The mockingbird's greeting

The Parthenon, Nashville-style.

The Parthenon, Nashville-style.

Hours after arriving in Nashville, we visited the Parthenon in Centennial Park, an exact replica of the one in Greece, built to celebrate Nashville's pre-Music City nickname, "the Athens of the South."

We were greeted by a bird on a post with a distinctive song. The mockingbird - Tennessee's official state bird - doesn't repeat itself like most songbirds, instead improvising an original tune each time it opens its beak. This is the mockingbird who welcomed us the the Volunteer State. You can hear him sing here.