Tag: https://www.graceland.com/visit-overview

America, Countries, Deals, Music

Elvis – How Great Thou Art

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And I shall bow in humble adoration

Elvis – How Great Thou Art

Happy 88th birthday Elvis – How Great Thou Art.

And if there is a heaven then Elvis will be on a cloud singing to Gladys and Vernon and his twin Jesse.

It was to How Great Thou Art, one of Elvis’s favourite hymns, that The Great Man was guided to his rest at his funeral service.

All of which was fitting as The King of Kings was at heart a gospel singer.

And How Great Thou Art was one of his gospel standards.

Elvis’s last stand

Key to the door: Graceland

There is surprisingly little evidence of how important faith was in the life of the Southern Baptist Boy around his home Graceland.

And visitors’ attention is mostly focused on the Jungle Room.

But the most moving corner of his Memphis home is outside in the Memorial Garden where Elvis lies for all eternity.

Next to his parents and the twin who did not survive birth.

Green is the jungle: Graceland

And in the Games Room where Elvis, his girlfriend Ginger, and his cousin Billy and his wife Jo kicked back on his last day.

And played racquetball,

But more importantly where Elvis played two songs on his piano, Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain and Unchained Melody.

It is poignant to reflect that were Elvis still with us today then none of us would get beyond the big black door.

Priscilla’s promise

Your Scary Bear: The Jungle Room

And, of course, we have Priscilla Presley to thank for that.

Alas, with every passing year there are fewer of those in Elvis’s inner circle to relay how Elvis lived.

With Billy Smith, the last survivor of the Memphis Mafia.

Although Priscilla, Lisa Marie and her kids are regular visitors where they stay in the roped off quarters upstairs.

For the rest of us, of course, there is Downtown Memphis within easy reach of Elvis touch points.

Sun Studio, Marlowe’s restaurant, where he had his own booth (well, you would) and Beale Street.

Be our guest

In the building: Sun Studio

Or you could stay at the Guest House Graceland where you can attach a Graceland package.

With a stay, VIP tour + planes package for two from $335 or a Graceland Experience Package from $269.

All of which will mean you can devote the whole day to Elvis’s home and the warehouses which house his clothes and cars.

Of course music is always in the air as a reminder of his enduring appeal. Elvis – How Great Thou Art.

 

 

 

America, Countries, Sport

Ali The Greatest Kentuckian

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The tourism industry in Louisville is down but not out. As Louisville’s Muhammad Ali once said: ‘You don’t lose if you get knocked down, you lose if you stay down,’ and we don’t intend to stay down. – Karen Williams, Louisville Tourism on the Greatest Kentuckian

They all tried but not one succeeded.

And on the eve of the fifth anniversary of Muhammad Ali’s death, his cri de coeur is as loud now as when he first called us to arms.

The flower of his generation

There was an outpouring of affection and reflection from around the world on June 3, 2016.

When our hero lost the hardest fight of his life and nobly slipped away.


The Greatest Featival

But, of course, Ali is still with us all and nowhere more so than in his home town of Louisville in Kentucky in America’s Deep South.

Where the annual Muhammad Ali Festival, which will run from June 3-13, will be expanded this year.

King Louisville

it will focus on unity, justice and a rebirth of Louisville.


That’ll be Louisville then

The festival will kick off on June 4 with the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards and it will conclude with the Derby City Jazz Festival.

Past winners of the awards include many worthy winners from the general public who have done extraordinary things.

As well as celebrity philanthropists such as Christina Aguilera, President Jimmy Carter, Susan Sarandon, Harry Belafonte, Ashley Judd and Michael J. Fox.


That unmistakable silhouette

The Muhammad Ali Center presents a 14-minute film ‘If You Can Dream’ of Ali’s life.

While Pavilions focuses on his six core principles… confidence, conviction, dedication, giving, respect and spirituality.

Fight night

Of course the greatest thrill any Ali fan could experience would be to shadow box The Greatest.

The stolen bicycle

And by the wonders of modern technology you can do just that at the Ali Center.

Imagine training too with Ali at his recreated Deer Lake, Pennsylvania camp.

You can watch replays too with him of some of his most famous fights.

Wall of fame

And his lighting the Olympic Torch in Atlanta at the 1996 Games.

If you feel that Ali is right there with you it’s probably because he helped oversee the project.

While our friends at Kentucky Tourism with whom we spent the afternoon tell us that Rahman Ali, Muhammad’s brother is often at the Center too.

At the house of the King

Two giants Ali and Elvis bestride the entertainment world of the second half of the 20th century, from neighbouring states of the Deep South.

And while Graceland has become a pilgrimage for music fans.

Every sports nut, and even those who aren’t, should pay homage to Ali in his hometown of Louisville, the Greatest Kentuckian.