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What Memphis is to the blues, Nashville is to country music. The birthplace of the Grand Ole Opry in 1925, Music City nurtured the country music scene throughout the 20th century, with early megastars like Hank Williams, Patsy Cline and George Jones -- among countless others -- all playing and recording there. Today, Nashville remains very much a product of its musical roots. In Music Valley, the Grand Ole Opry continues to broadcast out of the Grand Ole Opryhouse at the massive Opryland Hotel. Also on site is the Grand Ole Opry Museum, which features exhibits of the show's many famous guests. Downtown, the restored neighborhood known as The District offers an array of live music options amid its many bars and clubs, and the nearby Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum takes visitors on a trip through history with vintage instruments, photographs and recordings.

Many of Nashville's biggest attractions aren't within walking distance, so the best way to get around is by car. The city's Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) does operate an extensive bus system, with fares costing $1.25 one-way or $3.75 for a one-day pass. There is also a free shuttle service called LunchLINE that makes a 10-stop loop around the downtown area between 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. weekdays.

Nashville International Airport is 10 miles east of the city and does offer MTA service via Route 18 into downtown Nashville nine times per day on weekdays and four times per day on weekends. Taxis charge a flat rate of $22 to both the downtown and Opryland Hotel areas.

Watch For Another Music City Miracle
Nashville welcomed the Titans (then called the Oilers) with open arms in 1998 after the NFL franchise departed Houston and spent a miserable interim season in Memphis, and the team has packed crowds into the 69,000-seat LP Field (formerly The Coliseum) ever since. The team came a yard short of winning it all in Super Bowl XXXIV, after the Music City Miracle carried them through the wild-card round.

Take a Catfish Out to a Predators Game
Hockey fans in Nashville have lifted the Detroit Red Wings' old tradition where spectators throw octopus onto the ice and made it their own. In Nashville, they throw catfish. The practice is of course officially discouraged, but as recently as the 2006 playoffs one fan tossed a stuffed catfish out on the rink during a loss to the San Jose Sharks.

See a Box Score on a Guitar
Greer Stadium -- the aging home of the Milwaukee Brewers' triple-A affiliate, the Nashville Sounds -- may be on its way out, but it still contains one of the more unique features in the minors; a guitar-shaped scoreboard pays homage to the Music City's celebrated history. Time is running out, though, with the Sounds slated to move into a new facility on the banks of the Cumberland River in 2008.

Cheer on The Jumping Horses
The Iroquois Steeplechase -- one of the oldest in the U.S. -- has been run annually in May at Percy Warner Park since 1941, and since 1981 proceeds have benefited the Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt. The grueling three-mile obstacle course culminates with an infamous steep grade, known as Heartbreak Hill, leading to the finish line.

Check Out The Top Talent in Rodeo
The best riders and ropers in North America converge on Murfreesboro, 30 miles southeast of Nashville, for the Longhorn World Championship Rodeo finals each November. The titles up for grabs include bronc riding, tiedown roping and steer wrestling.

Ryman Auditorium & Museum
116 Fifth Avenue North
Nashville, Tenn. 37219
Known as the "Mother Church of Country Music," this National Historic Landmark in downtown Nashville was the home of the famous Grand Ole Opry -- a weekly celebration of country music broadcast nationally since 1925 -- from 1943 to 1974. After an extensive renovation in the '90s, the Ryman is once again considered one of the finest live-music venues in the country -- and the Grand Ole Opry returned to its stage in Oct. 2006. Catch a show (their lineup includes artists of all genres) or take a tour. Note that you can also visit the Grand Ole Opry House (http://www.opry.com/), which took over for the Ryman as the Opry venue in 1974.
http://www.ryman.com/

Country Music Hall of Fame
222 Fifth Ave. S.
Nashville, Tenn. 37203
A must-visit for country music fans, or for any music lover interested in the history of American music. Here you'll find the most comprehensive collection of archival recordings, photographs, oral histories and artifacts imaginable. Tour RCA's famed Studio B, where Elvis, Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Chet Atkins and Waylon Jennings, among others, recorded. Listen to any of the more than 600 recorded interviews of country musicians, managers, record, songwriters and studio and road musicians, dating to the 1920s, as they talk of country music. Cue up their music. See the wild collection of stage outfits -- and Elvis's gold-leafed Cadillac. The country equivalent of the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame.
http://www.countrymusichalloffame.com/site/

Jack Daniel's Distillery
Route 1
Lynchburg, Tenn. 37352
The oldest registered distillery in the U.S. (1866) still produces the nation's most recognized brand of whiskey. Take the 75-minute tour and learn how Jack Daniel's is made -- and how it acquires its distinctive flavor. No doubt, the tour will make you thirsty. Purchase your whiskey here -- it's the only wet oasis in an otherwise dry country.
http://www.jackdaniels.com/distillerytour.asp

The Hermitage
4580 Rachel's Ln.
Nashville, Tenn. 37076
The Hermitage was the plantation home of President Andrew Jackson -- who, as general, led America's troops in the Battle of New Orleans, and who, as president, decentralized the national bank. The Hermitage, built in Federalist style, in 1821, was remodeled twice, the last time in 1836. It has been restored to its 1836 appearance. You'll tour the main house, the kitchen, the smokehouse and Jackson's tomb, among other sights. Along the way, you'll learn much history -- the good and the bad, including what life on Jackson's plantation was like for his slaves.
http://www.thehermitage.com/

Frist Center for Visual Arts
919 Broadway
Nashville, Tenn. 37203
This marble and gray-pink granite building -- formerly the city's main post office -- is home to a series of world-class art exhibits gathered from around the globe. The museum does not have a permanent collection. Instead, it mounts, on a rotating basis, many of the best touring exhibits available.
http://www.fristcenter.org/site/default.aspx

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