Dollywood/Pigeon Forge, Tenn.

The Dolly Parton tour bus from 1994. According to the dude working the place, there is a new bus in the works in Canada that will cost $2 million. This one cost $750,000 and gets seven miles to the gallon.


Dolly's tour bus suite.

Dolly's dressing room. I'm not even going to process how better equipped her bus is versus my current dwelling.


Big scary fun swings that I could have stayed on for an hour or so.

Last ride of the day on the Dollywood Express.

I wonder if it hurts when a fudge knife cuts you. Does chocolate syrup come out?



The most excellent part of Dollywood, the museum of all her costumes and memorabilia, didn't allow any photography and that was painful, but I rule I of course abided by. I don't think there are words to describe how star struck I was just seeing a beaded dress that I know took months to make by hand. There is an inner gay man in me and I'm not ashamed of that. One of Dolly's dress makers altered my sister's wedding dress so I enjoyed feeling the possibility of two degrees of separation.

There were posters of her from the '60s and '70s that I could only dream would show up on eBay, but even if they did I'm sure I couldn't meet the price. Being a lifelong lover of the Dolly, it was a fan's dream come true to see her career history in images and costume.

Dolly also has an entire room and a couple of hallways in this museum with photos of her with various famous people. Overheard in that room was a couple in the late seventies/early eighties looking at the photos.

Husband to wife: "Look honey, there she is with that fellah who played 'The Hulk.'"

Wife: (completely uninterested and not listening to him)

Husband: "I think his name is Lou Farantino."

Wife: (still completely uninterested and not listening to him)

At this point I am standing right next to him and the man says to me, "That's the guy who played 'The Hulk'."

Me: "Yeah, that's Lou Ferrigno."

Husband: "Oh yeah that's right. I said Farantino!" (and then he chuckles to himself)


I love moments like this. My sister have a life long joke about my mom not getting the names of bands, movies or famous people correct, but getting very close like this nice man did. I immediately called Lindsay and told her this story as soon as I got home. There were many nice older folk we talked to at Dollywood and that made me enjoy it all the more. Dolly is a legend and there was no denying that many people were there to worship at her shrine.

More photos of the trip to East Tennessee are here.