Certain changes in employment granted me a block of about 3 weeks to do whatever I wanted while getting paid. Like anyone with free time and poor spending habits, I decided to use the opportunity to travel. Originally, I had planned to go hiking out in Colorado, but a good friend had put it in my ear that Savannah, Georgia is worth checking out. With a destination in mind, I charted out a route, packed up my mom’s car, and rolled out of the driveway.

Texas

I set out going East on I-30. The GPS estimated that it would take me around 16 hours of driving time to reach Savannah. After getting out of the concrete hellscape of the Dallas Metroplex, the drive took me through the flat, farmlands of East Texas. I stopped into Sulfur Springs to charge up the car and grab a coffee, then it was nonstop going into Arkansas.

Arkansas

Arkansas exists.

I slept in my car and no one bothered me. The car had an update (weird sentence to write out) in the middle of the night and locked me inside with no AC.

Tennessee

Memphis

The first city of note I stopped into was Memphis, Tennessee. Memphis is surely rough around the edges. The drive through Arkansas was expectedly pretty dull so I figured by the time I got to Memphis, there would be a shift in the vibe. I was right in that Memphis was different but not in the way I had expected. Instead of it being a vibrant city with visible culture and history, Memphis looks like a place that used to be all those things. It felt like I was 40-50 years too late to see a version of the city that lived up to its promise.

That all being said, I had the best wings I’ve had at a spot a bit out of the city.

With a full stomach and a charged up battery, I headed to Nashville. The drive was nice. Past Memphis, I could feel a big change in the biodiversity and landscape change from the flat and dull scenes in Texas and Arkansas.

Nashville

I got into Nashville around the middle of the day. Tesla is good about routing you to chargers along your way. The charger I went to was in the parking garage next to a Publix. After a short walk around, I found myself in Frankie Pierce Park.

After soliciting opinions from all my friends who have spent any time at all in Nashville, I was recommended to eat at Degthai–solid Thai food (not pictured).

After a few days of sleeping my car (totally chill btw), I decided it was high time to take a shower and sleep somewhere that wasn’t towable. I booked a tiny home in Lebanon, TN, half an hour from the city. The tiny home was tucked away off of the side of a country road in a wooded area with little to no light. It was very cozy and charming.

After dropping off my things, I went out to get a well deserved drink. I stumbled into a few bars based on recommendations from Reddit. The bar that stuck out the most to me was The Red Door.

I spent the next day exploring the city. I drove through Broadway as there is no power great enough to make me want to be walking among one of the hundreds of bachelorette parties happening concurrently on that street.

I made the call to check out Vanderbilt University. It was very pretty.

I met up with a new friend, Tyler. He was kind enough to offer me his couch for the night. I pulled up to a very cozy apartment right in the heart of Five Points, took a shower, and went to sleep. Outside, I made another quick friend. She was skittish at first but we got on the same page quickly and head pats ensued.

The bar and food scene in Nashville is truly unmatched. I was recommended some great bars with live music but happened upon a very charming, newly established spot call Tiger Bar. This place was so well-conceived, with every decoration, piece of furniture, and even tattoo-style art shown on the drink menu put together with a clear vision. The bartenders were super friendly and displayed real showmanship in crafting drinks. If you’re around by midnight, you get to be part of the champagne toast they do nightly.