Beyond Elvis - Top Ten Non-Tourist Spots in Memphis

Your visit to Memphis will surely include a trip to Graceland, home to all things Elvis (including his grave), but there's more to this Tennessee city. Once known as a major cotton market Memphis evolved to become the birthplace of the blues. Here are the top ten non-tourist spots to visit in Memphis, guaranteed to keep you "all shook up".

To see how to control the fire of your Burnin' Love, visit the Fire Museum of Memphis. Housed in an 18^th century firehouse, here you can view horse drawn fire apparatus, test your knowledge of fire safety and even try and put out a flame yourself. Open daily except Sundays, this interactive museum will prove to be a hot highlight of your visit to Memphis.

Memphis is considered to be Mid-South in the United States, granting the city a fairly moderate climate. This makes it easy to take advantage of some wonderful walking tours that take a visitor away from the throngs of tourists. Victorian Village is a historic district that features lovely Victorian-era mansions, some of which are open to the public as museums. The South Main Memphis Historic District is a neighborhood on the upswing, filled with unique shops and restaurants. Businesses originally catered to trains passengers of the two local stations and were built in the early 1900s.

Catch a great view of the Memphis skyline as you stroll through the Mud Island River Walk. This is a five-block replica of the Mississippi River from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico. The accompanying Mississippi River Museum is interesting but only die-hard river lovers may want to take the time for a tour. More interesting is the Mud Island Monorail that for $4 will take you on a roundtrip excursion.

The Metal Museum is the only place in the United States dedicated to ornamental metal work. Tour the foundry, see blacksmiths at work, examine the fine art of metal or even take a class. Other off-beat art venues in Memphis include the Art Museum of the University of Memphis which features traveling contemporary art exhibitions, The Belz Museum of Asian and Judaic Art featuring an extensive private collection and Art Village Gallery in downtown Memphis that houses the permanent collection of Ephraim's Urevb.

Memphis is the second-largest city in the Tennessee, after Nashville, with which it also shares a rich musical heritage. Beale Street is home to many venues that launched not just a few careers. Twenty-five clubs line this historic street and it's a hopping place full of tourists come dinnertime. To avoid the rush take a walk in the morning and view the music notes that line the street in honor of Memphis musicians. The Memphis Walk of Fame is modeled after the Hollywood Walk of Fame and includes such notables as W. C. Handy, B. B. King and the Bobby Blue Bland. And since this is the city of Elvis, don't miss your photo op at the nine-foot tall Elvis Statue, located on the corner of Beale and Main streets. It will leave you saying, "I can't help falling in love with Memphis."