We started the day in Hot Springs and ended it in Memphis. Or, to look at it a bit differently, we started our day in a Hampton Inn and ended it in the same place.

In Memphis, we were to meet up with my second cousin Randy, but instead he was briefly hospitalized and came out with a doctor’s note, so he told me, excusing his absence.

Before we left Hot Springs, we drove by the eight 100+ year old bath houses, the Gangster Museum, and the famous Arlington Hotel. Then we drove the 3.5 mile loop to the top of the mountain and then took the elevator up to the top of the tower on top of the mountain, from where we could see…..everything.

Then, a one hour drive to the outskirts of Little Rock, where we stopped for some delightful conversation with Edie’s college friend, Marvin S_______ and his wife Sandy.

We found a delightful brunch spot near their house, The Root Cafe for omelettes and a wonderful salad, and then headed downtown. Boy, is downtown Little Rock quiet on a summer Sunday afternoon. A lot of buildings, mostly attractive and no longer new (but widely spread), but no people. Then we drove around the state capitol building, mainly to see the statues of the Little Rock Nine, who integrated Central High School.

If you drive away from the capitol building in the direction opposite downtown, you see some important works of street art lining the walls on both sides of the road. Here are a few examples:

We then drove by Central High School, before heading out of town on I-40.

The two hours plus drive to Memphis should be easy on the Interstate, but there was an enormous amount of truck traffic on the two lanes moving east and the average speed was over 80 mph. I wanted off.

So we got off, stopped at a McDonald’s, and traveled the last 50 miles to Memphis on a state highway with no trucks. And almost no cars.

We got off the Interstate at Brinkley, a very small town where every building is empty and falling down. The homes and farms looked better and the few towns we drove through didn’t look healthy. Unless you compare them with Brinkley. Most looked like this.

One of the towns we passed through is Palestine.

No one was speaking Hebrew or Arabic. Or English. There was no one afoot. Fewer than 700 residents (but no genocide).

West Memphis, Arkansas, is almost as decrepit as it was when I was here last. And, on the whole, Memphis itself looks like many parts of it need new energy.

Beale Street was loud and when I went to check into the Hampton Inn there, a sign on the counter warned against staying there if you want quiet. Beale Street closes down at 3 a.m.

So we went elsewhere, staying at a hotel 53 blocks from the river. It is on Poplar, a major thoroughfare, but the restaurant choices are pretty limited. We wound up at Red Pier, a Cajun restaurant, where the food was surprisingly good.

Today, we head east.