It’s Elvis Week here in Memphis – which I didn’t know when I set about plotting our roadtrip through the South. To be honest, and this is certainly a sacrilege in this town, I’m not even really that much of an Elvis fan. But I’ve always considered Graceland to be one of those “must sees” on my list of American cultural sights and attractions, sort of like the Cheers bar in Boston and Southfork Ranch in Texas.

So here we are.

The city is filled with rabid Elvis fans in town for this week-long celebration of all things Elvis, which will culminate on August 16, the anniversary of his death in 1977.

I decided to plunge right into the thick of things and booked us into the Days Inn Graceland – literally a stone’s throw from the big mansion itself, on Elvis Presley Boulevard. It is tack and kitsch personified, from the lobby filled with Elvis memorabilia to the guitar-shaped swimming pool.
But the people are really nice, the rooms are clean and well-furnished (and wonderfully air conditioned!!!!!), and the non-stop Elvis playing on the Sirius satellite network can’t help but get you in the groove.

We walked the two blocks to Graceland – or I should say the ticket centre – this morning to get our passes for the mansion tour. If we were truly dedicated fans, we would’ve shelled out for the Platinum Tour, which includes the mansion, Elvis’ car and plane collections and a multitude of special exhibits focusing on different aspects of his life and career.

Now I’ve already mentioned that we were a little lacking in the devotion department, so we settled for the Mansion tour – $27 USD per person with a CAA discount card. We were outfitted with a little headset and taken by shuttle to the Graceland doorstep.

The house was crowded – a new shuttle pulled up with fresh visitors approximately every five minutes and the tour staff were kept busy reminding people to keep moving along so that others could get their turn.

The house itself was built in 1939 and was purchased by Elvis, along with approximately 13 acres of grounds, in 1957. Inside, it feels like a perfectly preserved time capsule of life in the 1970s, from the televisions and appliances right down to the green shag carpet on the floor and wall. By today’s standards, the house doesn’t seem all that large or luxurious – I see crazier stuff on television on an ongoing basis – but put in the context of its time, it is quite impressive.

Here are some photos of the visit today.

Graceland

Living room

TV room

Pool room with fabric on the walls and ceiling

Graves and tributes