FLIP + CHING

Fun Thursday Night in Nashville

Posted on October 16, 2011 by Ching under Travel.

NICE sponsored our outing to B.B. King’s Restaurant and Blues Club on Thursday night. We had a great time.

Beer and wine was free at B.B. King’s so we stayed there for most of the evening. The B.B. King All Stars featuring Natasha Young, Carl Steward and Teddy J were awesome. Carmen got all of their autographs.

A couple of the guys from the conference got up on the stage and sang for the rest of our group. At one point in the inviting they invited me and another conference participant up on the stage to make fools of ourselves. LOL.

I had a great time. Can you tell?

After B.B. King’s Carmen, Rich and I went to the Wildhorse Saloon down the street. The door guy was really nice and let us in without paying cover after we told him that we were staying at Opryland. I went straight to the dance floor where they were doing a line dancing lesson while Carmen and Rich got something to drink.

Carmen got out on the dance floor too, after getting her drink.

At one point, she made up a line dance and got everyone to do it with us. It was awesome! We had a great time at the Wildhorse Saloon also.

We didn’t stay out too late, though. We went back to the hotel around 10:30 pm and I think I was in bed shortly after that. The last person to come back to the hotel came back at 4:20 am or so. I believe our group broke last year’s record. LOL.

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Grand Ole Opry

Posted on October 16, 2011 by Ching under Travel.

Carmen and I took the resort shuttle from Cascades to the Grand Ole Opry House on Tuesday night. I’m not a fan of Country Music, but I was actually looking forward to the show because we had a great lineup. Sara Evans, Scotty McCreery, Montgomery Gentry, Trace Adkins, LeAnn Rimes, Dierks Bentley, Eric Church and Chris Young were all scheduled to perform.

The place was packed, but we had pretty good seats.

We had a really good time. I think the Long Island iced tea helped, though I didn’t intentionally order it. I wanted a fuzzy navel, which is what I’d been drinking. Except, I made the mistake of going to the bar closest to our section and the bartender said that this bar was just a “mini” bar. In order to get a fuzzy navel, I’d have to go to the regular bar. I didn’t want to have to stand in line for another ten minutes so I asked what she could make me and she suggested a Long Island iced tea. I had no idea what I was in for. Although, the guy back in line who shouted “Who ordered a hangover?” as she was making my drink should have been my first clue. LOL.

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Gift Bag from the Call Center School

Posted on October 16, 2011 by Ching under Free Stuff.

All conference participants received goodie bags from the Call Center School. It actually startled me because I didn’t notice it when I first came back to my room. It was only after I went to the restroom that I noticed the insulated lunch box on the chair. I was like, “Am I in the wrong room? My stuff is in here. This is my room. Has someone been in my room?” I immediately called Carmen to find out if she got the same lunch box. It was only then that I felt better. LOL.

The gift bag was spot on. They gave us the best chocolates. The GooGoo Cluster and the Colts Bolts were awesome. I haven’t tried any of the others yet. It worked out great for Carmen because they included some gum in there, which she wanted, but they don’t sell any on hotel property. The Jack Daniels was a nice surprise, too. I haven’t drank mine yet. 😉

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Gaylord Opryland

Posted on October 16, 2011 by Ching under Travel.

We got to the hotel without any problems. I got a basic room, while Carmen got the more expensive one with a balcony and view. I didn’t mind forgoing the view for more quiet and greater privacy, though. (Plus, I’m cheap.) Our rooms were on the second level, so the walkway was right outside Carmen’s balcony. She couldn’t leave her curtains open while dressing or sleeping. I, on the other hand, was able to leave my curtains open pretty much the entire time. I did have to keep them closed at night to keep all the light out.

Other than the noisy Juice Plus people out in the hallway, I had peace and quiet the entire time. Carmen had to contend with drunk people in the Cascades bar a couple of nights. She said she could hear them even with the doors closed. If you’re overlooking Cascades, a great tip would be to ask for a higher floor for more privacy and less noise. Although, one of the ladies we met at the conference said she could hear the drunk people all the way up on the fifth floor where her room was. She also said the people next door sounded like they were hammering pictures on the wall one night. We all had a good laugh about that.

We ate at Cascades American Cafe on our first day there. It was almost 3 PM by the time we arrived at the hotel. Cascades American Cafe was the closest restaurant and we were both starving as neither of us had eaten anything since breakfast at around 6 AM that morning. Our 40 minute layover in Atlanta didn’t really afford us much time to grab a bite.

This is one of the many pools at the resort. I didn’t really get to take advantage of it, as I forgot to pack a swimsuit. Not that we had any time. We were busy with workshops and networking for our entire stay.

The resort was amazing. There were literally dozens of waterfalls everywhere. You couldn’t turn around and not see one. Everywhere you went, you could hear water.

This is a view of the Delta restaurant and shopping area from the Delta Mezzanine where our workshops were held over the three day period.

I loved all of the tropical plants.

We didn’t get to take a boat tour, but this is where those boats are docked.

This is one of the waterfalls in the Delta area.

Same waterfall, different angle.

Yes, those are real banana trees.

I think this one was in the Garden Conservatory area.

I should have listened to Brian’s advice and brought a “real” camera with me. I mostly took photos with my phone as we were walking by. These were the best shots I got and I think they’re kind of lame. They really don’t do the resort justice. Carmen brought her Canon with her. I can’t wait to see those photos. I think she got some really good ones.

Gaylord Opryland seems to be a really popular place to hold conferences and conventions. There were several business conferences and conventions going on alongside ours. Other than the hotel being way crowded, it’s actually really cool. The whole place is amazing. The hotel offers something for everyone. Anything you could think of, they had it. I think the only thing missing was a casino. LOL.

I’m definitely going to go back and take Brian there. Although, if I’m going for pleasure, I’m going to schedule it when there aren’t any conventions going on. Brian doesn’t like people. Oh, and I’m bringing my camera! =P