We may earn money or products from the companies mentioned in this post. “We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates  Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a  means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated  sites.” You can read my full disclosure by clicking on the disclosure policy in the menu above.

Fall Road Trip in the South – Part 2 Nashville to NOLA

“We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.”

Have you ever had a bucket list item that you so very much want to complete, but can’t remember when you put it on your bucket list or why? I do! I have wanted for a very long time to visit every single State in the United States. Thankfully, I have been very fortunate to travel all over both by plane and car, and have visited 45 of the 50 states! Yeah! To get through that many states, you have to plan in quite a few driving trips. Last year I decided to take a Mom and daughter Fall Road Trip in the South and today I am sharing Part Two, Nashville to NOLA. During the trip we had a lot of good times, lots of laughs, an enormous amount of fried chicken, and checked 6 states off our list!

My daughter Torianna started traveling a little later in life. You can read more about foster adopt and Tori’s beginning in a recent post here. Tori used to be a homebody and preferred to stay home instead of travel, but I invited her on this trip, and she was up for the challenge! At the time she was home schooled, so she could travel in the Fall, and of course she was very excited that when we stopped in Kentucky on the first day of the trip, her older sister Victoria would drive down from Ohio to spend time with us.

We Planned the Trip Together

When we started planning the trip, I asked Tori if there is anything that she wanted to do specifically, and she said she wanted to go to a natural history museum and an Insectarium. I was not sure I would have put either of those on my list, but when you travel together, you choose to enjoy what other people enjoy, and hope they will enjoy your things as well!

If you want to hear more about the first part of our trip, you can read about our Fall Road Trip in the South -Part One, Louisville, KY.

Or, just jump in here!

One of the reasons that I planned the trip to include Tennessee was so that I could attend the Christy Wright Business Boutique conference. It was a three day conference where women could network with other new business owners, brainstorm and grow their business, and become overwhelmingly excited about the possibilities! Tori and I stayed for three days in Nashville, TN and I attended the conference. It was a blast! I learned so much and made friends with loads of other business ladies. On the first night I stopped by the Loveless Café on the way back to the hotel for Fried Chicken Dinner take out. It was so delicious, that we had Loveless Café the other two nights as well! In addition to their amazing food, they have a wonderful gift shop stocked with everything you could ever want! And, you can order their hams, jellies, and other memorabilia through the website.

I was very excited to attend the Business Boutique Conference.

We Made a Quick Detour to the Parthenon!!!

In addition to the Conference, we visited the Parthenon! Well, not the one in Greece, but the replica in Nashville. It was truly amazing, and very beautiful! We walked around the grounds, and I would highly recommend it for an afternoon. The weather was great, and of course, the pic opportunities were great too!

The Parthenon in Nashville, TN

After we visited the Parthenon, we headed South West for Memphis, Tennessee. The fall foliage was amazing as we drove along. I love seeing Fall in different areas, with different trees. It truly was a beautiful drive. We had planned on doing the typical Memphis tourist stops but found that they were a little pricier that we had planned. So, we changed plans and visited Pink’s Palace.

Fall Road Trip in the South Part Two Nashville to NOLA

Pink’s Palace

There are so many options at Pinks, it makes it a great place to visit for a family. Everyone will find something that they love. You can visit the Pink Palace Museum, Imax 3D theater, Natural History Museum, Sharpe Planetarium, Nature Center and so much more. We visited the Natural History Museum and Planetarium, and of course a long visit to the gift shop. It had amazing items, and since it was fall, we were only a few months from Christmas. I love purchasing unique gifts, and stocking stuffers at museum gift shops and on the road. Makes for an interesting Christmas.

Pink’s Planetarium

Fried Chicken Again!!!

We worked up an amazing appetite at Pink’s, and so we decided to give Gus’s World-Famous Fried Chicken a try. The Restaurant was packed with family style tables and no seating was available. We decided to order to go, so we sat at the bar and passed the time reading the signs on the wall, and of course our favorite, people watching. It was amazing and we learned something! The standard order included Fried Chicken, a few sides, and a piece of white bread. Since there would be no gravy involved, I had to ask what you were supposed to do with the white bread. They said that they put the chicken on it to sop up the grease, and then you can eat it, covered in grease, when the spicy chicken gets a little too hot!

Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken

In California where there is not a lot of fried chicken, or white bread, you don’t learn these important things! Of course, my daughter also grew up never having tried Deep Fried Pickles. Tori loves pickles so I told her we had to get them. She was not too excited as she is not adventuresome when it comes to food, but she loved them!!! They are always a treat when made well, and these were! When all was said and done, on this trip I believe we had Fried Chicken for 9 of our meals. The rest were all seafood like Lobster, Crayfish, and Shrimp.

“We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.”

We Crossed The Mississippi River

When you are taking a huge trip, and you want to check off a lot of states, you must make compromises. Some states

Mississippi Petrified Forest

you get to fully explore, and some you must make a quick stop in. That was the case with Arkansas. There is so much to do in Arkansas, and quite a bit we wanted to, but instead, we simply drove over the Mississippi River into West Memphis, Arkansas, and then turned around and drove back. It still counts, and it was super cool to drive over the Mississippi River! I had seen it so many times from the air, but never drove over it. Loved it!

The next day we drove through the top of Mississippi and went to the Petrified Forest. It was lovely to get out of the car and walk through the forest. We enjoyed our walk, learning about the trees, the history, and about the various flora and fauna. The map shared great info, and all of the trails were fairly easy to travel.

Montgomery, Alabama Zoo

Back in the car we traveled to Montgomery, Alabama, and went to the zoo. Tori had not visited a Zoo, so why not! Right? When we drove up we were a little skeptical. I am used to visiting the World-Renowned San Francisco Zoo. The front was not what I thought it would be, but we decided to go in anyway.

We were a little surprised at how many of the birds were roaming free in the zoo. Specifically, the Peacocks. At first, I was not sure if they were real, but yep! When they started to aggressively chase us and fly around, we were certain they were real. Overall, it turned out to be a nice medium sized zoo. We were able to watch a Lion feeding demonstration, and it was neat to hear the Lion Keepers talk about the Lions with such passion and care. My daughter loved it and was so excited to be able to see animals up close. And of course, they had a well-appointed  gift shop, so more Christmas presents were purchased!

Mississippi Fried Chicken Strips

The next day we drove through lower Alabama, and Mississippi. We stopped at a Fast Food Restaurant called Raising Cane’s. Yes, this is me telling another story about fried chicken! Apparently, Raising Cane’s is the official Chicken Finger of the New Orlean’s Saints. I didn’t even know that could be a thing. But, they had the most amazing Chicken Strips, and I highly recommend them! I don’t typically love Fast Food, but these were fresh and moist, and the service was so friendly.

We also stopped at the Priester’s Pecans and found another business filled with great hospitality. First, the bathrooms were really clean. I love it when we are on a road trip and I find clean bathrooms! They had a wonderful sampling station where you could try any of their homemade pecan treats. Yum! We of course purchased snacks for the road, and gifts to take home for the family. We had never tried Elderberry anything, and so we were glad to find Elderberry Jelly, and other local treats.

Fall Road Trip in the South Part Two Nashville to NOLA

New Orleans

We then took off and headed for New Orleans’s Louisiana which was the last stop on our trip. We drove into town and were so exhausted that we had room service and went to bed. The next day we enjoyed going through town and looking at the amazing and unique architecture of the area. We headed over to Café Beignet and enjoyed a cup of coffee, and amazing Beignets. I think they were worth the trip! Rich fluffy centers, and crispy powdered sugar covered crunchy outsides. Totally worth the calories!

We then visited the Insectarium which was number one on my daughters list of places to see. I must say, I am not a bug, insect, flying kind of creature girl. I did not want to go at all!!! But I love my daughter so I put it on the list. The Audubon Insectarium and Butterfly Garden was well worth the trip. The first stop when you enter is a photo booth, and I highly recommend getting your photo taken. You will have a fun photo to remember the stop by.

Insectarium

I Ran As Fast As My Legs Would Carry Me!

There is a little room that you tour where it is made to be like you are the size of an ant and are walking through an underground cave. While we were walking through, I heard a rustling, and it caused me to run out of the tunnel. This of course caused my daughter to hysterically laugh. It turned out it was a fake spider that crawls out of the corner. SO, I think I was completely justified. You can stop at the bug café, and enjoy treats made with bugs of all sorts. I did not partake, but purchased bug filled candy to take home and fill Christmas stockings.

We learned a lot at a termite exhibit, and then walked through the enclosed butterfly garden. It is beautiful!!! Many different varieties are present, and all fluttering about. There are so many that when you leave the garden, they check to see if you have any hitchhikers on you. Overall, it was an amazing way to spend the morning, and again, I highly recommend it.

No More Chicken…Alligator Bites!

That night we enjoyed dinner at the restaurant and my daughter fell in love with Alligator Bites. Again, in California, we don’t eat a lot of Crayfish Etouffee or Alligator Bites. It is always good when you are in various areas to try the local foods. It is difficult when a wonderful trip is coming to an end, so we lingered over dinner and spent time recapping all of our travels, yummy food, and the warm people that we had met along the way.

Alligator Bites

The best part of the trip was spending time with my daughter. One of the main things I love about road trips is the time spent in the car. Sometimes it is quiet and reflective, and sometimes days are filled with lively conversations, awesome playlists, and lots and lots of laughs. I highly recommend driving through the Southern States, or really anywhere that you can spend time with family and friends, driving along, and enjoying life.

So, what is your favorite part of a Road Trip? And have you visited any of the southern states? If so, which is your favorite?

Join me on Social Media

Remember to follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest, and subscribe to receive updates on my giving life.

“We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.”

Fall Road Trip in the South Part Two Nashville to NOLA