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Nashville Shores? More like Nashville Sores, OK.
I’m from an area in Florida where the county parks and recreation includes a public waterpark — something I very much took for granted before moving to Tennessee. So when one of the members of my friend group suggested a waterpark day, I was so in. Water slides, the lazy river, a freakin’ wave pool??
What my hometown park didn’t include, though, was a giant Wipeout-style inflatable obstacle course on a lake. And what my native Floridian identity did include was a false sense of confidence about this sort of thing.
Have you attempted monkey bars in adulthood? Nothing quite as humbling as the realization of how old you’ve gotten two bars in. Now, imagine the bars are made of wet and slippery plastic, and when you inevitably drop, it’s into a lake.
The Monday after this weekend adventure, I was on a call with Mack (everybody’s favorite NashVillager writer), massaging my limbs like I’d been hit by a truck. He found this so hilarious that he insisted I tell (warn) y’all about the park on a Friday this summer.
That sounds fun for somebody, but…
Boy, do I feel you. As much as I’ve whined about this specific part, I’m glad I tried. There’s also something healing about being surrounded by laughing children — and being a kid yourself again!
But the highlight for me was the Mega Mayhem — this gigantic slide that seats up to five people in a raft at a time. When I think about the way my friend shrieked all the way down, I still laugh to myself.
If you ask WPLN’s Rose Gilbert and Marianna Bacallao, though, the best part was the Twin Cyclones slides (but that’s only because they beat us in the race to the bottom).
Overall, we paid $50 each for a pass we can use all season — $7 more than a one-day pass — perhaps to next use for the fireworks show on Sept. 3.
Woof, that was tiring. I ate my body weight in Dippin’ Dots but could go for some real food.
You’re in luck! One of Nashville’s best Sicilian eateries is a mile away (and look, you gotta trust me. Read my last name again). I gauge an Italian place by its gnocchi, and Tutti Da Gio‘s is leagues better than I can make at home.
I originally heard about this tucked-behind-a-gas-station surprise hit last summer from local journalist Erica Ciccarone who, a few bites in, excitedly texted that it was the real deal. Since then, my favorite food account in the city, Nashville Hidden Gems, also made this video stamp of approval.
As you can tell, it’s a bit heavy of offerings, so I’d say this is an after-swim meal for sure.
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