Not having been more than a block from home in almost a week, I suggested to my wife that we needed to go somewhere. Most of you who know me know that that means Dollywood. We got there shortly after opening and parked near tram stop C. That means the park is less than half full.

Dollywood is a place with flowing water, flowers, and shade trees, and is particularly beautiful this time of year.

The weather was in the 70's and most kids have already gone back to school so, it was mostly an elderly crowd. We first went to the gospel music show. That has never been one of my favorites, and frankly I hadn't listened to any of it since I lived in Nashville in the 50's. But music changes. They had a male quartet backed by piano, drums and, you guessed it, a guitar. It was a very talented group. Had they not told me, I might not have known some of it was gospel. I have to admit that I enjoyed it very much.

Then we dropped by the ride that used to be Thunder Road. It still has the violently shaking chairs and the big big screen, but the program had changed. Now it is a simulated ride through the mountains in a riding/flying contraption invented by some obscure cousin. It showed some nice views and a few scarry helicopter shots of rivers, dams, bridges, railroads and even a big bear.

Then we went by the new Dolly museum which is more or less stuff from Dolly's attic. Nowhere else have I seen pictues of Dolly's husband, Carl. But there he was in several pictures, even a wedding picture. You have to admire Carl. In spite of being married to a superstar, he is still his own man, runs his own business, and stays completely out of the limelight.

We had lunch at the Backstage Restaurant, one our favorites.

Last stop was the Heartsong Theatre, where we saw for the (think of a number)time, the story of the area where Dolly grew up. The inside of the theater looks like you are seated in a darkened forest, with sounds of running water, birds and insects all around. Mountains, farms, rivers, and people were all filmed at various times of the day and different seasons. The film was intergrated into what I call a multimedia presentation. When it rained on screen, water sprinkled on the audience from above. In autumn, leaves fell. At one point, the character "Applejack," walked along an aisle, playing his banjo along with the musicians on the screen. Children playing in a mountain stream splashed water that wound up on people in the first few rows.

Then we headed for the tram.

I don't know how many theatres are in the park. Or rides for that matter. I haven't counted the restaurants either. They will teach you about crafts, history, and music. And you can't see it all in one day.

To top it all off, we ran into old friends Mike and Linda that we hadn't seen in a decade. It was a good day.
Howard