It's a Small, Small World

We had an e-mail today from some people we met on vacation, saying hello and asking us to check out their on-line travel diary. We met at Morgan Freeman's blues club, Ground Zero, in Clarksdale, Mississippi, and learned that we were both going to Memphis to hear some more blues. My husband and I left first (the Friday show was dynamite, but the band who played on Saturday was reminiscent of a Vegas lounge act - and a mediocre one at that, switching to R&B after exactly two blues songs. But I digress.) As a joke, as we said goodbye I told them we'd see them in Memphis. Anyway - well, I'll let them tell you. This is the entry in their travel blog:

"Left the concert, then went to Beale Street for a quick drink and bumped into a couple we’d met at Clarksdale in the Ground Zero club (Hi Betty [sic] and Bernard if you’re reading this!) – such a small world. Had a drink with them as it was Betty’s [sic] birthday and then found another blues club."

Yep. My little joke actually came to pass a few nights later. There we were, my husband and me, walking down Beale Street (he smoothly, me somewhat jerkily from that rum drink with the blue stuff I'd been drinking (it was my birthday, after all). Who do we see having a drink al fresco at a pub but Paul and Lyn from Sussex, England, along with the friends they told us they were meeting in the city. What a kick! Fun folks; Paul's joke about how he asked a man from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (who were performing in Memphis that weekend) if his wife was present and 50 women stood up had me rolling. He sounded innocent as a schoolboy with that charming British accent. Running into them was a happy coincidence. We're pleased they remembered us after their rather lengthy vacation trip to the States (which also included a cruise up the Mississippi from St. Louis to St. Paul and, in a heck of a coincidence, Chicago - we went into the city last weekend, and I laughingly told Bernard to be sure to be on the lookout for them.)

There's nothing like travel.

4 comments:

PatriciaW said...

Sounds like you had a nice vacation. Always fun to meet folks from other parts of the world and find that you have something in common. We're all more alike than we are different.

And belated Happy Birthday!

bettye griffin said...

Yeah, we had a great time. This is actually the third road trip my husband and I have taken in 12 months (plus I took another one with my mother), and while I was unable to rent the convertible I wanted (they're scarce in Illinois), it was a fun ride nevertheless. I've found that when there's only adults in the car, road trips are really fun. (They aren't much fun when kids are involved). I got to spend quality time with my mother, who's 88, on a drive from Florida to Illinois. I did all the driving on this one and was too busy having fun to be tired. We stopped at every T.J. Maxx we came across (Mom's favorite store).

My dream road trip would to be to drive down the scenic Pacific Coast Highway. One day I'll get to do it!

Donna D said...

What a terrifc way to celebrate your birthday! And that joke had me cracking up!

I'm glad that you were able to spend time with your mom and enjoy the trip. It's great that you were able to meet people from other cultures and there were no hangups or awkwardness.

You know, your post has inspired a story. Hmmm... I'll keep it on the back burner (too many other stories to write!) for now.

bettye griffin said...

"You know, your post has inspired a story."

Donna, you're reading my mind. It probably isn't unusual for anyone who loves the blues to plan to hit both Clarksdale and Memphis, which are only 75 miles apart. Driving past miles and miles of cotton fields in Mississippi gave me food for thought. (Technically, I did plan to write a story set in a rural area outside of Atlanta, but once we decided to take this vacation I changed the location . . . and I saved all our receipts for our tax return!)

Morgan Freeman has single-handedly brought tourism in Clarksdale with his blues club and five-star restaurant.

You're right about there being no hangups with people from another culture. Some of the Americans we shared a table with on an 11-day cruise through the Panama Canal could learn from them. Stared at our groupf of 14 (spread over 3 tables) like we were from another planet. The expressions when they learned we were staying on the same level as they were priceless!

Finally, just to clear things up, on this trip I was with my husband, not my mother. My mother rode with me when I brought a car from Jacksonville up to Chicago just before Christmas last year.