More on food: IHOP is not for amateurs

I've eaten at Denny's. It's a pretty solid 24-hour joint that dots the landscape on both sides of the border. It's hard to beat their lumberjack slam. Denny's is a great place to pick up some free WiFi while you munch on some bacon, eggs, and hash browns.


Then, there is IHOP. I ate there tonight for the first time. Don't believe the hype. It's Denny's for pancake freaks. Actually, pancake Freaks. Upper case.

Case in point:

The undisputed champion of 24-hour breakfasts is Waffle House. It's not everywhere in the United States -- you won't find it in New England, most of Illinois, or the Midwest -- but Waffle House owns the American south's Interstate corridor.

Think Elgin Street Diner, but at every offramp you can find. Also, while Denny's and IHOP are all colourful with their logos, Waffle House is simple.

This one is in Birmingham, Alabama. I've only eaten at the Nashville location (er, one of the Nashville locations. There are several interchanges in the area).

Tootsie's

Four Canadians and an Aussie, all staying at the same hostel, went to a bar called Tootsie's last night. I'm not big on country music (at all!), but lemme tell ya. This city shows its visitors a good time.

The REAL Gotham city

Which one of these buildings do you think is the aforementioned Batman Building?

VIDEO: Nashville at (or near) sunset

What a vast improvement over Cincinnati. Nashville has character and, as you'll see, a pretty nice looking downtown. There is also a giant football stadium.

You know what? It's a very American city.

They walked like zombies

Today was apparently the Nashville Zombie Walk. There were loads of them parading down Broadway, freaking everyone (read: old people) out along the way. They caught up with me on a bridge overlooking downtown and we palled around for awhile.

They were surprisingly nice, given that they were zombies.

Free tour of Nashville!

Late this morning, I met a guy named Don Moore. He has worked with my mom before at this organization, and he holds this position at Vanderbilt University.

After parking downtown, we walked a couple of blocks to Broadway Avenue. It looks a lot like a movie set, this tourist trap of a main drag. But it's great. In the early afternoon, music blared out of each bar and restaurant's windows.

It was mostly country. Nashville loves country music.

After eating, Don and I took a drive around the city. First on the docket: Vanderbilt. It's known as one of those Rich Boys' schools -- $38,000 tuition will give that reputation, I guess. What an incredible campus. Coming from the University of Ottawa where greenspace is quite rare, Vanderbilt was something else.

This is the student centre.

Maybe the most surprising attraction Nashville has to offer is the full-scale replica of the Parthenon west of downtown. Yes, the Parthenon. The city's founders apparently thought its plethora of post-secondary institutions gave it a distinctly Athenian feel. There is an art museum in the basement.

Don, thanks a million for imparting your knowledge of the town. Thirty Days is beyond grateful.