I reordered my posts chronologically because I figured out how to print my blog. Before I print it, I would love to know WHO all joined us for our journey. I have set up a guestbook page. Sorry I didn’t figure this out 2 months ago! On your phone just click on MENU, then GUESTBOOK and it will take you to a page, where you click “write new entry” and then add your name (and city and how you heard about the blog or know us — if you’re feeling generous). If you are on a computer, just click on guestbook on the top menu bar. We would really, REALLY love to have your name included in the printout we make to keep. It only takes a few seconds. Thanks SO MUCH!!
why it’s possible
I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength
Philippians 4:13
Final Thoughts from Pam
Ponderings on our Coast to Coast trip and The Blog (Nov 2020)
Well we have been back home now for over 2 months and I have thought alot about our trip and the blog. Truth be told, I did most of my thinking about it during November when we first got back and actually wrote most of this then. In the 2 months that we have been back we have celebrated Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year and 7 birthdays (with 2 more to go in January) and that’s not even counting the 5 out of town birthdays we only celebrated with a text. All that to explain why this is just now getting posted. I’ve been debating on whether to even include this on the blog at all. But I want it included in my printed copy, so I have to post it.
Both the trip and the blog seemed to become much more than what they began as. It’s kind of hard to wrap my head around it and even harder to explain what I mean.
First our trip. At first glance it was an exciting adventure. Bruce was doing an amazing physical feat. For his 60 year old body to be able to ride 60 – 120 miles STRONGLY almost every day is pretty amazing. He’s been “training for it” for over 25 years by biking 4 days a week almost year round. He pushed himself and he succeeded. He had an incredibly positive attitude throughout the whole trip. He was driven to succeed, but also enjoyed it thoroughly.
My side of the adventure is a little harder to put in a box. On the surface, I drove an RV to accompany my husband on a great adventure. Big deal. I thought it was going to be pretty much a vacation, seeing all the small towns across America. And it was that, kind of. Although I didn’t get to actually explore as many small towns as I had hoped, it was so fun seeing so many diverse landscapes across the country. But the big thing for me was my time in Harvey. Driving a 28-foot RV was totally out of my comfort zone. Although I did get quite used to it (and might I even say GOOD at it), every morning I felt like God and I were taking off together to meet the challenges of the day. I have been a Christian for over 30 years and I know in my mind that the Holy Spirit is with me, keeps me safe and leads me every day. But on this trip, it felt so real. Hard to explain. Almost like I was riding a river current or carried along by the wind. Obviously, I was driving every day and making decisions, but something was different. I have never really been in a place where I felt so enveloped by prayer. I wish I could explain it better. All day God just felt so PRESENT. I chatted with Him all day long. Not only was I in need of his wisdom, strength and power to drive the RV confidently, but knowing that Bruce would be riding his bike on those same roads scared me to death. There were so many things that could potentially happen. Bruce seemed so vulnerable amongst all the cars and trucks. And it was completely out of my control. So I was constantly praying over the roads and for his safety as he travelled on them. The times when I was behind him, when I would be driving along some highway with fast traffic and small shoulders, I was almost brought to tears with thankfulness that Bruce had already safely made it along those stretches. I truly believe that God sent hundreds of angels to accompany Bruce on his journey.
And now The Blog. I can’t remember when I decided that I wanted to write a blog or specifically even why. I guess I thought it would be fun for our family and some of our friends to know where we were and what we did each day. And it would be nice to have it afterwards to remember our trip. But somewhere along the line it seemed like it became more. I don’t know if it was because of the pandemic and people were bored or what. But it seemed like for whatever reason, people looked forward to it and WANTED to read it every day. When I first started I was a little hesitant to put scripture in or mention God working. But then I decided that this was MY blog and that it was important in MY life. If people didn’t like it then they didn’t have to read it. I didn’t purposely try to write about God’s faithfulness. But God WAS faithful and I couldn’t help but point it out sometimes, just because that was part of what was happening in our day. I feel like God took my feeble efforts and morphed it into something that was enjoyable to people. Kinda like this was my loaves and fish.
So now we are home. After 2 months of having a purpose every day: drive the RV and write our blog, now I have time to do other things. I know that God is with me all the time, but I miss my constant awareness of it. I once read that the Holy Spirit is like breathing. Sometimes you have to take deep breaths and are very aware that you are breathing. The rest of the time you are breathing without even thinking about it, but you are still breathing. Same with the Holy Spirit. Sometimes you are praying intensely and very aware, but He’s there even when you aren’t focusing on Him.
To God be the Glory!
Harvey Rides Again!
May 1, 2021 – Wichita to West Monroe, Louisiana
In his heart man plans his course, but the Lord establishes his steps.
Proverbs 16:9
Oh my goodness. It’s been so long since I’ve blogged that I almost forgot how this whole blog website works! Remember Louisiana, when we had to head north to avoid Tropical Storm Beta? This week we are going back to see what we missed in Louisiana. Only thing different is that we are not outrunning hurricanes and Bruce is NOT biking this time. Well of course Bruce will be biking, his bikes go on all vacations with us, but he will only be biking for recreation. Big difference!
We got Harvey all loaded and ready last night so that we could leave bright and early at 6 AM this morning. But Bruce being Bruce, he woke up at 4 AM so we left at 5:02 AM. Needless to say, he drove and I went back to sleep on the bed. Perks of traveling with Harvey! By the time we got to Tulsa, I was ready to drive. I was a little nervous at first, but soon Harvey felt like an old friend. I should mention here that I had our route planned out, straight down I35 to Dallas and then over through Shreveport on I20 to West Monroe. Bruce nixed my boring route and took us through Tulsa and on mostly back highways across Oklahoma, through the tips of Texas and Arkansas and in to Louisiana to eventually connect to I20 just east of Shreveport. Such a better route! I loved driving through all the little towns and beautiful country. This is America! I need to get back into my photo taking groove. We passed 4 state signs and lots of interesting sites, but without a picture to remind me, I can’t remember what we saw. I would like to blame this on old age, but it’s been my life story.
We rolled into West Monroe around 4:30. Why West Monroe? Duck Dynasty! Although we didn’t actually watch the show because we didn’t have cable back then, I thought it would be fun to check it out. As seems to be the theme in our life, I didn’t really know what to expect. I thought that it would be kind of a compound or something with several out buildings or whatever. It wasn’t. It was a very unassuming building that was basically just a store. They did offer some kind of tour that told about their history, but the last tour was at 3:30. Apparently they have downsized a bunch in the last few years. I guess since the show is over, Duck Commander is only a fraction of what it was, and sells most of their duck stuff online. That’s ok. I’m still glad we stopped.
We had dinner at Warehouse #1. It was fantastic! I forgot to take a picture of my delicious Catfish Sienna & whipped sweet potatoes, but oh my gosh it was good! Ok, in full disclosure, I DID take a picture, but I had already devoured part of it and it really doesn’t look all that appetizing, so I’ll let you use your imagination. Bruce had a seared Tuna salad. We also had Fried Green Tomatoes for an appetizer. Yum! I had never had them before. Probably the reason they were so good was because they were fried (duh!) and had a great horse radish sauce. Apparently this restaurant usually has a long wait but since it was just 2 of us, they found us a little table in the bar, back by the bathroom. This was good for 3 reasons: 1) we got in & served immediately 2) we were by the TV and got to watch the Kentucky Derby 3) we got to see the constant parade of prom girls (who were dining with their dates out on the patio overlooking the Ouachita River) on their way to the bathroom. It was a win-win-win (& one more win if you count the food. Did I mention it was delicious?) This building is around 200 years old. When they restored it and were thinking of a name for the restaurant, they decided on Warehouse # 1 because that’s what was on a sign already on it. Clever!
The RV park where we thought we might stay was full so we decided to boondock back in the Duck Dynasty parking lot because it was level and empty and dark. Perfect for boondocking.
Harvey Rides Again – Sunday, day 2
Adventures around Monroe
We got up this morning and went to church at the White Ferry Road church. I love going to different churches in different places because it reminds me that God’s people worship the same God even if they do it a little differently. We went to a Sunday school class first on forgiveness. As we were leaving, a man, who we later learned was Mike, stopped and asked us if we were visiting. We ended up talking to him and his wife Christi for a long time and then sat with them at church. I think she would be my best friend if I lived there. Although I’m sure that position is already taken. I met her dear friend, Debbie after the service. Mike & Christi seemed to be loved by everyone there. Mike got ordained as an Elder at the service. All the music was a cappello. It was cool to hear all the harmony. I enjoyed it even though I don’t have a musical ear. But my husband, Mr Music, really loved it! It was also Senior Sunday to honor all the graduates and Alan Robertson, one of the Duck Dynasty brothers, gave the message. So inspiring!
After church we had leftovers for lunch in the parking lot and then headed to Alto, which is about 25 miles from West Monroe. Remember John & Anne, Bruce’s friend from high school (hint – they met us in Texas on our bike trip and were the first recipients of BuzzWTR)? Well this trip we planned to stay at their home in Alto, LA. As soon as we walked in to Anne & John’s house we could smell the delicious blueberry-something-yummy-that-I-can’t-remember-the-name that she had just whipped up. It had started raining during the night and had been raining pretty steadily ever since. So we all just sat in the kitchen and told stories. John & Anne are rice farmers and it is so fascinating! When John told us he also has a business “moving dirt” I pictured a back hoe scooping away. But oh, not so! John has a laser precision machine to make the field zero grade or whatever slight grade they might need to move the water from field to field after they flood the rice fields. The fields have to be flooded a few times and then the water “taken off” during various stages of growth. I honestly had no idea what a rice plant looked like. It looks a lot like wheat but the stalks are heavier. Then once it’s harvested, it is kept in these bins that have to be temperature controlled with fans and stuff. Very complicated!
A few hours later the rain stopped and the sun came out so we all jumped into their neighbor’s old Army jeep and took a tour of the area. Anne pointed out the Boeuf River, which surrounds one of their properties on 3 sides. She said that she likes to kayak there in the winter, but not in the summer because you see more alligators in there in the summer. What!? I would be afraid that the one alligator who decided to stay for the winter might get a little hungry for the red meat in the kayak. Yikes! She’s a brave woman!
When we got back, Anne made us Shrimp & Sausage over rice and a yummy salad. And for dessert – that yummy blueberry thing. I wonder how many times I can say yummy in one post? Probably time for that thesaurus. But you know, sometimes delectable, luscious and succulent just don’t convey the right feeling.
Soon we were all yawning (or was it just me yawning – I have not been getting my 8 hours lately) and so Bruce and I headed out to Harvey. It was very tempting to accept the king size bed in the guest room that Anne offered, but sometimes it just feels easier to stay in Harvey.
Harvey Rides again – Monday, day 3
Alto, Natchez, St Francisville & Baton Rouge
One interesting thing about where Anne & John live is all the history. Anne knows so much history on the original families who had owned the various homes and farms. Their house had been owned by the Sartor family. Mrs Lucy Sartor was locally famous as an artist who had painted mostly scenes from her life growing up in the area. In the attic Anne had found a sketchbook filled with pen sketches done by Lucy. What a treasure!
After breakfast we said our good-byes and headed off to Natchez. As we got close we recognized the turn to the RV park where we had stayed right by the Mississippi River. Of course we had to drive by. And by “drive by” I actually mean drive into the park and take pictures of where we had been and reminisce about the last time we were there. It seems like such a long time ago! I can’t believe it was just a little over 6 months. We got so excited as we crossed the Mississippi bridge!
We were pretty hungry by the time we got to Natchez, but we wanted to stop at one of the many interesting restaurants that had been closed last time we were there. We went to Natchez Midtown Grill, thinking it was a restaurant. When we got to the building and realized it was a walk up, we were disappointed but we decided to stay. The girl in front of us said they had great burgers so Bruce got a burger. I got the Voodoo Poboy, filled with chicken, shrimp, steak, onions & peppers. Which is kind of funny because onions & peppers are 2 of the things I always pick off of anything I’m eating. But now I’ve had them by choice 2 days in a row!
We missed out on the Under The Hill District last time we were here because our little cycle wouldn’t have been able to make it back up the hill. Since then Bruce fixed her so that she now has more power. I think at this very moment I am going to name her Little Jo because I’m sick of just calling her the little cycle. She needs a name. Sadly we were not able to ride her through Natchez this time because somehow the key did not make it on the trip with us. Bruce was sure that someone stole the key out of her ignition, but alas, Annie found it in the street in front of our house. So we’ll just say it’s a mystery how it got there.
I still wanted to go down and see the Under The Hill District. Apparently this was the district where the men of ill repute hung out back in the day. Saloons and brothels and the like. Now although a saloon is still open down there, it is just a few little shops and restaurants. We parked Harvey on the street above and walked down to check it out. We saw the bar where Jerry Lee Lewis got his start. Hopefully this will satisfy Bruce’s music fix because I totally forgot about going to the Delta Music Museum in nearby Ferriday until we were too far past it to go back.
In the saloon we met a guy named Doug who has been hitch-hiking around the country for 11 years. He is journaling all his adventures as well. It’s wild to think of all the people who have been in that saloon during the past 200 years.
Our next stop was the cute little town of St Francisville where we had planned to stop and see some plantations. But since it was 6:30 by the time we got there, nothing was open. We drove around a bit and admired the quaint old houses and then headed on down the Blues Highway to our RV Park near Baton Rouge.
Harvey Rides Again – Tuesday, day 4
Baton Rouge
After breakfast this morning we gassed up Harvey, popped in to Costco for another bag of Stacy’s and then headed over to our friends, Bob and Eveyln. Bob and my dad had been Army buddies since they met at Ft Sill over 60 years ago. Bob was the best man in my parent’s wedding. When we got there, Bruce did an amazing job backing down their really long drive way. With awesome instructions from me of course. Evelyn made us some sandwiches for lunch while we hung out and heard stories from Bob about escapades with my dad, as well as lots more escapades without my dad. Bob is a first class story-teller. He told us how he earned his 3 purple hearts in Viet Nam and about being the Ball Judge for a Baton Rouge Mardi Gras parade and walking with Pete Fountain’s Half Fast Walking Club in the New Orleans Mardi Gras parades for 20 years. I didn’t totally understand all the Mardi Gras stuff, but it sounds like he has sure done some fascinating things! He also carves intricate birds from wood, grows orchids and makes jewelry and fly hooks. I’m sorry I didn’t get pictures of everything.
In the afternoon we drove around Baton Rouge and they showed us the LSU campus, where Bob had worked as an Army ROTC instructor. We ate dinner at George’s Grill and then went home for more stories. Pretty soon Bruce & I headed out to Harvey to hit the sack.
Harvey Rides Again – Wednesday, Day 5
New Orleans
After a shower and a delicious breakfast, we climbed back into Harvey and headed for New Orleans. On the way, we stopped at the Houmas House Plantation. There are tons of old plantations around here. It was hard to decide which one to go to. This one also had a museum dedicated to the Great River Road. We toured the beautiful gardens and then enjoyed the museum until Bruce had had all the information he could handle and went to take a nap in Harvey while I finished. Well, knowing that your other half is “done” will definitely speed you up.
This museum had lots of info about all the plantations that had been around this area, as well as civil war info and information about slaves. According to one exhibit, the Civil War was NOT started because of slavery, but because the north was imposing unfair tariffs on imports that greatly hurt the economy of the south. It said that the idea of ending slavery only entered the picture 2 years later when the north was trying to evolve it into a war about morals instead of a war about economics. Either I wasn’t really paying attention in history class or else they teach it a little differently in the south, but that’s not how I remember learning it.
We got to our RV park around 4:00. I did a fantastic job backing Harvey in, if I do say so myself. Pat, pat, pat. While Bruce was hooking up the water and electric he got a quick lesson on red ants. They bite. It hurts. And then it itches. And leaves big pink welts. That continue to burn/itch for a few days.
Since it was still early, we decided to take Little Jo for a quick spin down to the French Quarter. Our park was only 5 miles away, but somehow it took almost 20 minutes. We cruised down Bourbon street, Royal street, Canal street and the rest, checking out places to come back to tomorrow. We didn’t stay long because we didn’t want to be riding home in the dark.
Once we got home we dined on leftover spaghetti. No pictures available on this gourmet dish in tupperware containers. Luckily my hubby is not picky. I’m pretty sure he even heated it up himself.
One thing I’ve noticed about sitting in an RV after dark with all the shades down. Sometimes it takes me a minute to remember where I am and what is actually outside the window. Weird, huh?
Harvey Rides Again – Thursday, Day 6
New Orleans adventure
We had a leisurely morning and then headed to New Orleans on Little Jo around 9:00. Of course you’re wondering how in the world we have actually been riding our cycle since the key failed to make the trip. Harriett, Bruce’s mom, was kind enough to mail it to us at Bob & Eveyln’s house so it is once again reunited with Little Jo.
Caroline called us right before we left and told us about this website she and Chris (her boyfriend) had found called Earthcam.com. Apparently they have cameras in various places throughout the earth, including one on the corner of St Peter & Bourbon St in New Orleans. Which happens to be the corner where Preservation Hall is, which is where we were heading. So when we got close, we face-timed Caroline & Chris which was really fun. They could see & hear us live on their tv. And through face-time, we could see & hear ourselves live on their computer as well. Technology! Also maybe a little bit creepy since we wouldn’t have known that we were being broadcast unless they had told us. But honestly, more cool than creepy.
Preservation Hall was closed and locked up so we just peeked in through the windows and planned to come back later. As we were heading to Cafe Dumonde, Bruce noticed something funny and thought we might have a flat tire. We were going over these bumpy strips in the road and I assured him that it was just that. But no. We pulled over and did indeed have a flat tire. Rats! It was the back tire which would be alot harder to get to. What to do? Bruce thought he might be able to do a temporary fix with a bike pump. We asked a few of the guys who ride those bike cart taxi things but none of them had a pump. We were just across the street from Cafe Dumonde, so we decided to call AAA and enjoy a beignet while we waited. We found a good pole to lock the cycle to and got in line to order. We didn’t know how big beignets were so when we saw that they came in a bag of 3, we thought maybe they were more like donut holes. We asked the server if they were small and we should each get our own bag or share a bag. She said definitely get our own. Well, she must have a big appetite because these were big! We each ate 2 but probably should have only had one. Bruce also got a black coffee and I got an iced cafe au lait. As we munched our sugary delights, we decided that instead of calling AAA we could just get a ride back to the RV park and drive Harvey back to pick up the cycle. And if we were going to do that, we may as well enjoy New Orleans first and come back later.
I also need to mention how God protected us yet again. On the way to New Orleans we drove through some sketchy areas and drove on some highways, including a big bridge over the river and another big bridge over the railroad tracks, that we were a little nervous about the cycle making it over. If we would have flatted in any of those places it could have been really bad. But instead, we flatted in the French Quarter, going about 10 mph, right across the street from our destination, with a place to sit and a secure place to lock up the cycle.
We walked around Jackson Square and took a pic with the statue in case it’s on the list of southern statues to come down. We were looking for some local artists but mostly just found local tarot readers. After getting instructions to the street car from Velvet, I asked her if I could pray for her. She said “yes, but do it later.” It was not necessary, she informed me, to come close to her or put my hand on her head. Apparently she has been prayed for before. But that’s the beauty of silent prayer … I can do it whenever or wherever I want and say whatever I want! No hand on head needed. We headed down Bourbon street to Canal street to catch the Green car. I found 2 people who were happy to have our extra beignets. You would be surprised how many street people told me that they are diabetic and can’t have sugar. One guy I talked to, Alla, was from Ethiopia and writing a book about the differences between life there and life here. I asked what he thought some of the biggest differences were and he said freedoms. In the US, he said, “you have freedom to become”. Profound.
We took the Green street car through the Garden District and saw lots of beautiful houses. We also passed a sign for the WWII Museum. Bruce wanted to go there, so we hopped off and caught the next Green car going back.
This museum was great! So many interesting exhibits! It was also a little overwhelming. We could have spent 2 days there. It certainly piqued my interest to read more about it. These things always reinforce the knowledge of how little I know. I had no idea that our military devised this whole scheme of deception, including fake tanks & tents, phantom field armies & maniquin paratroopers. They got help from movie set people to come up with all the stuff. Anyway the ploy worked and Germany thought that we were planning an invasion near Pas de Calaise, France and in Norway and were not prepared for our invasion of Normandy.
Our RV park provides a shuttle to New Orleans but the place that they pick up was 2 miles from the museum. We were going to walk but realized we couldn’t make it in time for the last pick up at 5 PM. So we ubered to the pickup spot. Then shuttled to our RV park. Got Harvey and headed back to rescue Little Jo. Conveniently the Uber drove right by Cafe Dumonde so we could see that the cycle was still safely locked to the pole.
While we were waiting for the shuttle a guy saw us looking at our phones and pointing and asked if we needed any help. We told him about our deliemma and that we were trying to find a place to park our RV when we come back since most of the streets are so narrow. He said that he had seen lots of RVs parked along this one street not far from there. Fast forward to when we got back with Harvey. We cruised over to that street and indeed saw multiple RVs parked along there. Unfortunately the RVs parked there looked like they had not left in quite some time. And possibly were no longer able to leave. We opted to skip that option. Bruce was determined to get closer anyway. Next thing I know, he’s pulling over in this huge empty parking area on the side of the street with signs saying “no parking. Reserved for tacks.” But it was right across the street from Cafe Dumonde so he decided to take his chances. When we had been there earlier today the space was filled with horses and buggies. Now they had mostly all gone home. I stayed in the RV in case we needed to move or I needed to give someone our sob story. It brought back memories of the billions of times I sat in the RV waiting on Bruce on our original trip. I think I’ll start calling it the OT. Haha.
When I got out to take a pic of Harvey in the French Quarter I met a guy named Tinho who was at a little booth raising awareness for Doctors Without Borders. I told him we had friends who had been a part of that organization and I knew it was wonderful. While we were standing there, a girl walked by and he said, “Have you heard of Doctors Without Borders?” “No thank you!” she answered as she walked on by. You at least have to give her points for politeness.
When Bruce got back we asked them for restaurant recommendations for dinner. Tinho’s friend said hands down Mr Ed’s Oyster Bar was the best. They had various locations and we all decided that the one in the Garden District would probably be the easiest place to park, rather than navigating more narrow streets and attempting to find parking in the French Quarter. It was perfect. We found easy parking near the restaurant. The streets weren’t too crowed. The restaurant wasn’t too crowded. And the couple coming out recommended the Taste of New Orleans combo plate which we ordered. Red Beans & Rice, Jambalaya, Crawfish Etouffee and Smoked Sausage. All the cajun dishes in one spot! Delicious!
We planned to go back to the French Quarter and listen to some live music after dinner but it was going to be too complicated to get there and after our long day we were ready to head back to the RV park.
Harvey Rides Again – Friday, Day 7
Breaux Bridge, LA
All of our destinations are pretty close together down here. We got to Breaux Bridge around 11:30 with no real specific plans. I had heard that it is the “Crawfish Capitol of the World” and we needed to check it out. The restaurant that we were definitely not to miss was closed for good. Bummer! But there were several others that looked good on yelp so we picked one of them, Cafe Sydnie Mae, that had outside tables and served southern food. We shared a Muffeleto and an order of Chicken Andouille Gumbo. Now we have had Gumbo, Red Beans & Rice, Etouffee, Jambalaya, shrimp, Poboys and Muffeletos. We have pretty much tried all the local food. But not really. Each place had several obscure menu items like Crawfish Spinach Dip or Shrimp Stuffed Chicken that sounded delicious but we were sticking to the basics.
Our waitress told us we should come back tonight because they have live music and several other close restaurants do as well. Maybe Bruce can hear some live jazz here to make up for missing out in New Orleans. She also recommended a Swamp tour in St Martinville that we decided to take.
The swamp tour guy didn’t answer so we decided to drive out to Martin lake/swamp anyway. When we got there he was no where to be found but his cousin (and competition) Wendy, offered to take us on a swamp tour. Her grandparents owned property on one side of the lake so she was VERY familiar with it. I’m not exactly sure the distinction between lake and swamp. Best I can tell, a swamp is a lake with grass & algae at the edges and Cypress trees growing in it. I think the Spanish moss is just a bonus. We saw an alligator sunning on a log right off the bat. In all we saw about 15 alligators. Usually just heads swimming in the water. Wendy told us that if you measured the inches from the eye to the end of the snout, that translates to the number of feet long the alligator is. We also saw a pink egret. It was in a tree in a protected section so we could only see it at a distance with the binoculars. I think they are kinda rare.
After the swamp tour we went further south to Broussard to Parish Brewery, where they make the Ghost in the Machine IPA that Bruce likes. Since I’m not into tasting (or drinking because then you would also have to taste it) beer I decided to hang out with Harvey while Bruce went in.
From there we headed back north to Poche’s (pronounced Po-shay) little market that several people had told us about. It had all kinds of meat and sausage and chicken and crawfish. We bought a frozen shrimp stuffed chicken to take home. We had been told that they had great hot dinners that you could get to go. We ordered a fried fish and shrimp dinner and some Crawfish boudin balls. The fish and boudin balls were good, but the fries, shrimp, cole slaw and potato salad got thrown away.
We went back to the restaurant where we had lunch today to hear some live jazz. Since we found a good parking space around the corner, I hung out in the RV for a little bit working on the blog while Bruce went on over. He sat outside with the owners, David & Cheryl for a while shooting the breeze. I guess the bridge on their street has been out for over a year. David said that Covid had hurt their business, but the bridge out had hurt it even worse. Tonight it seemed to be hopping. Our Alchemist/Mixologist, Lauren, made us fancy specialized mixed drinks. Bruce had a Manhattan with date syrup and I had a something sour with amaretto in it and egg whites because she suggested it and I decided to live on the edge. She said egg whites made it frothier but I was thinking I could now call it a protein drink.
As we were heading back to Harvey, we passed this burger place where the owner, Grover, had the door propped open and was taking in food supplies. Bruce said, “No rest for the weary” which somehow sparked an hour long conversation with Grover. He told us all about how he cooks his food ALL from scratch, including grinding his own hamburger meat and alligator meat. We talked about how the quality of various products like plastic spoons, cooking oil, shrimp and onions is going down while the price stays the same. He said he could tell the shrimp had been in water to make them heavier since they are sold by weight. Apparently it makes them kinda pinkish instead of being “a pretty silver”. We talked about how the music around the town had stopped during Covid, but was now gradually coming back. He said that he was the first to come up with curbside delivery in Breaux Bridge. He had ideas about everyone and everything. I wish I had a tape recorder. I also wish we had eaten there. His dishes all sounded delicious. He gave me a can of his special cajun spice which I can’t wait to use! He also said we could park in his parking lot which was good because our original spot on the street had too much traffic. We really liked Breaux Bridge and hope to go back again some time.
I kept thinking I’d skip or cut way down on some of the pictures posted because they take SO LONG to load on this program. But the pictures are my favorite part.
Harvey Heads Home – Saturday – Day 8
Breaux Bridge, LA to Wichita, KS
I know none of you will be surprised when I tell you that we woke up and headed north around 6 AM instead of 7:30 as we had planned. And by “we” I mean Bruce. I stayed in bed until the designated time of 7:30. Somebody has to stick to the plan, right? While I was in bed, Bruce stopped and took some pictures of the cemetery in Breaux Bridge. All the graves have to be above ground because rumor has it, if it rains alot they will end up above ground anyway.
His next stop was a cool little donut shop where he bought us coffee, donuts and these little bread loaves stuffed with sausages, cheese and stuff.
Somewhere between Willow Glen and Shreveport Bruce wanted to take a shower so we switched drivers. It was a bit of an odd sensation tooling on down the road driving Harvey in my pj’s and house shoes while Bruce showered. I waited until we stopped for gas to grab a quick shower and get dressed. No reflection on Bruce’s driving, but I didn’t want to take a chance on getting thrown out of the shower on a sharp curve or big bump.
We had planned to have dinner with our friends Terri & Roger and their daughter, Emily. But sadly Terri’s mom had a stroke this morning and so of course they needed to be with her. I am glad to report that she is out of the hospital now and doing well. I guess Bruce is right when he says I’m not realistic about time. I’m not sure how I planned for us to leave at 7:30, drive to Tulsa for dinner with our friends and THEN stop and see my aunt, THEN head home. We probably would have had to pull Harvey over and sleep at a truck stop.
Driving through Oklahoma on the Indian Nation Turnpike reminded me of when we were on it last Saturday heading to Louisiana. I was driving Harvey and the gas needle had passed 1/2 and was getting precariously close to 1/4. From there it is a pretty fast drop to E. The gas stations on the Indian Nation Turnpike are few and far between. We were getting a little nervous. Bruce got on his favorite app, Gas Buddy, and found a fairly close gas station, but it was about 20 cents more a gallon than another station 25 miles down the road. So when we pulled off and stopped at the close station Bruce decided to only put in 2 gallons, so we for sure had enough to get to the next station and fill up. We forgot to order a KTag so we have to stop at all the toll booths and pay the toll person. When we got to the next toll booth, I paid the lady and asked her what they were actually using all that money for since they clearly were not using it for the roads. She agreed that the roads were terrible and said that they had been told to say “infrastructure.” Our little conversation ended, she gave me my change and I drove off…right past the exit! Now we were really sweating! We were trying to come up with a good plan if we ran out of gas, since the cycle was not an option without a key. Hitchhike or Bruce could jump on his bike and pedal to the next station. Hitchhiking was not really an option because I am way to chicken to let Bruce do that. We turned off the A/C and radio and anything else that could possibly require gas and I slowed down to 55 because we decided that was the optimum speed for low gas consumption. Luckily we made it to the next station! And vowed once again to NEVER let Harvey get below half. But we are slow learners. Due to a combo of far apart gas stations, Gas Buddy and my thrifty husband we had a few more nervous moments heading to the best priced gas stations on the way home.
We got to Tulsa around 4:15 and had a delicious dinner with my Aunt Mart at Charleston’s restaurant. After a short but nice visit, we were on our way.
We arrived back home around 9:30. Not bad!
Pam & Mary’s Big Bus Adventure (Harvey stays at home)
Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity.
Proverbs 21:5
Since I haven’t gotten around to printing my Bruce and Pam Coast2Coast Adventure blog yet and I had to pay for another year of service, I decided I may as well blog some more, right? I’m going to attempt to blog my new adventure if I have time. I’m not sure how being responsible for 15 additional people will change my available blog time, but we’ll see.
I know you’re all wondering what in the world is going on NOW? Well, here’s the back story: About 5 years ago I went on a really fun bus trip with my mom up to Michigan and through Canada to Niagra Falls and back. It was so much fun that when I got back I told Bruce that we needed to be hosts for one of these trips. It didn’t end up working out then, but the company (which is based in Rolla, MO – my home town) called me a few months ago and asked if I was still interested. Um …. YES!!! Bruce is not able to go now (because he went on bike trips to Missouri, Texas, Colorado and Arkansas already this summer, and well, he DOES still need to work sometime) so my friend, Mary is accompanying me as hostesses on a bus trip to the Southeast Atlantic States.
I know you are all picturing us at the front of a greyhound, wearing little hats and scarves and holding a pennant. Well just stop! Our bus has had a little work done on the inside. The first 6 rows or so are regular seats facing forward with a little table in front of each of them. Then there is a row of seats facing backward so that people can play games along the way. In the middle there is a kitchen (where Mary & I will fix lunch for everyone each day) and then sofas and an easy chair in the back. And of course a bathroom.
We will stay in hotels each night, travel and visit interesting (although sometimes a little unusual) sites during the day and end with dinner at a restaurant each evening. Although from what I’ve heard it doesn’t really end there. Some of these travelers are avid late night game players, so we’ll see how this all pans out. I love games. My family plays them with me occasionally (like at Thanksgiving and my birthday) to appease me. But we’ll see how I stand up to the pros.
In an attempt to have a little practice cooking in a roaster and electric skillet for 20 people … did I mention our kitchen only has a roaster, crock pot, electric skillet and microwave? … I have tried a few recipes at home. Since we are going south, I wanted to add a few southern dishes into our menu. Some were successful. Some were not.
One important fact I need to point out … I am NOT driving this bus. Thankfully we have an awesome bus driver, Saul, who will get us everywhere we need to go.
Mary and I figured out our recipes for the week and went to Sam’s, Walmart, Costco and Dollar Tree yesterday to buy ingredients for all our recipes. We got the car loaded and headed to Rolla today. Tomorrow we load the bus and Tuesday we head out! Can’t wait!
Pam & Mary’s Big Bus Adventure
Preparing the Big Bus
Whew! What a long day! I did a terrible job of taking pictures, but honestly does anybody care to see a picture of the poptarts we had for breakfast? – which by the way were the bomb! It’s been a LONG time since I’ve had a poptart for breakfast. We headed over to the USA Tours office around 9:00 and began rearranging the cabinets on The Bus to be the way we wanted them. Shout out to my husband who did such a fantastic job packing all the nonperishable groceries in my Pilot. Wish I had a picture. Made it so easy to transfer to The Bus.
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.
Colossians 3:23
We thought that loading The Bus might take us until noon. But at 1:15 we decided to take a break and eat lunch at Maid-Rite. For those of you uninformed about Maid-Rite, it is the cousin to Nu-Way and my high school hangout. So I have to go every time I’m in Rolla.
After lunch we bought the rest of our refrigerated groceries. And by the rest, I mean, enough for the first 4 days. We will hit the grocery store again on day 4 in Savannah. Some how the little task of shopping and loading the rest of the food took us until almost 5:00. After our boss, Nick, went over our final itinerary with us it was 7:00 by the time we finally got home. Oh ok, I guess I should admit that we had to make another grocery stop at Price Chopper on the way home because WalMart was out of Coconut Creamer. If you followed our other bus trip, you know that this is an essential part of my daily sustenance.
Once we got back to my mom’s we washed some fruit (did I mention The Bus does not have running water in the kitchen? Details.), hard boiled some eggs and made a tomato pie for tomorrow’s lunch. One of our “southern touches”. Then my mom made us a delicious dinner of salmon, asparagus, spinach & strawberry salad, and wild rice casserole. YUM! I wish I had taken a picture of that! Are you beginning to see a theme here?
Now it’s off to bed in anticipation of our early morning tomorrow! Hopefully I will do a better job taking pictures tomorrow. It should be a little more interesting day.
Pam & Mary’s Big Bus Adventure – Day 1
Rolla, MO to Nashville, TN
For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!
2 Corinthians 4:17
This morning started off with a beautiful sunrise and lots of energy. There were 2 bus trips leaving the office this morning so the place was hopping. We had 8 passengers leaving from Rolla and planned to pick up the additional 7 in St Louis. As a little perk, USA Tours will pick people up from anywhere in Missouri. We headed East toward St Louis on I44 around 8 AM. Right on time. For almost an hour. Then the bus driver pulled over to the side of the road. Uh oh! When I asked him what was going on, he said that we had thrown a belt, but no worries because a mechanic was coming from the office in Rolla with a belt and they’d have it taken care of in no time. Sure enough, the mechanic arrived in about 45 minutes and put on a new belt. But unfortunately that wasn’t the problem, just the symptom. They decided it was something else and called for someone else to bring the needed parts to fix it. Since this was going to take a while, in an attempt to save time, we decided to have the people in St Louis bussed to us to eliminate the St Louis stop. Every time a semi truck went by it rocked the bus so we told the passengers that this little thrill ride would be thrown in free of charge and tried to convince them to yell, “whee” every time a truck went by. Plus luckily we broke down along a stretch lined with trees almost about to kinda start changing colors. Everything went as planned and so after a little 3 hour Fall Colors Viewing/Semi Truck Thrill Ride we were on our way. By skipping another bathroom stop as well as the St Louis stop, we got to Metropolis to see the Superman Museum only an hour later than we had planned.
The bus began moving right as we were seating everyone at the tables for lunch. We served a delicious lunch of pulled pork, tomato pie, green beans, cream corn and Southern Pound Cake with strawberries for dessert. The tomato pie was a big hit.
After Metropolis, we went through Paducah, KY and on to Nashville. Since the passengers had all been such troopers this morning the company paid for everyone’s dinner tonight at Cracker Barrel.
After dinner we went directly to our hotel where most of the guests went right to sleep while Mary and I started the chicken enchiladas for tomorrow in our hotel room. We both felt like we were still swaying on the bus. Kinda like the sensation you get after boating all day. But this lasted longer. I’m still swaying. I guess balancing while walking up and down the bus isles did a number on my equilibrium. Or someone slipped me some drugs when I wasn’t looking.
Pam & Mary’s Big Bus Adventure – Day 2
Nashville to Hendersonville, NC
Be completely humble and gentle, be patient, bearing with one another in love
Ephesians 4:2
We got up bright and early (but still AFTER all our guests had already finished breakfast) and headed down to the bus to finish preparing lunch. Since we had prepared the filling last night all we had to do was roll the enchiladas. And by “we” I mean Mary. I had the laborious task of opening the 3 cans of refried beans and dumping them in the crock pot. But mostly I was working on making coffee. Several people thought my French Vanilla coffee sounded good, so I made a whole pot. This is a VERY slow coffee maker! By the time it was done only one person still wanted some and I later threw his away. I guess I’ll be drinking alone from here on out.
At 8:35 we got to Belle Meade Plantation which opened at 9:00. Fortunately the girl working the front desk was just walking up and she graciously offered to let us in early. We got a tour of the mansion and then wandered the property. In it’s hay-day, Belle Meade was a premier thoroughbred race horse farm. They raised the great, great, etc grandpa to Secretariat, Sea Biscuit and 11 out of the 13 Triple Crown Winners. Impressive!
One of our passengers had not been feeling well and so stayed on the bus so I went back to check on him. After throwing up, he was feeling much better. Yikes. Hopefully it was just something he ate at the restaurant last night and not something we served. We are passing out so much junk food and chocolate, it’s a wonder more people aren’t sick. I hope I can still fit in my pants on day 10.
After Belle Meade we served lunch on the road and basically just drove the rest of the day. We got to our restaurant destination, Piggy & Harry’s around 6:00. We had just served them Sweet Potato Pie at 4:00 before the time changed and it went from afternoon to dinner time. I really liked this restaurant because it had LOTS of character. But some of the passengers were a little underwhelmed by their food. I guess I have a pretty low bar when it comes to dinner. It may also have had a little to do with the fact that no one was even hungry when we got there. The back story on this restaurant: I was telling Bruce that we were spending the night in Hendersonville, but I couldn’t remember which state it was in. He told me it was North Carolina and he had been there with Randy Storms and his family when they were younger. He remembered getting ice cream at Piggy’s when he was there so I googled it and since it was only a mile from our hotel, we decided to go there. I figured any place that had been in business that long had to be decent.
After dinner and cleaning the bus, I was ready to crash. But somehow I ended up playing 5 Crowns until 10:00. THEN went in and crashed. After my shower. We are scheduled to leave at 7:30 in the morning (which I’m trying not to remember was 6:30 AM yesterday). When our boss had called earlier this evening I had mentioned that 7:30 was coming pretty early in the morning. Apparently he went back and checked and realized that it should have said 8:30. Oops! Since we had already told everyone to be ready to go at 7:30, there was not really a way to change at this point.
We also had groceries in another cooler at back and frozen things iced in a Yeti. We had 2 coolers up by the passengers filled with pop and waters. At night we poured out all the melted ice with this little contraption that Nick, the owner made. It’s a pan that catches the water coming out the spickets and then the water goes through a hose out the front door of the bus. Clever!
Pam & Mary’s Big Bus Adventure – Day 3
Hendersonville to Charleston, SC
Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act.
Proverbs 3:27
First thing this morning we started the pork chops in the roaster and cheesy potatoes in the crock pot. We also decided to go ahead and cook our pecan pie in the skillet because we weren’t sure how long it would take to cook. We figured we would just take it off when it was done and serve it at room temp this afternoon. We forgot to take in to account that you can only have 2 things plugged in at a time without blowing the fuse. This meant that when we were trying to “cook the broccoli really quick” in the microwave, we had to unplug the crock pot and the skillet. The broccoli seemed to take forever to get hot. I guess because it was such massive quantity. We rolled in to Charleston around 12:15. Mary and I served our pork chops, broccoli, cheesy potatoes & rolls for lunch.
After lunch, we all immediately got off to board the ferry over to Fort Sumter. The appliances can’t be left on when the bus is off or it will drain the battery. So we either had to turn them off or Saul, our bus driver, would have to stay on the bus and turn it on every half hour. That would stink. Plus he has never driven on this trip before so we wanted him to be able to go too. So we turned off the skillet. Since we had turned the skillet off and on so many times, we weren’t sure if it was done, even though it had been on since about 9:00. The crust didn’t look like it was browned & felt soft along the edges.
When we got back from Ft Sumter we drove over to the Battery and looked around a bit. Some passengers were asking about this big stone monument. Mary explained that it was “an erection” honoring the men who died in a tragic ship collision. Although that truly is very sad, we all got stuck on the erection part and cracked up. Middle school humor anyone? As we looked at all the names, we noticed that there was one sailor from Rolla.
We all went to dinner at a place called Swig and Swine. Apparently we seem to have a pig theme going. I ordered Whole Hog Plate which was supposed to taste like pulled pork but was really just code for We-are-serving-this-with-all-the-fat-still-included. Not so yummy. The people sitting across from me ordered brisket and ribs and boy did I have other-order-envy! Theirs smelled fantastic!
I kept cooking the pecan pie until we got to the hotel and had everyone come down for an evening snack. I told them it might possibly be pecan pudding or pecan ice cream topping. I was able to cut it. And it tasted good. On the top half. The bottom part was as dark as chocolate. Several people asked if it had a chocolate crust – um, nope just burned. But surprisingly it still tasted good. Kinda like toffee. Just watch out for your fillings or any loose teeth.
The sweet girl at the front desk offered to make us some fresh decaf even though she was the only one working tonight. Unfortunately when she was rolling it out to us on a cart, she hit something and the whole thermos/dispenser fell to the floor and began gushing coffee. Poor thing! We tried to help her because 4 more people had come to the front desk and were now waiting for service. What a mess. She had the best attitude about it all though.
Pam & Mary’s Big Bus Adventure – Day 4
Charleston to Savannah, GA
Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again – REJOICE!
Philippians 4:4
First thing we did this morning was head to see the Angel Tree. It is a 400 year old Live Oak tree. I think it’s the oldest in South Carolina. It was definitely big and beautiful. And apparently it takes A LOT of signs to keep it that way.
Next we went to the Market in Charleston. This land was donated a hundred years ago (ish) with the stipulation that it always be used for a market.
We had Beef and Vegy Soup with cheese and crackers and salad for lunch at the Magnolia Gardens before we went in. We finished with Banana Pudding as one of our traditionaly southern dishes. But we forgot to put the banana slices in and we ran out of whipped cream the day we made Sweet Potato Pie. So ours pretty much just tasted like Jello Banana Pudding. Which it was.
We took a tram around the Magnolia Gardens which included a lot of swamps, complete with alligators and snapping turtles. And lots of Spanish Moss. Which is not Spanish or moss. We learned that it is completely infested with chiggers, so don’t touch! After our 45 minute tour of the gardens we had a 45 minute tour of the mansion. I didn’t take any pics because it was against the law. It was pretty similar to the one we saw two days ago.
It was around 5:00 when we got to Savannah so we decided to go directly to dinner before heading to our hotel. There were several places in this little shopping center near our hotel so we let everyone go their own way and met up an hour and a half later. Mary and Saul and I went to a Mexican restaurant. The waitress gave us the special chunky guacamole since Saul was Mexican (their words not mine – I was just witnessing this transaction) As opposed to the almost pureed guac most people usually get. Hmmmm …
After dinner we went up to our hotel room and relaxed. Haha. NOT! We had hard boiled some eggs at my mom’s so we brought them to our hotel room and made deviled eggs for tomorrow. We also made homemade (hotel-made?) pimento cheese for our sandwiches tomorrow.
So in case you (like me) thought this trip was kinda similar to the trip Bruce and I took last year, let’s just review:
B&P C2C – I drove Harvey. I enjoyed seeing everything that I drove by. I was basically on my own schedule (ok mostly Bruce’s schedule). I slept late and jogged almost daily. I made peanut butter sandwiches for 1 person. I traveled across the country.
USA Tour – I am not driving and Harvey is all alone at the storage unit. I see almost nothing that we are driving by because we are usually cooking. I do NOT sleep late – unless you mean getting up at 7 AM instead of 6 AM occasionally. I do not have time to exercise – unless you count balancing on a moving bus while cooking. We make dinner for 18. I am traveling the country.
But both are good. I think I just need to take time to fill my inner introvert. The pluses to this trip are getting to know all the passengers on our bus (all of whom I really like) and enjoying this adventure with Mary. I don’t know how the other hostesses do this by themselves. Mary and I tag team the cooking and announcements and stuff. Although we have very different MO’s.
Pam & Mary’s Big Bus Adventure – Day 5
A day in Savannah
For the LORD your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears.
Zephaniah 3:17
We started the day with a visit to Tybee Island to see the light house. You know Mary and I had to climb all 178 steps to the top. Once we were back down and feeling kinda proud of our accomplishment, one of the guides mentioned that the original guys working the light house had to climb up at least 3 times a day, every day. I bet they had some awesome legs. On a separate note, the girl taking our picture at the top (random girl, not paid photographer) said that you are supposed to say “Bennett” to get the best smile for a picture. Has anyone ever heard of that? You know that is my maiden name, so I feel like I should have been using this little bit of info all these years.
We left Tybee Island and headed to the downtown Historic District of Savannah. We had a picnic lunch in a nice grassy area under some trees near the parking lot by the Visitors Center where the bus was parked. (Now that’s a lot of prepositions!) I didn’t get a picture of the sandwiches, but we made some delicious ham & cheese “Ham Delights” on Hawaiian buns with a yummy poppyseed-worcestershire sauce (recipe from my North Carolina friend, Cori) AND our home made pimento cheese. We also served deviled eggs, fruit cups, bags of chips, carrots & celery with Ranch dressing. It was a hit. I also learned an interesting fact. Did you know it’s possible to eat a cheeto with a fork? I saw it with my own eyes.
We hopped on the trolley and began our narrated guide around the area. We all started on the same trolley, although we knew people would end up hopping off at different spots. We had a guide named Thomas who had a really great southern accent. I was sad to leave his voice when Mary and I were the first ones off. Every time Mary has talked to her mom this week, her mom has asked if she was going to see the Juliette Low house. We didn’t even know where it was. So when the narrator announced that the next stop was the Juliette Low house, we knew this was our stop. Mary tried to facetime her mom with no luck, so I took pictures of her to send.
We walked through one of the 22 squares in Savannah where they were celebrating Wag-O-Ween with people and dogs dressed up in costumes. We saw dogs dressed as sea creatures, a hotdog, dogs in tutus, of course ghosts and witches and lots more. I only managed to get a picture of 2. But I think they were my favorite anyway.
While we waited for the next trolley a group of people on segways with funny hats came tooling by. We thought it was a parade and took some pictures, then realized that it was actually just some people on a segway tour. And judging by their faces and the face of the guide, I’m guessing the hats were his idea. Once we hopped back on the trolley, the narrator pointed out that that very park was where the famous scene of Forrest Gump on the park bench was filmed. I wish our first guide had mentioned that. We ended up hopping on and off 3 times which meant we had 3 different narrators who used the same material. We heard all 3 narrators say that when Ford Motors first moved to the area, Ford ignored all the warnings and used the Spanish Moss to stuff the seats of his cars, “resulting in the first ever automotive recall” (remember what I told you about the chiggers).
Our 2nd hop off was near the waterfront. We walked around to a few shops and then Mary and I each decided it was time for us to get a tattoo. She picked a pattern and asked the guy if he could make it about 2 inches long. He said “sure”. I asked for mine to be about 1 inch on my ankle. He said, “no problem”.
While we were waiting for everyone to hop off their final trolley we went back to the shady, grassy area and served snacks. Our southern special snack today was peanuts in coke. Only one person wanted to try it.
For dinner tonight we all went to a southern restaurant called Sweet Potato Kitchen. I had Pecan Encrusted Chicken, a sweet potato and green beans. Mary had Blackened Mahi Mahi, a sweet potato and brussel sprouts. I didn’t sit at her table so I didn’t get a picture of hers. A lot of us had Banana Pudding for dessert. So they got to taste what it was supposed to taste like.
Pam & Mary’s Big Bus Adventure – Day 6
Savannah to Jacksonville Beach, FL
The Lord has no equal. Who else has held the oceans in his hand?
Isaiah 40:12
Today was a good day! We got to sleep in today because the bus didn’t leave until 9:00. And since we were having taco bar for lunch today there was basically no prep. I had already browned, seasoned and frozen the meat in Wichita before we left. We had bought shredded cheese and lettuce so the only things left were cutting up tomatoes, making guacamole and opening cans of black olives. Easy peasy!
Our first stop of the day was to hit a WalMart really quickly for us to grab a few groceries and for some of the passengers to buy a swimsuit or flip flops. When I got back to the bus I reached in my pocket to pull out the 2 Halloween cards that I’m sending to Chris’s boys and was shocked (no, really … I WAS shocked) to find only one card. I checked back in Walmart but no one had turned a card in and I didn’t see it on the floor anywhere. I had been all over the place this morning, loading the bus and going back and forth to the hotel. So what to do? I couldn’t really send just one card. What would Channing think if I only sent one to Cullin? But the card to Channing had been addressed, sealed and stamped. What would Cullin think if I didn’t send one to him and then someone found the card to Channing and mailed it? Such a dilemma. In the end, I called Caroline and we decided that I would mail an extra card that I had to Channing and if the original card didn’t show up, she would go buy him another gift card, since I had sent one in the card to Cullin. Problem solved!
Our 2nd stop of the day was Peach World. With a name like that, I had a little more grand expectations than what we drove up to. But it was still fun to see all the peach stuff they had. Lots of salsas and jams and lotions and sweet concoctions. I bought some stuff called TOE Jam. Sounds pretty yummy, huh? It’s made of Tangerine, Oranges and Elderberry. Get it? Pretty clever. They also had FROG Jam and a couple others. We sampled everything and bought some peach ice cream even though it was only 9:30 in the morning.
As we drove along through all the swamps it again made me think how much we take roads and bridges for granted. It’s no big deal to drive along here, but without the bridges, even though the water may only be a few feet deep, it would be impassable without a boat. I’m guessing they used barges or something. You couldn’t walk or ride a horse through because of the alligators.
Our next stop was the Florida Stateline Visitors Center. We all got out and took a group picture by the Florida sign. Then went in to get our free juice.
When we got back to the Big Bus our driver, Saul, was talking to the guy parked next to us, who was towing a huge boat. Saul told us that the boat belongs to Bruce Springsteen and he (Bruce, not Saul) pays that guy $10,000 a couple times a year to haul it across the country. Saul didn’t ask the obvious question. Why? I would think it would be cheaper to just buy another boat.
We got to our hotel around noon and had our taco bar lunch in the hotel breakfast room. Once we got everything cleaned up and cleaned the bus (in case you are wondering, every night we have to wipe down all the surfaces with anti-bacterial wipes, sweep the floor, drain the water from the 3 coolers and fill them back up with ice. Sometimes we restock the pop and water at night, sometimes we wait until morning) anyway, after all that was done we headed for the beach. It was kinda cloudy and not super hot, but warm enough to be in a swimsuit. The ocean water was warm. We played in the waves for a while and then headed to the hot tub. We talked with a couple who actually live in Jacksonville and were having a stay-cation at the hotel to enjoy the beach. In her opinion, the best Florida beach is Key West. As I was relaxing in the hot tub I happened to look down at my foot and notice the water was making it look dark around my little toe. Weird. So I looked closer. Somehow I had an ink stain between my baby toe and the next one over. How in the world? I had shoes on all day until we went to the beach. Has this been there for days and I never noticed? I have no idea. I scrubbed it and it didn’t come off. So maybe I have a real life tattoo. In a very odd place.
As we were heading to the little outside restaurant to get an app and a marg Bruce called me. So I headed up to our room and enjoyed a little chill time talking to him, while Mary went to the Tiki Restaurant with some others from our bus. It was such a treat to be finished at 3:00. I showered then worked on the blog and then chilled (which is code name for played Spider Solitaire). Mary came back to see if I wanted to play games with some of them. I declined. I was enjoying my alone time thoroughly. For those of you non-introverts, this probably seems weird, but I think all the introverts get it.
Some of you have asked about clean up after cooking our meals. We try to take every precaution to minimize our mess. When we cook in the roaster we line it with tin foil and then put a turkey pan in the bottom to hold the food. Or for smaller things like warming up the Ham Delights, we use a disposable lasagna pan. We also use a disposable lasagna pan for inside the electric skillet and a crock pot liner for the crock pot and sometimes crock pot liners for the bowls. Then to wash the silverware and the dishes that need it, we heat water in the coffee pot and wash in a tub in the sink. We can empty the water out the drain in the sink directly outside. So there you have it!
Pam & Mary’s Big Bus Adventure – Day 7
A day in St Augustine
For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.
Galatians 5:13
We (Mary & I, not we the bus load) started the day bright and early by crawling out of bed and starting to assemble lasagna. I had already browned the meats and gotten the tomato part ready in Wichita before we left. It’s been in the freezer. Last night we mixed the cottage cheese/parmesan part in a baggie. Since we had bought the kind of noodles that don’t need to be boiled first, all we had to do was assemble and cook. We had brought the roaster into our room last night. Wish I had taken a pic of us scooting the hot roaster full of 2 pans of lasagna out of the hotel on their luggage cart.
Our first stop in St Augustine was the Light House. I climbed the 219 steps with a 77 year old man. Each time we came to an open window, he leaned out and waved to his wife. So sweet. After around 200 stairs, he stopped at the landing and said, “this is as far as I can go”. I looked up the stairs and saw daylight. “We are almost there!” I told him. “You can’t stop now!” He made it all the way, but then decided not to actually go out on the outside part. I’m still impressed he made it all the way up. For some reason this light house didn’t seem as much of a climb as the one on Tybee Island. When I first started climbing the other one, a little claustrophobia started kicking in. Every now and then in certain situations it hits me and I have to remind myself that there is no reason that I will need to get down in a hurry and I will be just fine. This lighthouse was a walk in the park. So to speak. Maybe because they had fun stuff to read on every other landing, which kinda broke it up. I didn’t get a picture of the ones that climbed it because every body went up and back down at their own pace.
We decided it was too hot to have a picnic today since there was no wind, so we ate lunch on the bus. That’s easier anyway.
After lunch we did another Hop-On-Hop-Off trolley. Except that these were actually not trolleys. More like those cart things you ride through garden tours. Maybe called trams. Our tickets from the Savannah trolley had an advertisement that you could save $2 per ticket if you showed them your ticket when you bought your new ticket for the St Augustine trolley. Always looking for the bargain, I called the company and asked if we had to actually have everyone’s tickets or if I could show my receipt for all 18. She was very nice and said, no problem I could just give her my receipt number and she could take care of it all over the phone. I asked if $2 off would be better than their group rate and she said that they didn’t have a group rate. Then I asked if they had a senior rate since we are mostly seniors. Nope. This was the best we could get. So I gave her the credit card info and we finished the deal over the phone. She emailed me a receipt and texted me something to scan for our tickets. Perfect. So we arrived and Tyna came out and gave everyone a map and a sticker to show that they had paid. I showed her the scan thing on my phone and she got a funny look on her face. Uh oh. She took me to the office to talk to Kathy. Big uh oh. Kathy looked at the scan thing on my phone and said. “That’s not us. You were supposed to come in here to pay.” What!?! I pulled out my flyer and showed her the number on the front that I had called. Apparently it was two different phone numbers for the same company, different departments. “No. We have a contract with USA Tours and you are only supposed to get tickets through us. We are the group ticket sales.” WHAT!????! I told her about my conversation with the other lady and that no one had mentioned that I had to buy the tickets from her. The last trolley ride I just bought them all from the kiosk. Bottom line: I had paid $180 too much for non-refundable tickets. Yikes! Luckily Kathy was on the ball and she offered to go talk to her GM and see what could be done. A few minutes later, she came back and said that they would issue USA Tours a check for the difference and mail it to the office. Yay for Kathy!
We hopped on the tram and learned lots of interesting info that I have already forgotten. But luckily we heard the Henry Ford/Spanish Moss story again. A few stops before we came to the fort, it started to pour down rain. The trolley driver pulled over and handed out rain ponchos to everyone. That was a thoughtful, unexpected little perk. Fortunately two stops later, when we got off at the fort, it had already quit raining and gotten hot again.We decided to just walk around the outside of the fort a bit and then get back on the trolley.
After everyone arrived back from the trolley ride we boarded the Big Bus and headed back to Jacksonville Beach. The passengers were on their own for dinner tonight so I offered some of our leftovers to them and ended up making about 6 to go plates. The pimento sandwiches and the lasagna were in high demand. I also made a few peanut butter sandwiches. Imagine that. Saul and Mary and I walked over to a seafood restaurant called Salt Life because we had a hankering for some fresh seafood. It did not disappoint.
