After a hot night at the Nashville Walmart we decided it was
time to live like rich people. Jesse has family in Memphis TN and their
hospitality served as our first real stop of the trip. We spent two nights in
the area by swimming in pools and eating steak, a far cry from instant mashed
potatoes, spaghetti, and a lot of dude sweat. This stop also allotted me the
opportunity to test the childproof capabilities of my new underwater camera!
We did not do many of the touristy things in Memphis but we
were able to see the Lorraine Motel were Dr. Martin Luther King was
assassinated in 1968. My mom told me that we needed to see it, and it was just
as she described. We have all seen pictures of this infamous motel in our
history classes, and it looks exactly the same. It was quite an odd experience;
we literally had the entire block to ourselves. Standing directly in front of
the motel a reef hangs to commemorate Dr. King, and directly behind is the open
window where the assassin took his shot. While we were standing there it was
difficult not to wonder how the world would be different had this motel
remained an obscure building in history, but despite the gravity of this site
we pushed on with our journey.
We originally planned to make it to Dallas that day to try
and watch the USA Portugal game with a buddy, but the distance proved too great
so we stopped in the hometown of Walmat, Bentonville, Arkansas, to meet some of
Jesse’s old neighbors.
To be honest, I did not have high hopes for the state of
Arkansas. I mean seriously, who does? We drove up interstate 540 to and met
Jesse’s friends in the very northeastern part of the state and made it just in
time for the game. Jesse and I came decorated in all-American attire—Jesse even
surprised me with the most outstanding pair of American overalls I have ever
seen! The result was positive, although a bit heartbreaking, and after a few
drinks we retired to the friend’s house on the outskirts of town.
Bentonville, much to my surprise, is actually a pretty cool
town! The Walton family (founders of Walmart) apparently has been pouring money
into the town and even our guide was surprised at some of the improvements the
town has made in the past year. We saw the original Walton 5-10 (the first real
Walmart) and after taking a tour of the Walmart museum we both have a new
respect for the company and the people who run the largest company in the
world. I think after our visit we both agree that living in Arkansas would not
be so bad. We would like to thank our hosts for outstanding hospitality!
Since the beginning stages of our trip we had planned on
going through Texas, but our overwhelming desire to make it west currently has
us driving through the great state of Kansas as I write this current post.
According to GPS we have a solid 9 hours to cross the state, so we will most
likely not make it tonight. Looks like we have a little time to chase tornadoes
and camp in fields, so check in soon for our first glimpse of the Rockies.
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