200810

WEDNESDAY 1 OCTOBER 2008 – We had a bit of a disturbed night.  It seems we were on the car park used by the night fishermen and they all drive noisy trucks.  Make an early start along the coast then over a big bridge across St Louis Bay.  Following the Beach Road we immediately see storm damage including huge sections of the road that area closed.  Remains of a water park include tube slides that terminate mid air or maybe that’s a new style ride to come!  It’s a beautiful area so we understand why people want to live here but judging by the number of damaged homes they sure are paying the price.  Silver Slipper casino has a stunning location at the end of a headland surrounded by lovely beaches.  We get $10 each play credit; free T-shirts and half price buffet vouchers.  Steve has a really good session on the slots winning over $90 giving us a profit of over $100.  The lunch buffet at $6.99 (£3.75) and 2 for 1 is outstanding value and we make real pigs of ourselves.  Machines with soft drinks and coffee are around so having persuaded the bar man to put the Liverpool match on TV Steve settles in for the afternoon.  Move to the far side car park for the night.

WAVELAND, SILVER SLIPPER CAR PARK

THURSDAY 2 OCTOBER – At the junction with the I10 there is a huge Mississippi welcome centre and the NASA visitor centre.  A free shuttle takes you for a tour of the John C Stennis Space Centre where they test the space rockets.  We go round a small part of the base and see the huge test towers then drop us at a visitor centre.  Roaming around there are lots of things to try out including a shuttle landing which we both manage to crash!  The thermal imaging camera is also fun.  The freeway takes us in to LOUISIANNA where we head to New Orleans on an impressive bridge over Lake Pontchartrain.  Our “Couchsurfing” has no parking near her home but has arranged parking at her Mums.  Her Dad Carlos greets us and soon has us parked up then settled in the house having a drink.  He phones Maria’s partner Skip who has just finished teaching at school and heads over to pick us up.  Maria’s Mum Carol arrives home and I chat to her until Skip arrives.  It’s quite strange for us having to pack a bag and we don’t know how long for so that confuses the issue.  Skip and Maria live in the lovely historical area of Algiers.  As well as being well travelled Skip is in to property renovation so we have lots to chat about.  This is one of the oldest residential areas of New Orleans and built on older ground so they usually escape most of the storm damage.  They have 2 dogs, Toller and Izzy and a cat called Kitty.  Maria is doing a nursing course at college and is tired when she arrives back late.  After a quick introduction we settle onto the airbed in the lounge.  

NEW ORLEANS 1, ALGIERS

FRIDAY 3 OCTOBER – Maria is free late morning and along with her college friend Elizabeth they escort us over to the city.  It’s a short walk to catch the free ferry across the Mississippi River to the French Quarter.  Stop at the famous Café du Monde for a drink and some “beignets”, a kind of flat doughnut that is piled high with icing sugar.  The best way to eat it is to shake of as much of it as possible then lean to one side so the rest of the icing sugar falls on the floor.  Next we check out the French Market, originally fruit and vegetables but now crafts.  Maria & Elizabeth must get back but we have an AAA walking tour to follow.  The architecture is stunning and looks really beautiful with the lacy ironwork enhanced with flowers.  Royal Street seems to have the most impressive balconies but Bourbon Street is the liveliest.  We can only imagine what it is like at night as we visit during lunchtime and already people are wandering through the streets drinking cocktails and drifting in and out of the bars where loud music is playing.  Make a late lunch stop at the famous “Johnny’s Po-Boys” where we share a roast beef sandwich with garlic gravy and it is delicious.  Return to the main square to admire the surrounding buildings before walking back along the riverbank.  The French Quarter has a really nice feel to it, nothing like anywhere else we have been in America and we can see the attraction.  Return to Maria & Skips for a quick shower and rest.  They suggest going out for a meal so we hop in the car to go back over the river to Cunningham’s Cheesecake on Charles Avenue.  The offer an amazing selection of cheesecake desserts so I have to chose my main course carefully to be sure to have enough room.  I have another beef po-boy and this one is even better as it comes with the gravy to dip the sandwich in.  

NEW ORLEANS 2, ALGIERS

SATURDAY 4 OCTOBER – Our departure is delayed when I get a text from Claire asking me to call urgently.  Turns out Mum had a fall yesterday and is now in hospital having an operation to repair her broken hip.  I speak to Netty and also the hospital and find she has come through the operation well and is now resting.  Return to the city and catch the streetcar, $1.25 (75p) out along Charles Avenue where there are some magnificent mansions from the 1800’s.  The streetcar itself is unique in being the oldest one in continuous use.  It’s voting day today and at all the road junctions there are literally dozens of boards featuring the nominees and people waving placards, I count over 100 at one stop alone.  Get off the tram to walk around the Garden District area where we see even more impressive mansions in many different designs.  Most of the homes are very deep, close together and too near the road for a driveway.  Presumably built before cars were around because there are rows of horse hitching posts at the end of each road.  Lafayette cemetery is interesting with above ground tombs used by whole families.  When someone dies the front seal is broken and the bones raked out.  These are then put back in with the new corpse on top.  Back walking the streets we keep seeing rows of shallow drums in the ground and investigate.  They are in ground rubbish bins but we don’t delve deep enough to see whether they are bottomless or have to be emptied from the top!  Next we take a tram out to City Park to view the free sculpture garden.  It’s very interesting and even has a Henry Moore.  There’s a stadium in the park and obviously a game going on.    Leading up to the stadium is a huge area set up for tail gating parties almost on a commercial basis.  We see one with beer taps and try to buy a beer but it is a private tent and he won’t sell us one but gives us them for free then throws in some tickets for the football game.  It’s the local college team Tulane playing against the army and we catch the second two quarters to see the college team slaughtered.  In the evening we walk out in the Algiers area with Skip & Maria for dinner at the bar/restaurant near the ferry terminal.  They both have lots to do tomorrow so Skip takes us back to the motorhome for the night.  Once again the Couchsurfing system has worked brilliantly for us and now we have more new friends.

NEW ORLEANS 3, CAROL & CARLOS’S

SUNDAY 5 OCTOBER – Manage to speak to Mum in hospital and she is very sore but sounds to have come through the hip replacement operation well.  Carol has invited us in for breakfast and cooks up delicious bacon, eggs, cheesy grits and biscuits.  They taste far nicer than the commercial versions we have had before.  In their garden they have a voting poster showing the picture of a dog and saying Willie Bean for mayor.  It’s their daughters dog that ran for mayor in the town of Fairhope and got more votes than many of the other candidates – now doesn’t that tell you something!    www.williebeanformayor.com Carlos helps with a few travel tips and by late morning we are ready to move on.  Another example of the excellent southern hospitality.  We pick up the river road but can’t actually see the water because of the levy.  Along this route there are lots of cane fields and old plantations.  We turn off to look at a few but don’t want to pay $15 (£8.50) to go inside.  Laura is a very attractive old painted home but Oak Alley has to have the prettiest approach lined with oak trees.  This area has obviously suffered badly in the recent storms as many homes have blue tarpaulin on the roofs and trees have fallen all over.  Once we have driven past the best of the plantations its still early afternoon so we have a change of plan and head onwards to Baton Rouge.  As soon as we cross the Mississippi River we are impressed as we make our way along the riverside.  We expect places to be quieter on Sundays but here there is almost no traffic so it is very easy navigating.  The State Capitol is in a fantastic art deco tower building and even more impressive inside.  We ride up to the 27^th floor for great views over the river, the city and also the massive oil refineries.  These deal with the largest volume anywhere in Northern America.  Check out the statues, murals and other points of interest on the ground floor.  Walk through the gardens past the tomb of state governor Huey Long who was buried here after being assassinated in the building.  Huey Long was also responsible for building the Governors Mansion as a replica of the White House so that he would know his way around then he got there!  Notice a sign saying the museums are free on the 1^st Sunday of the month from 1-5pm.  It’s almost 4pm but we manage to race through the art museum then in to the original State Capital in a castle style building with fantastic spiral staircase topped with a pretty glass roof.  Hastening through that we make the planetarium just before closing.  Hollywood Casino is at the end of the road and a handy overnight parking spot. 

BATON ROUGE, HOLLYWOOD CASINO

MONDAY 6 OCTOBER – Heading to Lafayette we cross an enormous swamp at Henderson but that’s about the only point of interest en route.  We want to visit the Acadia Cultural Centre but before going in we pop in to the Mardi Gras factory opposite where they make the floats.  It’s really interesting to see the works in progress and realise that this factory also does work for the Mexican and Spanish Mardi Gras.  In the proper museum we study the displays then enjoy a movie about how the people were banished from Nova Scotia to finally end up here.  Next is followed by an even more interesting one about the Atchafalaya swamp and this prompts us to consider doing a swamp tour.  Unfortunately after the storms the water level is extremely high and tours not on track.  With little choice we take the I10 but it is most unpleasant and made worse as the highway is concrete slabs that are noisy as you bounce over them.  Lake Charles is really nice with a huge lake in the centre of town and lots of parking. There is a 911 memorial to 3 local people who died.  2 beams from the World Trade Centre were transported here as the centrepiece and it’s amazing to see how buckled and twisted they area.  The “Auberge du Lac” is a very posh casino with no membership freebies but at least they let us stay on the parking lot for free.

LAKE CHARLES, AUBERGE DU LAC

TUESDAY 7 OCTOBER – There is a lovely sandy beach on the banks of Lake Charles but the day starts with the threat of a big storm.  On the freeway we really hit it and have to crawl along in order to see.  At Vinton you can free camp at Delta Downs casino.  Unusually this is also a racetrack so situated in the country.  Once the rain stops we check out their sign up offers but just come away with free T-shirts – at least these are red and a change from our white collection.  There is no lunch buffet on Monday or Tuesday so we eat in the van and have a relaxing planning day.  We can tell we are in the country as a skunk waddles along the edge of the race track then puts it’s tail up when Steve goes close to take a photo!  With free wi-fi I can use Skype to contact Mum via the Internet.  She has been up and about but finds it very painful.  

VINTON, DELTA DOWNS CASINO

WEDNESDAY 8 OCTOBER – We are woken to the sound of horses galloping past, seems they are out for an early morning training session on the course and we have a grandstand view by the starting post.  Hitting the road we are soon in TEXAS and stop at the excellent visitor centre to gather state info.  The few tourist attractions in the town of Orange are still closed after the storms.  Travelling through Bridge City we see the worst damage to date.  They took the brunt of hurricane Ike as it came ashore and flooded the area.  Trees are down everywhere and by the roadside we see the ruined stuff people have dragged out of their homes awaiting refuse collection.  I stop to shop at the recently re opened Wal*Mart and am stunned when I enter the store.  The floor is now bare concrete but what hits me most is the type of things they are selling.  Wellington boots are piled high, bed mattresses and other necessary replacement items abound whilst fresh food is non-existent.  Two impressive bridges lead us to Port Arthur that survived somewhat better due to a good levy bank.  For some reason religious symbols abound here and we begin at the Shrine of our Lady of Guadalupe.  A 27’ bronze statue sits on top of rocks brought from Mount Tepayac in Mexico where the Virgin Mary appeared to Juan Diego.  Queen of Peace Shrine down the road is a beautiful oriental garden built by Queen of Vietnamese Martyrs Catholics.  As we are crossing the road to it a Police car pulls over.  The officer is surprised to see tourists here and wants to know if we are enjoying our visit.  He lived in England for many years so lingers chatting.  He tells us it is unsafe to stay in this area overnight as we are on the edge of gang territory but it is OK in the day.  The seafront is not as we imagined as you can see nothing but the levy bank and the only interest on Lakeshore Drive is a few nice houses.  The Buddhist temple is closed due to storm damage but completes the trio of religious sites.  Over on Pleasure Island there are no beaches and the coast road is closed so we are done with Port Arthur.  Highway 73 is a shock to the system.  Whilst the road has been cleared of debris it is still piled at the sides and gives us a further insight into how bad things were.  There are huge mounds of stuff that looks like mud covered with hay and these are entwined with debris including tin roofs, doors, windows and even a fridge whilst other items are stuck up in trees.  This goes on for miles and we cannot imagine what the coastal road is like as we are now a good 10 miles inland.  The small town of Anahuac is also in the process of recovery.  You can camp at the county parks and we call in to the Court House to get a permit.  I am told that Fort Anahuac Park is full of tent campers from a religious group who are there to help.  They suggest we try White Memorial Park back near the freeway as it will be much quieter.  It’s a large and pleasant wooded park leading down to Turtle Bayou but certainly not a quiet spot.  Along with the noise of the motorway traffic we hear chain saws running as worked begin to remove the fallen trees.  Still it’s a free spot and we are biding our time to arrive in Houston for the weekend so we will take it.

ANAHUAC, WHITE MEMORIAL PARK

THURSDAY 9 OCTOBER – Manage a reasonable nights sleep.  Whilst the days are still hot we are noticing cooler evenings, down to 70F and even wake up to see dew on the grass – a first since we got back in July.  Spend a quiet day relaxing.

ANAHUAC 2, WHITE MEMORIAL PARK

FRIDAY 10 OCTOBER – For the first time since last November we see gas priced at under $3 (£1.85) a gallon, maybe this is partly because we are driving in an area where every large plot of land is taken up with massive refineries.  Unfortunately it is not any cheaper for us as the exchange rate has now dropped to $1.70 = £1.  San Jacinto memorial is the tallest obelisk in the world but both that and the Battleship Texas opposite are closed due to the storm.  In Houston we return to visit our host Tim.  Catch up on his news then join him for a visit to the YMCA where he is a member.  They have a great fitness centre and I can go free as his guest so get to put in 40 lengths in the outdoor swimming pool.  When Steve & Tim are waiting for me in the lounge area there is a TV showing staggering falls then leaps on the American stock market.  As Tim says things must be bad when even the lifeguards are talking about it!  Take lunch at the café where they provide healthy food, the turkey chilli at $2.99 (£1.85) a bowl is delicious.  Driving back he takes us through many of the housing areas with storm damage and we still see huge oak trees that have not been sawn up.  Many homes were lucky to have the trees fall away from them but others have had trees fall on both the front and the back.  I phone Mum who has been moved to Whitchurch hospital but she is still in a lot of pain and struggling to get the new hip moving.  It’s frustrating that we are so far away and I can’t nip back to visit and help but we had such a hard time getting back into America that I fear they would not let me return and that would leave Steve stranded here alone.  In the evening we sit in the house chatting whilst Tim cooks us pasta and pizza to go with the wine.

HOUSTON, TIMS

SATURDAY 11 OCTOBER – With good internet connection we do more travel planning and are now considering taking the motorhome into Belize and Guatemala so that opens up a whole new area of research.  Tim is out for dance lessons late afternoon and then to a party so we have made arrangements to meet the daughter and family of our Dutch friends Henk and Klara.  Ineke arrives to pick us up and take us to their apartment in Spring, about half an hour north.  Along with her husband Jos and daughters Mara, 11 and Jonna 8 they moved here 3 months ago.  They are also members of the hospitality clubs.  We go to a nearby Chinese buffet called “China Bear” and chat our way through the meal.  As usual there is an excellent choice of food but this one also includes things like crab legs and crayfish.  Also there is a huge shop attached to the restaurant selling some impressive Chinese ornaments at very reasonable prices.  Next they take us up to Woodlands Market Street where there is a European style village square.  We pick up drinks from Starbucks and sit around the square enjoying the evening.  Jos is working in a school here and Ineke works for a petroleum company but from home.  Both the girls have settled in really well at school in spite of having to learn English quickly.  After an enjoyable evening making friends Ineke drops us back home.

HOUSTON 2

SUNDAY 12 OCTOBER – After chatting to Tim we head west to Brookshire.  Wayne is president of Health Hides of Houston club and has invited us to visit.  They live in a newly developing area and designed their own home and created a private back garden where they can sunbathe au natural.  His wife Sylvia is also very friendly and they make us really welcome and invite us to stay in one of their spare bedrooms.  Their swimming pool is beautiful and has a long rock waterfall across the back making it sound like a babbling stream.  Find lots to chat about through the afternoon before joining them for an evening meal.  Looks like we are going to be here a few days so we all do our own thing in the evening.

BROOKSHIRE

MONDAY 13 0CT0BER- Sylvia runs her own Diabetic Management company and although it is Columbus Day holiday opts to go in to work to do a few things.  Wayne has quite a lot of holiday left this year so takes the day off.  In the morning we give Harry a bit of a sprucing up so we can take photos to put on the Internet later when we try to sell it.  At dinnertime we go in to Houston and pick up Sylvia to join us at Brothers pizza.  We’re all weary in the afternoon so just hang around. After a late dip in the pool there is a cool breeze so we jump in the hot tub.  It’s a great design with lots of different massage areas so we stay in for ages.  I prepare some potato slices and pork to BBQ for evening meal.  After eating we play a game of petanque on their new petanque court.

BROOKSHIRE 2

TUESDAY 14 OCTOBER – The dull start to the day deteriorates into a thunderstorm with rain.  Fortunately it is brighter in the afternoon and we can sit out by the pool.  Wayne has taken another days holidays so is even more pleased about that than us!  After a steak BBQ in the evening they teach us a new game of dominoes.  It is with a set that goes up to double 12 and called Mexican Train and great fun.

BROOKSHIRE 3

WEDNESDAY 15 OCTOBER – To avoid traffic Wayne works flexi time and leaves early in the morning.  Being self-employed and “not a morning person” Sylvia heads in later leaving us home alone.  We finish working on Harry to enable us to do a photo shoot to put on the Internet to help when we sell it.  In the afternoon we get more heavy rain but at least it is still warm.  After our evening meal we finish of the Mexican Train game, which I am lucky to win.

BROOKSHIRE 4

MONDAY 15 SEPTEMBER – Back to the springs for another relaxing day.  Around 2.30pm it begins raining so we take our cue and leave.  The next big town is Perry where we use the library for Internet.  Looks like we may have to travel slower than planned as pretty much all the coastline of Texas was wiped out by Ike and people are still stranded in cars.  Settle onto the Wal*Mart car park for the night.

PERRY WAL*MART

TUESDAY 16 SEPTEMBER – Unusually we wake to a humid cloudy drizzly day.  One of the big advantages of parking at Wal*Mart is that you get first pick of the reductions early in the morning!  We park in town using wi-fi until lunchtime.  Travelling through Sopchoppy we see our first gas station out of fuel – maybe a sign of things to come.  We have a map of Apalachicola National Forest but still have trouble finding the campground as the 399 has been changed to the 299 and other roads don’t exists as shown on the map.  Eventually we find the spot and it is well worth the hunt.  You can free camp for up to 14 days with new clean pit toilets, picnic tables, fireplaces, hunt hanging and carving table and boat ramp all available.  We make the short walk to the boat ramp for quick dips in the water, it’s a kind of rusty colour and not very clear.  Knowing alligators are in the area we are not keen to go far or to linger but it’s enough for cooling off. There’s no one else here so we are free to strip off and enjoy the afternoon sun.  Just one car arrives with a boat that goes out for an hour or so before they leave.

APALACHICOLA NATIONAL FOREST, WOOD LAKE

WEDNESDAY 17 SEPTEMBER – It was a really cool night, the first since we arrived in Florida back in April, well by cool I mean down to 70F!  Enjoy a relaxing day and again just one car comes down with a boat.  In the evening Steve makes a fire and cooks our toasted cheese sandwich on it.

WOOD LAKE 2

THURSDAY 18 SEPTEMBER – We get up late, as it is nice to linger in bed without being hot and sweaty.  Having bought some bleach I spend the morning scrubbing all the mould from our outdoor chairs and it works a treat.  A local arrives in a car and gets chatting to Steve over a beer.  He kindly points out a fresh water tap tucked away at the end of the campground so now we won’t even need to brave the lake for bathing.  Occasional spots of rain are insufficient to force us in during the afternoon.  A boat pulls up and shortly after a car and trailer arrive to drag it out.  Feeling really settled here as it is so peaceful and we have as much sun or shade, as we want.

WOOD LAKE 3

FRIDAY 19 SEPTEMBER – Steve’s 54^th birthday and we go for a morning stroll with the phone to try and get reception in case he has texts messages but no signal.  More time for relaxing, in fact I am reading a book a day at the moment so obviously too much time on our hands.  We have our main meal and mid day and I cook us a nice steak followed by apple pie and custard and rounded off with fresh coffee, cheese and grapes – gee it’s a tough life!  We sit out late in the evening playing cards, as it is such a pleasant temperature.

WOOD LAKE 4

SATURDAY 20 SEPTEMBER – We wake up early when a car towing a boat comes in.  I get up and cook up a curry and make a fresh fruit salad for later.  It’s a busier day with quite a few people coming in and out with their boats but still a great spot to be.

WOOD LAKE 5

SUNDAY 21 SEPTEMBER – A couple of lads stayed overnight and kept going back and forward to the water so not so good for sleeping.  We are ready to move on anyway and pick up route 98 taking us along the coast of the panhandle of Florida.  We pay our top price for gas at $3.89 (GBP2.20) a reflection on the shortages following hurricane Ike.  It is a very scenic route mostly right at the edge of the water where we see lots of stilt houses.  Old rickety ones are mixed in with some very grand mansions.  Many areas of the road are being built up after erosion problems from the storm.  This area is known as the “Forgotten Coast” but we have no idea why as it is so beautiful.  Apalachicola is a quiet little riverside town with no campground therefore they welcome motor homes to stay overnight on their car parks.  We are almost spoilt for choice when we drive around but opt for the one out on Market Street by the new Vietnam memorial.  Return for a walk around town with very attractive wide streets a remnant from when it was a bustling cotton shipping port.  It went on to service the logging industry and became very prosperous so there are some nice mansions as well.  Retire to the car park late afternoon for a peaceful night.

APALACHICOLA

MONDAY 22 SEPTEMBER – Again we really enjoy a beautiful coastal drive, the water is a pretty turquoise green and the beach is like powdered sugar it is so white and fine.  Just before Panama City we cross into the Central time zone so now 6 hours behind BST.  Panama City is huge but we manage to pick up the things we need and get a verdict on a generator problem enabling us to get it going again.  Over the bridge Panama City Beach, on the Emerald Coast, is a whole different story and just like Orlando.  A huge strip runs behind the beach full of accommodation, tourist attractions like “Ripley’s Believe it or not” and loads of shops and restaurants.  Have to laugh at Pineapple Willies being directly opposite Dirty Dicks.  Stop to check out a few sections of the beach but parking is difficult and we reckon we will find nicer and quieter beaches when we turn off onto the 30a.  Got that one wrong as almost the whole of the coastal strange is being developed into cheesy mini villages.  It’s like Disney meets Noddy’s toytown on a grand scale with intermittent old shacks where developers haven’t been able to buy out the land.   At Deer Lake state park we can go over a boardwalk to the beach but once we get there it is cloudy and windy!  When we stayed at Cypress Cove Resort our neighbours were John & Margaret from Santa Rosa Beach and they have invited us to visit.  They moved here from Georgia when they retired and designed their own home.  Unfortunately Margaret is away in Georgia but John and their dog Lizzie are there to great us.  Their home is a fabulous boomerang shaped one and very well thought out.  They have a secluded swimming pool and a boardwalks leads over the swamp to a riverside dock.  Spend the rest of the afternoon relaxing by the pool before cooking us a meal in the evening.

SANTA ROSA BEACH

TUESDAY 23 SEPTEMBER – John used to work with computers and says he will help me do a recovery on my laptop, as many things are not working well.  I paid to have it done whilst back in England but not with the original disk, which were in Florida.  Things do not go well and by mid afternoon, in spite of Johns best efforts, the things seems to have died.  The Geek Squad at the Destin Best Buy store reckon the hard drive has gone with the recovery being the final nail in the coffin.  Check out the laptops they sell and reckon the Toshiba Satellite at $699 looks the best deal but will do some research on Johns computer overnight.  We’ve been hard at it all day so John sends out for a Chinese and it is really nice.

SANTA ROSA BEACH 2

WEDNESDAY 24 SEPTEMBER – Must be my lucky day as not only does my Canadian friend Kevin recommend the laptop I have selected but it has dropped in price to $649.  John helps out by taking me to the store to pick one up.  For the rest of the day Steve lounges by the pool whilst I set about learning how to use Vista and putting things onto the new computer.  John is a great help as many things do not go as planned.  By 11pm we are making headway but still lots to do so call it a day with a plan to stay on tomorrow.

SANTA ROSA BEACH 3

THURSDAY 25 SEPTEMBER – Plod on with the laptop and by the end of the day I have most things up and running, even manage to fit in some swims whilst things are loading up!  Vista is certainly frustrating and I can see why people say it is a temporary operating system!  Big news is the when the President comes on the news to talk about a bale out for the financial problems in the country.  

SANTA ROSA BEACH 4

FRIDAY 26 SEPTEMBER – We’ve had a great time with John but feel it is time to press on.  Continue along the coast to Navarre where we call in to Wal-Mart and confirm that we can park there overnight.  A little further on we drive over the causeway to Navarre Beach on the Gulf Islands National Seashore.  Boardwalks take you over the dunes to a picture perfect spot where we set up to sunbathe.  The nearby pier has been broken by the hurricane and a local tells us that this coast road is closed further along due to storm damage.  We are on a huge car park and Steve asks the local restaurant owner if he thinks we would be OK to stay overnight and he can see no reason why not.  In the evening the restaurant are holding Parrot Head party so we get to sit in the motorhome and enjoy the music from the live band.

NAVARRE BEACH

SATURDAY 27 SEPTEMBER – Our pleasant journey continues along highway 98 with more nice seashore views.  A huge bridge leads us to the major city of Pensacola, but being a Saturday morning it is very quiet and we drive right through the centre with no problems.  Harry finally leaves Florida, after being there for over 5 months, as we enter ALABAMA.  In Foley the City museum we wanted to look at is closed but in the railway station we see a well laid out model railway in action.  The famous “Stacey Rexall Drugs and Old Tyme Soda Fountain” store is not that impressive.  Weeks Bay Reserve wetlands have an interesting boardwalk with all the native trees labelled and a booklet with information about them.  The scenic coast road alongside Mobile Bay has some lovely homes.  Arrive in Fairhope where there is a sculpture park above the municipal pier.  There’s ample parking at the bottom and we enjoy a walk around and admire the fountain in the centre of the rose garden before having lunch.  Daphne is the next town where the Wal-Mart is well back from the main road and they say we can park overnight.  It’s too early in the day for that so we drive into town and find the main street closed due to the 20^th annual Jubilee Festival.  In the nearby Lott car park there are already 2 caravans and a motorhome parked up and the motorhome owner tells us you can stay overnight.   Roam the street checking out the stalls and catch some of the entertainment outside the civic hall.  Wander down to the bay but the roads are too steep and narrow to be good for Harry so we will stay where we are.  Late afternoon we sit out by the van watching the locals make use of the free tennis courts.

DAPHNE, LOTT PARK

SUNDAY 28 SEPTEMBER – At the northern end of Main Street we stop off to walk “Alligator Alley” beside the creek where we immediately see a good sized specimen.  Hope in the I10 to take us over the river to Mobile.  Plan to explore the area but did not plan to do so in the motorhome but the tourist info signs are so confusing that we do a very circuitous route to get there when it should have been easy.  It is located inside Fort Conde and whilst the tourist info is poor the fort is quite interesting.  I especially like the old photos of Mardi Gras.  Next we do the walking tour mainly along Dauphin where there are many really nice old buildings with lots of fancy wrought ironwork balustrades.  Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception is impressive outside but more so inside.  The Scottish Rites temple is amazing in the form of an Egyptian temple but now closed as a religious building and available to rent for functions.  A hobo does his washing in one of the ornamental fountains!  Return to the van to do the historical driving tour.  Pass a “Save a lot” store, a rare sight in the States, the American version of Lidl or Aldi so of course we are obliged as motorhomers to call in!  The driving tour takes us out to Oakleigh Garden area with some fine mansions.  Early afternoon we’ve seen enough and head off on the I10.  Once it changes to a 2-lane motorway it is no fun as the lorries are not happy with us plodding along at 50 mph and hoot as they go past.  As soon as we cross into MISSISSIPPI we leave and rejoin the 90.  Pascagoula is the first time we come into and this time we take up Wal-Marts offer of overnight parking.  Jimmy Buffet, famed for Parrot Head music, was born here but that’s about the only claim to fame. 

PASCAGOULA WAL*MART

MONDAY 29 SEPTEMBER – Cross the bay bridge to Biloxi beach area where there are numerous casinos.  We are getting wise to the system now and set out to simply take up all the offers and only gamble as necessary.  Often when you are given sign up credit you must put it through the machines but can take out your winnings and this is exactly what we do.  Palace Casino give us $10 each for signing up and we add $1 each to activate it, put it through the slots and walk out with $36.50 thank you very much.  Isle of Capri gives us stubby holders for new sign up and Steve gets a T-shirt with it being his birthday month.  There are a whole bunch of casinos here spread out along the shoreline.  Everything here is vulnerable to storm damage and part of life for people who live here.  In fact a local tells us that if they get a year without storm damage they consider it a bonus.  Unfortunately this year they have already been hit by two hurricanes.  Gustav brought strong winds then shortly after the area was flooded during hurricane Ike. There’s a beautiful white sandy beach here but it is closed whilst they clear it of debris.  Many other damaged buildings can be seen and some of the older casinos have now been demolished to make way for storm proof new ones.  Hard Rock casino has some impressive memorabilia including Madonna’s bustier and Elton Johns jumpsuit and cloak.  Beau Rivage is really beautiful inside and compares well with the Vegas casinos.  Boomtown Casino offers a 2 for 1 buffet on Monday and Wednesday (normally $10.99) and a free shuttle bus so we take up the deal.  It a pretty good spread including crab, prawns and mussels.  They offer $10 to new members but you can’t spend it until tomorrow. Walk of our lunch by strolling to nearby Imperial Palace but no deals there.  Back at Main Street we look at the Katrina memorial then take a walk down the street where there are some impressive buildings that seem to have come through unscathed whilst others look quite battered.  Return to Isle of Capri where we have a lovely free parking spot looking out over the bay.

BILOXI, ISLE OF CAPRI CASINO

TUESDAY 30 SEPTEMBER – Begin the day at Hard Rock café where Steve gets a free breakfast for his birthday month.  We both get $10 credit but have to return after 11am to use it.  Up to Boomtown to get their $10 credit then back to Hard Rock for theirs.  The Palace do a $10.99 lunch buffet and reimburse $10 in play credit so we take that up.  The buffet is comparatively poor but we get most of the money back once we have played the slots.  Along the coast we call in at Treasure Bay to convert their  $10 credits to cash.  In the middle of the dual carriageway many trees were damaged during Katrina but the remaining stumps have been carved into animal and bird sculptures.  The lighthouse on the front has survived all the storms and is painted white but when Lincoln was assassinated they painted it black for a time.  Final stop of the day is Island View casino in Gulfport.  They direct us to park by the beach as the casino is on the inland side of the highway so we have another nice view.  This time you get random credit ranging from $10 - $1000.  Steve wins $10 and I get $15 and we convert it to just over $20 cash.  So who says you cannot win at casinos.  I figure we are at least $50 up on the deal and have had entertainment, food, drinks and free camping to boot.

GULFPORT, ISLAND VIEW CASINO