Quick thoughts about Toronto, after returning from a few days away:
1) Man, it's cold, y'all.
2) This is a big city.
3) Wow, this city is crowded.
4) The drivers sure are crabby downtown. And aggressive.....
Until I leave again, my plan is to explore the city a bit, and maybe go places that native Torontonians don't bother with. There are a whole bunch of things I haven't done in this city. I hope to get some good pics as I experience the city and see if I can fall for it again (that is, when I'm not doing other things I should be doing). Hopefully I'll have some photos I would like to share.
In a few days, I'll be exploring the US again, with a trip to Detroit and New York City. Plus, I still have my two weeks in Hawaii coming up in February.
In the meantime, some last photos from Nashville. (That's not even true; I might share some later when I go through them again).
I think the following photos were taken with the automatic low light settings on my camera. I didn't have a tripod so didn't feel comfortable shooting on manual. (Click to enlarge photos).
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| The alley between the Ryman Auditorium and Tootsie's Orchid Lounge, a honky tonk on Broadway. November 27, 2015. |
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| Last looks at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel, early morning November 28, 2015. |
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| Gaylord Opryland Hotel, early morning November 28, 2015. |
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| Gaylord Opryland Hotel, early morning November 28, 2015. |
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| Gaylord Opryland Hotel, early morning November 28, 2015. |
Tips and random thoughts about Austin and Nashville:
1) While in Nashville, if asked, "Do you watch Nashville?" (the TV soap on ABC), the proper answer is "yes." Everyone I ran into seemed to want to talk about it, tourists and native Nashvilleans (Nashvillains?) alike.
2) For a town that attracts so many tourists for country music, people are really defensive about their city's association to country music. I heard on at least three occasions that Nashville is more than country music. The tour guide at the Ryman was quick to point out that the Ryman is more than the home of the Opry. I was shown the Nashville Symphony's home by a tour guide *and* the guy who drove me in the shuttle from the airport. Yes, I get it.... There's more than country music..... Touchy.
3) Man buns are more common in Austin than Nashville.
4) The southern "drawl" starts creeping into regular speech after hearing it around you everywhere for 10 days or so. I think it's inevitable. I understand a bit now how all these singers sound Southern, only to find they're from Wisconsin or Iowa. Seriously.
