Nashville, We Have Arrived!

Our car service picked us up this morning at 9:00 a.m. for our 12:15 p.m. non-stop flight. Traffic was moderate, but it still took us about 65 minutes to reach LAX.

Check-in was a breeze, but TSA PreCheck was a different story. The ID checkpoint moved quickly, but the line to X-ray carry-ons was the longest we've ever seen in the PreCheck lane! With only two lanes open, we spent about 15 minutes inching forward before a new lane opened right next to us. Fortunately, we were first in line and through in no time.

From there, we made our way to the Delta Sky Club Lounge, which is modern, spacious, and very well appointed. It's unfortunate that domestic First Class doesn't include lounge access, but thankfully our Platinum Amex cards got us in. We enjoyed a light lunch before heading to our gate.

Our flight departed on time without delay. Delta now offers free Starlink Wi-Fi for all passengers with a SkyMiles account, which is a nice perk. Midway through the four-hour flight, we were served a pleasant lunch—certainly not quite up to International Business Class standards, but perfectly acceptable. As for the much-advertised Starlink Wi-Fi, it was mostly non-existent during our flight. They'll need to work on that!

After landing, we grabbed a taxi for the quick 15-minute ride to our hotel. Once checked in and unpacked, we headed downtown around 8:30 p.m. Our first stop was Lainey Wilson's place. 

The music was excellent, and we enjoyed a light dinner from the kids' menu—grilled cheese sandwiches! 🤣

From there, we walked all of 50 feet into Kid Rock's. 

Wow! Every time we've visited, the place has been absolutely packed.

The music leans more toward rock than country, which isn't quite our style. After one set from the band, we moved on.

Next up was Blake Shelton's place, Ole Red. Now this is a country honky-tonk! The music was fantastic, and the place was rocking. 

We actually stayed until closing at 10:30 p.m. Normally they're open much later, but they were shutting down early to prepare for the rest of CMA Fest week, as Ole Red is hosting Spotify events.

After that, we walked a block over to Kane Brown's new venue. 

The space is a bit smaller and was packed to the gills. The crowd—and the music—skewed a little younger than our taste.

We stayed for one set and decided we had done enough for our first night.

The walk back to the hotel was the perfect opportunity to let some of the alcohol evaporate from our systems! 😆

Well folks, that's it for tonight!