Friday, April 25, 2014

Downtown New Orleans as seen from ferry while traveling across "The Big Muddy".

Another erector set bridge crossing the Mississippi.  We drove across this bridge multiple times.

Trolley from ferry to French quarter.

Glass topped wall to prevent entry into courtyard.


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I still couldn't bring myself to eat gator.

All kinds of gator offerings.

Crawfish - BIG item in the south.


Gator Humor at French Market.

They learned the hard way over the decades that bodies cannot be buried in the ground in LA - When the water tables rise during storms, so do the bodies!!  Some amazing statues and sculptures.

April 25

When this adventure began Paul told me he wanted to go to New Orleans.  I was not too excited about that.  I don't like jazz music and I don't drink (much, hardly ever).  Our trip had been pretty full of bad weather, we had only made one stop in Mississippi at the last home of Jefferson Davis in Biloxi, and the #1 listed thing to do in Gulfport was a local "disco".  Well as wonderful as it  might have been to go to the disco we decided to motor on to "Nawlins" after all and ended up spending a week there!

We stayed at a wonderful state park, Bayou Segnette, which unfortunately I did not take pictures of.  Dumb.  There were wide spaces, lots of grassy areas between spaces and we were only about 15 minutes from a free ferry at Algiers Point, which was located directly across from the French Quarter.  I learned from messages online that it was a free ferry and that the ferry wharf was right on the border of the area we wanted to tour.  It was all good.  I enjoyed the French Quarter much more than I expected to.  There was no big celebration going on so tourists were civilized and mostly sober.  It was a little weird to see people walking down the street carrying plastic cups full of "adult beverages".

I loved looking at all the wrought iron balconies full of flowering plants and vines.  Just lovely.  We also enjoyed the requisite beignets at a lovely restaurant called Cafe Beignet (recommended by sister-in-law Karen.  Thanks Karen!).  We did add some strawberries so it was a semi....very semi..."healthy" afternoon snack.  We toured the  house of a writer who was famous a long time ago - she restored the house to it's original 1800's grandeur - it was definitely interesting but I loved the plantation we visited more.  Although it's sad to see something so beautiful and know it was built on the backs of enslaved human beings, the history behind the house was fascinating.  It sat right on the banks of the mighty Mississippi so the plantation owners could ships their products easily to market.  This area mostly grew sugar cane.

I have to say the might Mississippi was a bit of a surprise - it's totally brown.  Paul reminded me it is called the Big Muddy.  All the rivers in the southern states were brown - it made me homesick for those beautiful rivers in California!

Once again we survived a HUGE storm - lightening struck so close to us, thunder boomed and shook the COW which made Callie quiver and shake.  Paul had left to go to the store right before it hit and I was worried until he walked back into the door - he got caught in the downpour and was soaked through and through.  The park was well protected with many trees so we did ok - no damage - but one of the trees came down between the time Paul left and returned.  Kind of scary.  We hope to finish the trip without experiencing any more storms, at all!!!  Pictures to follow in next post.

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Got frustrated trying to add pictures - they would NOT go where I wanted them to - I need blog advice!!
So..here are shots that should have gone in last post:

View out the back window - Navarre Beach along Santa Rosa Sound.  Pensicola beach was across the sound from us.

Beauty after the storm.

Just a few feet from our C.O.W., after the storm.






Hey, they're green beans - that's healthy beach food - right??

Divying up the human's leftovers as a reward for sitting in the truck while the pack leaders were on the beach.



End of Pensacola Beach, the storm is coming!
April 23 #3 post - just feel like posting tonight so gotta strike while the iron is hot.

Paul again was a great tour guide and wanted very much to see the Emerald Coast of Florida - our last 3 days in this state - to be spent at some of the most beautiful beaches in the world.  Annnndddd - it rained for all 3 days - hugh storm - loud, terrifying, pounding, booming thunder, amazing lightening strikes, torrential rain - we were under a tornadic watch.  We wondered who would call first from among our loved ones, worried about our safety - well.....no one called.  :)  Guess none of our loved ones watches national weather.

We knew there was a possibility of storminess so Paul was prepared for inside work - he got our taxes done!!  Yay.  We did learn that the Blue Angels were funded again and practiced 2 days a week .  We headed over to Pensacola Beach and stood with a lot of other people to watch their amazing aerobatics.  It was thrilling and LOUD.    It made me feel very patriotic to watch them up there.
Ran to the beach before clouds rolled in to get this shot!  Will be my "calming" picture when I get home.  Life's a beach.









Paul had researched beaches in Florida and therefore our next stop was along "the lost coast", specifically Carabelle.  The noseeums were there and so was the humidity.  We actually got one really great day and headed to the beach.



One day at the beach - well, it's better than no days at the beach!  Across the bay from this beach we also went on a kayak tour - it was unfortunately lame - fun to be on the water but not what it was hyped to be.  As we left the lost coast we did something great - now I can say something I've always wanted to say... yeah, I went shoppin down to the Piggly Wiggly!   And even better, I went shoppin down to the Piggly Wiggly in Apalachicola.  I got the t-shirt to prove it!  We love the names in Florida.  Although we never did figure out how to say this one....
we-waw-hitch-ka??
April 23, 2014

After southern Florida we motored up to Tampa Bay, and stayed in a little town called Palmetto.  There we came to know and understand what no-see-ums are.  I hate them - you can't see em!!  They bite and then it itches - good reason never to go back.  While at Tampa we discovered that if you dump warm water into the Gulf (electric plant), you get manatees!!
 When you read about a canopy bridge, you learn it's really not as long as you thought, but it's really high, still cool and gives you a great view.








 Then you get to leave over a really cool bridge that ends in St. Petersburg, which we did not have time to explore.


Unfortunately we did not get great weather....again.


April 23, 2014

After southern Florida we motored up to Tampa Bay, and stayed in a little town called Palmetto.  There we came to know and understand what no-see-ums are.  I hate them - you can't see em!!  They bite and then it itches - good reason never to go back.  While at Tampa we discovered that if you dump warm water into the Gulf (electric plant), you get manatees!!
 When you read about a canopy bridge, you learn it's really not as long as you thought, but it's really high, still cool and gives you a great view.








 Then you get to leave over a really cool bridge that ends in St. Petersburg, which we did not have time to explore.


Unfortunately we did not get great weather....again.


Wednesday, April 2, 2014

April 2, #6....just one more....

Sanibel Island was on my Florida list for years.  I had seen a special on it one time and saw all the shells just laying around on the beaches - I was gonna leave with a ton of those shells!!  NOT.  Tides have a lot to do with it and I just couldn't get up at 4:00 a.m. to go collect shells especially when the beach was an hour away - I got so tired of traffic on that island and on the way to it - we got home late every night - don't need to go back.



Ok, the end, for now.
oops...forgot a few more randoms....


This flamingo was in a protected environment.  There are very few flamingos in Florida anymore.  Boooo!


Chickens are everywhere

in Key West.

Parking lots, sidewalks....


at your feet in restaurants!  
 The roosters were introduced many, many years ago when cock fights were legal.  The fights are over, the chickens are protected.
on front porches

in local art
 If you kill one, $500 fine!
I don't know why - I just took this pic cause I am continually surprised at what some women consider proper footwear to walk around in.
Last thought about the roosters - we were serenaded every morning by a cacophonous chorus of crowing!  If I lived in Key West, I might be tempted to just pay the $500 fine!!!