Memphis with Kids

We recently visited Memphis for the first time and took part in the standard “Memphis with Kids” agenda.  I thought I’d share a few of the interesting, less-standard things we discovered (along with some typically-touristy photos).

After an easy 2.5 hour drive from Little Rock, we arrived in downtown Memphis.  For a Saturday afternoon, it seemed very, very quiet. We parked just off of Main Street, and as we climbed out of our car, we received a friendly greeting from a drunk homeless man who had forgotten he was wearing pants that last time he visited the restroom.  In general, we found downtown to be dirty and a little scary.  Probably the reason why Memphis was voted the ugliest city in the US by Travel and Leisure.

We drove past Beale street, but didn’t walk it.  Apparently the rest of downtown was so quiet because EVERYONE was on Beale Street preparing for the evening’s Memphis Grizzlies Basketball game. The never-ending stream of horse-drawn carriages and trolleys clomping and swishing up and down the streets were far more entertaining for our crowd.

However, thanks to the recommendations of some friends, we did find and enjoy the Fire Museum of Memphis.  The museum isn’t very large, but the kids loved climbing on and driving the firetrucks, putting out a simulated fire from a lift bucket, and marveling at the medical drama going on in the back of the ambulance.  There’s also a talking horse that startled Callen and got Carina’s “how does that work?” gears turning.  We spent about 2 hours there, which was a pretty good deal for the $20 it cost to get in.

Manning the Truck

Say What?

Engrossed in a video about fire safety

For dinner, we drove WAY out to the suburbs to eat dinner at Tycoon Asian Noodle Shop, which was listed as a kid-friendly dining option with glowing reviews on some website Craig found.  Yet another example of why you should take online reviews with a grain of salt – this place was NOT kid-friendly and both of the entrees I ordered to share with the kids were disappointing.

For dessert, since we were already out that way, we headed for Bruster’s Real Ice Cream on Winchester road for dessert.  This was another online recommendation that Craig found.  Too bad it was permanently closed.  But, at the corner of Kirby Parkway and Winchester Road, we saw this:

Definitely a unique sight that we would have missed if not for our dining mis-adventures.  And, on the way back to the hotel, we found a Ben & Jerry’s.

…and that made us all demonically happy.

This way to the polar bears!

The next day was ZOO DAY!  I somehow accidentally programmed the kids that we were going to see polar bears, so they really hadn’t given much thought to the other animals we might see.  The visit worked out to be a nice surprise to them, because, of course, as you probably already know, the Memphis Zoo is well known for it’s excellent presentation of a wide variety of animals.

Honestly, though, there were a few nice surprises for all of us.  First, since Carina and Callen were taking turns being in charge of the zoo map, it was good to know that the Memphis Zoo has a great app for both iphone and droid (get it in the app store on your phone).  The app has a map of the zoo with a moving navigation arrow that shows you where you are on the map at all times.  It also has a customizable daily schedule of events for the zoo, so you can plan out what feedings, keeper chats, and shows you want to see. And if you want to impress your husband/kids with your animal knowledge, there’s an information page for each animal/exhibit.

A few other fun things we found at the zoo:

An orangutan in a sun hat

The Polar Bear Sniffing Slot: who is smelling who?

Cooling off in the “river” at the front of the zoo feels good after a day of walking!

For lunch we visited Huey’s, another suggestion from friends that IS kid friendly (there are about eight locations around Memphis).  The burgers were great, and we also enjoyed the post-meal sport of pick projectile-ing.

The Champ

The Trainees

The ceiling – a collaborative work

There are no pictures of me doing this because I was not good at the sport of projectile-ing.   I nearly got a server on the opposite side of the restaurant picked through and through.

After the zoo we ate dinner at another kid-friendly place called the Kooky Canuck.  They have some interesting menu items, including 6lb hamburgers (free if you can eat it in less than an hour) and BBQ egg rolls.  After dinner, we walked across the street to check out the Peabody Hotel.  We have a Peabody here in Little Rock, so we wanted to see if they are different.  Boy, are they ever!  I’d say the ducks here in Little Rock are spoiled, what with their much larger fountain and glass elevators to ride in.

The Memphis Peabody Lobby

We felt so sorry for the Memphis ducks that we ate one for dessert!

On the third day of our visit, we spent the morning at the Children’s Museum of Memphis (CMOM).  This is another great facility that, like the zoo, is reason enough to haul the kiddos up to Memphis every once in a while.  We spent 3.5 hours at CMOM, and that was long enough to get through all the exhibits once, barely.  We had to drag the kids out amidst their pleas to re-visit their favorite areas of the museum.  This was my favorite exhibit – the skyscraper.  Kids could climb up and around inside it.

We also stopped by the Benjamin L. Hooks central library branch.  We had driven by previously in our visit and wanted to get a closer look.  In the front they have granite columns that are engraved with different types of information.  A few of them have fallen over and “rolled out” their information across the patio.

Inside the library there’s a great children’s section.  The facility is 10 years old, but you’d never know it.  The kids loved the tree theme and reading books in the playhouse.

The story time room

Overall, we had a great visit to Memphis.  It has plenty of kid-friendly activities to keep you busy for a long weekend, and maybe even more. If you know of any other great Memphis sights and activities, we’d love to know about them for our next trip!

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