FROM THE EDITOR
Bob Rouse
THAT’S ME IN THE PHOTO at right. Not literally, of course, as
I’m neither 20 feet tall nor bronze nor naked.
But “Musica,” the fantastic sculpture near Music Row in
Nashville, embodies my enthusiasm for music. And Nashville.
And, maybe, being bronze.
One of the top hits of my visit to Nashville (see City Spotlight,
pages 29–32), was meeting Alan LeQuire, the sculptor of the
famous piece that was unveiled in 2003. When our group of
journalists visited his studio, he was gracious and genuine—
and talented, like so many people in Music City.
What made my four fun days in Nashville especially mem-
orable was exploring its artistic heritage and expression with
other people. With a group. We came from Canada, California,
Oklahoma, Alabama, Indiana, Florida and (ahem) Kentucky.
What we shared was an interest in Nashville and in writing.
We discussed punctuation at dinner.
I discovered not only Nashville, but a new appreciation for
group travel.
As luck would have it, this issue of Courier features group
travel. And music! See Gabe Webb’s feature on finding music
in the cities where it was (and is) made (page 25).
Gabe and Pat Henderson also experienced group travel,
although not with the same group. Gabe encountered giant
mechanical creatures in Ottawa, and Pat focused on festivals,
Editor
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Freemasons and bison in Winnipeg. Read about their excel-
lent adventures on pages 21–24.
I think you’ll get a kick out of reading about a friendship
that started at Travel Exchange in St. Louis (page 56). That
story, along with solid examples of business relationships
originating at NTA events (page 6), should serve as good
reminders of why we belong to an association of like-minded
professionals.
It’s cool to be part of a group. Even if you never discuss
punctuation over dinner.
Read on,
October Courier Destination Index
Alberta 19 Nebraska 36 Belize 50 New Hampshire 39 China 40 New York 20, 28 Colorado 51 North Carolina 51 Connecticut 38 North Dakota 34 Florida 19 Oklahoma 36 Kansas 34 Ontario 21–22 Maine 39 Rhode Island 38 Manitoba 23–24 South Dakota 34 On the cover:
Massachusetts 37, 50 Tennessee 26–28 Missouri 25–26 Vermont 39 Songwriters perform in an
intimate setting at Nashville’s
Bluebird Café
Photo: Nashville Convention
and Visitors Corp
Nashville 29–32
4
October 2017