Poor Opryland

The weekend flooding in Tennessee, especially Nashville, has wreaked major havoc on the Gaylord Opryland Hotel where we attended the Hearing Loss Association of America convention last June.  The bottom floor of the hotel is currently under 6 to 10 feet of water inside, and they might have to close for up to six months for renovations. 

This makes me sad because I have such wonderful memories of the Opryland Hotel and the HLAA convention.  It was where Brandt first discovered just how amazing Cochlear Implants are and decided that not only were they “not so scary afterall,” but that he really wanted one, ASAP!

The Opryland is the largest non-casino hotel in the world.  It is made up of several huge atriums; with its all-glass ceiling, indoor river, and thousands of plants and trees, it really does feel like you’re outside.  Because it has gone through so many expansions, the layout of the enormous hotel is very confusing.  If Brandt hadn’t been with me to navigate, I never would have found the convention from our room—it was half a mile away!  You really have to see it in person to fully appreciate just how ginormous the place is; pictures can't do it justice.  But, I’ll try.

Here is my picture of the Cascades restaurant, where Brandt and I had a very nice lunch (click pictures for higher resolution):

…and what it looks like now, underwater: 

The view from the restaurant, which is completely underwater today:

Gazebo in the Garden Conservatory—popular spot for weddings:

Entrance to the Delta Atrium, by far the largest of the four:

Boatride on the indoor Delta River.  We had so much fun taking the boat tour!

Update:  How about some before-and-after video for a better effect?  The before video is rather long (but like I said, this place is huge!); the interior shots start at 0:40.  The after video shows the 10 feet of water in the Cascades atrium—wild!