Thursday, May 19, 2016

This morning, we walked around the French Quarter, down to the Mississippi River, back up Canal Street to Bourbon Street and back to the parking garage.  We were hot and humid by the time we got back to the car.  It was fun to see the tourists who were wearing beads and hats even though it's not Mardi Gras.

Then it was back on I-10 headed east.  Our next stop was in Biloxi, Mississippi, where we went to the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino so I could buy pins for my collection.  That went well until we tried to find our way back to the freeway.  Several missed turns and wrong exit numbers by Naggy Maggie, the GPS voice, and we headed east again.  Mississippi is very green with lots of trees along the interstate.  We saw magnolia trees in bloom mixed in with oak trees and pines.  I loved it.  And along the freeway were lots of lily pads.  We wondered what was lurking under them.  We also commented on the fences along the interstate.  Field fencing with three strands of barbed wire on top.  Most of the time the fences aren't visible because of the vines and shrubs that have grown up and through them.

We stopped at the Mississippi Welcome Center when we crossed from Louisiana to Mississippi and wished we had a bird book because we couldn't identify the one perched on top of a statue singing its little heart out.  Stella saw a dead alligator along the freeway in MS, but I was looking out the passenger window and missed it.

The amount of water in this part of the country is astounding.  We crossed bridge after bridge after bridge today, across rivers, lakes, bayous, and marshlands.  I think we are especially amazed after driving through Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.

As we came to Mobile, Alabama, traffic slowed to a crawl.  It took us 45 minutes to inch our way through the tunnel there and then to the point on the bridge where an accident had happened.  Severe damage to two of the four cars involved in the rear ender, but no injuries.  After that, it was a race to make up time.  Alabama and northern Florida have gentle rolling hills.  We passed three Air Force bases and at least two, might have been three, Naval Air Stations.  Traffic was quite heavy around Pensacola but light from there to Tallahassee where we are tonight.

We hav decided that Niceville, Florida, wins the great name for a town contest thus far.  Oh, that reminds me, a young woman in New Orleans snagged us as we walked by.  She was a marketing person for Wyndham, the hotel chain who now owns a time share company, too.  Anyway, here's the conversation - "where are you from?"  "Idaho" " I just love the Midwest, I'm from Wisconsin."  She might get more business if she knew where the states are.

Another lightning storm tonight as we drove into town.  It's the third one of the trip.  No rain, and it was such a nice warm evening when we got out of the car.