{Girls Trip} - Christmas 2024 - Nutcracker Ballet in Nashville, TN - Day 1

 After a great night's sleep, we hit the ground running...

taking the Graduate motto to heart...

for college tour day!

First up, Belmont University...

After our tour, we headed over to San Antonio Taco Company (SATCO) for a quick and yummy lunch...

On the way back to the car, we got a kick out of the mural next door at Helen's Hot Chicken...

which just has to be a take on the famous What Lifts You mural...

{L's 10 Trip ~ 2019}

After lunch, we headed over to Vanderbilt University...

for our self-guided tour of campus...

We walked SO much! We covered both parts of campus...

and the medical center area, as well, before heading back to the area of campus where we first began...

We had to check out the SNU fraternity house (for big brother, B) before we left...

From there, we made a quick stop at the Parthenon...

before heading back to the room to rest up and change for a little shopping...

and mural hopping...

before heading over to Pinewood Social...

for dinner...

It was such a unique place and decorated just beautifully for Christmas...

What a busy, but fun first day!

We walked over 18,000 steps today...phew! Good night, Nashville!

{Girls Trip} - Christmas 2024 - Nutcracker Ballet in Nashville, TN - Arrival

 What a day, kicking off Year 10 ~ a whole decade ~ of our annual girls' trip to see the Nutcracker each holiday season! I am so thankful for these girls and the tradition we hold so dear, but even more so for the memories we've been given because of it...

After five years in Atlanta at the historic Fox Theatre (2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 & 2019) and then three Covid+ years at The Greenbrier (2020, 2021 & 2022), last year I decided to take our show on the road with Miami City Ballet's production in West Palm Beach (2023).

This year, we returned to one of our favorite cities to check out Nashville Ballet's production.

The girls and I arrived in Nashville late and checked into the adorable Graduate Nashville hotel...

Graduate Hotels are found in college towns and typically take on the look and feel of each individual town. The Nashville location decor draws from the country music history of Nashville...

with a little inspiration from nearby Vanderbilt University...

One of my favorite details is the student ID room keys. Check out Dolly!

Off to bed to rest up for a packed day tomorrow...