Amat victoria curam!

We visited Little Rock, Arkansas to have a look at the Clinton Presidential Center which is a huge building along the Arkansas river. It gives a nice overview over the 8 years Clinton was president with a library where you can look a minute to minute itineraries of his days in the White House. (May 26 1998 10:00 -10:01 courtesy call to Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands...)
Bill himself is your (audio) guide and yes - he mentions Monica... :-)

At the Ashley Restaurant in the Capitol Hotel, Little Rock AR.

The 2012 Camaro, 6.2L 426-hp V8 engine only €20.000 :-) That's as much as a FIAT 500 1.2L 85-hp V2 engine on auto.nl...

SUN record studio - where Elvis cut his first single

STAX - now a great museum about soul music

Studebaker Blackhawk

Graceland is a place in Memphis you cannot miss to see. In the winter time it is actually fun as well - because it is quiet and the house it self is decorated. The mansion itself is bigger then I thought with all kinds of quirky rooms in 1970's decoration. It has also all his golden and platinum records - which are a lot because this guy sold over 1 billion records... He is still one of the best selling artists around by the way. I am not a big fan of Elvis and his music, but it was impressive to see his TV debut, his (31!) feature films, his Las Vegas concerts, his outrageous costumes, his automobile collection and his private jets. Yes - at Graceland you can see it ALL...
And after every exibithion they have a special gift shop - so Eddie and I counted at least 20 of those!

We were Walking in Memphis and saw a lot of interesting things. This is the hometown of Sun and Stax records. Where Elvis, Isaac Hayes, BB king and many many others recorded their first records. This is also is the place where Dr. Martin Luther King was killed back in 1968. The motel where that happened is now the excellent and moving National Civil Rights Museum. You can actually see the spot where he was killed and across the street the window where James Earl Ray shot him.
We also did a tour in the Gibson guitar factory where they make the (semi) hollow models. It was great to see how many care and passion it takes to make one guitar. You want to buy one if you see it, only to be placed back on earth when a boy of 8 years old shows how it is really done with easy and a smile...

In his "Home town" Metropolis, Ill.

Lots of beautiful skies

Popeye the sailor in his hometown Chester (on the Mississippi)

Not a lot ferry's are working during the winter time - but this one was, so we hopped on.

One of the things on my bucket list was to see the masterwork of Eero Saarinen: The Gateway Arch in St. Louis. It was much much better then I had hoped for. It is truly monumental. All the best icons in the world are a "simple" shape - be it a obelisk, pyramid or even the Eiffel Tower. No wonder Saarinen choose to use a simple shape as well - but added some genius touches. The height is exactly the width and the structure is twisted and clad with stainless steel. That makes that the Arch is always different - no matter what the weather is like or what angle you look at it. The ride to the top in a "bubble" tram is an adventure on its own. The the view breathtaking.

It was really fun to wander around in Mark Twain (Sam Clemens) old home town. The houses where he, Huck and Becky lived in are all there and you can really feel the atmosphere of his famous (autobiographical) books coming alive. I reread The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn while being in Hannibal and was actually surprised how good and funny this book actually is. I vaguely remember old movies about Sam and Huck and when home I have to try to find those too.

Norman Rockwell - The Adventures of Tom Sawyer...

We had dinner at restaurant Niche where chef Gerard Craft created a very interesting tasting menu for us with a mashed potatoes dish that seem to come right out of Michel Bras' Kitchen way back in Lagiuole. And sure when I asked Gerard about it - it was this what he intended to make :-) - and he succeeded. According to Eddie it was even better because of the consistency....

Real Dutch windmill at the border of the Mississippi at Fulton

Inside the Wells Fargo Bank in Davenport

The first Mormon "Temple" in Nauvoo - we were not allowed in...

John Woods; Mansion in Quincy

US Grant was the 18th President of the United States (1869–1877) and lived in Galena, a town that became wealthy because of the (lead rush mid 19th century) It was at its time the biggest city of Illinois and still has a nice authentic look and feel.