Travel Archives - Page 4 of 6 - Inspired Southerner

Wordless Wednesday: Birmingham’s Ironman

November 16, 2016 By Kara Kennedy

Most who love Birmingham, love the city’s iconic Ironman who has been sitting on top of Red Mountain since 1936. Vulcan is the largest cast iron statute in the world! Renovations to Vulcan park and the statue were made during the years of 1999-2004. I love attending meetings at the park and taking visitors to the statute. I was there last week for an organization meeting. Vulcan Park and Museum also recently renovated and expanded their gift shop “The Anvil,” and just yesterday the Birmingham Kiwanis Club announced a $4 Million gift to expand the north side of the park. These are exciting times for a the City that continues to be magical. See plans for the expansion at the Birmingham Business Journal . To plan your visit go to Visit Vulcan .

Guest Post: Pigeon Forge Here I Come!

August 25, 2016 By Kara Kennedy

Guest Post by Dorothy Bloom Little:

Dorothy and Friends — Dorothy Bloom Little and friends Gatlinburg, Tennessee

When a friend asked me if I wanted to go on a Bus Tour to Pigeon Forge I had to think about it. I have never taken a bus tour, hmmm I like to drive my car, so I wasn’t thrilled with the idea of riding on a big bus with a lot of strangers, but I told her I would go.

When we were rolling on the interstate without the stress of driving, I was able to gaze out of the very large window and take in, absorb, if you will, the beautiful terrain.

As we approached our destination I thought leaving the drive to the driver wasn’t such a bad idea. It was pretty cool. At each stop; rest rooms, lunch and hotel were so easy. No worries about getting lost, being dropped off and picked up was sweet. There was no need to find a parking place and I didn’t have far to walk when it is raining.

The next morning I was pretty well rested and ready for Day 1 of the tour. Have you ever seen the Smoky Mountains up close? It was breathtaking and spiritual. …” and Smoky Mountains majesty…”I could have stayed there all day as long as the black bears didn’t visit me.

After our visit to the mountains, we went back to the hotel for a little R and R before heading out to have a great dinner and see the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s Show. It was pretty funny and well done which set the tone for the other shows we saw on the trip. After dinner we were off to Smoky Mountain Opry. There was so much talent as the stars performed a variety of original acts. After the show our bus was waiting to take us back to the hotel. One thing I learned was that tours get in through the side door so there is no waiting with the crowd.

Day 2: It is a day in April, 1912. We are about to embark on a transatlantic cruise in one of most magnificent ships of its time, the Titanic. The opulence of the grand stairway was mind boggling. The amenities for the first class passengers were incredible. Swimming pool, gymnasium, game room, ball room, china, silver and the list goes on. We also were able to see some of gowns and jewelry. Did I already say opulent? Of course, there was also third class passengers, one extreme to the other. All in one floating palace. And then…well we all know the rest of the story.

Once back at the hotel we rested and then got ready for another great dinner and show. Wow, what a show! It was Motown. I wore myself out chair dancing! The talent was outstanding, felt like watching a Vegas show. What a great day.

Day 3: Off to the morning variety show at the Opry. Charlie “Bob” Smith was the host. He did some awesome impersonations. My favorite was none other than the “King” of Rock n Roll, Elvis Presley! He not only sounded like Elvis but looked and moved like him. One of the other performers was the funniest stand- up comedians I’ve seen in a while. He had us all in tears. Another great day.

After the show we wandered around to do some shopping and grab a light lunch. Back to the hotel to freshen up and off to dinner and the show which started at 4:00 pm.

I didn’t know what to expect with this show. It was the show the Hit Parade, music of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s was a great trip down memory lane. After the show we went back to the hotel to pack and visit with a great group of folks.

The next day at 7:30 a.m. we were on the road again. A bit tired but no worries, see we could nap while the bus driver took us back home.

Did someone say bus tour? Let me know when to start packing.

Photos courtesy of Colette Heaton Smith

Sloss Fest: Magic’s Back in the Magic City

July 21, 2016 By Kara Kennedy

I love music and anyone who knows me, knows this. In fact, I once said, if I had to do it all over again, my full time job would be in PR for either a record label or for bands. (Well I have worked with bands on their PR strategies in the past). I have to say that my love of music comes naturally, just riding in the car with my dad one could not help, but love music. I grew up listening to the sounds of Motown that’s the only music my dad allowed to be played in his car. I learned to appreciate Country music at my ma’am maw Kennedy’s house. When I stayed with my grandparents during the summers, our ritual was to watch The Grand Ole Opry reruns.

The City of Birmingham used to host a three-day music festival called City Stages and I would plan my summers around the event because I attended every night. The event was held in downtown Birmingham and included all genres of music. The 21-year event ended in 2009 after some financial trouble. After the event ended, to me it has felt like the City has been missing something with no major music festival to attend until last year when the Sloss Fest Entertainment and Music Festival began. The event was held at the historic landmark Sloss Furnaces and it didn’t disappoint. I got the opportunity to attend this year. The festival was a learning opportunity for me because I had not listened to the music of some of the bands that played.

Alabama has been on a fast track in the music industry lately so, it was exciting to again see Birmingham on display in the form of a music festival. Our city was filled to the brim with visitors from all over who converged to listen to bands such as Ben Harper, Death Cab for Cutie, Dylan LeBlanc and Ray Lamontagne.

The event took me back to the days when you could hardly move through the crowd at City Stages. In my opinion, an event like Sloss Fest only continues the positive renaissance and reboot of my hometown in the last couple of years. I tell people all of the time that I was a volunteer on committees for Operation New Birmingham and the things happening now are the things we WANTED to happen all those years ago when we talked about our city during committee meetings. How wonderful it is to see the transformation. Birmingham continues to receive accolades from all over about the quality of life, food scene and the strides it’s made in economic growth. Most who visit and spend any time in Birmingham come to know this, something I knew all along.

Proudly, I am one of the biggest cheerleaders of Birmingham, so my hat’s off to the organizers of Sloss Fest. Thank you also for bringing (back) a great music festival that adds more Magic to the Magic City.

Monumental Inspiration: A Tourist in D.C.

July 1, 2016 By Kara Kennedy

Ironically it seems lately the only chance I get to be a tourist is when I travel to places on business. Last week I attended the College Media Conference in Washington, D.C. I was delighted to see that the conference was being held at a hotel on 16th Street Northwest which was only a couple of blocks away from Pennsylvania Ave. I lived in D.C. before, during, and after 9/11 and love going back there any chance I get.

It was inspiring to be back in D.C. I truly miss living there. I never get tired of visiting the monuments when I am there. Funny, when I lived there, I never really visited them unless I had visitors in from out-of-town, but for me, after experiencing 9/11 the monuments seem to represent resilience. Even though it has been almost 15 years since the attacks, to me it seemed like just yesterday. Those wonderful monuments represent our strength as a nation.

A colleague and I went to the Mall to see the monuments at dusk. They are truly majestic at the time of day when the sun is setting. It was good to see the Washington Monument open and repaired after the earthquake damaged it a few years ago. The monument is surrounded by 50 flags representing the 50 states. On Sunday, there was a breeze so they all were waving in the wind. I could see the Capitol still being renovated with scaffolding on one side and on the other I could see the WWII Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial off in the distance. The Washington Monument is in the Center of D.C. and memorializes and honors our nation’s first president, George Washington. The Mall as a whole is part of the National Park Service, which is celebrating its100th year. Moving down the mall towards the Lincoln Memorial, we went past the World War II Memorial which was opened in 2004 to honor the 16 million members of the Armed Forces and the more than 400,000 who lost their lives during that war.

We took the Reflecting Pool route to the Lincoln Memorial, which was complete with baby ducks and their mom. The sun was continuing to set as we moved toward the Lincoln Memorial, which created a beautiful direct view of the Washington Monument and Capitol Building down the Mall. The sunset on Sunday was just gorgeous One of my favorite things has always been to climb the stairs of the Lincoln Memorial and turn around to see the sun’s reflection off of the monuments. It’s inspiring for me to visit this memorial because of all its history. According to the National Park Service website, the land on which the Lincoln Memorial sits did not exist until the Army Corp of Engineers deepened the Potomac River in the late 1800’s. The area was then used for the construction of the memorial. It was built to memorialize the 16th President and his leadership in saving the U.S. There are 36 columns around the building to represent the 36 states in the union at the tine of Lincoln’s death. On the steps of this memorial is where Martin Luther King gave his “I have a dream” speech and the very spot where he stood is etched into the steps. One can take a virtual tour here.

Leaving the Lincoln Memorial, we went to the Vietnam Memorial, which to me is probably one the most haunting of the monuments, It contains the names of the service members who died and those who are missing. When visiting the wall one cannot help, but be a little emotional. The city I currently live in is bringing a replica of the Wall to display Jul 6-10.

On our way back to the hotel we passed the White House with lights brightly reflecting on it. Moving through Lafayette Park, I could see Saint John’s Episcopal Church (the President’s Church) just north of the park and it lights were also shining brightly I remember watching TV and seeing the elected presidents and their families walking to the church on Inauguration Day,

No matter what our political views are we cannot help but be in awe and inspired by the sites and history of this city. It was fun being in D.C. again, even if only for a brief moment.

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