Tourists to Memphis, Tennessee immediately flock to jazz cafés on Beale Street, pay homage to Elvis at Graceland, and check out Sun Studios. I’ve strolled down Beale Street and witnessed visitors placing floral birthday cakes on Elvis’ front lawn but my favorite Memphis memory was a ½ hour visit to see the Peabody Ducks.
The Peabody is a beautiful historic hotel that has a fountain in the lobby inhabited by real mallards. The ducks first came to the hotel as a practical joke in1932. They were so well received that they moved in for good. Each day they are led to the fountain in the morning and returned to their penthouse pond in the evening. A revered “duckmaster” leads the parade of ducks on their journey. It is incredible to see the ducks line up at the end of the day. They wait for their red carpet to be rolled out and direction from the duckmaster and then follow him all the way to the elevator.
I walked into the lobby with my friend to witness the indoor livestock and their daily ritual. We were determined to look like we belonged in the upscale hotel. We sat in the bar and sipped hot chocolate while we watched the ducks splash in the fountain. Then near the end of the day, the ducks began to line up- anticipating the return of the duckmaster and presumably a meal upstairs in their penthouse. As the Peabody ducks began their walk upstairs, my friend and I abandoned all refined pretense and joined the other bar patrons in getting down at duck level to take photographs of the small parade. Watching an entire room full of adults crouch and cheer for five ducks following a man dressed in red from a fountain to an elevator- is almost as great as watching the ducks.
Enjoy Memphis and all it has to offer- but Don’t Miss the Ducks!
No comments:
Post a Comment