At Last Disney World

We have finally made it to Disney World, and have survived 8 days at the Worlds Happiest Place.
Amanda, Todd, and Alec joined us at DW, staying with us in the motor home.
Alec with his popcorn hat on


We camped at Fort Wilderness a Disney Resort. Great campground. What else would you expect from Disney? Our site was surrounded by lush vegetation and backed up to a canal. The landscaping was perfectly manicured to look wild yet it was watered by a drip irrigation system. All the sites have power, water, sewer, and are paved. The campground is located on the same lake as the Magic Kingdom, there is a boat that runs from the campground to the Park. This makes it very easy to travel from one to the other. Besides all the Disney Parks to go to the campground also has pools, beach, boat, bike, canoes rentals, horseback and pony rides, wagon rides, campfire sing alongs, movies, Restaurants and a bar.
We went to all four parks, The Magic Kingdom, Disney Hollywood Studios, The Wild Kingdom, and Epcot. Alec was a wee bit young to enjoy it all but had fun with the Disney caracturors, such as Buzz Lightyear, McQueen , and Nemo. We all had a good time and thought the Wild Kingdom was the best Park. All in all Disney World it's self is an amazing place.
Alec at the Wild Kingdom









The Big Boys with Pocahontas.





Alec with McQueen



We took two days off from playing at the Parks, one day we drove to Jupiter to spend some time with Jack's sister, her husband, and Mom. Jack, Todd and Uncle Ed went fishing catching enough fish to have for dinner. As you can see it was a perfect Florida kind of day, sunny and about 72 degrees. The other day that we took off from the Parks, Jack and I watched Alec while Amanda and Todd went shopping at the outlet Mall. We all had a nice and easy day. Alec even went swimming at the pool, and went digging in the sand at the beach.

After Disney we are off for a few days at Little Manatee River State Park which is just east of St. Petersburg from there were off to Collier Seminole State Park which is just south of Naples. The weather is warming up so we should have some nice beach weather ahead.


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Destination Destin Florida

We packed up the RV and headed east toward Florida. The Gps lead us across the Mississippi River, a toll bridge ($2.00 for both the RV and car) across the Mississippi River. As we leave New Orleans the view from the free way shows large tracks of land free of structures and littered with debris. I assume due to Katrina. There are ads along the road and on the TV for companies to lift your house for free or to remove debris from your lot for free, al paired for if you have federal flood insurance. Interesting to me that people want a small Federal Government, and yet these same people don't equate the help they get after Natural disaster is from the same government.

As we travel through Louisiana into Mississippi the landscape changes nearly instantaneously from bayous filled with cypress trees to a landscape of pine forests lining the freeway. Then on to Alabama where the the landscape again changes to oak trees and wide open fields, then into Florida and the oak trees into pines trees again. We turn off the freeway toward Gulf Shores Florida. This route takes across a toll bridge, $11.00 it costs for the RV and jeep to cross this bridge. Welcome to Florida, a lot like California, in the cost of things. Texas was the cheapest, cheap groceries, close to 30% less than California, cheap gas, ferry rides, cheap camping. Here in Florida gas prices went from $2.99 in Alabama to $3.15 in Florida just crossing the bleared. Food is more expensive here in Destin then in Texas but still less than in California.

Destin, is on a barrier island about 50 miles east of Pensecola. We are staying at Henderson Beach State Park. Great campground, huge private campsites, and I mean huge campsites, great and I mean great bathrooms, heated air conditioned, large tile showers and everything spotlessly clean. The campground is located in the sand dunes, a short walk from the beach. Now the beach goes on for miles, made of this soft fine grain white sand that doesn't cling to your feet. It's just lovely.



One empty campsite at Henderson Beach



Our campsite at Henderson state beach



The beach Destin Florida



-More of beautiful beach in Destin

Our first day in Destin the weather was great we strolled around town, walked along the beach, drove to the National Seashore looking for a dog beach - no luck with the dog beach, just enjoying the sunny weather. Had a $2.00 beer at the harbor at a dog friendly bar.




We just had a nice easy day.

Over night another cold blustery storm blew in. We woke up to another cloudy and chilly day. We decided to drive to the National Naval Museum in
Pensacola.

Great airplane, Naval history museum. Lots of historical planes, exhibits from WW1 through Afghanistan, space travel, and air planes up the wazoo. It's really an interesting place where you could spend two days exploring.


Blue Angels F18 hornets.




Jack in the cockpit of an F 18.

We had a great time at the museum. Be sure if you ever find yourself in Pensacola go to the National Navel Museum, supported by donations and not the government.



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Noshing in New Orleans

Campsite at Bayou Segnette State Park, Westwego, LA
Westwego is just across the Mississippi River from New Orleans.




















Nicolas Cage's tomb in the St. Louis cemetery in New Orleans.

Finally the weather has cleared up and sort of warmed up here in New Orleans. It's great to get out and see the city. The state park that were staying at is a 6 mile drive to the Algiers Point ferry that takes you for free to the French Quarter. What more can you ask for, free ride, and free all day parking. So, we took the ferry and spent the day walking around the French Quarter. What a crazy place. The first thing that we did upon landing in the French Quarter was to have coffee and beignets at the Cafe du Monde. On trick that I read about on the Internet is don't wait in line (the line is out the door) at the Cafe du Monde, just walk right in and scout out a table. It took us maybe a minute to get a table. The coffee and beignets were both tasty with enough calories to power us for the rest of the day. It was about 40 degrees out with a good wind making it chilly to walk around.
We toured around the French Quarter, taking in St. Louis cemetery, St Louis cathedral, Bourbon St, etc. It is nuts how at 11 am people are walking down Bourbon St drinks in hand going from bar to bar. We we looking for some jazz music but did not find any. What's up with that? New Orleans the center of the jazz world and on place had a jazz band playing. We hiked around town, stopped for oysters at Le Bayou Restaurant on Bourbon St. Walked in and out of the fancy Jewelry stores on Royal street then had an ok dinner at some restaurant not the best of food. But not bad. Jack had a chicken dish covered in a creole sauce, I had crab cakes just ok. But we need to get back to the dog so the meal had to do. That evening at the State park we enjoyed the howling of a pack of coyotes. Not what I expected from a park so close to a big city.




Saint Louis cathedral



Interior of St Louis cathedral .
Second day in New Orleans we took the ferry into town. It was actually a nice day sunny and 60 degrees. It nice to be warm.
The decided to take the St. Charles St trolly to the Garden district to tour the beautiful homes.



Waiting for the trolly- not my bottle, Jack thought that it was funny. Also bad hair day...time to get a hair cut.




Bourbon St



Historic St. Charles Ave Trolly




Archie Mannings house



Ann rice's house



We walked around the garden district, if you have a walking tour map you can walk pass houses belonging to Ann Rice, Archie Manning, Nick Cage, Sandra Bulock, and the house that Jefferson Davis died in. We didn't pick up a map-I would suggest stopping at the tourist info desk located at the start of the Garden District to get a map, even if you don't pick up a map, the houses are beautiful and walking through district is fun. We decided to have a late lunch, or an early dinner, we couldn't get into the Jazz brunch at the Commander's Palace Restaurant in the Garden District but instead found a local Restaurant that was fabulous . Actually, my IPad app found the Restaurant it was great. Glad that I brought my iPad. If ever in New Orleans have a meal at Coquette, for $25.00 per person we had a three course meal. Jack had roasted oysters, pork belly wraps, and beignets for desert. The beignets came with mocha pot du cream and a caramel sauce tomdip them in. God, the beignets were sooooooo good. Better than the beignets at cafe du Monde.

I had Bibb lettuce salad with fried pig ear, gulf shrimp with grits and fennel, for desert blood orange panna cotta. Everything was to die for. The best meal we have had in months.
After such a huge meal, we were done for and headed home to watch the Super Bowl. Great day, great meal, what else can you ask for?



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BURRRRR in the Bayou

Just hanging in away from the cold

Here we are in Louisiana and its bone chilling cold.  We a woke at the A+ RV park in  Lake Charles Louisiana  to a hard freeze.  Ice everywhere; when we pulled in the slide large shards of ice fell off the roof of the slide.  Our plan is to drive east toward New Iberia ahead of the front that is suppose to bring freezing rain, sleet, and possibly snow to the region. 
We took highway 14 a secondary highway from Lake Charles toward New Iberia Louisiana,.  It was a pleasant trip taking us though farm country and lots of small towns.  The country looks very prosperous with lots of pieces of property with cute brick houses on them.  All the houses along the route look like they have new roofs.  Perhaps due to the hurricanes that blew through here 5 years ago.  The farms look like they're growing rice.  Nearer we get to New Iberia the rice fields change to sugar cane fields. 
We arrive in New Iberia and the weather isn't much better then in Lake Charles.  Its 33 degrees with a wind chill making it feel like its 22.  Burrrrrrrrrrrr.
l.  Were staying at KOC Campground   not the best  of RV parks looks like there are lots of full timers and people still living in FEMA trailers. Its $25 per night with cable and fishing pond and a pool ha ha.  Once we settled in we decided to take in a tour of the Shadows upon the Treche.  Ia house built in 1830 by a sugar grower named Weeks.  The house has all the original furniture from the 1830 that Weeks shipped from Connecticut .  They even have the original bill of sale for for the bed room furniture.  When the house was donated to the historical trust, by a direct decedent of Weeks,  all the furniture, dishes and 17000 historical documents came along with the house.  It was an interesting tour, walking the grounds would have been fun it it was warmer and perhaps also in the spring when the azaleas are blooming.  There are other plantation houses and gardens in the area to tour, along with the Tabasco sauce factory tour.  But we have decided to press on east to be ahead of the weather.  Freezing rain, sleet  and snow is forcasted for tomorrow.

Shadows on the Treche

On ward toward New Orleans.  Next stop is Westswego LA where we will be staying at Bayou Segnette State Park fjor $18 per night with electric. water, and free laundry.

Due to ice on several bridges we are forced to detour off the highway, taking the Old Spanish Trial through Bayou Country.  The detour takes us through several small towns one in particular, Franklin, had a cute historical district that was lined with beautiful old homes with huge oak trees with Spanish moss hanging from their branches.  Very scenic.  If we we not in such a hurry to make it our spot for the night it might have been fun to walk through town.  Also its bitter cold out so the desire to walk is less then usual. 
We have settled in to the campsite for the day, waiting for the weather to get to us.  Its off to New Orleans tomorrow.  Hopefully it won't be too cold....

Walking through the Bayou-

Campsite at Bayou Segnette State Park Lousiana

Tornado warnings!

Here we are hunkered down in the RV, wind blowing , dark clouds, thunder, lightening, the RV is shaking like a boat on the high seas. Tornado warnings are floating across the TV screen, the dog is moaning all very scary. The storm is right above us it's hard to see out of the windows. Once the storm passes the temperature is expected to drop from 68 to 40! We are planning to go out and explore Lake Charles once this is over.... I hope that it ends soon.
So far no hail I hope that continues hail and RVs don't mix.

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Location:Lake Charles La