Ten on Tuesday 3-18: On Tour

This week’s Ten on Tuesday prompt asks for “10 Places You’d Take a Tourist to See in Your Hometown.” Which one?

I still claim Memphis, Tennessee as my “hometown,” and last spring I had the opportunity to go back there with Tall Paul and introduce him to some of my favorite haunts. However, I now live in the Los Angeles area, which is one giant tourist attraction in itself, so I’m going to do lists for both. I’ll start with my current home, though. Ten sights to see in L.A. is not exactly a tough call, and since I’m married to a native, I got some input from him and it went very quickly. Some of the choices are pretty obvious, but that’s because they’re things that many people actually do come here specifically to see, so it seems wrong not to list them.

  1. Disneyland
  2. Hollywood
  3. The Getty Museums – the “new” building on the Westside (near UCLA), and the “original” Getty Villa in Malibu
  4. A baseball game at Dodger Stadium
  5. Griffith Observatory in Griffith Park
  6. Driving on the Pacific Coast Highway
  7. Universal Studios/Citywalk
  8. Venice Beach
  9. “Museum Row” at Wilshire and Fairfax – LACMA (the Los Angeles County Museum of Art), the Page Museum/LaBrea Tar Pits, and the Petersen Auto Museum are all within a block or two of each other. And while you’re in the neighborhood, visit the Farmers’ Market at Third and Fairfax.
  10. A TV-show taping – tickets to be part of a “live studio audience” are available, and free of charge!

And now, let’s go down south for five six places to see in Memphis (I couldn’t stop at five):

  1. Graceland (Yeah, you have to. I’ve actually taken people there twice, which is one more time than I ever thought I’d go.)
  2. Sun Studios (where music history was made)
  3. The Memphis Zoo (since I used to work there, I’m not impartial – plus, they have pandas!)
  4. The Peabody Hotel, for the March of the Ducks (at 11 AM and 5 PM every day)
  5. Beale Street (it doesn’t look like much if you see it in daylight; go back at night and listen to it)
  6. A Memphis Redbirds baseball game in AutoZone Park, the nicest minor-league ballpark in America

And you’re going to need to eat while you’re there, of course – try some of these places.

So, where do you like to bring visitors to your town? And if you’re familiar with one (or both) of my towns, what would you add to the list? Please let me know in a comment, and check out Ten on Tuesday to see where the players will be taking their visitors!

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6 comments

  1. We could have used this list about five years ago when we went to LA/Hollywood. Maybe then we would have saved the money we spent on the Ripley’s Believe it or Not Museum. We did get to see the set of Gilmore Girls, though.

  2. I haven’t yet had a chance to visit the new Getty Museum, but I thought the one in Malibu was beautiful location wise. I was ready to move in when I first saw it.

    I would love to visit Memphis and visit all the places you mention. And the baseball game would be so perfect!

    Whenever I have visitors from out of town who want to play tourist, we usually end up in L.A., Anaheim, and even San Diego. Rarely do we stay inland, where I live. It’s interesting how it always works out that way.

  3. Mike – I couldn’t have made that list five years ago; I was pretty new in town and hadn’t been anywhere yet! 🙂 But save it for a return trip – and yeah, skip Ripley’s.

    I’m envious that you saw the Gilmore Girls set, though – I loved that show!

    Juli – If I ever get to Pittsburgh, your list is coming with me!

    Literary Feline – I actually haven’t been to the Getty Villa in Malibu yet; it’s on our “play local tourists” list of places to go. Tall Paul and I went to the “new” Getty on one of our early dates.

    AutoZone Park in Memphis is a great place to watch a ball game. Visit in the spring, though, before it gets too hot and humid out there.

    I actually want to do some touristy stuff in San Diego myself, but we just don’t seem to get around to it.

  4. Teena – Thanks for stopping by! If I make it to Toronto, I’ll have to check your list.

    Venice Beach is definitely worth seeing – great people-watching there.