Christmas Lights

Each year the city of Hidalgo gets all lit up for Christmas. The Activities Director here arranged for two bus loads of us to get down to Hidalgo for an evening of fun.

This was the 19th annual Hidalgo Festival of Lights, and the largest so far. With over two and a half million lights and 900 different displays the festival packs a good amount of wow factor.

We started with dinner on the porch of city hall as the singers and dancers did their show on the stage. After the meal we boarded the trolleys for a guided tour of the many displays. Most of the displays are designed and built by city employees and they begin setting up the lights in early September. The festival runs for the whole month of December. It was well worth the trip and some said they wanted to come back again to look at the detail of the lights.

We managed to leave all the decorations we have at home but we did pick up a couple of strings of lights to at least make the front of the Motorhome look a little more like the season. We are beginning to see a lot more people show up here now but we are told that a large group of people will not show up till after Christmas. There are even a few who are here that will be returning home for a few days the week of Christmas. These are just a couple of the pictures. You can view the rest of the pictures by following the link titled "Hidalgo Christmas Lights", to the right.

The Holiday Season

We must be having too much fun. I noted that the last time I posted here was in early November. We really are getting into the swing of things here and participating in many of the activities too. I have considered adding two new activities. Depending on the learning curve I may take up Boccie Ball. I watched for some time and it looks like fun. I am also considering getting into Billiards again. It has been many years since I played but I suppose with a little practice I could do well.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and will be our first without the whole family around the table. We will be attending the dinner here along with 300 or so others. I am told they put out quite a nice spread and have a great time. Hope you all have a great Thanksgiving.

This weeks edition of the newsletter is full of upcoming activities. The local Minor league Hockey Team, The Killer Bees, has a season long special for us Winter Texans. We can get a regular $15 ticket for just $6 and special savings on concessions at the game. The Minor League Basketball team, the Vipers, also have a special for winter Texans that is worth looking into even though I am not a big Basketball fan.

Progresso, just over the border in Mexico is having a Welcome Back Festival for the Winter Texans on December 5, with free food and drinks as well as local arts and crafts and Folkloric dancers and Mariachi bands. There will be a special trip to Hidalgo for a tour of the Festival of Lights. It will include the bus there and back, the light tour and dinner for just $15. Sounds like a no brainer to me and we are signed up for it.

I see tickets are already on sale for the New Years Eve bash at the MB ballroom. We need to get our reservations in for that too. It is beginning to look like a really great winter here in South Texas, and we plan to enjoy all of it.

We hope all of you have a very happy joyous, and fun holiday season.

Change is in the wind

As you may recall, when we first arrived I reported on the very heavy winds we had for several days. I was under the impression that such heavy winds were the norm for this area. I must now admit that I was wrong and totally misinformed.


In the days following our arrival we have seen a dramatic decrease in the winds here. Most days we are seeing gentle breezes of 5 to 10 mph. At times we get gusts up to 15 or 20 mph but that is still way below the 35 to 45 mile an hour winds we first encountered.


The temperatures have begun to moderate a bit in the last week and it has rarely been necessary to run the air conditioner. The daytime highs are hovering in the mid 70's to low 80's, but that light wind makes it feel less hot. Our night time lows have gotten into the lower 60's and on occasion the upper 50's. Sucking in that cool night air with the fan helps to keep it cool inside during the day also.


I even opened up the awning and have had it open for the last four days without incident, as you can see in this picture of our site. I do plan to dig out the tie down straps and put them on just in case. Several neighbors have told me they leave their awning open all the time, but do suggest tie downs just in case. I also have the wind speed alarm on the weather station set to go off in high winds.


Did you notice that golf cart in the above picture? We decided this place is way too big to get around without one. Prices are a bit higher here because of the demand. After some searching we found this cart at Mid Valley Golf Cars. It has all new batteries, new seat upholstery, all new tires and a new mirror. Considering the prices we were seeing we got a pretty good deal. The best part is the place we bought it from also stores carts over the summer. When we are ready to leave we give them a call and they come out, pick up the cart, and put it in storage. When we return next winter they completely check it over, charge the batteries, lubricate it, wash it and then deliver it to us no matter where in the valley we go. That is not a bad deal for just over 200 dollars.

Halloween Rio Grande Style

Things are beginning to happen fast around here. The full time housekeeper has been out sick for several days and with the weekend and the arrival of all the seasonals fast approaching we jumped in and got started on our workamper jobs a bit early. Our work schedule has on in the morning so every afternoon and evening is free. We also will alternate working weekends with another workamper couple. The rest of the staff here is very friendly and I am sure we will enjoy the winter.


For dinner yesterday we had a potluck in the Tradewinds Hall. Everyone brought a dish to pass and there was so much food that we ate and ate and everyone still had leftovers to take home.

After the potluck dinner, tables were set up on the main street to await the trick or treaters. We were set up and passing out candy for a little over an hour and had well over 200 kids in costumes show up.


It was the best Halloween I have seen in many years. There were a variety of costumes, and most were homemade. They ranged from quite clever to scary to traditional. These pictures give you a little idea of what I mean. The rest of the Halloween pictures can be viewed by following the Halloween link to the right.


Today is the first of November so many of the seasonal people are beginning to show up. Today is Sunday so we are expecting only 11 or so to get here but the floodgates will soon open.

Getting Around

It looks like getting around here may be easier than we thought. There are basically three main East West roads where you find the main stores. US 83 is a bit hard to navigate because the access roads on each side are one way. On these access roads are the main stores like Walmart, HEB, Target, and K-Mart. Here too are the big malls as well as the many strip malls.

North of US-83 is Business 83. This is a major E/W street and it is two way so it is easy to find things. The third main road is Griffin Parkway. Business 83 and Griffin Parkway are filled with the smaller local stores and shops.

There are many North South roads big enough to be called main roads. Once we figure out what N/S road where we want to go is near it will be much easier to get where we are going.

We visited Home Depot yesterday and I picked up some lumber to build a couple of steps. Each site here has a cement patio and it is raised just enough to keep the steps on the motorhome from opening. Home depot had a 4 step riser so I bought one and cut it in half to make two 2 step risers. That along with one 8 foot 2 by 10 was enough to make the steps. I was very pleased that the woodworking shop here has a lot of great power tools that made the job a snap.

We also made a stop at Camping World and picked up a small round plastic table for eating on the patio. A few items for the sewer were also needed. A quick stop at Wallmart and HEB were necessary to get a few grocery items.

I see Marsha has returned from doing the laundry so we will grab a quick lunch and head out to explore a bit more. We are meeting with the manager in charge of the workampers on Friday for an orientation and tour.

Inherit the Wind... Part Two

I am surprised that we made such good time today. We had to pack up the motorhome in the pouring rain this morning and it barley let up the whole day. I took a peek at the radar and it was a huge storm cell covering most of Texas. We felt very little wind on the road, yet at the moment we have some very heavy wind coming from the north.



It all brings back memories of the heavy winds we had all last winter in the Hill country of Texas. I managed to get the satellite dish to stay in an upright position but I had to drive two additional stakes into the ground and attach two bungee cords to hold it down.



We are spending the night at Canyon Trail RV Resort. Canyon Trail is a very nice place with paved roads, concrete pads to park on and concrete patios. All spaces are full hook up and include Wi-Fi and cable. The cable is just a basic ten channel package so I am using the dish.







For those of you wondering how the cats are managing, you can rest easy. The boys are getting along just fine but I am sure they are getting tired of traveling and would love to spend more than just one night each place. They protest being closed in the bedroom as we drive down the road, but if we could trust them to keep out from under the dash they would not have to be closed up. Lucky for them we will only be on the road one more day.

The above picture is our rig at Canyon Trail. Note how green the grass is. Last year with the drought it was all brown.

What a day

Today was an almost perfect day. There was no wind and no rain and the driving was so easy. We did find the roads that really need the Obama Stimulus in Arkansas. Some spots were like driving over railroad tracks for miles at a time. Once we hit Texas the roads got much better.

We were expecting to stay a a new campground advertised on the TACO web site. We came close but as we approached the road the campground was on we turned around and left. It was no more than eight feet wide and tree lined on both sides. It is not a situation I wanted to get into. We did see another campground a few miles back on I-30 and headed for it. The people that own it are from PA and bought it less than a year ago. It is a small place and right off the highway. They said it was in terrible shape when they bought it and have been working for the last few months getting it in shape.

My guess is it will take them at least another six months to turn it into a really good overnight stop. We will check back on our way home next spring and see how things have improved.

Tomorrow we will be heading for New Caney, TX. which is just north of San Antonio. Just two more days of travel and we will reach our destination. Tomorrow is a 5 to 6 hour drive and then Tuesday will be a short 4 hour day of driving. It is getting late and I am very tired so we will continue tomorrow.

RV with a View

We woke up this morning to a little drizzle and a bit cool, but so much better than back home. We had a pleasant trip to West Memphis, AR with the exception of a lot of road construction. It seem that providing employment for road workers is the full extent of Obama's stimulus. To top it off they really do not look like they need repair. We lost about an hour today due to the road work on I-40.

The very best part of the day arriving at the Tom Sawyer Mississippi River RV Park. This place is fantastic. We are parked in the motorhome section along the riverfront. All the lots are angled and staggered so everyone has a great view of the Mighty Miss. We are in the front row, just a mere 100 feet from the river. The view out our front window could not be better. We can sit in the living room or out on the patio and watch the river barges and other boats as they go up and down the river.

It is still quite warm here and for the first time on our trip we are not seeing any of the Fall colors. The trees here are still full green and have yet to turn. Traveling through the hills of Kentucky and Tennessee with all the trees in full fall color was a true delight. Speaking of the hills, I must say this year not having to go through some of those high mountains with this motorhome was a delight. Now that we are in Arkansas everything is flat again. We still expect to see some hills as we cross Texas but the worst is behind us.

More pictures of Tom Sawyer RV Park can be found by following the Link to the right.

On the Road... Finally

We managed to get up early this morning and got everything loaded in the motorhome. As we were ready to pull out of the driveway at 7:50 I noticed my cell phone had fallen off the holder. We searched the whole house, the motorhome and all the driveway and came up empty. I finally asked Marsha for her phone and called mine. We heard it ring in the motorhome and eventually found and retrieved it from a little recess in the slide.

Bottom line is we got started about 25 minutes late. The weather, of course, did not cooperate and it was pouring down rain and the wind got up to 20 MPH. Driving was a bit rough till we got to Indianapolis and the rain cleared up. Unfortunately I-465 South around Indianapolis was closed and we had to take the long way around, which managed to get us another 40 minutes behind.

Our schedule had us arriving in Elizabethtown around 3 or 3:30 but with all the delays we did not get here till a little before 5:00. The Elizabethtown Crossroads Campground is a very nice small, quaint campground. Over night sited do not have sewer but they do have a dump station we can use in the morning. They also have a super cable system that is included and had over 80 channels. I did not bother to pull out the Satellite Dish.

Today was our biggest day with having to cover the most miles so the rest of the trip should be easy. Tomorrow we head for West Memphis, Arkansas. We'll let you know how it goes.

The end of an adventure

Today is the final day for us at Twin Mills. We finished up moving everything over to our new lot for next year. Fortunately Rick and his friend came to help get the deck torn apart. After seven years it was like pulling a log stuck in mud. One section of the deck is over at the new lot for parking the golf cart on and Rick took the rest of it home with him.

All the blocks have either been taken or will be used on our new lot. Rick says he plans to make a walkway from the house to the drive with the ones he took. Louie and Gary will be taking the big blocks from the fire pit to use on their lots.

We went around to everyone that was here this weekend and said good by for the year. It has been a great season and we have had so many great times with all our friends here. We will miss the funny and sometimes serious chats around the campfire. I feel sorry for those that have to stay here for the winter and hope they do not have too bad of a winter. For our friends that also go to Texas we look forward to meeting up with them there.

We have just four days to get everything buttoned up at home before we have to hit the road. Depending on how the driving is, I hope to be able to keep you all up to date as we make our way across the country. Our best wishes to all of you and hope you have a great winter.

A new home

Another season of camping at Twin Mills is quickly coming to an end. It has been a great summer and we have enjoyed the company of all our friends.

We will be taking a huge leap next year when we return to Twin Mills. We have transfered to a larger "premium" lot. Our good friends Lew and Carol have decided not to return next year and have left me all of the great landscaping and hard work they put into their lot. We were a bit concerned about the additional cost but we feel the move up to a the larger site will be good on many fronts.

First we will be getting 50 amp service rather than the 30 we currently have. What a pleasure it will be to be able to run both air conditioners without blowing the breaker.

We have noticed over the last few years that our satellite reception has been becoming worse and worse in our current spot. It seems mother nature has decided we do not need to watch television and has grown the trees to such heights and widths as to block our view of the necessary satellites. The new location for next year will afford us an much better view of the sky and assure better reception of our satellite signal.

So with next summer all set for Twin Mills it is time to pack things up and head out for Texas. But that is another story.

The Dish

Today got me to thinking how very nice the people from Dish Network are. It seems they put up dishes for people and then when they move they leave the dish and put up a new one at their new address.

With Grace now in a nursing home we have all been spending time getting her house cleaned up and many of the things there ready for a garage sale. One item left was the aforementioned Dish Network Dish. I have a fairly new dish at home and another at Twin Mills. Both are mounted and used when we are at either place.

I decided to take down the dish left at the farm and now will use it for our travels with the motorhome. It will mount very nicely on the portable tripod I purchased and I believe make it much easier to tune into the satellite as we travel during the winter.

Last year I used a rather bulky setup consisting of a long pole and a heavy duty tripod to mount the dish on. The Assembly and dis assembly took a bit of time and some work and was not the most efficient way to manage it. I have no doubt this new setup will be much lighter and easier to work with this winter.

Now a medical update. I saw the hematologist and he decided it was indeed the beginning of arthritis. With the amount of pain I suffered I am not looking forward to advanced arthritis. I am currently on a new drug that treats the arthritis as well as the sensitive stomach I have. It is a fairly expensive drug and I will be talking to the doctor to see what we can replace it with.

Bottom line is that my knees feel much better and I am able to do some things as long as I do not overdo it. I am hoping for enough improvement to be able to take those morning walks I started and perhaps even loose a few pounds. Riding the bike is not too bad as it does not cause heavy impact on the knees and keeps the weight off them. I look forward to being able to spend some time in the Hot tub at the resort this winter.

Happy Birthday America

The end has come to another Independence Day celebration. I hope you all had a safe and happy holiday. I spent some of my time reflecting on a couple of thing I thought I would share with you.

We seem to have lost the true meaning of this holiday and what we are really celebrating. I cringe and yet hold my tongue when others wish me a "Happy 4th of July". True it is the 4th day of July be more importantly we need to remember we are celebrating our independence, and freedom. It is with great pride that I return peoples "Happy 4th of July" greeting with a heartfelt " Have a safe and happy Independence Day"

In my mind the most important thing we should all do on this holiday is thank each and every, past, present and future member of the armed forces of this country for defending our right to have celebrated so many Independence Days.

June has now come and still we have done little to clean out 30 years of stuff from the house. We are spendeing a lot more time down at Twin Mills and very much enjoying visiting with all our friends there.

Today is our anniversary. Seems like only yesterday but now it over 41 years since meeting the girl of my dreams. Marsha is a saint for putting up with me for these many years. It sure does not seem like that long ago.

I finally managed to get that tooth that broke last winter taken care of and now it seems I will need to consider a partial. I have a problem with spending money on that when I am supposed to be having fun with it.

All the great people we met this past winter have inspired us to look into this work camper program that they speak so highly of. It sure sounds like a lot of fun and a great way to keep busy and meet people.

Overwhelmed

My apologies to everyone for not posting more.

Since our return the weather has been terrible and it seems we have done little to get the homestead cleaned out. Getting caught up on the latest from all our friends and neighbors has been a chore.

The cool weather and the rain has kept the grass growing at a pace I have not seen in a long time. The normal twice a week cutting is just barley enough to keep it cut. Problems with the riding lawnmower seem to have gotten worse since last year and finding he time to get it fixed is just one more thing to worry about.

Fortunately the rest of the property fared quite well over the winter months and the repairs have been small. I do see several "projects" that need to go on a list but will get to that later.

Back Home Again

We arrived back home on Monday April 13 in the early afternoon. Most everything went fine in our absence. Nothing froze and with the exception of a section of fence blown down, the flagpole bent and a few large branches fallen down, everything was as we left it.

On Wednesday we headed down to Twin Mills to make sure our site was ready for the summer. It only took a few hours to get everything there back in shape and we moved the Motorhome in for the season. With both of us free to come and go as we want I think we will be spending a lot more time at the campground this year. We have so many friends there and the atmosphere is so very relaxing.

Our time spent at home will be used to get over 30 years of "stuff" sorted and cleaned out. I see a very big garage sale and a huge donation to Goodwill in our near future. We are in no hurry since we have six months to get it all done. A very wise friend told us recently to always remember that "you are retired so take it easy". And that is just what we plan to do.

I do need to leave some time to plan next winters trip though. This coming winter we plan to go to the Rio Grande Valley, and of course we will keep everyone up to date as we continue to spend the kids inheritance.

Branson

Just when you thought it could get no worse, we drove from Tulsa to Branson. Again we had very high winds and the straight up and straight down mountain roads between Springfield and Branson compounded the stress and strain. Bottom line is we arrived safe in Branson and very happy to be off the road.

We stayed at America's Best Campground (ABC) in Branson and except for the lack of level sites it was a wise choice. Everything in Branson is either on the side of a hill or on fill between the hills and ABC is no exception. The automatic level system made it a snap to get level but our front wheels were almost off the ground.

Our days in Branson were filled with shopping, sightseeing, and shows. Tuesday was shopping in the morning, picking shows and tickets at the 2 for 1 center and an interesting show called Hank and Patsy Together Again. Wednesday was again some shopping with dinner at Applebees and the Branson Brothers show in the evening. Thursday it was two shows in one day with "Take it to the Limit", an Eagles tribute group in the afternoon, and The Circle B Chuckwagon Dinner and Show in the evening. Friday was to be a whole day at Silver Dollar City but they changed their schedule and did not open till Saturday. Fortunately we were able to flip our schedule and moved our Saturday to Friday and saw "50's At The Hop" in the afternoon and "# 1 Hits of the 60's" in the evening. Saturday we went to Silver Dollar City and the weather cooperated and gave us sunny and warm for the whole day.

Sunday of the next week brought another last minute change since the show we wanted to see changed their schedule and would not open till after we had gone. In place of that show we saw a variety program called Grand Jubilee. Monday evening was the Clay Cooper show. Tuesday evening was the "Top Ten Rock & Roll Revue", and Tuesday was the Bart Rockett and Taylor Reed show. A day trip to Eureka Springs in Arkansas rounded out our time in Branson.

The wonderful time we had in Branson was mostly due to the great hospitality of our good friends Roger & Barbara. Barb made some wonderful meals for us all and Roger managed all the driving all over. You guys are fantastic and we thank you very much for everything during our stay in your new hometown.

Gone with the Wind 2

This morning we said a fond farewell to Top of the Hill, and Boerne Texas as we loaded up and got on the road for the long long trip home. The trip home will take us all the way north through Texas and into Oklahoma and then over to Branson Missouri before heading back to Three Rivers.

It seems the State of Texas is going to usher us out with a spectacular display of heavy winds. For the full four hours I drove today we had very heavy winds that meant I once again had to white knuckle the steering wheel just to keep us on the road. If you imagine making a left turn all day long you will have a close approximation of the conditions.

We managed to make to Burleson, Texas just south of Fort Worth and I am currently endulging in a tall wine glass of Cream Sherry that should have me well relaxed in short order. We are staying the night at the RV Ranch just off interstate 40 in Burleson. It seems to be a nice place but they do not seem to be on top of things. We were assigned to site 116 and found it still occupied. A Trip back to the office got us in 115 and a story of how those people should have left at noon.

Looking around this resort leads me to believe that a large number of people call it home for long periods of time. I see lots of Northern plates so it must be popular with snowbirds too. Overall it appears to be a well maintained park and plenty to do to keep busy.

Just spending the one night here and we are on the road again tomorrow as we head to Tuls, Oklahoma for next overnight. As is my usual practice I took a shot of our motorhome here and will post it as soon as I get the chance.

What Happens in Vegas...

We interrupt our retirement for a trip to Las Vegas

Our oldest daughter, Heather, met and fell in love with a wonderful man, Steven, and they decided to get married in the wedding capitol of the world, Las Vegas, Nevada. The ceremony was held in the Garden Wedding Chapel of Flamingo Hotel.

We flew into Las Vegas from San Antonio on Thursday, March 12, two days ahead of the wedding. On Friday we met with Heather, Steven and his parents for dinner at the Hotel and a chance to meet and get to know everyone. Stevens parents, Julie and Brad are wonderful people and we enjoyed their company very much. Steven seems to take after his father and is a very outgoing, motivated young man. I have no doubt Steven & Heather will be very happy together.

The actual wedding was held on Saturday and was a beautiful ceremony in an absolutely wonderful setting. The Flamingo Hotel has a huge Habitat and garden area that made the wedding really special. I have included one picture of the happy couple here and you will be able to see all the pictures at Photobucket as soon as I can get them uploaded. The wedding was followed by an excellent dinner at the hotel.

Sunday was all about friends and we met Marilyn for lunch and then met with our dear friends from college, Sandy & Don. Marilyn is a wonderful lady that took care of Marsha's mother for a long time and was more than just a great caregiver, she is a member of the family. We spent a great afternoon and evening with Sandy & Don at their home, catching up on all our lives. As always they have a beautiful home in a very nice development, but I still do not understand why anyone would want to live in the desert in the summer.

A View from the Top

When we first planned this years trip to Texas we decided to spend our time in Texas in the hill country just north of San Antonio because we had heard so many comments on the scenic beauty of the area. After spending the short time we have, I must say we made a very wise choice.

We settled down at the Top of The Hill RV Resort a few days earlier than we had planned and so far are quite happy with our choice. The staff here consists of 8 to 10 workcampers working part time that handle all aspects of this small campground with ease. One of the staff greets you after your check in and escorts you to your site and guides you as you back in.

All but a few of the lots are gravel pads with grassy patio area. This area of Texas has experienced a severe drought for the past 18 months so most of grass is dead and brown. The lots are small compared to most parks we have seen but considering the location it is understandable. The resort is built on a hill that has been terraced to provide flat areas. The roads wind up and down but are easily maneuvered by even the largest RV. The very top of the hill contains the majority of the sites as well as the rec. hall, swimming pool and spa and the activity center. The biggest draw of the resort is the magnificent views of the surrounding hill country from many of the sites. (The Picture to the left is a view out the back window of our motorhome)

The view from the rear bedroom window is the very best view we have ever had at any RV park. Views from other windows are also spectacular but sometimes blocked by other RV's next to us. With a huge front window on the motorhome I wish the placement of the hook ups had allowed us to pull in rather than back into the lot.

Top of the Hill is conveniently located just seven miles from the city of Boerne (pronounced Bernie) which has all the conveniences you could want. Borene has a Walmart, an HEB food store, a Home Depot and plenty of other name brand stores and chain restaurants. Don't worry if you can not find it here because only 25 miles down the road is The Rim. The Rim is a huge shopping complex with stores like Target, Ross, Michaels, Best Buy, Bass Pro Shop, Pennies and TJ Max as well as many others.

To the west of the hill country of Texas lies the wide open country. The prevailing winds here are from the North and West so by the time the winds reach the hills they have quite a bit of force behind them. You can generally count on five out of four days being windy here in the hill country. In the three weeks we have been here we have been able to open the awning a total of two times, because of the heavy winds. Our worst winds came last Tuesday where we had gusts of 45 to 60 miles per hour. Sitting on flat land that is not bad but we are on the side of a hill. Neither of us slept well that night and speaking to others who have lived her for many years we discovered it was the worst wind storm they had ever encountered and had many of them a bit scared too.

One final thing to be aware of if you venture here is the rock hard ground. It is impossible to dig a hole here due to the hard ground. Pounding stakes into the ground to anchor your Satellite dish or hold down your patio carpet is close to impossible. You may as well forget those plastic stakes for your low voltage lights. I later learned that a few inches below the surface here is all solid rock, which is probably why you see very few mature big trees here. Many of the trees here are Live Oak which have leaves all year round.

Pictures

I just wanted to pop in and let you all know I have managed to sort, fix, crop and upload all the pictures we have taken so far this winter. Look over there to the right and you will see links.-->

Anything that says pictures is a link to an album at Photobucket where I have put the pictures. Feel free to browse through them. Photobucket allows you to download pictures by right clicking which is the main reason I choose to put them there. Many of the other photo sites will not let you do this. Watch for more pictures to be added as I get them.

Some of the links to the right will take you to the web sites of some of the great RV parks and resorts we have visited on our trip. Enjoy, I have to get outside and soak up some of that sun and warmth.

Walkin' In New Orleans

New Orleans is a town made for walking and we did plenty of it. Yes you can drive into the main part of town but then you have to park. Parking is expensive in all parts of old New Orleans. The average we noted was around $23 per day. Of course the big chunck comes in the first hour or two then drops. So bring your good walking shoes and if you stay outside of town get a ride in. You should also be aware that almost all of the sidewalks are very old and very uneven. In many spots the pavement is missing or buckled so keep your eyes on the road. I ended up hurting my knee early on and made the going slow for the rest of the trip. Thank goodness I planned ahead and brought my knee brace just in case.

The short trip from Mobile to New Orleans got us there and set up by 12:15. The resorts shuttle schedule did not allow us to get into town until after 4:00 so we met our friends and did a bit of walking the streets getting acquainted and then dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Unfortunately the menu here is very different from their menu at all the other restaurants. If you go you should expect the food to have ingredient substitutions and not taste the same.

Sunday morning we got into the French Quarter by 10:00 am. We hopped on the street car to the Riverwalk. Riverwalk is a collection of specialty shops and a food court with a very good selection of eateries. Even though it was Sunday there were lots of people here. After a morning of shopping we ate lunch then headed out to Canal Street. This wide boulevard begins at Riverwalk and Harrah's Casino. The street is lined with shopping including the high end stores of Canal Place. The Cable cars run up and down the center of the boulevard so getting around is easy. Dinner this night was at the Crescent City Brewhouse, a place we found so good we returned another night later in the trip.

We got a very early start on Monday too. A trip on the Royal Street Cable Car took us to the
Garden district of New Orleans. The Garden District is about 13 by 5 blocks of historic homes and gardens. We spent most of the day just strolling the streets taking in the beautiful homes and historic sites. We took the Cable car back to Canal Street and walked a few more blocks to the resort hotel our friends were staying at to get a little rest before dinner.

Tuesday was a planned day off from running all over the place due to the Coronation of King Obama. While our staunch liberal friends stayed glued to their TV we stayed at the campground and did laundry and celebrated the "change" that we still had in our pockets :-)

Wednesday we spent the day walking the streets of the French Quarter including extra time visiting the Art Galleries of Royal Street. Here you will find art works from many of the great masters as well as contemporary artists. All the Galleries were fascinating but one presented a new and spectacular form of painting. The Gallery of Light features artists using Luminisum in their paintings. The method uses no luminous paints yet reflects the light shone on the painting back at the viewer in a magical way. You really have to see it to believe it. You can see examples at http://www.galleryoflight.com/ but to get the full effect you must see them in person and properly lighted.

After lunch we headed off to the other side of the river to Mardi Gras World. Mardi Gras world is home to famous float designer Blain Kern and many of his creations. We were fortunate enough to visit just a few weeks before Carnival and had the rare opportunity to see many of the finishing touches being put on the floats for this years parades. The tour revels many of the secrets of creating all the floats for the many Mardi Gras parades that take place in New Orleans each year. A fascinating place to visit.

Thursday was another day with lots of walking. We went down to the French Marketplace. The Marketplace is a collection of booths in a flea market fashion but with highly unique and different wares than you will find at your local flea market. The French Marketplace ends at the old US Mint. We did not have time for the tour so just ate lunch and headed for a cruise on the riverboat Natchez. This tour is a two and a half our trip on one of only three paddlewheel steamboats still in operation. The trip takes us both down river and back up stream with continuous narration of the points of interest.

NOLA Part 1

OK so my last post was way back on the 16th, but we have been very busy from sun up to sun down and finding the time and energy to make a sensible post has been very hard.


The drive to New Orleans was short and uneventful. Finding the Pontchartrain Landing Resort was also quite easy. Once again we made a wise choice of places to stay. This resort is all brand new since the previous park was wiped out by Katrina. Everything was very clean and well kept. The service was outstanding from the escort to our site all the way to check out. Very friendly staff and a big plus is the free shuttle service to and from the French Quarter several times each day. We generally took the 10 am shuttle into town and returned on the 7 pm shuttle.


By spending the whole day in town we got a chance to see a lot more than if we had not. This also meant that lunch and dinner had to be in restaurants but the food was all worth the added expense. The biggest problem with eating in a different place each meal is that you tend to forget all the names. Every meal was a treat and we enjoyed each. We were told that it is almost impossible to get a bad meal in the French Quarter. If you go there the only real choice you will have to make is how much you want to spend, but don't worry there are lots of reasonable priced meals to be had.


You will note I titled this post NOLA Part 1. Because we saw and did so much there I thought it best to break it down into smaller posts rather than try to cover the whole week in one big long post. I am sure I would leave out some important details if I tried to cover everything at once.


I know some of you look forward to seeing the pictures I post so I just had to include a couple of the Pontchartrain Landing Resort. It is a big job getting all the pictures processed each day but I have managed to keep up. I plan to set up a place where I can post all of them for those of you that want to see. I'll let you all know when it is up and how to get there.

Big Boat Big Float

Our second day of seeing the sights in Mobile finds us heading due West on I-10 and crossing the bay at the north end. This route gets you quickly into downtown Mobile and all the action. Our fist stop is on the East side of the Mobile River at Battleship Memorial Park.

Battleship Memorial Park is home to the USS Alabama Battleship, the USS Drum Submarine, a aircraft pavilion with planes, helicopters and a PBR river boat as well as other military vehicles, and both a Vietnam and Korea Veterans Memorial. There is a lot to see and I suggest if you go that you plan to spend four or more hours to see everything.

We have taken the tour of the USS Missouri Battleship in Hawaii that we found very informative and interesting, but the self guided tour of the Alabama was by far the better of the two. There are many more areas of the Alabama that are open for viewing. The tour is self guided and has three routes that cover all areas of the ship. The Red tour covers below decks in the aft part of the ship. The Green tour covers the forward part of the lower decks, and the Yellow tour covers all the upper decks. The Plan to spend two or more hours for the tour and be aware that there are lots of steep stair cases and narrow passages to traverse.

The tour of the submarine is much shorter and involves some very tight quarters and small passage doors. Being a contortionist is a big advantage. The tour of the USS Drum takes less than an hour.

The aircraft pavilion contains many restored aircraft from WW I all the way through the Gulf war. It includes one of the U-2 type spy planes and a second generation CIA spy plane. The building is also home to one of the PBR river boats used in Vietnam, and an exhibit of what life was like for POW's in North Vietnam. The grounds outside include dozens of other aircraft, vehicles, tanks, and artillery from all eras. The grounds also include memorials to Alabama's veterans of Korea and Vietnam.

Back on the road to Mobile takes you through one of two tunnels under the Mobile River. I again imagine driving the motorhome through here. It seems narrow and low clearance but knowing that big trucks pass through with ease makes me feel better.

Our next stop for the day is the Mobile Carnival Museum. The museum highlights the history of Mardi Gras in Mobile. We were surprised to learn that Mardi Gras was first observed in the US in 1703 at Twenty-Seven Mile Bluff, the first settlement in Mobile Alabama.

The Mobile Carnival Museum is home to many of the lavish costumes and robes of former Kings and Queens of the Mardi Gras. The Den contains several Mardi Gras floats used in past parades. The Museum has a self guided tour but we were quite lucky to visit on a day that one of the docents was there to give us a personal tour. The docent is a member of one of the Mardi Gras Societies and are very well versed in all the history. Our docent was a former Mardi Gras King and his wife is a former Queen. There are currently over 50 societies in the Mobile area and many are represented with displays in this museum. The Museum is only open on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday so plan your trip ahead of time.

Tomorrow is Saturday and we will be leaving Mobile, Alabama and heading to New Orleans, LA. We are meeting up with our good friends Roger and Barbara there and have a very full week of activities and sightseeing planed. See you all next week in the Big Easy.

A Fort, a Ferry and a Home

The weather has been a bit better with clear skies and sunshine so we decided to see some of the sights. We took the long way around and went south on the east side of Mobile bay to Gulf Shores and then West as far as the road would take us. With the Gulf of Mexico on our left and Mobile Bay on our right we passed many homes built on stilts and looking so very vulnerable to the many hurricanes that hit the Gulf.

Our first stop was Fort Morgan at southern most tip of Alabama. Fort Morgan was built after the war of 1812 as part of the Third System Coastal Defense. In August of 1864, Union Admiral Farragut led his fleet past the guns of Fort Morgan destroying much of the fort in the process. This enabled him to sail on to Mobile and capture the city in the Civil War.

The fort was later fortified with concrete gun bunkers and fully manned during the Spanish-American War, WW I and WW II. In 1946 the fort was deactivated and turned over to the state of Alabama. Fort Morgan is currently administered by the Alabama Historical Commission.

Fort Morgan is at the end of the road and to continue on to Mobile we had to hitch a ride on the Mobile Bay Ferry. The ferry runs daily year round with double the number of ferries during the summer season. The trip across to Dauphin Island takes about 45 minutes and passes by some of the natural gas and oil rigs situated in Mobile Bay. Prior to this trip I had never been on a car ferry. We were surprised to find that the Ferry cost was only $20 for the car and two passengers, a real bargain for the amount of time it would potentially save.

It is a short drive over the bridge across Heron Bay from Dauphin Island to the Mainland. Heading north on Highway 59 toward Mobile we come to the Bellingrath Gardens and Home. The home and gardens were built in 1935 by Walter and Bess Bellingrath as a summer home. Walter was a self-made man who amassed his fortune after buying a Coca Cola Bottling franchise. The 15 room home sits on over 65 acres of beautiful landscaped gardens on the shore of the Fowl River.

The Bellingrath Home showcases Bessie's collection of treasured antique furniture, silver, china, crystal and cut glass. The home itself features handmade brick and ironworks salvaged from a landmark 19th century Mobile hotel. Even though we were there in the winter we saw many varieties of flowers in bloom. If you decide to visit be aware that there is a lot of walking involved in touring the gardens.

Bumps in the Road

As with anything in life we run into little kinks in our plans and not everything goes as it should. So it has been with our trip so far. First you will note ie has been some time since the start of our trip and I have not posted. It has not been an easy five days but it has been interesting.

We did not get started as soon as we planned on the 3rd so we only made it as far as Southern Indiana. We stopped for the night in Columbus at a very nice small campground called Woods-N-Water. It was still cold with temps in the low 40's to upper 30's and just to make it fun it was raining. We managed to get backed in to our site before the dark came but finished our set up in the cold dark and rain. To top it all off we found we had a leaking flush valve on the toilet so we had to go without water.

Tired, wet and without water we went to the local Bob Evans for dinner, and then to bed. We rose early the next morning and again went to BobEvans for breakfast. We got on the road quickly and headed south once agin, hoping for better weather.

Sunday January 5 found us stopping for the night in Birmingham, Alabama at the Birmingham South Campground. If you happen to be on the road and in the area of Birmingham I would recommend you make the Birmingham South Campground a stop on your way. It is a lovely park with a staff that will go out of their way to please. All the hookups are easy to get to and the concrete patio and walk at your front door is great in inclement weather. The staff was so wonderfull and after telling them of my water problem, they gave me the name of a repaiman to call.

It was late on Sunday by the time we got set up but I gave a call to Lyle (the RV repairman) on his cell phone in hopes he could help. Next morning Lyle called and after a few questions went to see if he had the part. He called back a short time later and said he had the part and could install it that day. Lyle did an excellent job at a reasonable price.

Should you find yourself in a position to need some work done I would recommend Lyle, you can reach him at 205-668-9975 or his cell at 205-368-5847.

I must apologize for my lack of pictures to accompany these reports but with the rain and gloomy weather I just did not get to it. When we woke up Tuesday morning (1/6/09) it looked to be a good day and I did snap this picture of the well lit entrance to the Birmingham South Campground. As the sun came out we got on our way again with hopes that our trip today would be better than it had been.

As we headed south on I65 once again it became apparent that our luck had not changed but shifted in another direction. The rain was gone and the temps were begining to rise but some very heavy winds made the driving quite stressfull. I understand we had gusts of up to 35 miles per hour. I had to keep a deathlike grip on the steering wheel just to keep us on the road. I have never driven in such a hard wind before. Even the professional drivers in their big rigs were having a hard time keeping in their lane. If a big gust came up at the wrong time you had to fight to stay on the road and in your lane.

The trip from Birmingham to the Mobile area only took 5 hours but it felt like I had been driving for ten hours. We pulled into the HillTop RV Park in Robertsdale, Alabama around 3:30 in the afternoon and were once again greeted with a friendly smile. This too is a very nice campground but they have very few mature trees and I suspect it would be quite hot in the summer.

Pictured at the left is the entrance to the HillTop RV Park. Our plans are to stay here till the 17th of January when we will be heading out to New Orleans.

The weather has been cooperation for the last two days and we have had some great sunshine and the temps have been hitting highs in the upper 60's to the low 70's. I think I am going to love winter around this area. By the way that picture to the Right is Marsha sitting in the sun getting caught up on her reading. She really needs to slow down since she only brought 12 novels with her to last till we get to Texas.

We plan to spend the next few days doing some relaxing, some sightseeing, some relaxing, some reading, and maybe even a bit of relaxing. It looks like there are some fun things to do and some neat stuff to see here in the Mobile/Pensacola area.

The Weather Looks Good

A check of the weather for this area looks quite good for Saturday January 3, 2009. There is no snow in the forecast but we can expect some cold temps.

The past few days have been spent getting all those little ducks in a row. While I am not an environmental wacko we have converted most of our bills to paperless so it will be easier to monitor and pay them. We have also finalized all the other little things that need to be done before leaving home.

So with the weather cooperating and all the duck in a row, it looks like we can get started on this adventure first thing in the morning. All the clothing and dry goods have been loaded and stored in the motorhome. The boxes of liquids are sitting on the living room floor ready to go. Both the cats seem quite curious about what is going on. Diablo seems to be a bit worried that we are leaving him behind, in spite of our assurances we are not.

I am hoping to be able to get everything shut down here before noon tomorrow. Draining the hot water heater and the water system should be a snap, and after unplugging everything and turning down the thermostat we should be done. I chatted a bit today with several of the neighbors and told them we are finally ready to get going. John, across the street will inform the UPS driver in case something comes we are not aware of. Jim, our over the fence neighbor is a Sheriffs department Deputy so he will be keeping an eye on things while we are gone. The mail is set to be forwarded, so it seems we are ready to leave.

Everybody keep your fingers crossed.