Deliciousness: Visiting Bush's Baked Beans

It's no secret that we enjoy visiting places that are a bit unusual, places that connect us to different components of our lives and the special things that are right before us. To that end, I (K) had always wanted to visit the Bush's Baked Beans Visitor Center in Chestnut Hill, Tennessee.  Yes, I enjoy the beans; more importantly, we enjoy the fun of learning about items made in our region.  We like to celebrate with those who celebrate -- even if it is baked beans we are celebrating.  Why not?

Your visit begins with an informative movie, and then, you move on to exhibits.  The first space is about how beans become Bush's Baked Beans.  Pictured above: J walking through a giant bean can; pictured below: E finding his weight in beans. 

Then, there's an expansive history of the company -- a great way to consider not only the history of their work but also the history of America. 

The staff here was so very friendly -- and they have a free photo op as you leave the exhibit area.  All of this not to mention the awesome places to pose outside.

Things to Know

• Entrance is free!  There is ample parking and a restaurant.
• The gift shop sells T-shirts, other souvenirs, and some harder-to-find Bush's products.  We left with delicious bean dips.
• You are across the street from the actual factory when visiting -- this is not a factory tour (even though I tagged it that way) but more of a factory experience like you would find at, say, Hershey's Chocolate World.  
• This destination is 14 miles from Sevierville, Tennessee, and 25 miles from Gatlinburg, Tennessee -- easy to find on the way to or from this section of the Smoky Mountains.

For Further Exploration

• Very interested in factory tours and company visitor centers?  You can find a nice starter list here with still more listed here.  They are lists compiled for kids, but they look fun for everyone.
• We've learned it pays to seek out regional businesses, flagship company stores, and similar when travelling.  Ask around at most destinations, and you'll find something regionally specific and wonderful.

Travelling and Pausing: Edward Hopper and the American Hotel

Travel is such a gift to me.  I'd rather travel than do or have most anything, and I make my best memories with others when I am "out and about," typically.  Business travel focuses me; solo travel begets adventure; kid/couple/friend travel makes the best memories.  Travel removes distraction, creating bursts of both activity and rest.  I do better with both the extremes and the balance it ironically creates.

Will I take the opportunity to travel to see an exhibit that explores American travel and transience?  Of course.  Enter Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (Richmond, Virginia) and its current special exhibit Edward Hopper and the American Hotel, open until February 23, 2020.  The exhibit, curated by VMFA staff and at its only East Coast venue, is worth a look for anyone interested in twentieth-century American culture, hospitality, and/or art.  Western Motel and Hotel Lobby are both included, as are some artifacts of Hopper's connection to Richmond and the VMFA.

Wonderfully curated, the exhibit gives attention to Hopper's art, of course, including paintings and sketch studies.  It incorporates information from the Hopper road trip diaries, mainly completed by Jo Hopper, as well as period postcards and hospitality trade periodicals.  It juxtaposes similar works of art for your reflection, including several three-dimensional pieces by others.  Recreations of two areas of Hopper hotels, including a room you can book a stay in and a reconstructed lobby, add both realism and fun.  (Did you catch that in the image of Western Motel above and the images of Hotel Lobby below?)  The interpretive signs are equal parts art analysis and American culture.

You'll have time and space to think about travel, escape, Durkheim's anomie, and cultural change.  It's a great exhibit to take in alone or with a good conversational partner.

Things to Know

• VMFA is always free to enter.  Parking is $6, unless you are a member.  Roanoke area friends, if you are a member at the Taubman Museum of Art, your membership is reciprocal here.  You are actually in the VMFA database as a family membership, and you park free!  Watch for periods during which the Taubman sells annual memberships at a bit of a discount -- we caught a sale in April 2019.  The helpful staff was even willing to look up my membership for me -- although traveling with a card would have been easier.  
• Special exhibits at VMFA have timed tickets.  I was able to walk up and access a time slot, but this is not always true, so consider planning ahead.  Virginia educators are free with ID as are VMFA members (including Taubman members as mentioned).  
• You are very close to the Virginia Museum of History and Culture, and it's a good idea to plan to take a break on the VMFA grounds.  It's a good spot for a picnic and includes a collection of sculpture.  VMFA is large enough for a day trip easily depending on your personal museum preferences.  I easily spent about two hours in the Hopper exhibit.
• It's worth knowing the VMFA special exhibit calendar.  I'm looking forward to Treasures of Ancient Egypt: Sunken Cities in 2021, and we very much enjoyed Terracotta Warriors and Napoleon.  

For Further Exploration

• An exhibit book, available for about $40, provides a good exploration of content of the exhibit.  Additionally, you can take an audio tour of this exhibit and several others -- bring your device and earbuds!  
• There are some interesting works by others included -- my favorite was the Robert Cottingham photo-realistic oil painting below.

• And in the category of "just so nifty," this exhibit is one of Fifty Reasons to Travel This Fall from Forbes Travel Guide.