Day 22 Orlando/Disney World

After spending Saturday night in one of the Tallahassee Wal Mart(parking lot), we decided to go first class and park the "land yacht" at Ft. Wilderness Resort at Disney World. Wayne, Joanna, and assorted family and friends are here on a one week vacation, and we are spending two nights here. It is by far the most expensive so far at $64.00/night, but it includes all of the disney transportation, and activities outside of the theme parks. We will take a tour of all of the hotels tomorrow and give you a report. Here are some shots of the scenes, and Wayne and Joanna in our coach.

Day 21 - Tallahassee Florida

Tallahassee is the home of Florida State University. Samantha Nix, and her Husband Chris Mills are attending there. He is getting a PHD, and she is getting her Masters Degree. It was a great pleasure to have dinner with them on Saturday night. We ate at Bella Bella Itilian Resturant, and it was good. We are very proud of Samantha's and Chris's efforts and hard work. They are newly weds, and a joy to be around. We also attended services at the North Florida Baptist Church before leaving for Orlando on Sunday.

Ft. Gaines & Dauphin Island

Ft. Gains was also used to protece Mobile Bay during the Civil war. It is where the phrase "Damn the Torpedoes, full steam ahead" was first uttered. The shots of the "thin" houses are really fronts on boat slips. Of course there were many long bridges, but this one connects the Island to the mainland. We took about a 30 minute ferry ride to get accross the bay, and it took two hours to drive back around the bay to get back to the RV Park.

Ferry Ride to Dauphin Island

We took the "Dingy Car" on a ferry ride across the bay to Dauphin Island. It was cool, and of course we took a few shots for your viewing pleasure.

Fort Morgan

An old Civil War Fort that was used to protect this part of the south, and Mobile Bay. Pretty cool, we took a few shots while we waited for the ferry. The drilling rigs in the water are for natural gas. they drill over 21,000 feet deep and are owned and operated by Exxon/Mobile. There are a lot of them, and most of the natural gas comes from here.

Orange Beach Condos

For an afternoon adventure we went to check out the condos that a friend owns on Pardido Rd. on orange beach. We didn't go in, but did get a feel for where they were and what to expect. I think both of them are for sale, but we aren't buying today. There are lots of them for sale around here.

Our Campsite at Bay Freeze

Here is a shot of our "Land Yacht" from the pier that is by our site. It is a good spot, and we have enjoyed it. Tonight it rained quite a bit, and we got a chance to stay in and watch movies. It's all good.

Visiting the Staffords

A main attraction for Gulf Shores was to visit with Chester and Charlotte Stafford. Chester is my 2nd cousin, and we spent time in Germany together 37 years ago when we were both in the US Army. This was the first time we saw each other since then. At that time he was a high ranking officer (a Doctor), and I was a private. They took us out to a nice sea food resturant along with Isabella, Charlottes mother. It was a great chance to catch up and to learn about the geneology of our family. Chester has studied extensively and documented our heritage. Nickie loved their house, and since it is for sale, briefly thought about buying it. haha

Bay Breeze RV Park-Gulf Shores, AL

Our home for the next couple of days on the bay at Gulf Shores. Of course, Nickie wanted the best (and most expensive) site they had. Hope you like the pictures.

The Road to Gulf Shores

On Thurseday 1/28 after getting the generator starter put on the motor home, we were back on the road to Gulf Shores, Alabama. This is an area at the bottom of the state where the land is interupted by bays, lagoons, rivers, and the Gulf of Mexico. Beautiful Country!

Days 17-19 of the Continueing Adventure

We traveled from Mississippi to Tuscaloosa, Alabama to meet up with Uncle "Buddy" and Cindy. We had a nise dinner at Logan's Rosd House. It was great to see them, and we planned to move on the next morning. However we descovered that the generator woould not work on the motor home, so we stayed and had it worked on. The guy said it needed a new starter which he didn't have so we went to Birmingham to get one. While there we had dinner with Wayne and Joanna and their children. We ended up staying in Tuscaloosa an extra night and meeting with Uncle Buddy again at breakfast. Another unexpected turn of events, but it was nice to see Wayne and family and spend more time with Uncle Buddy.

Days 13-16 With Family in Clinton, Mississippi

We spent a few days with Mom, and brother Jerry and his family in Clinton. Lucky for me, Jerry lined me up with a motorcycle ride. I rode a brand new Harley Sportster about 120 miles with him and two of his friends. We had a good ride. The weather was again very good. We went to church with mom, had a nice turkey meal at my brother's house, prepared by his wife Le. We visited my dad's grave site,(in Birmingham, Alabama) said a prayer of thanks for his life and legacy, and placed some flowers on his grave. It was a good visit with the family.

Sites of the French Quarter and Activities

We had a light lunch at the Gumbo Shop on St. Peter St. We watched a free movie about the history of New Orleans at the Le Petit Theater. We saw some interesting Bars with various kinds of attractions, like the lady pictured here with the Banana Bra. There is also a street performer on a ladder going nowhere leaned against nothing. We met a very nice lady named Nancy Detotto while eating at the Gumbo Shop.