Parthenon and Jack Daniels Distillery

So after a month in New Jersey we woke up one morning and realized Thanksgiving was in one week and we were suppose to be in Tucson, Arizona to spend the holiday with Josh's sister. So we decided we would have to skip the southeastern part of the United States and head towards Tucson. This may seem kind of lame to skip part of the country but I like to think it gives a reason to take another trip.

First stop Nashville, Tennessee.

Nashville seemed like a good place to stop first, but it's actually a thirteen hour drive from New Jersey... Luckily we had just purchased the second book in the King of Thrones series, Clash of Kings. So good!! It's 37 hours long and was perfect to pass the time. We got into Nashville pretty late so we went right bed and got up early to see the Parthenon. An exact replica of the one from Greece. It was closed to go in but beautiful still to walk around.

It was amazing! So detailed.

It was the only stop we made in Nashville, though there are tons of things to do. The grand Ol' Opery would have been fun, but again next time.

After Nashville we headed south to a wonderful wonderland known as the Jack Daniels Distillery in Lynchburg! It was beautiful there and the whole place smelled like whiskey!! I would have never left except for the fact that it's a dry county so there for you can not buy or sell alcohol there... lame.

This is a spring where they get all the water for their whiskey. We were able to see the whole process from how they burn the wood to make to coal to filter the alcohol threw to where they store the kegs! This is the only Jack Daniels distillery in the world, all Jack Daniels is made at this location. So if you are sitting here reading this and drinking a nice delicious glass of Jack Daniels, I was standing right where it was made.
If is wasn't for this spring the Jack Daniels distillery would have moved locations a long time ago.

Here we are with Jack himself. He was actually quite short, 5'3" I believe. He stared brewing when he was just thirteen. We were able to tour his old office which is the only old building still left.

Here is our tour guide. He was exactly what I pictured a tour guide for Jack Daniels would be like. Funny, abrasive, and loved his whiskey. He had all the men remove their hats whenever he said Tennessee sippin' whiskey.

He is actually sitting on the safe that killed Jack. Jack come in early one day and couldn't get the safe open so he kicked it. He kicked it so hard he broke his toe and never told anyone. It eventually turned into an infection and six years later he died from that infection.

One of the funniest parts of the tour was when our guide started talking about the barrels. They actually make all their barrels and the holes they drill in them are called bungholes. Every time he said bunghole Josh would crack up. He was of course the only one laughing, it was funny. "They drill the bunghole" and "slam the pipe into the bunghole."

Here was their Christmas tree. You actually cant get far from the tour group or security will pick you up and kick you out, so I had to take the picture from afar.

All their barrels of whiskey are all aged in the area in huge barns. Rows and rows of barrels. It smelled so beautiful!
The barrels at the very top of the barn are the ones they sell as their single barrel whiskey. You can actually purchase a whole barrel for your self and your name will go up on the wall in the distillery. It's only $12,000...

After the distillery we went to have some true Tennessee BBQ. What a perfect day!