're home. Head back and tell all your buddies that you've had the authentic Nashville, New Orleans, Memphis, Key West experience. 

They have people hand rolling cigars here. They sit out the front of the many cigar bars. The smell of the smoke is just divine. I thought about grabbing a pack to bring home. They are quite cheap but a local aficionado explained that they are of poor quality. They're rolled out in the open in the horrendous humidity and not stored in a humidor. He suggested I grab some Cubans from the duty free. The other thing they have here is wine bars. Not the sleazy old wine bars like you could find in Sydney in the 70's, these actually sell quality wine by the glass from around the world. They accompany them with with good tapas and cheese plates, better still one was right opposite the hotel I'm staying at. This is when its starts to get messy. 

I'm convivially sitting at the bar sipping a Sancerre Sauvignon Blanc chatting to the bar keep and a few bar flys and in walks a statuesque blond. We get chatting, she had been in Australia recently and loved it there. I explained that I wanted to check out a few things tomorrow but tonight I had to try a Key Lime Pie. They are all the rage as you know but were actually invented here using a bitter Mexican lime. I had to tick the box. Well that became the mission, phones were brought to bare, calls were made, bookings completed, directions sought and transport arranged. All the while it was on to the Chilean Cabernets followed by some from the Napa Valley. 

Then we hit this speciality dessert restaurant called Better Than Sex I highly recommend that you check out the webpage. Their chocolate wine was amazing and the Key Lime Pie was simply divine. All I can say is that I'm pleased I took my sunglasses. I staggered home at 6.00am and madly got up at 8.30am and did the Ernest Hemingway Museum, which was amazing. 

There was a world weary old curmudgeon who showed us around with stories drier than a Muswellbrook summer. He had tales about the six toed cats, how Hemingway ended up with the urinal from Sloppy Joe's Bar, the story of how wife number two took his last penny which she had concreted into the ground, along with history of his amazing body of work and his insatiable appetite for women. He finished with the poignant story of Hemingway's death by his own hand.

I tried to do the Little White House but it was shut (I found this out after I had walked there in 100% humidity 40 degree heat). Then I jumped in the car to fight my way through Miami traffic and sit here before you now. Its 8.00pm and I'm about to hit Ocean Drive and check out the art deco stuff. Wish me luck, that first drinks going to be a killer.

Key West

You know those really cool bridges in that Arnold Schwarzenegger movie True Lies? Well I got to drive across them today. When they say the Florida Keys there sure are a lot of them.

Dry Tortugas, Marquesas Key, Sunset Key, Wisteria Island, Key West, Fleming Key, Sigsbee Park, Stock Island, Raccoon Key, Boca Chica Key, Rockland Key, East Rockland Key, Geiger Key, Shark Key, Saddlebunch Key, Lower Sugarloaf Key, Park Key, Sugarloaf Key, Cudjoe Key, Knockemdown Key, Summerland Key, Middle Torch Key, Big Torch Key, The Seven Mile Bridge, Little Torch Key, Big Pine Key, No Name Key, Scout Key, Bahia Honda Key, Ohio Key, Missouri Key, Little Duck Key, Pigeon Key, Knights Key, Vaca Key, Boot Key, Fat Deer Key. Shelter Key, Long Point Key, Crawl Key, Grass Key, Duck Key, Conch Key, The Long Key Bridge, Long Key, Fiesta Key, Craig Key, Lower Matecumbe Key, Lignumvitae Key, Indian Key, Indian Fey Fill, Tea Table, Upper Matecumbe Key, Windley Key, Plantation Key, Key Largo and finally Cross Key. 

So I think you get the picture, it has more keys than a locksmith and is joined together by some spectacular bridges. These are just the ones the highway follows. Its like driving along the Gold Coast in the 1970's before all the high rise. The speed can be anywhere from 35 miles an hour up to 55 miles an hour with only a few spots for overtaking. There are certain drivers here that don't deal well with that. In some places its just a two lane road with the Gulf of Mexico on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other. The further south you get the more pristine the water becomes. 

It is damn hot here. I made base at 12.30pm and wandered up and down Duval Street and grabbed some lunch. I get the impression it will go off at night time. I will let you know. There is lots of amazing architecture about the place and you have must photograph taken at the marker telling you that your are at the Southern most point of the continental United States. The trouble is you're not, the actual southern most point is on navy land and not accessible to the public, but don't tell us tourists. I happened to casually mention this while I was there, you should have heard them, they were seriously pissed, not at me but by the government misleading them. I pointed out that I just looked it up on wikipedia and that didn't help it seems. I grabbed a photo but didn't want to stand in line so I just took one with some randoms in it and avoided the queue altogether.

I checked in to my digs for the night, Duval House, and hit the pool. 

There a couple of things I want to do here tomorrow, check out what is known as The Little Whitehouse and also see Earnest Hemingway's place, both of which are walking distance from here so I will hang around and do those then head on up to Miami. It's hard to believe I have been in Florida for so long.

Key Largo

I have this friend who has what's known as a "very mild super power". He can't stop a bullet with his bare hands or see through women's clothing or anything cool like that, his super power is an ability to identify roadkill. Well I would like his help right now. Driving the interstates, the highways, the turnpikes, the beltways and the parkways gives you a unique insight to the local fauna, even if it is dead. So far I think I have seen a dead skunk, a dead armadillo, many dead squirrels and I kid you not, a black bear....dead. 

The roads here a curious in a number of ways, without the sat nav I would be hopelessly lost and pool of pitiful frustration. Even in the places that seem to have some semblance of order and understanding they too have an insatiable need to to do truly reckless and dangerous things on the road, I am thinking crossing five lanes of traffic at 85 miles an hour without the aid of an indicator. There is a massive police presence on the roads here but it seems to be only an illusory deterrent. The one real benefit is that any bad driving that I am responsible for is easily excused as normal. 

I had a relaxing breakfast on the pier at Fort Myers, checked out of my funky little hotel and headed off through the Everglades to Key Largo. Oh and I saw an alligator last night. Everyone in this country is hustling to make a buck and a couple of good ol' boys had captured a baby alligator and were selling pictures with it. The drive took me about three hours with a break at Homestead for lunch. I stopped at this Cuban place called Taqueria Morelia and waitress asked me "American or Cuban?" to which I replied "Australian" completely doing her head in. The reason being she needed to know was so she could give me the menu in the correct language. I ordered a chicken burrito and was heartily satisfied.

I arrived at Key Largo at about 3.00pm and drove up and down the strip (which is about 12 miles of highway with businesses either side and some cases in the middle). I was not that impressed and thought maybe Humphrey Bogart may have got it wrong. Then I pulled into my hotel. I think Humphrey may have got it right. Check out the view.

I know it sucks to be me right? I am sitting on the dock under a grass umbrella sipping Pinot Grigio. There are plenty of great things to do here. I could ride the real African Queen, I could go snorkeling on the reef and swimming with dolphins but I think I may just kick back and soak in some rays. Its jellyfish season here at the moment so snorkeling with jellyfish doesn't appeal to me, I was stung enough as a kid. The Dolphins are in an artificial enclosure and I don't care how good it is it just doesn't sit to well with me when they do that a wild animal. I may do the African Queen but it will take me getting motivated. I did mention I am sitting here sipping wine right?

Tomorrow I am off to Key West. It is the southern most point in Florida and the United States for that matter and less than 100 miles away from Cuba. It will only take about 2 hours to get there if I go non stop. I am deciding if I am going to stay the night or head back to Miami all in one day. I will figure it out tomorrow because as you know I may have mentioned I am sitting on the dock drinking wine and it all seems a little too hard right now. 

Fort Myers

I headed out of Cedar Key after a liesurely breakfast. There is an amazing looking bridge that I made a detour to cross just because it was so spectacular. Before that though I stopped for lunch at St Petersburg and then crossed this amazing structure on the way to Fort Myers. 

Now the photos are not my own because while I am getting better at driving on the wrong side of the road doing 125 kilometres an hour I still can't use the camera while I'm doing it. Oh and there's a $1.25 toll to cross and they have old school toll collectors who give change and the whole bit, very quaint.

I wasn't expecting a lot of the Fort Myers. It was basically a stop over before I got to Key Largo and Key West but I think I have struck gold. This place is classic Florida, it seems to be where the locals from the surrounding cities come for their vacations. The GPS got totally confused getting me here though and I had to pull out the tablet and and use it instead of the one in the Chevy. It sent me to a RV park 40 minutes out of town. It was a little annoying. 

The place I am staying is an absolute classic. Its up wooden steps and in a multi coloured building just to find my room, the Martha's Vineyard Suite (and I use the term suite quite losely in this case). It is walking distance to the beach on one side and the port on the other. The temperature is in the high 30's and it is absolutely packed. Apparently the tourist season starts about now and goes through to March. 

Anyway if I were looking for somewhere to chill that was a bit hip for a week this place would do quite nicely. So its on the Key Largo tomorrow. Its like everywhere I go has a song sung about it or a movie made in it, totally surreal. We'll see what it brings.

The Pan Handle

From Pensacola I got off the major highways and headed down the western side of Florida along the Gulf of Mexico. This is redneck heaven. Every cliche you have heard about backward American hicks is illustrated here in all its unreconstructed glory. They speak with a southern twang that often sounds so agressive and to the untrained ear it is almost nonsensical. Try saying this out loud with the afore mentioned accent and you'll get what I mean ".....Ma (my) mutha's (mother's) ma systa (sister)!!!!!". You have to spit it out as if you're really angry and I'm really dumb and shouting it will help me understand. 

Don't get me wrong I am absolutely loving it but it seems pretty damn funny to my antipodean ears. The countryside is gorgeous and everyone is welcoming. It helps if you play the typical Aussie and say g'day alot, they seem to love it. 

On the way I crossed the Swanee River made famous in the American folk song Old Folks at Home. Apparently the guy who wrote it never actiually went there and all the references in the song don't match up with what you find, this includes the title. Its actually derived from the local Native American language and is really the Suwannee River. It didn't have a lot to commend it so I pushed on. 

Being the Gulf of Mexico there is plenty of great seafood. I ordered up some Oyters Moscow, they were $12.00 for a dozen, I dream of those prices. They are a lot larger than our oysters and a darker brown colour.

I had these at a town called Apalachicola before heading down to Cedar Keys which is the starts of the Keys (I think?). It is a tiny little town that is basically tourism driven. The local don't seem to want to embrace the fact but they know that they need them. The town's fisherman lost their right to commercially fish so while it is a pretty little spot it is a poor community. I had a great breakfast at a place that was trying to make a go of it, Kona Joes Island Cafe. Sadly some drunken fool (not me) had broken in the previous evening. The local police were there investigating. I even saw the two police (this is a town of 700 people mind you) turn around and look at me with the owner because I was a stranger in these here parts, before I was discarded as a suspect.

I have mentioned before that they love their guns here. Well the weekend I chose to visit Cedar Keys was their annual pirate weekend and they were really getting into it. Many of the locals and most of the visitors were dressed accordingly and incidentially had been consuming rum from an early hour it seems. Every time a cell phone would ring it would be answered "ahoy there matey" and other such authentic pirate sayings. Reading the history of the region I could find no pirate connections but who cares right? Anyway about those guns. So I am casually walking along the dock which is littered with shops and restaurants and then there is the god almighty BOOM. I look around and no one seemed to care, I get closer to the beach and hear it again, but now I see its source. They have a cannon and it seems to be in the care of two drunk good ol' boys dressed as pirates. They were having a fine time.

Everyone was extremely impressed with cannon and the noise it was making and I would have to include myself on that list. By this time I was drenched in perspiration and rain and headed back to the hotel to shower and change for dinner. An afternoon shower seems to be the norm this time of year in Florida. The evening meal was at Tony's, an award winning chowder place, where I ordered a seafood platter. Before calling it a night I checked the Hurricane warning website, apparently its that time of year, who knew? So I bedded down for the evening safe in the knowledge that I wouldn't be blown away and that the good ol' boys had the town well defended.

Anyway its on to Fort Myers next before I get to Key Largo and Key West, exciting times on Geek Wonderlost road trip.

Pensacola

The plan now is to lay back a bit keep away from the big cities and just chill. Florida seems to be the place to do it. This state is enormous, as is the country as a matter of fact. I am going to drop of a few places from the itinerary (Detroit and Chicago) and spend the extra time in Florida. That will give me two weeks to get to Niagara Falls, Washington, Boston and the New England Region. The trip may be scaled back even further but we will see.

After the epic but emotionally draining time in Montgomery I pushed on to Pensacola, home to a famous stock car track or carts as I think they call them here. It is also home to the Blue Angels, the US Navy's acrobatic and precision flying squadron. I went to the base today to check out the Naval Aviaiton Museum, the place is massive. There is something surreal about driving onto a military base, having a uniformed guard check you credentials then being issued a pass to let you on to certain areas of the establishment. I tried how to find out about the size of the establishment and can't find it anywhere online. Normally Americans love to tell you the scale of things, like "....if you laid every ship in the navy end to end you could walk from here to Hawaii". Now I just made that up but you get what I mean. There is a photo I will post below that perfectly illustrates this. The caption reads "Four and Half Acres of Sovereign US territory, anywhere, anytime." Its referring to them sending an aircraft carrier of course.

This was an amazing set up. There were over 100 aircraft on display and simulators you could ride in and it was free, including the parking. There were lots of service personnel on hand along with retired navy pilots who explained everything. The old boy who showed us around was 85 years of age. He came across like an old duffer. He was far from that. When we got to a certain aircraft he started telling the story of how he got himself "rated" supersonic by taking one of these to 34,000 feet and putting it into a nose dive at full throttle. He was said it was a little boring and that there was basically nothing to it. 

This place had everything from the recovery equipment for the Apollo program, to Richard Nixon's Presidential helicopter, to the plane flown by George Bush Sr. when he was in the Navy, to the "Fat Boy" practice ordinance for the Nagasaki nuclear mission and just about everything in between. It was a seriously cool way to spend three hours. I could have spent a lot longer there but I am pushing down what is known as "the pan handle" of Florida, basically following the coastline of the Gulf of Mexico until I get to the Key West where I will come back up the Atlantic Coast. 

I arrived in a little town where I bedded down for the night called Apalachicola and had dinner The Up The Creek Raw Bar. It was excellent and the view was sensational.

Montgomery Alabama

If you have been keeping up with my derry doing you will know that I tried to schedule a visit to the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. This is where Dr Martin Luther King Jr. was pastor for almost six years and where he made many of the plans for the civil rights movement including the marches from Selma to Montgomery. Now the only way to get in to do this is by booking. I was fortunate enough that my booking was accepted and the truly wonderful Wanda Battles took me on the most memorable of tours through this piece of living history. It was just Wanda and I. Before I go any further let me say that this lady is a national living treasure. 

Wanda had connections to the King family and was able to share information on a personal level that your regular tour guide couldn't. We started in the basement of the church where Dr King's office was. I learned that until 1934 his first name was Michael, when his father was in Germany and so impressed with Martin Luther that he changed both his and his son's name in honour of the reformer. 

I saw, stood at and handled the pulpit that he placed at the foot of the capitol steps when he gave his speech about about voting rights that "..... it will not be long". I leaned on his desk where he did his work and Wanda and I even sang and played the piano that would have been used for Sunday School. 

Then we headed upstairs to the church itself. It was just like I remembered it from the historical photos. Wanda showed me the baptisimal font behind the pulpit and lifted up the floor to reveal the steps down so that you would be fully immersed. Feeling like a fraud I stood at the pulpit and looked out on the empty church wondering what it would have been like in those dark days and what words would have been spoken to console and inspire. 

Then for me the unexpected highlight of the day was when I sat down at the piano and played a hastily improvised spiritual song. Wanda even grabbed a few snaps and I got one of her standing next to the pulpit. Moments like this don't some happen very often. It was my very distinct pleasure to have shared this with one very special person.

So it was with great sadness that I left Montgomery which seemed like a beautiful city. I headed down south and out of Alabama to the far more hedonistic Pensacola Beach, Florida. 

Birmingham Alabama

What can I say but I jumped in the chevy and hit the road out of Nashville. I quite liked it in the end but then I am middle aged, prosperous white guy so of course I would fit right in. I should make one or two more observations before I leave. Nearly everyone I met was a transplant, I think I met two natives and one was that redneck taxi driver I mentioned earlier. The guys really do wear stetsons, boots and have big belt buckles. The girls, well during the day its all bare legs and cowboy boots. You can tell when they're in their "goin' out clothes" because they put their jeans on first and tuck them into their boots. 

There were two things I wanted to do in Tennessee that didn't happen and one I actively discarded. I am in the south so the race issue is still fresh in a lot of peoples minds and in the case of the poorest members of the community the inequality obvious. The National Civil Rights Museum which is housed in the Lorraine Motel Memphis and the location of the assissination of Dr Martin Luther King Jr. is a place I would have liked to visit but it is shut on Sunday. I keep forgetting I am in the south. I also wanted to check out the Gibson guitar factory but it was not open Sunday mornings which is the only time I could make it because the entire south is shut for church. The thing I chose not to do was visit the Jack Daniels distillery, believe it or not, but it is in a "dry county" the only booze you can buy anywhere near there is the display packs from the gift shop.

But before I called up at my first port of call in Alabama I had the radio tuned to a classic rock station and none other but Lynyrd Skynryd came on doing their massive classic hit "Sweet Home Alabama" I giggled like a school girl.

I am only going to spend one night in Alabama so I thought I would head to the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. Like the JFK memorial in Dallas it is quite eerie to stand in the park where black children were attacked with fire hoses and protesters had dogs set upon them. The church where 4 young girls were killed in a bombing also borders the institute. There were four perpetrators one of whom died before he could be brought to justice. Another was sentenced to life in prison in 1977 and the remaining two senteneced to life in 2001 and 2002. The day I visited was the 52nd anniversary of the bombing (I had no idea). 

Inequality is still rife in America. When you see a homeless person he is very rarely white. On the way to the museum I got panhandled again. I don't know what the answers are except to note that everyone needs access to quality healthcare. So many people seem to be suffering from treatable illnesses. There is also a need for access to quality education. Both of these things are so politicised in this country. 

The museum abounded with powerful imagery, probably the most thought provoking to me was a Klu Klux Klan robe, cross and shovel. The FBI had collected these in to evidence as part of an investigation into the cross being set alight in the yard of a couple living together, the man being black and the woman  was  white. This took place sometime in the 1990's. 

There were other symbols of oppresion on display. One of two tanks used to quell rioters in Birmingham and one of the freedom ride buses that had been attacked as it passed through Birmingham. The park outside had much amazing artwork, I hope the photos do it justice. The one below from one side looks like a normal statue to commemorate the two people in it or what they stood for and it does all that. However once you stand in front of it its real intent becomes manifestly obvious.

I am pushing on to Montgomery tonight. I am still awaiting a reply to see if I can get in to the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church (its by booking only). Dr Martin Luther King Jr. was the pastor there for almost six years and it is where much of the organising was done for  the civil rights movement in this country and where he made many famous speeches. Either way I hit Florida tomorrow and who knows what that will bring.

Nashville

Ed Sheeran is really staring to piss me off. He was in Dallas when I was there and now here he is in Nashville. I mean here I am minding my own business walking about the streets of Nashville only to be confronted by a horde of screaming women all wearing cowboy boots over their jeans and shirts with a giant "X" on the front and "Ed" on the back. No doubt he is a lovely guy and is probably kind to small children and animals but he is starting to mess with my mojo. 

Anyway the drive in from Memphis was uneventful. I even stopped at a rest area in the middle of a forest and was blown away by how nice it was. 

The bathrooms were clean and even airconditioned and there was a full time maintenance guy on duty.

I missed the turn to my hotel so I contintinued on to the downtown area, filled up with "gas" and drove around for a bit, it all seemed agreeable enough. Once I'd had enough of that I headed for the hotel and checked in, donned my runners and headed off exploring by foot.

At this juncture I have to confess I have no great love of country music and in some cases I would have to say some of it positively irritates me. That being said there are some truly outstanding country musicians and some seminal non country artists have chosen to record here using the local talent. Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley and Leonard Cohen leap to mind in this regard. I wandered up and down "Broadway" in what is locally known as "The District" and listened to live music coming from nearly every second doorway. It warmed my soul to see such a thriving music scene. However I have not heard so much out of tune music (and lets be honest here it was the singing) since I was back at high school when I had the very unfortunate experience of hearing a combined primary school mass recorder choir all trying to tune up - 1200 out of tune recorders - positively ghastly! It was so bad I actually chose to eat at a venue that didn't have live music because the two venues that I found with agreeable music looked to have second rate food. 

I ate at some crab shack. The food was good but I sat near a couple of bouncers from a nearby stripclub who tried to drum up some business. After their epic sales pitch I explained that I didn't think $25 was a particularly good deal to see somebody's breasts and them have to tip them for the privilege when if I waited till the end of the night down on Broadway it would all probably happen for free. They did manage to convince all of the bar staff and the manager that it would be a good idea. These guys were a couple of hillbilly rednecks, the town is full of them. I wandered about for a while hoping that a decent band had come on somewhere but gave up and had a early night. 

It was then I grabbed a cab. They are incredibly cheap here as they only charge for distance and not for time. That's when I met my next charming local. This guy proceeded to give a complimentary character assessment of every minority he had ever met, told me how he wouldn't pick up and blacks as he's not paid enough for that. Fortunately it was a short trip so I bedded down for the evening with a somewhat disagreeable taste in my mouth about the fair city of Nashville.

I awoke the next morning ready to give Nashville another go. I walked the mile or so into town and joined the line to see the Country Music Museum and Hall of Fame. I mentioned I'm not a fan of country right? Well this place was excellent, well laid out and comprehensive. I took an additional side tour to do the last part of my musical pilgrimage, being RCA Studio B. This is where many famous artists from the 50's and 60's recorded. Elvis recorded over 250 tracks there along with other such luminaries as Roy Orbison, the Everly Brothers, Dolly Parton and many many more. In a quirk of fate it ceased functioning as a recording studio the day after Elvis died. It was an impressive place and had an old steinway grand there used by many of the artists. 

I returned and checked out the entire country music museum and learned a number of things. Firstly that Keith Urban is from New Zealand and secondly that the Taylor Swift Education Centre seems to consist of the originals of her revealing outfits accompanied by photos of her wearing them. Now she can write a catchy pop tune so I am sure there was other worthwhile stuff in there but I couldn't bring myself to look.

Elvis, Johnny Cash, Garth Brookes, Brooks & Dunne, Willie Nelson, Tammy Wynette, Dolly Parton, Merle Haggard, Glen Campbell, The Rascal Flatts, Trishia Yearwood and strangely Bob Dylan were all covered in great depth and detail. There was Sam Phillips retrospective, he was the guy who founded Sun Studios in Memphis you may remember. Way too much to cover so I won't bore you with it. Here are some pics of the more notable displays.

You finish with a walk through the hall of fame itself where each recipient gets a bronze plaque that is mounted around a circular wall. They are meant to appear like notes on a music stave. The hall itself has an inverted radio broadcast tower at its centre signifying the important part that radio has played in the development of country music.

I left the museum and headed for a coffee. Let me tell you that the expression "good American coffee" is an oxymoron. Maxwell House was founded in Nashville so I had high hopes. Well after eleven days in country I can finally say I have found a coffee worthy of the name. I found it at Mike's Ice Cream Bar and Coffee Bar. I had grabbed an ice cream there as I wandered the streets yesterday. There was quite a line up out the front so I figured it had to be ok. Well everyone was ordering ice creams in a multitude of flavours but I thought I'd grab a coffee as well. It was excellent, so good in fact that I searched it out again and grabbed another that was even better. 

So that's Nashville, Mike and his coffee has redeemed the city in my eyes. I'm off to Birmingham Alabama tomorrow to check out the Civil Rights Museum, then I'll contimue on to Montgomery for the night. No doubt I'll tell you all about it real soon and as they say in Nashville (and yes they really do say it) "y'all come back and visit".