Whew, it has been very busy these last few days; on the road and on the go.
Dale was feeling not too badly Wednesday morning, after a good sleep in, so we decided we would continue our trek west. Took our time getting the bus ready to travel, and after fueling (found diesel at $2.859 gal at Walmart in San Antonio), were on the road by 11:45 a.m..Would like to have spent another day or two there, but with Dale not able to do much walking and stairs even more difficult, it would not be possible...this trip!
We only made one stop this whole drive day and that was to change drivers. We had switched "on the go" and I drove for just over four hours and then when we stopped, did another switch and Dale finished the days drive. We arrived in El Paso, TX around 8:30 that night, pulled into a Flying J travel stop and parked for the night. The drive through the Texas countryside was interesting. I had expected more flat land/desert scenery and instead was pleased to find the drive was through beautiful rolling hills, lots of green and bright blue Texas skies.
The next morning, Thursday, we were up a little earlier and ready to travel at 7:45 a.m., just in time to share rush hour traffic through El Paso! Dale's knees are still sore and he is still quite stiff but says driving does not cause him any problems. This day, driving through the Texas, part of New Mexico (we turned west again just south of Las Cruces, NM) and into Arizona, the scenery was ever changing.
We left the rolling hills of Texas and into the Arizona cactus country with outcroppings of huge boulders. Felt like we were coming home!!
We arrived in Yuma, AZ at 4:00 p.m., and pulled into The Palms RV Resort on Avenue 7E. This park is only three years old so quite new and very lovely. I had asked for a spot with afternoon shade as our big awning doesn't work (from the hurrican in Ontario). The first spot faced the wrong way and it turned out the sewer connection was broken (someone had run over it and not told the office). The second spot was even nicer, but again faced the wrong way. Finally, third time lucky and we got parked. By then I think the office was getting tired of hearing from me.....
We are right across from the pool(s) and clubhouse; have a lovely cobblestone patio, lots of space for the car, lots of "green" space between us and the next lot and every luxury we would ever need close to hand. The bonus being they have a special on right now which we are taking advantage of. We got the week for $100.00 whereas they usually charge around $50-$60 a night!!
BBQ'd a steak, shared a small potatoe, mixed grilled peppers and a salad for dinner and enjoyed sitting outside until well after dark. No mosquitoes so very pleasant and then to bed for a good nights sleep. While the Marine Corps Air Base is only a few miles down the road, if any planes were flying we never heard a sound.
Today, Saturday, Dale went off in the morning to get the car washed while I started my hobby (laundry) and got a few things done. Then off to town to "Yuma Palms" shopping centre to pick up a couple of things and have a bit of a drive and a look around Yuma. Now home and just relaxing for the rest of the day/evening. Now we are in Yuma, it does feel like we are almost home and are looking forward to being in Two Springs next Friday. We had planned on being there by November 5 so we will be arriving a few days earlier...will give us lots of time to get the lot in shape before we head off on our next venture.
That's it for now...hope everyone is keeping well..till next time...
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
San Antonio, TX..October 20, 2010
It was a busy day being a tourist in San Antonio. We first went for a a bit of a drive getting into town and then in the town centre area before heading over to do a tour of the Alamo. San Antonio is an interesting city in that you have very old (eg: Alamo) in the downtown area, next to hotels and tourist spots. The Alamo itself is quite spacious with beautifully maintained gardens. Inside the building, you are asked to be quiet, don't touch the walls, no videos, and please respect the area as it is regarded as a shrine. There is a model of the original Alamo during the seige by Santa Ana and lots of original pieces of equipment on display. You could feel the history seeping from the walls. Very very interesting.
From the Alamo, we had intended to do the "Riverwalk" but Dale took a bit of a tumble off a curb so decided it would be best if we did a "Riverdrive". Traffic in the downtown area is a bit slow as the right hand lane is for busses only and/or only if you are making a right turn, the left lane is for parking only (and left turns where allowed), so you only have the middle lane to travel in....slowly!
We had read about the El Mercado, Farmer's Market and the restaurant called "Mi Tierra" so we headed out that way. Of course, to add interest to the journey, we turned right when we should have turned left and toured quite a bit of the mainly Mexican dominated area of southwest San Antonio. In the end, we did stop and ask for directions and eventually found our way there.
After parking the car, we started to walk towards the El Mercado and Dale took another fall. This one somewhat more serious. He badly scraped his left knee (of course it is always the bad knee that takes the brunt of falls) and ripped the knee of his new trousers, and scraped his right knee as well, plus bruising his elbow. Thank goodness, for once, he had his hands out of his pockets on both falls otherwise the damage could have been a lot worse. A couple of bystanders witnessed this and came immediately to the rescue. They helped me get him to the nearby restaurant where we were able to sit down, get some ice and a bandage. Dale was in some discomfort so we stayed in the restaurant to have a bite to eat and drink until he was feeling less "shocky".
After this brief respite, he said he was feeling Ok and wanted to tour through the markets, which we did for a short time. In the end he sat on a bench while I did a quick breeze through the remaining shops. Picked up three Mexican blankets to use outside at Palm Springs, then we headed for home. Once Dale was settled, got his poor knees cleaned and applied ointment and clean bandages then I went out to the drugstore to pick up more large bandages. Now well prepared for any emergency!
So, to say the least, we are spending a quiet evening at home. Will see how he is feeling in the a.m., before we make a decision as to whether we stay a day and rest or continue our trek west....
The weather continues to be very very warm and as we travel we seem to be in between storms. They are all around us but we have experienced nothing but sunshine for quite some time. Hope that continues to be the case over the next few days as well.
Till next time, keep well, travel safe...
From the Alamo, we had intended to do the "Riverwalk" but Dale took a bit of a tumble off a curb so decided it would be best if we did a "Riverdrive". Traffic in the downtown area is a bit slow as the right hand lane is for busses only and/or only if you are making a right turn, the left lane is for parking only (and left turns where allowed), so you only have the middle lane to travel in....slowly!
We had read about the El Mercado, Farmer's Market and the restaurant called "Mi Tierra" so we headed out that way. Of course, to add interest to the journey, we turned right when we should have turned left and toured quite a bit of the mainly Mexican dominated area of southwest San Antonio. In the end, we did stop and ask for directions and eventually found our way there.
After parking the car, we started to walk towards the El Mercado and Dale took another fall. This one somewhat more serious. He badly scraped his left knee (of course it is always the bad knee that takes the brunt of falls) and ripped the knee of his new trousers, and scraped his right knee as well, plus bruising his elbow. Thank goodness, for once, he had his hands out of his pockets on both falls otherwise the damage could have been a lot worse. A couple of bystanders witnessed this and came immediately to the rescue. They helped me get him to the nearby restaurant where we were able to sit down, get some ice and a bandage. Dale was in some discomfort so we stayed in the restaurant to have a bite to eat and drink until he was feeling less "shocky".
After this brief respite, he said he was feeling Ok and wanted to tour through the markets, which we did for a short time. In the end he sat on a bench while I did a quick breeze through the remaining shops. Picked up three Mexican blankets to use outside at Palm Springs, then we headed for home. Once Dale was settled, got his poor knees cleaned and applied ointment and clean bandages then I went out to the drugstore to pick up more large bandages. Now well prepared for any emergency!
So, to say the least, we are spending a quiet evening at home. Will see how he is feeling in the a.m., before we make a decision as to whether we stay a day and rest or continue our trek west....
The weather continues to be very very warm and as we travel we seem to be in between storms. They are all around us but we have experienced nothing but sunshine for quite some time. Hope that continues to be the case over the next few days as well.
Till next time, keep well, travel safe...
New Orleans, LA to San Antonio, TX..Oct 18-19, 2010
We took a Bayou Tour on Monday out to Jean Layfaette (sp) Swamp out towards the south east part of New Orleans. It was very interesting to be out with the 'gators and see the many birds, turtles, spanish moss and the myriad of swamp grasses, floating hyacinths...just the variety of nature abundent in this area. The boat we were on had a covered top but was open all around so everyone had a good view. We were advised to keep arms and legs inside as the alligators can jump half the length of their body so could easily reach the "arm" length on the boat. Everyone forgot that a few times, busy with arms out taking pictures but as soon as an alligator came in sight, all limbs were quickly brought inside!
The tour was just under two hours and we both thoroughly enjoyed it. The bonus was their were no mosquitoes and they apparently don't appear until just after sunrise and just before sunset. We were out in the bayou from about 1:45 until 3:30, so good timing. The fellow doing the guiding has been in that area all his life and worked that area of the bayou. He has names for various alligators and can actually call them; and they will come to him. Also, he knows each one individually and knows each ones characteristics and habits..a very knowledgeable person and a good one to have as our guide.
When we returned to town we got off at Harrahs' Casino area and toured around for a short time before having some dinner at their buffet. Very good and fresh; thoroughly enjoyed a large salad and lots and lots of fresh shrimp. We are going to miss all the easily available and tasty seafood when we start to head inland to the desert.
New Orleans looks to be a city in need of much TLC. Don't know whether it is because of the age of the city or the devastation that has happended over the past years. So much in disrepair/boarded up and from the areas we visited found it not to be the cleanest of cities. Normally when entering a new city you get a feel for it, sort of an excitement of being somewhere new and new adventures waiting to be experienced. I didn't get that while there and tho' I enjoyed seeing the sites, I never really felt comfortable or totally safe. Dale thought I was weird for not wanting to be out after dark, but the comfort level wasn't there. Needless to say New Orleans isn't high on my list of places to re-visit. Dale and I differ in this respect.....
Tuesday was a travel day but we didn't rush up and out so early this time. Believe we got away around 8:00 a.m. and for some reason, I didn't stay outside with the car (as we had never unhooked it) and check the site as the bus pulled out. Wouldn't you know, for the first time ever, Dale forgot to unhook the power!!!!! Thanks goodness a neighbour was outside and noticed it before we had moved very many feet and no damage was done. So a good lesson to stay with our arriving/leaving routines regardless of how we are parked.
We travelled through Baton Rouge, Layfayette, Lake Charles and then into Texas through Beaumont, Houston (now that is one big city and so glad we didn't get lost!) and on into San Antonio, arriving around 5:00 p.m. A fairly long day but we did make a few stops to get out and stretch legs and nature breaks.
We're parked at Travel World on Roosevelt Ave., and not too far from town and the Alamo! Either an easy bus ride or to drive as their is lots of parking available.
Travel World is the first really nice, west coast style RV park we have seen since leaving BC!! We have been in and enjoyed some wonderful places, but do like the extra amenities of a spacious, step out of your bus, patio, paved roads, ample parking and yes, we are totally spoiled!
Lots to see and do today as we plan on only one day here..unless I can talk Dale into an extra day! However, if we don't get moving we won't get to see anything, so had better sign off.
Till next time.....
The tour was just under two hours and we both thoroughly enjoyed it. The bonus was their were no mosquitoes and they apparently don't appear until just after sunrise and just before sunset. We were out in the bayou from about 1:45 until 3:30, so good timing. The fellow doing the guiding has been in that area all his life and worked that area of the bayou. He has names for various alligators and can actually call them; and they will come to him. Also, he knows each one individually and knows each ones characteristics and habits..a very knowledgeable person and a good one to have as our guide.
When we returned to town we got off at Harrahs' Casino area and toured around for a short time before having some dinner at their buffet. Very good and fresh; thoroughly enjoyed a large salad and lots and lots of fresh shrimp. We are going to miss all the easily available and tasty seafood when we start to head inland to the desert.
New Orleans looks to be a city in need of much TLC. Don't know whether it is because of the age of the city or the devastation that has happended over the past years. So much in disrepair/boarded up and from the areas we visited found it not to be the cleanest of cities. Normally when entering a new city you get a feel for it, sort of an excitement of being somewhere new and new adventures waiting to be experienced. I didn't get that while there and tho' I enjoyed seeing the sites, I never really felt comfortable or totally safe. Dale thought I was weird for not wanting to be out after dark, but the comfort level wasn't there. Needless to say New Orleans isn't high on my list of places to re-visit. Dale and I differ in this respect.....
Tuesday was a travel day but we didn't rush up and out so early this time. Believe we got away around 8:00 a.m. and for some reason, I didn't stay outside with the car (as we had never unhooked it) and check the site as the bus pulled out. Wouldn't you know, for the first time ever, Dale forgot to unhook the power!!!!! Thanks goodness a neighbour was outside and noticed it before we had moved very many feet and no damage was done. So a good lesson to stay with our arriving/leaving routines regardless of how we are parked.
We travelled through Baton Rouge, Layfayette, Lake Charles and then into Texas through Beaumont, Houston (now that is one big city and so glad we didn't get lost!) and on into San Antonio, arriving around 5:00 p.m. A fairly long day but we did make a few stops to get out and stretch legs and nature breaks.
We're parked at Travel World on Roosevelt Ave., and not too far from town and the Alamo! Either an easy bus ride or to drive as their is lots of parking available.
Travel World is the first really nice, west coast style RV park we have seen since leaving BC!! We have been in and enjoyed some wonderful places, but do like the extra amenities of a spacious, step out of your bus, patio, paved roads, ample parking and yes, we are totally spoiled!
Lots to see and do today as we plan on only one day here..unless I can talk Dale into an extra day! However, if we don't get moving we won't get to see anything, so had better sign off.
Till next time.....
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Update..Oct 17, 2010
Just a brief note to let you know that at the bottom of each written blog is a "photo stream" of pictures.
If you click on a picture it will come up and you can enlarge it. Also, some of them are videos so you get to see those as well. The videos don't show as videos when posted at the top so this is the only way you can see them.
Hope this makes sense and is helpful?
If you click on a picture it will come up and you can enlarge it. Also, some of them are videos so you get to see those as well. The videos don't show as videos when posted at the top so this is the only way you can see them.
Hope this makes sense and is helpful?
Jacksonville, FL to New Orleans, LA..Oct 16-17, 2010
Well here we are almost half way across the country again. We had a very restless night at the rest area south of Jacksonville, lots of trucks & reefers coming and going so not at all quiet! Finally, after much tossing and turning decided we might as well get up and get on the road. This was at 4:15 a.m.!!! It didn't take us long to get organized and before you know it, we were heading out while it was till pitch black.
The roads are very well marked, except while I was checking the directions on the computer and wasn't watching the road, "we" missed one critcal off ramp off I-295 to I-10 West so we had to go down a couple of miles to do a turn around, but with little traffic at that time of morning it was not a big deal.
As the sun didn't rise until after 7:00 p.m. we did miss quite a bit of early scenery but soon made up for that as we cruised along I-10. Going across northern Florida it is a much longer drive than I imagined. I think mileage wise, at the top of Florida it is as many miles wide from east to west as it is from the northern to southern end. A beautiful, clean state and we definitely want to come back for a longer visit.
Crossing into Alabama, we stopped and loaded up on maps and brochures at the Tourist Info Centre and Dale found where there was supposed to be a good flea market. Needless to say we had to make a "slight" detour and after a little jogging through Mobile, we found it. Well, for those of you who are familiar with Yuma, this flea market is on par with the old Dog Track. For those of you who aren't...you are not missing anthing!! However, it was a good break and we got to see a little bit of the city.
Continuing on I-10W we arrived in Mississippi and again loaded up on maps and information at the Tourist Centre. While we were not stopping on this trip, will be good research material for a possible future trip or for any of you who read this, that might be interested, or planning a trip yourselves. Mind you, I now have three large bags full of guides,maps, brochures etc that are taking up space on my side of the bedroom floor!!!!
Finally, we were on our last leg of the days' drive and entered in to Louisianna. Again, more guides, maps, brochures from the Tourist Centre and a phone call to few RV Parks. We couldn't get into the first two parks I called and got a little worried that we might have to Wal Mart it again, but third time lucky. We are in a newer park (only been open 3 years) called the Pontchartrain Landing RV park, on the canal leading to Pontchartrain Lake. It is a fairly small park, gravel sites, but nicely kept. They also have a small pool, hot tub, bar up by the pool and you can order pizza and wings if you want a snack (and they will also deliver..snacks only, no drinks!!) We arrived here just after 6:00 p.m. (actually 5:00 p.m. as we had turned our clocks back one hour) so it had been a very long travel day.
Once plugged into power and water and the bus "unpacked" (and of course the perverbial load of laundry going), we walked up to the clubhouse to check things out and talk to a few other RV'ers. Then it was time to have some dinner and then an early night. It was/is quite hot here, at least we find it so. During the night we had to get up and turn on the air conditioning. It was just too hot and muggy to sleep and the noise of the air conditioner in the bedroom was better than the heat!
Today, after a bit of a slow start we caught the jitney into town to see the sights. We walked down Toulouse St., thru Jackson Square, Decatur St., and through the French Market. Quite a large market area and an amazing number of people out and about (and more arriving every minute...a busy, busy tourist area). Lots to see and it was fun to watch and listen to the various musicians playing, on the street and in many of the open air restaurants. We walked the market until we found a bench to rest our weary feet and watched all the goings on. You could spend hours just watching the people and the street entertainers.
Working our way back up Decatur on the far side of the street, in and out of all the many little shops, we stumbled upon Jimmy Buffets Margaritaville Restaurant. Well, an opportunity not to be passed up!! We went in for lunch and we were so glad we did. Funky atmosphere and excellent food..yes we are eating again!! Dale had the Crawfish Etouffe and I had Jimmmy's Jumping Jumbalaya. Both were excellent and after sampling one marguerita while waiting to place our order, decided to enjoy a second while we enjoyed a very lesiure lunch.
We continued our tourist explorations for a wee bit longer and then it was just getting too hot and way too crowded. A lot of the tour busses were dropping off groups and the narrow streets were getting plugged with cars, bikes, jaywalkers, busses..the bedlam was both exciting and nerve wracking!! Catching a cab, we came back to the park and at first intended to go to the pool but with the heat, decided it would be wiser to stay inside, enjoy the air conditioning and maybe have a nap!
Having eaten such a big lunch neither one of us wanted any dinner so have just spent the balance of the late afternoon and evening either outside and when it got too warm, inside. Now just being totally lazy; catching up on computer stuff, doing the finances (hmmm...the last few days have not been too bad at all) and just enjoying being here. Planning on a tour tomorrow through the bayou's..should be most interesting and will keep you posted.
Till then...keep well, travel safe.
The roads are very well marked, except while I was checking the directions on the computer and wasn't watching the road, "we" missed one critcal off ramp off I-295 to I-10 West so we had to go down a couple of miles to do a turn around, but with little traffic at that time of morning it was not a big deal.
As the sun didn't rise until after 7:00 p.m. we did miss quite a bit of early scenery but soon made up for that as we cruised along I-10. Going across northern Florida it is a much longer drive than I imagined. I think mileage wise, at the top of Florida it is as many miles wide from east to west as it is from the northern to southern end. A beautiful, clean state and we definitely want to come back for a longer visit.
Crossing into Alabama, we stopped and loaded up on maps and brochures at the Tourist Info Centre and Dale found where there was supposed to be a good flea market. Needless to say we had to make a "slight" detour and after a little jogging through Mobile, we found it. Well, for those of you who are familiar with Yuma, this flea market is on par with the old Dog Track. For those of you who aren't...you are not missing anthing!! However, it was a good break and we got to see a little bit of the city.
Continuing on I-10W we arrived in Mississippi and again loaded up on maps and information at the Tourist Centre. While we were not stopping on this trip, will be good research material for a possible future trip or for any of you who read this, that might be interested, or planning a trip yourselves. Mind you, I now have three large bags full of guides,maps, brochures etc that are taking up space on my side of the bedroom floor!!!!
Finally, we were on our last leg of the days' drive and entered in to Louisianna. Again, more guides, maps, brochures from the Tourist Centre and a phone call to few RV Parks. We couldn't get into the first two parks I called and got a little worried that we might have to Wal Mart it again, but third time lucky. We are in a newer park (only been open 3 years) called the Pontchartrain Landing RV park, on the canal leading to Pontchartrain Lake. It is a fairly small park, gravel sites, but nicely kept. They also have a small pool, hot tub, bar up by the pool and you can order pizza and wings if you want a snack (and they will also deliver..snacks only, no drinks!!) We arrived here just after 6:00 p.m. (actually 5:00 p.m. as we had turned our clocks back one hour) so it had been a very long travel day.
Once plugged into power and water and the bus "unpacked" (and of course the perverbial load of laundry going), we walked up to the clubhouse to check things out and talk to a few other RV'ers. Then it was time to have some dinner and then an early night. It was/is quite hot here, at least we find it so. During the night we had to get up and turn on the air conditioning. It was just too hot and muggy to sleep and the noise of the air conditioner in the bedroom was better than the heat!
Today, after a bit of a slow start we caught the jitney into town to see the sights. We walked down Toulouse St., thru Jackson Square, Decatur St., and through the French Market. Quite a large market area and an amazing number of people out and about (and more arriving every minute...a busy, busy tourist area). Lots to see and it was fun to watch and listen to the various musicians playing, on the street and in many of the open air restaurants. We walked the market until we found a bench to rest our weary feet and watched all the goings on. You could spend hours just watching the people and the street entertainers.
Working our way back up Decatur on the far side of the street, in and out of all the many little shops, we stumbled upon Jimmy Buffets Margaritaville Restaurant. Well, an opportunity not to be passed up!! We went in for lunch and we were so glad we did. Funky atmosphere and excellent food..yes we are eating again!! Dale had the Crawfish Etouffe and I had Jimmmy's Jumping Jumbalaya. Both were excellent and after sampling one marguerita while waiting to place our order, decided to enjoy a second while we enjoyed a very lesiure lunch.
We continued our tourist explorations for a wee bit longer and then it was just getting too hot and way too crowded. A lot of the tour busses were dropping off groups and the narrow streets were getting plugged with cars, bikes, jaywalkers, busses..the bedlam was both exciting and nerve wracking!! Catching a cab, we came back to the park and at first intended to go to the pool but with the heat, decided it would be wiser to stay inside, enjoy the air conditioning and maybe have a nap!
Having eaten such a big lunch neither one of us wanted any dinner so have just spent the balance of the late afternoon and evening either outside and when it got too warm, inside. Now just being totally lazy; catching up on computer stuff, doing the finances (hmmm...the last few days have not been too bad at all) and just enjoying being here. Planning on a tour tomorrow through the bayou's..should be most interesting and will keep you posted.
Till then...keep well, travel safe.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Tybee Island,GA to Sanford, FL Oct 13-15
Seems in my earlier note I was out one day..it was the 13th when we left Tybee Island, not the 14th!!
Also, forgot to mention in a much earlier note, that when we passed thru New Bern, this is where Pepsi Cola was invented in 1898.... AND... the moss from the trees in Savannah and places south was used to stuff mattresses for the early settlers. Unfortunately, the moss is home to some wee critters, chiggers (sp) that have a nasty bite. The settlers wrapped themselves up snugly at bedtime to prevent getting bitten..thus the saying, "good night, sleep tight and don't let the bedbugs bite"!! So there is a bit more trivia for you.
Anyhoo,we navigated our way off Tybee Island and out of Savannah without any wrong turns and soon were on our way straight down on I-95, then on to I-4 and into Sanford, arriving in early evening. On the way we got lots of glimpses of the ocean, and palm trees and the ever changing scenery slowly becoming very "southern" and hot again! We also had the pleasure of driving through Jacksonville in rush hour. Now that was fun..but I must say we couldn't believe how clean everything is. No litter by the side of the freeways, everything is neat and tidy and well cared for. Very impressive to say the least.
Where we were in Sanford was just a bit west of the city..more industrial area..at the Vantare service centre (very small..not like Prevost in Mira Loma or Marathon in Coburg). There was an electrical plug-in tho' so we at least had that which meant we could have the air conditioning on. We needed it too as the humidity has been quite high again. Even had to leave it on overnight otherwise it got just too muggy to sleep. Decisions, decisions..leave the air on and have the noise annoy you or no air and too hot/muggy to sleep.....
"they" spent most of yesterday doing small repairs,mostly to the exterior water systems. Dale was able to watch/participate so got to learn a myriad of things about how that part of the system works. There is no line sheet on this bus, even Vantare does not have one, so some areas we previously didn't bother with as we had no idea how things worked. "Most" of that is now history and Dale is well versed on how to work them. Also got the one drawer fixed as well that neither Dale or I could manouvre our bodies in position to fix it.
Once all that was done and after Dale had a short lie down, we went over to WalMart Super Centre to get a battery for Dale's watch and to pick up a couple of things before calling it a day. Home again, quick, light supper, some scrabble (on the computer), a little TV and to bed.
Today we went into Lake Mary to do a few chores and to find a post office; needed to mail a couple of parcels that we have been toting around for a few days. Once that was done, had lunch at the "China Buffet" and surprisingly, it was very good (and very cheap). Went for a drive around the area and then back to Sanford and a short drive around that area as well.
Once we were home again, got packed up and decided since we didn't have time to get to Orlando/Epcot Centre or any of the places that we would need a week in which to really enjoy, might just as well start the final leg of our journey. We left Sanford at 6:00 p.m. and are now parked at the rest area just few miles south of Jacksonville and the I-295 turnoff which will take us to I-10 West. Decided to have an early night and will try and leave around 5:00 a.m., tomorrow morning to keep the sun behind us for as long as possible. We'll need to stop every afternoon for a few hours until the sun sets so will mean lots of early morning driving.
So that brings our travels up to date; looking foward to seeing some new country as we cross through Alabama and Louisana in the next couple of days.
Till then.....
Also, forgot to mention in a much earlier note, that when we passed thru New Bern, this is where Pepsi Cola was invented in 1898.... AND... the moss from the trees in Savannah and places south was used to stuff mattresses for the early settlers. Unfortunately, the moss is home to some wee critters, chiggers (sp) that have a nasty bite. The settlers wrapped themselves up snugly at bedtime to prevent getting bitten..thus the saying, "good night, sleep tight and don't let the bedbugs bite"!! So there is a bit more trivia for you.
Anyhoo,we navigated our way off Tybee Island and out of Savannah without any wrong turns and soon were on our way straight down on I-95, then on to I-4 and into Sanford, arriving in early evening. On the way we got lots of glimpses of the ocean, and palm trees and the ever changing scenery slowly becoming very "southern" and hot again! We also had the pleasure of driving through Jacksonville in rush hour. Now that was fun..but I must say we couldn't believe how clean everything is. No litter by the side of the freeways, everything is neat and tidy and well cared for. Very impressive to say the least.
Where we were in Sanford was just a bit west of the city..more industrial area..at the Vantare service centre (very small..not like Prevost in Mira Loma or Marathon in Coburg). There was an electrical plug-in tho' so we at least had that which meant we could have the air conditioning on. We needed it too as the humidity has been quite high again. Even had to leave it on overnight otherwise it got just too muggy to sleep. Decisions, decisions..leave the air on and have the noise annoy you or no air and too hot/muggy to sleep.....
"they" spent most of yesterday doing small repairs,mostly to the exterior water systems. Dale was able to watch/participate so got to learn a myriad of things about how that part of the system works. There is no line sheet on this bus, even Vantare does not have one, so some areas we previously didn't bother with as we had no idea how things worked. "Most" of that is now history and Dale is well versed on how to work them. Also got the one drawer fixed as well that neither Dale or I could manouvre our bodies in position to fix it.
Once all that was done and after Dale had a short lie down, we went over to WalMart Super Centre to get a battery for Dale's watch and to pick up a couple of things before calling it a day. Home again, quick, light supper, some scrabble (on the computer), a little TV and to bed.
Today we went into Lake Mary to do a few chores and to find a post office; needed to mail a couple of parcels that we have been toting around for a few days. Once that was done, had lunch at the "China Buffet" and surprisingly, it was very good (and very cheap). Went for a drive around the area and then back to Sanford and a short drive around that area as well.
Once we were home again, got packed up and decided since we didn't have time to get to Orlando/Epcot Centre or any of the places that we would need a week in which to really enjoy, might just as well start the final leg of our journey. We left Sanford at 6:00 p.m. and are now parked at the rest area just few miles south of Jacksonville and the I-295 turnoff which will take us to I-10 West. Decided to have an early night and will try and leave around 5:00 a.m., tomorrow morning to keep the sun behind us for as long as possible. We'll need to stop every afternoon for a few hours until the sun sets so will mean lots of early morning driving.
So that brings our travels up to date; looking foward to seeing some new country as we cross through Alabama and Louisana in the next couple of days.
Till then.....
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
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