But it was always going to come to an end and that's just fine because there are some things I really miss besides the obvious things like family, the dog, and home. In the UK a pint is 20floz not 16, I miss meat pies, fish and chips, and of course, persistent rain.
I think I left off last time at the end of a fabulous stay with Christy and Jim in Louisiana. We treated ourselves to a couple of nights in a hotel in New Orleans. And what a contrast to the tranquility of Cajun country. There was no shortage of hustle, bustle, and vibrancy even though the weather gods provided plenty of the persistent rain and made the colours less sparkly
But there is always food and I couldn't miss the opportunity for some Jambalaya, Crawfish Pie and File Gumbo; it might have looked like prison slop but it was mighty fine.
You're never far away from a church in the South
One of the jewels in NOLA's crown is the WWll museum. It's one of those places that you've really got to spend at least a couple of days to get the most out of it; perfect for rainy days. And of course there were planes.
Then it was time to leave Louisiana and whiz through Mississippi and Alabama en route for Florida with a few stops on the way. The most striking aspect of this part of the journey was the devastation caused by Hurricane Michael last autumn to cities like Mexico Beach. To see peoples' homes reduced to piles of rubble and matchwood at the side of the road awaiting collection by the disaster relief teams was upsetting. We didn't stop to gawk or take photographs.
Fairhope was a really nice colourful town with a proper town centre with proper shops and murals. I saw my first daffodils of 2019.
Pensacola was our next stop and we had yet more battery problems. This time both coach batteries failed but thankfully were replaced under warranty. One of the strangest sites we've seen was what looked like newlyweds taking their wedding photos on self timer. No guests is a bit extreme way of keeping the costs down.
There were some less sad sites on Santa Rosa Island
We watched this plucky heron stalking the fisherman; obviously he decided stealing was more efficient than catching your own
We found an almost-parkrun. Unfortunately we were a week early for the first running but we did get to run the trial version to help the organisers make sure they've got everything organised for the real thing
Best name for a campground goes to Sopchoppy City Park. Best for sunsets though was Shell Mound County Park
Some quirkyness
We both fell in love with Cedar Key and have a notion to buy a plot of land to put a caravan on for winter holidays.
We spent a whole week in Ruskin, Florida which is across Tampa Bay from St Petersburg. I finally found a half marathon that fitted in with our plans and shaved my head, trimmed my eyebrows, and got me a medal.
Some pics from around the area
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| St Petersburg through the morning mist |
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| I took a lot of photos of Pelicans - I find them oddly fascinating |
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| A selfie? at The Dali Gallery in St P |
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| Deb in a big tree |
Deb found a hidden talent on the campground when she tried her hand at painting under the supervision of the lady from the tent opposite. We now have 2 original works to hang on the wall when we get home
And that brings us up to date. We are in Vero Beach for a week or so looking after 3 dogs, then we are going to look around north Florida and the very south of Georgia for a fortnight before coming back for another week with the dogs. And then it will be time to point the RV north and head for home.
Deb with Rusty and Meeko.
Well done for getting this far...have another pelican pic
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