Is there any travel term as pejorative as “tourist trap”? It disses the attraction and it disses the doofuses (doofi?) who go there. Yeah, well, “tourist trap” is in the eyes of the beholder. We’d like to tell you about some places that others may scorn but we gladly allow to trap us. The signs [...]
Posts Tagged ‘Graceland’
Some People Call These Tourist Traps
Posted in Kitsch Factor, tagged Elvis Presley, Graceland, Las Vegas, Liberace, Liberace Museum, Memphis, Nevada, North Carolina, South Carolina, South of the Border, Tennessee on August 28, 2009 | 7 Comments »
Paeans of Paul
Posted in American Tunes, tagged Elvis, Fergie, Graceland, Lady GaGa, Matt Villano, Miley Cyrus, New Jersey Turnpike, New Mexico, Paul Simon, Sangre de Christo, Tennessee, Woody Guthrie on August 20, 2009 | 9 Comments »
The rise of “singers” such as Miley Cyrus, Fergie and Lady GaGa make me long for the days when our musical artists were just that—artists. At times like these, I long for singer/songwriter/troubadour Paul Simon. I contend that no musician since Woody Guthrie has done a better job at spinning musical yarns about journeys through [...]
What I love about the U.S.A.
Posted in State-by-State, tagged Carhenge, Chesapeake Bay-Bridge Tunnel, Giant Omelette Festival, Graceland, Matt Villano, Moosefest, Mystic, Roshambo, South of the Border, whale-watch on July 8, 2009 | 10 Comments »
I fell in love with America out of necessity. Growing up in a tony New York City suburb, Europe was the vacation hotspot for most kids I knew. All of my upper- and upper-middle class friends got to go to places like Barcelona and London and Paris with their parents. They went often. And I, [...]
Kitsch City, U.S.A.
Posted in Kitsch Factor, Uncategorized, tagged Buddy Holly, Floriday, Graceland, Illinois, Las Vegas, Liberace, Oklahoma, Superman, Texas, Weeki Wachee Springs on June 5, 2009 | 3 Comments »
I certainly understand why some readers took exception to my assertion in a recent post that Las Vegas is among the must-see sights for Americans. Vegas is, indeed, a very silly place. But that silliness is what makes me love it—I have a very deep affection for all things kitschy, and Vegas is an entire [...]
