Nashville: From one music city to another
48 hours isn’t nearly enough time to explore any city, but I did the best I could in Nashville. I arrived with the specific goal of finishing the Nashville Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon, anything else would be a bonus.
The Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon was my makeup race from the Mississippi Blues fiasco. Since that race was cancelled, they generously offered a free race entry into a handful of Rock ‘n’ Roll branded races. I decided on Nashville because I hadn’t been there in 20 years, and knew it would offer a tough but fun course. Unfortunately for me, all the half marathons slots
were taken by the time I made a decision. So I signed up for the full with no real intentions of doing anything more than a half. The Rock ‘n’ Roll races are great in that you can change to a shorter distance without notice, if needed. Plus, I’d never run a full marathon before and figured there were better things to do with six hours!
About a month before the race, and no, I have no idea why my brain did this, I thought to myself, “Well, what if I do the full?” I figured since I was going to Nashville alone, no one would be waiting for hours for me to finish, and I had nothing else to do and nothing to lose, except some lbs. (NOTE: No pounds were lost in the process.) That was a mistake. There was A LOT I could have been doing. It must have been one of those irrational things you tell yourself when faced with fear.
So, I started training for a full marathon…for a month. To be fair, I didn’t start from square one. I knew I could run 13 miles, but friends, just because you can easily eat half a pizza doesn’t mean you should just eat the whole thing. I planned to train for the full and then make a decision. My longest run was 19 miles but I decided to go for it, my mind was made up. And then the week before the race
, emails were sent to the runners warning us to take precautions and plan for a hot race day. My last run, the weekend before the race, was 50 degrees in Austin. I knew the race was going to be brutal, but I do love a challenge.
I landed in Nashville Friday morning, and hopped on the local bus ($1.75) which dropped me right at the convention center for the expo. After collecting my race packet and bag of random samples, I headed to The Stillery for lunch. I found this place on Yelp, and headed upstairs after the hostess pointed me in the direction of live music.
The musician sang the required Johnny Cash hits, as I tried to eat a huge hamburger…you know, carb loading. Then I walked over to the Country Music Hall of Fame. I spent a couple hours browsing the instruments, costumes, stories and Elvis’ gold-plated car. Then I realized I’d been up since 5am, and should really get off my feet. So, I jumped on a b-cycle. I could bike to about a half mile to my hotel, then I’d have to walk the rest.
My sweet friends ordered some snacks to be left at my hotel, so as I lay in bed eating chex-mix and gummy bears I decided I was too tired get dinner. About 9:30pm, I saw fireworks over the Nashville Sounds baseball stadium. I was bummed I didn’t think to go to the game, but I had a big day ahead of me.
Runners on the big screen, as we rounded the bases. That was a home run for me!
It felt like just a couple hours later, I started walking to the starting line. I met a few other runners heading to the race, a couple ladies ordered a taxi who then couldn’t get there because of the road closures. I expected as much, and headed to the nearest B-cycle station, and biked to a couple blocks from the start. They were right about the heat, I was already sweating as I entered my corral. The race had great spectators, and there were lots of sprinklers and other water stations to help keep us cool, but the hills and the heat were wearing on the soul. The race course took us through many neighborhoods, down Music Row, we even got to run the bases at the Sounds’ stadium, and ended at Nissan Stadium, the home of the Titans. The miles went on and on, but after five plus hours, I rounded the last corner and earned my medal. Now, I just had to walk a mile back to the hotel! But for the moment I was jazzed. 
Now I was ready to have some fun. That evening I treated myself and took a Lyft over to Tailgate Brewery for pizza and beer, neither of which was super great, but it was nice to sit on the patio and not move. I grabbed a b-cycle and headed to the Ascend Amphitheater for The Band Perry concert. The Rock ‘n’ Roll races always have a headliner 
band in addition to the live music on the course. They put on a high energy show and included covers of Freddy Mercury, Cee Lo, and the Eurythmics. I was quite impressed. After the concert, I headed down Broadway to check out Music Row. But it didn’t take long for me to realize I was beat. This is definitely a city I would enjoy visiting again, just without racing next time.
Tips:
- A rental car is not necessary if you plan to stay around downtown. They have good and some free public transportation, bike rentals and ride-shares.
Treble clef bike racks of course.
Singapore slings and Bali beaches
Singapore
I have to confess I almost didn’t go to Singapore. My friend, Lynda, got a stellar deal on this specific itinerary, but since I didn’t know anything about Singapore I contemplated spending a couple more days in Tokyo. I’m so glad I changed my mind, despite the seven hour flight.
I didn’t really know what to expect in Singapore, except that they spoke English. Our two days there were jam packed and perfect. The first day we walked around the Botanical Gardens and then paid to enter the rightfully famous orchid garden. The orchids were some of the most colorful I’d ever seen, and worth the $3USD entry fee.
Chili crab is best eaten with friends and while wearing plastic food service gloves.
This was probably the most time all six of us were together, so we went looking for chili crab, one of Singapore’s national dishes. We knew it was going to be messy when we saw food prep gloves on the table, and it was. I also enjoyed a Tiger prawn and Tiger beer before I headed to the Marina Bay Sands Hotel; after two nights in capsule hotels, I splurged. The threatening rain clouds couldn’t even keep me out of the hotel’s infinity pool that overlooked the city 50 floors up.
Met A Space Pod – Capsule hotel. From this…
To this. Palm tree in the sky at the rooftop infinity pool.
The group decided to split up, so I spent about a day checking out the sites by myself. And there was plenty to keep me
busy. There’s a light show that runs three times each night on the bay for about 15 minutes, I watched it twice. The Gardens by the Bay also has a light show and because it was November it was Christmas themed. I walked over to the Gardens by the Bay and laid down under the trees to enjoy the show. The holiday spirit was upon me when I heard Mariah’s All I Want For Christmas! As I walked by the food court, I was surprised to see a restaurant called ‘Texas Chicken’, who’s logo looks a lot like Church’s Chicken. Mariah and fried chicken? I felt right at home.
Texas Chicken!
I hit the hay about 11:30 pm and set my alarm for 4 am. While we were walking around that first morning, I saw a banner for a women’s race that was starting right by the hotel. 
Problem was everyone I asked either didn’t know anything about it or told me there was no day of registration, but I had to find out for myself. I didn’t know the distance, how much it cost or if I would even be able to register but I knew it started at 5 am, and that I would be there if only to cheer on the runners. But God is good and when I showed up at 4:30, of course they let me register. The race would highlight a half marathon, but also included a 10k and 5k. I handed the volunteer all my cash which gained me a 5k entry and a feeling of home. To line up with all those ladies at a start line reminded me that we really are very similar. I couldn’t have been more thankful for that moment. The weather in Singapore was quite warm and humid, similar to the weather at home, so I ran quite well. After collecting my metal and customary finisher photo, I headed back to the hotel for one last dip in the infinity pool.
The best thing I ate in Singapore were these soft bread ducks filled with yam, and they look cute too!
I met up with one of my travel buddies, and we decided to take the cable car from Faber Peak to Sentosa Island. Sentosa is a touristy area with a Universal Studios, Wax Museum, aquarium, restaurants, and a beach. It was a pretty cool area, but basically the same tourist trap as every big city. While my friend did the Luge, I took a nap on a bench. Ten days of go-go-go was catching up to me.
This is not what I expected to see in the vending machine.
Prawn and crab flavored snacks are popular, as are hotdogs for breakfast.
Our last stop was the Raffles Hotel, the spot that originated the Singapore Sling. This drink has too interesting of a backstory to skip. Now we could officially leave. I recommend checking out that hotel, it’s beautiful and the gin isn’t so bad either. Now we just had a short flight to our final destination – Bali.
A bag of peanuts accompany your drink. It’s ok to toss the shells on the floor, but don’t get caught littering anywhere else.
Bali
We would spend our last three days in Indonesia. Relaxing on the beach was exactly how I wanted to end a long two 
weeks of traveling. The food in Bali was quite good and cheap. So, we ate well, got massages and bought cheap souvenirs. Our second morning we decided to explore more of the island, so we hired a driver to drive us around for the day. The first stop was a place to snorkel. After negotiating the price of about $25 for each of us we got on a little boat that took us to a nearby cove. I had to laugh when one of the girls asked where the life jackets were and the guy said back on shore because we didn’t pay for them. The snorkeling was just OK at that spot, but it was the first time I saw an octopus and that alone made it worth my $25. The beaches were quite nice but the water wasn’t crystal clear there like other places I’ve been. Apparently, those beaches are located on nearby islands.
It was our last day and I was determined to surf before we left. I stepped into a surf school and for two hours it only cost about 25 bucks. Although I didn’t really need a lesson, my coworker did so I joined in. We surfed in the white water for an exhausting hour and a half and it was a blast.
Time to get some souvenirs!
Now one more massage before we are off to the airport and head home. I had no desire to spend any time in Jakarta but our return flight started there, so we took the last flight out of Bali. We only had about 4 hours to sleep before we caught our flights home. I was impressed that the free continental breakfast started at 3am, I guess there are a lot of early flights. I wasn’t looking forward to the 30 hour travel time, but I was ready to get home.
There is an excessive amount of zeros. 100 Rupiah was worth about half a cent.
Tips:
- In Bali get a massage…everyday. An hour massage costs less than $10.
- Kuta beach in Bali has great beginner surf – give it a try!
- Be willing to throw away your itinerary if something comes along that moves you.