Magnolia Grove Monastery

Did you know there is a monastery in Mississippi? We didn't. In fact, we were so doubtful that we just had to go see for ourselves.

It's there all right. It is called Magnolia Grove Monastery and it's in Batesville, although we use the word “in” loosely. It's out in the quiet countryside, of course, although it really isn't that far from downtown. Still, there is something about driving on old country roads that makes you think you have really done some traveling. We found it easily and just parked on the road, right in front of the entrance. It seemed like the right thing to do given that we hadn't seen another car the whole way, and we felt a little awkward pulling onto the property like it was a tourist site or something.

We had barely put the car in park when the canine greeting party showed up. It consisted of two dogs: a pit bull and a Doberman, albeit a small Doberman. They came at us at full speed, barking the whole time, and nearly scared us to death. We discussed just staying in the car and taking pictures from there, but then it occurred to us that a monastery wouldn't have vicious guard dogs...they just wouldn't, it would go against every principle they hold dear. So, we (very slowly) got out of the car, whereupon we were nearly licked to death.

Despite driveways leading to parking areas, we opted for the pedestrian entrance. Steps lead up from the road, so we ventured onto the property there, although we didn't follow the sidewalk to the nearest building. We weren't really sure where we should/could go, or even if it was okay that we were there. We are usually pretty outgoing on our little treks and have no fears about striking up conversations with strangers or snooping around anything that interests us. But this place seemed different and the idea of running around taking pictures and looking in windows seemed irreverent somehow. It was really reassuring to see the sign on the tree that let us know we were in the right place.

The Magnolia Grove Monastery is a huge place – 120 acres. If that seems like overdoing it a bit for a monastery, it's also home to Magnolia Village, a Mindfulness Meditation Practice Center founded by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. There is a meditation hall, a kitchen, and a guesthouse that sleeps 120, and all the buildings are attractive in a simple, purposeful way.

Being Presbyterians, neither of us was familiar with Thich Nhat Hanh who, it turns out, is a Vietnamese monk who practices Zen Buddhism. The monastery itself is the residence of thirty of his monastics. 

But, there is more to the campus than just functional buildings. There is a lovely area that features a pond with a charming footbridge, and a huge statue – a goddess maybe? There is also what we assume is a temple, a small, open structure with a pagoda roof. This area is beautiful, really beautiful, even given that we visited in winter. It's probably very lush once spring arrives and has even more of a zen (no pun intended) feel...despite the basketball hoop in the distant background.

Batesville II

A while back, we happened upon an article in Mississippi Magazine...or maybe it was Southern Living...about “the bathtubs of Batesville,” and it really piqued our curiosity. Seriously...a collection of bathtubs just sitting beside Highway 6, watching traffic go by? How interesting!

Well, not really. We set off with high hopes, only to find that somehow we had managed to miss the fact that there was also a bathtub restoration business on Highway 6 and, well, you can guess the rest. While there are few things we love more than investigating our state's quirky offerings, we don't go in for making up our own. So, let us start over.

There is a place on Highway 6 near Batesville that refurbishes sinks and bathtubs. Antique lovers that we are, we found it interesting that there are so many cast iron tubs without owners, and we learned that, no matter how bad they look, they can be beautifully restored. And beautiful is the operative word here. They can actually look new.

Upon first glance, old cast iron sinks and tubs are a nasty business...they tend to see pretty hard lives before they get dumped...and then the drain gets stopped up and they collect rainwater...then they rust and their legs fall off...and, generally speaking, they just get uglier with each passing day. But that is at first glance. Look a little closer and it's easy to see that these things have soul. It's no wonder they have made a comeback.

As long as we were so near Batesville, we decided to drop in and check things out. We visited a couple years ago and remembered that the town has a railroad running right through it – and by “right through,” we mean that it actually bisects downtown Batesville.

The first thing we happened upon was a really great gift-shop – what a stroke of luck. We loved the store and we loved Diane, the delightful owner. We had a great time looking at all the cute things though, and – while we know this is hard to believe – the Dos Equis man actually lives there. In the store. Really. We have proof.

But alas, it appears that the Dos Equis man lived there, past tense. For all we know, he may be homeless now, because we recently heard that the store has closed. That is sad news indeed.

Shopping (and pretty much everything else) makes us hungry, so our new friend (Dos Equis's significant other, Diane) suggested we have lunch at Court Street Catering. It's only about a block and a half from downtown, and it's locally owned and operated; that's all we needed to hear. When we got there, we saw that the special was barbequed chicken, potato salad, beans, and slaw. We weren't in the mood for that, but it seems that everything we were in the mood for wasn't available due to it being a holiday (MLK Day). So, we thought it over and became in the mood for barbequed chicken. And were we ever glad! It was great – really great! The restaurant itself (a converted house) was charming, and it has a killer bathroom.

Batesville has many downtown buildings that have been beautifully redone, including an old theater, The Eureka. And they outdid themselves with their murals – there's a great one on the side of the theater and a beautiful series on the side of a block of offices. They really add a lot to the town's vibe.

On our way out of town, we happened upon Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, which was hosting a large MLK Day celebration. We pulled up in front to read this sign and were pleased we had timed our visit so well.

So, while we still feel, deep in our hearts, that one of our beloved and trusted magazines lured us to Batesville under false pretenses (or that we should read these articles more carefully...whatever), we are awfully glad we went because we had such a good time.

Want to see our first visit to this Mississippi city?Yes

The I-55 Corridor: Grenada, Tillatoba, Courtland, Batesville, Sardis

 Our trip down the I-55 corridor was an eye opener – we were taken aback by the beauty of Mississippi’s great outdoors. But between stops at various lakes and campgrounds, we paid visits to a few towns. We didn’t have time to really examine any town in-depth, but we enjoyed getting even a glimpse of places we’ve always heard about.

We made our first stop in Grenada – at Jake and Rip’s, a barbeque restaurant we read about in Mississippi Magazine. WOW! We expected good barbeque, but we were blown away by how good everything we ordered was. The menu piqued our interest with its fried okra appetizer. An okra appetizer. Who thought of that? Whoever it was, we love them. But mostly we love whoever cooked our personal plate of okra – the closest to homemade we’ve ever had in a restaurant. No pre-frozen, thickly-floured, industrial-flavored puff balls here; Jake and Rip’s okra tasted fresh and came coated in cornmeal and fried like Mama used to.

Okay, we’re not sure Jake and Rip’s could even find fresh okra in April, so maybe theirs did come out of a freezer…we don’t know. What we do know is that if they can buy frozen okra and turn it into what we ate, they have magical powers. And by the way, their catfish is outstanding.

The front door of Jake and Rip's takes you to some fine cooking.

When we finally finished eating – and it took a while – we waddled off toward downtown Grenada. It’s a pretty little town of about 15,000 and it’s done a lot of historic preservation work. There’s a beautiful town square with a gazebo, some well-restored storefronts, and a couple of lovely murals. They also have an extensive (35 properties) Historical Walking and Driving Tour – go to http://www.grenadams.com/ for a brochure.

The John Moore house c. 1856, 201 Margin Street

The John Lake House c. 1880, 425 Margin Street

The Golladay House -- said to be haunted -- c 1850, 501 Margin Street

The First Presbyterian Church, established 1838.

One of the two murals in downtown Grenada depicting its history.

 It’s a great tour, but we recommend walking parts of it if possible, especially the eleven or so stops on South Main Street. A lot of homes are close together, necessitating a really slow drive – much slower than the cars behind you want to go – to really see and enjoy them. Plus, we found it difficult to maneuver the one-way streets and remain oriented to the tour.(Marian --hey folks...I don't think I've ever been as confused by one-way streets in a town. They all seemed to lead away from the square.  Honestly, walking would have really been the very best way to make this tour.)

The town square in Grenada has a clock tower, statue and gazebo.

Full disclosure here: Although we were touring the I-55 corridor, we didn’t actually take I-55. We don’t like interstates. Oh, we use them when we need them, but we prefer not to so we stayed with Highway 51 – a fine road that runs right alongside the interstate – and we’re glad we did. If we’d been on the interstate, we would have missed the tiny hamlet of Tillatoba. There are only something like 100 Tillatobans, and we actually spotted one. He waved. And, had we been on the interstate, we would have missed the little town of Oakland, and the beautiful house whose owner spied us as she was leaving and told us to come back anytime and she would show us around inside. We wouldn't have seen Courtland, either, and its pretty United Methodist Church. What a charming little church and what beautiful stained glass windows.

Courtland United Methodist Church

This beautiful early 1900 mansion in Oakland has been lovingly restored. 

Turn around in their driveway and you'll get a bouncy barky greeting, too...had to share.

Batesville’s really been busy renovating their downtown, sprucing up buildings and painting murals. They’ve also done a beautiful job of hardscaping and landscaping their (courthouse-free) town square. It’s really lovely – an open and airy park, very green, with gazebo-like structures that have a “railroad depot” vibe. 

Town square in Batesville.

 

 Actually, Batesville has a railroad history – it owes its initial growth to the Illinois Central Railroad that once came through town en route from Memphis to New Orleans. And by “came through town” we mean just that; the railroad tracks run right through downtown!  That’s only fitting for a town named for a railroad man: Mr. Jim Bates, a conductor on the Illinois Central’s predecessor, the Mississippi and Tennessee Railroad.   http://www.cityofbatesvillems.com/

Yep -- Susan got the camera and took a decent picture of me in the square in Batesville. 

Sardis’s tiny downtown has a lot of potential, and revamping seems to have gotten underway recently. Some of the original brick facades have been uncovered already and it’s looking good.

The Panola Playhouse

Sardis is home to the Panola Playhouse, “A Historic Community Theater.” It’s a live theater company that has been around about fifty years – remarkable for a town of some 2,000 people.  http://www.panolaplayhouse.com/