Look in your own back yard

Like everyone else, I love to travel and see new things, do the touristy stuff, and just get away from it all. But how often do we really take the time to see our own hometown as a tourist would see it?

I have lived since 1964 about 30 miles east of Nashville, TN, and, at one time or another, have seen a lot of the stuff there is to see there. Last week my daughter, her husband and my 3 grandsons (6, 4 and 2) came over from Little Rock, AR. She grew up in this area as well, but has not seen a lot of the "sights". We took them, as well as my other grown daughter and 4-year old granddaughter on my wife's side, to Centennial Park in Nashville, home of a magnificent replica of the Parthenon.

Often when they come to visit we try to do "stuff"; this time they wanted to just be touristy. I gotta tell you, it was one of the best days I've ever had with them. Visiting the park, seeing their expressions when they saw the giant statue of Athena, flying a kite---you could not have wanted a more perfect day.

With gas as exorbitant as it is now, save yourself some money and play a tourist at home; you might be surprised what you have overlooked or not seen in years. Those of you in big towns like New York or DC or LA have a TON of stuff to do and see, but even in mid-sized towns there are things that people from other parts of the country and world pay big bucks to come see and do. Take advantage of them.