Adios California, hello Nashville

On our return from San Diego we made the most of our remaining week and a half in California. It was very sad saying goodbye to Newport Beach for the last time.

We also enjoyed our final wanders around the church complex across the road from our apartment

And also farewelled the UCI campus

I did a final walk to Bommer Canyon

And we also made sure we took full advantage of the pool and spa in our apartment complex during our remaining time there.

It was also a little bit sad saying goodbye to our local parks. Check out the precision edges on the path below. It is incredible how well all the public spaces are maintained in Orange County, everything looks almost a little too perfect!

We did a final sort-up of our stuff and sent a 30kg bag back to New Zealand as unaccompanied luggage. Too much taking advantage of the amazing shopping over here me thinks! To be fair, the bag also contained a couple of big heavy neuroscience textbooks that Will doesn't feel the need to keep lugging around for the next 3 months.

On Sunday 18th September we left California and flew to Nashville, via Houston. Due to a medical incident before take-off on the LA to Houston flight we were nearly an hour late arriving into Houston, which was bit of a problem as we had only been scheduled an hour before the connecting flight to Nashville... We legged it off the plane at Houston and literally ran all the way to the gate for the Nashville flight which was in another terminal at the airport. Luckily we had a super-helpful United air-stewardess run along with us for a bit (in her high heels!) who checked that the gate was still correct, then gave us instructions on how to reach it. As we ran along we asked her if she needed to catch the Nashville flight as well, but no, she was just helping us out. We made it in the nick of time and raced through the gate to the boarding area where there were still a few people waiting to board. We managed to make the flight, but not surprisingly, our luggage didn't... By now it was about 6pm in the evening, and Will was giving a presentation at Vanderbilt University first thing in the morning. Luckily there was an outdoor store near our hotel that was still open, so Will could buy a new shirt, socks and underwear! Our hotel was very good at sorting us out with all the toiletries we needed.

Will headed off to Vanderbilt in the morning, and since there was still no sign of our bags, I headed back to the outdoor store for a few supplies of my own. We'll be able to claim the expenses back from the airline. I then set about exploring Nashville. We were heading out the next morning so this was the only full day I had. Our hotel was very close to the university, and just across the road from Centennial Park, so I started my exploring there. 

Very randomly, Nashville has a full-size replica of the Parthenon, which was built in 1897 for the Tennessee Centennial Expo. Not your every-day sight in an American park! Centennial Park was lovely and I spent a long time wandering around. The shady trees provided respite from the heat.

I liked how there were cute little double swings situated all through the park.

From the park I walked to the Downtown area. The blocks surrounding 5th Ave and Broadway were full of small little bars, all playing live music (and this was early afternoon on a Monday!). The music was good, you could hear it well enough without even going into the bars.

If it wasn't a live music venue, it was a cowboy boot shop! There were some lovely boots on offer, with several places offering buy 1 pair, get 2 pairs free... I would have been very tempted, if only I had the luggage space.

Being Nashville, there was plenty of 'cheese'...

But also plenty of music history, including the Ryman Auditorium which used to be the home of the Grand Ole Opry where bluegrass music originated.

That night we were taken out to dinner by one of Will's colleagues and his wife. They took us to a restaurant specialising in southern cuisine where catfish is the local speciality. Now the idea of catfish doesn't really do it for me, so on the recommendation of the waitress I enjoyed some amazing BBQ ribs. Will went for the southern tasting platter. Oh my goodness, Will's meal was pretty much every stereotype of American food in one meal. For a start, it was HUGE! I'm talking at least 2 or 3 times as much food as I would consider a 'normal' meal. There was catfish two ways, cod, prawns, okra, hush puppies (a type of savoury fried bread ball) and potato. Everything on the plate had been battered and deep-fried so everything was orange... It was quite something to behold! Will ate as much as he could manage, then his hosts ended up taking home the leftovers for lunch the next day. California in general is very health conscious, and we enjoyed some lovely fresh and tasty meals out during our time there. This was a stark reminder that we weren't in California any more!

We arrived back at the hotel after dinner to find that our bags had been delivered in our absence. Just as well, since the next morning we were flying out to Chicago. It was only a fleeting visit to Nashville, but long enough to get a taste of the south. Nashville had been one of the places we could have based ourselves for the sabbatical, so I am very grateful that we chose California instead!