3 July 2018......Bellefonte, Pennsylvania
I am sitting here on my sister’s back patio with perfect weather..birds chirping and of course beautiful flowers all around. ( my sister does not have a brown thumb like me).
We left Lancaster on 15 June and spent some time with Maryann’s Aunt Fran and Aunt Ethel. It is always so nice to see them each year when we come East. This year we also got to see Debbie, Maryann’s cousin.
We continued on after our visits to Bellefonte, Pa to spend time with Maryann’s family, Joan and Tom. Joan had a get together with her children and families so the girls got to see their cousins. What a fun afternoon with family. The girls enjoyed seeing Joan and Tom’s garden. They helped pick strawberries and squash. In the evening they were so happy to be able to catch fire flies. They had remembered the fire flies from the times we had come to Pennsylvania in the past years. OF COURSE...we played several games too. AND were never hungary with Tom and Joan’s great cooking and OF COURSE..Joan’s chocolate chip cookies! I even heard that Joan’s chocolate chip cookies were as good as Granddad’s or better!! AND there was only a few left when they left to go to the Cape ...of course they took the left over few cookies to have as snack in the car! Joan’s Tom made the girls pancakes nearly every morning and they were delighted as ate several every morning.
After a few days in Bellefonte, we left our car at Joan’s and took Kelly’s van and headed out to Niagara Falls. We took the back roads through the beautiful forest of central Pennsylvania. Amazing to see the scenery. Due to the increased rain they have had here the forest was so green and plush . It was as if the ground was covered with carpets of leaves and green carpet. We stopped in Benezett , Pennsylvania which is an elk preserve. Unfortunately due to the hot days, we did not see any elk there but we did see a couple elk on our trip north. The girls loved seeing some deer in the wild. We were lucky enough to see some doe’s and their fawns as we drove through the forest. They were hoping to see a bear...but it seems they were not out and about. We arrived at Niagara Falls, New York side in the early evening and checked into New York Army National Guard Base in Niagara Falls, New York where we were staying in their billeting. Very nice facility. Kelly had planned our days there with events we wanted to attend. We had a good nights rest and woke up and headed to Niagara Falls. First stop was the Visitor’s Center at Niagara Falls, New York side. Our plans were to take the Maid of the Mist boat trip up to one of the most powerful waterfalls in North America to hear the thundering roar of 600,000 gallons of waters falling right before your eyes...feeling the rush of mist on your face. Also wanted to take the Journey behind the Falls and stand in the mist behind the thundering American Falls at the Cave of the Winds. Plus see the Niagara Falls Adventure Theater AND the Fire Works over the Falls. We got our tickets and were walking out to the van to get backpacks and rain jackets when all at once, Kelly was on the ground and could not get up! They are doing construction at the center and the sidewalk was not even with the ground. There was a 2-3 inch drop off from the pavement to the ground. Kelly heard a pop in her calf when she went down and the lower leg started to swell immediately. Maryann helped Kelly up but she could not put weight on her leg. Tom and the girls went and pulled the van to the gate so would not have to walk very far. Several people were very nice and offered to help us. Once in the van, we headed to the nearest Emergency Room. On the way there, we decided that Tom and the girls would go back and do the events we had scheduled as thought would be a few hours at the hospital. AND of course we were there for about 4 hours. The care we received was less than good medical treatment. Maryann had to ask for almost all the standard care for Kelly’s type of injury and to ask the nurse etc. whenever they walked by the room for standard of care stuffs such as ICE, PAIN MEDICATION, SOMEONE TO ASSIST KELLY TO BATHROOM, IF AND WHEN A PROVIDER WOULD BE CHECKING ON HER...INFORMING THEM THAT HER FOOT WAS NUMB... We know ER and Urgent care could be busy but as we observed none of the patients seemed to be being evaluated and treated. In the four hours we were there, the only person that even touched her leg was the x-ray technician when they came to get the x-ray AND by the way Maryann had to ask about them taking an x-ray for evaluation! After awhile it became “a thankgoodness did not have a serious” issue. Of course Maryann would have called for a supervisor etc. if that had been the case. Finally the NP arrived and stood at the door and said they would get an x-ray and she would see Kelly after the x-ray. Time passed with Kelly and I thankful that Tom had taken the girls back to do their events and entertaining ourselves with staff behavior. When we checked in they said would call the Niagara Park Police as would need to come and take a statement. The Police arrived about 20 minutes after we arrived there...hmmm. He said he was surprised that Kelly did not have more injures as was told by the staff at the hospital that she had fallen in a “crevass” . The policeman was very nice and ended up spending about a half hour with us just chatting. Which was fine as we certainly were not getting medical care! A couple hours after the x-ray was completed and Maryann asked if provider had gotten the results ...the nurse arrived with a pair of crutches to show Kelly how to use...he seemed less than patient with us. Gave us the x-ray disc be grudgingly and told Kelly to be seen in a couple days. More cause to laugh. Tom and the girls had just finished seeing the Cave of the Winds when we called them so Kelly and I went to the cafeteria to get something to eat. Kelly said was the best French fries she had ever eaten so I guess the trip to the Hospital was not all bad!! One has to be able to find humor in these circumstances!!!!!! Tom and Girls picked us up and took Kelly and me back to billeting on base and then they went back to Niagara Falls. They went to the Aquariaum and saw a movie about the history of Niagara Falls...and then stayed for the fire works over the falls. Tom and the girls really enjoyed their adventures at the falls . Molly had a friend that was to be at the falls from her school in Florida and what a surprise that her friend and her family were on the same boat to ride to the falls that they were! They all really enjoyed the fireworks and the night was perfect...they did not get back to billeting until about 1030 PM. While we were here Kirsten found the car/van she wants when she can get a car....It is a dark blue 8-10 passenger van! HOW CUTE. I will post a picture on our blog...
The next morning we headed back to Bellefonte where my sister lives. On our way back to Bellefonte, we stopped at my friend Janet and Dick’s home in Karthaus and had a nice dinner and time for them to catch up with the girls and Kelly. Always enjoy our time together...and Janet always has goodies for them and us! We also were driving through Snow Shoe and they were having a town parade so we stopped (because all traffic was stopped) and watched their early 4th of July Parade for about 30 minutes.
Kelly was seen at the Orthopedic doctors the next day and after review he said was a bad sprain of muscle/tendon between the tibia and fibula and gave her a boot to wear on the leg. She is to follow up when returns to Florida. Thank goodness was her left foot so can still drive.
We all went down to the park in Bellefonte the next day and the girls spent time feeding the ducks and fish some cheerios. They also were able to spend time in th swimming pool with their cousins the night before we left . What a blessed Granddad and Nana to be able to spend 39 days on the road with Kelly ,Molly, Samantha, and Kirsten. Special moments we will never forget. They left for Mashpee on Cape Cod on 23 June to spend time with Bryan’s parents. Bryan will join them before the 4th of July and they will all drive back to Florida together after the 4th.
Since they left we have been spending time with Joan and Tom and will be seeing friends and family. We went down to their camps for a day and then spent the rest of the day driving the back roads...saw an elk and several deer and beautiful country. Of course have also been eating some great foods as they really know how to make such good tasting meals. Spending time playing games and cards...and of course laughing so much. ~A DAY WITHOUT LAUGHTER IS A DAY WASTED~ I can assure you we have not wasted one moment of a day we have spent together!
We have of course been talking with Carrie and Emme...Emme is starting Kindergarten this year at Country Day School ( same school she has been attending for pre-K ) so they went shopping for school uniforms last week. We talked to them while they were at the store...Emme asked US “if you had a kid, would you buy them this pair of shoes” and showed us the shoes!! Not sure if she understood her mom was OUR KID....We told her Mom was our Kid and we would have to think about it!
This area of Pennsylvania has been having some daytime temperatures of 95-98 which they do not usually have. It is uncomfortable as the humidity is very high too.
We are spending the 4th of July at Rosanne and Jeff’s annual 4th of July get together ..has become an annual event for us.
~FROM EVERY MOUNTAINSIDE, LET FREEDOM RING ~~ Martin Luther King Jr
We are starting to plan our trip West and then home to Tucson. Will let you know if we will be near you so can get together. Please keep us in your prayers for safe travels.
Sending love and hugs ,
Tom and Maryann
“THE JOURNEY ITSELF IS OUR HOME”
Tuesday, July 3, 2018
Wednesday, June 13, 2018
Cherry Point, NC to Washington D.C 13 June 2018
The next part of our story about our travels.........3 June to 13 June 2018
We arrived at Cherry Point, NC on 3 June. We are staying at the Cherry Point Inn which is a massive 2 story brick building with white columns and a massive screened inn porch on the second floor. The Inn was in a nice wooded area of the base. IT felt like we were in the country. The Inn mostly has 2 room suites. Before being changed into an inn it was used as the Bachelor Officer Quarters. There is a large room on the first floor with tables etc. where we spent a lot of time when we were back at the Inn playing card games etc. with the girls. The only draw back staying there is that there was no phone wifi service. We had to walk a distance away from the building to get service...kind of like using a phone booth...
It was very comfortable staying at our temporary home at Cherry Point Billeting.
On our second day at Cherry Point, we took a boat and visited Shackleford Banks which is a short distance from Beaufort, N C. Shackleford Island is an isolated barrier island accessible only by boat. How the wild horses arrived on the island is still a mystery but it is said they could be descendants of Spanish Mustangs that swam ashore after surviving shipwrecks. The horses have survived in the wild, isolated on Shackleford and other coastal barrier islands away from the mainland for almost a millennium. There has been over 200 horses on the island but now just about 130 horses are on the island . The Foundation for Shackleford Horses manages the horses in cooperation with the Park Service. We saw about 12 of the horses when we were on the island. We found the water very warm as we walked on the beach in the water. We also found some neat sea shells. We were on the Island for about 1.5 hours. The next time we go to the island, we will take our swimming suits, water,cooler and plan to stay for several hours. This time we were not sure what to expect as there are limited facilities and what you take on the Island, you must carry off. You can only buy small bottles of water at the bookstore at the Light Station Visitor Center. So we would highly recommend if you are in the area, a trip to the Island for a few hours is a MUST, you take a picnic, food , drinks and something to put up for shade so you can enjoy the island for a few hours. The boats come and go every hour or so. Even though we were only on the island for a short time, it was one of the highlights of our trip.
The last day at Cherry Point , time was spent on the Atlantic Beach on the Crystal Coast near Fort Macon. We also had time to rest, play games and get ready for our next adventure at Williamsburg, Virginia.
Arrived in Williamsburg, Virginia after a short 4 hour drive from Cherry Point. We drove the back roads here. Saw some beautiful countryside. We spent a few hours visiting Colonial Williamsburg after we checked into our billeting at Navy Gateway and Suites at Cheatham Annex. It was fun walking about the streets of Colonial Williamsburg which is the world’s largest living history museum. The girls enjoyed the walk about the town and taking pictures in the gallows and various statues like with Thomas Jefferson. Molly was especially happy to see that they had a book store....she loves to browse in book stores!
The next day the morning was spent at Yorktown, Va. The girls said that was one of their favorites. They spent time walking around 18th Century Architecture of Yorktown and really enjoyed the American Revolution Museum and and the Yorktown Waterfront. Next on the list of must see was Jamestown where we toured the Jamestown Settlement where they experienced walking about America’s first permanent English Colony in 1607 and seeing the history through films, gallery exhibits and outdoor living history of the Powhatan Indian Village. Also were able to board and tour the replicas of the original settlers’ ships, the Susan Constant and the Godspeed.
The girls really seem to enjoy all that they are experiencing on this family trip.
Now we are at Naval SupportActivity Bethesda and Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda staying at the Navy Lodge. We arrive here on June 9th. Experienced lots of traffic on the drive here from Williamsburg. We will be here for 4 days. Yesterday Kelly and girls drove to see friends from their neighborhood in Vail, AZ that now live in Virginia. They enjoyed spending the day in the mountains with their special friends. Tom and I spent the day getting caught up on some stuffs we needed to do...and resting. It seemed so quiet without Kelly and girls!
It was very comfortable staying at our temporary home at Cherry Point Billeting.
On our second day at Cherry Point, we took a boat and visited Shackleford Banks which is a short distance from Beaufort, N C. Shackleford Island is an isolated barrier island accessible only by boat. How the wild horses arrived on the island is still a mystery but it is said they could be descendants of Spanish Mustangs that swam ashore after surviving shipwrecks. The horses have survived in the wild, isolated on Shackleford and other coastal barrier islands away from the mainland for almost a millennium. There has been over 200 horses on the island but now just about 130 horses are on the island . The Foundation for Shackleford Horses manages the horses in cooperation with the Park Service. We saw about 12 of the horses when we were on the island. We found the water very warm as we walked on the beach in the water. We also found some neat sea shells. We were on the Island for about 1.5 hours. The next time we go to the island, we will take our swimming suits, water,cooler and plan to stay for several hours. This time we were not sure what to expect as there are limited facilities and what you take on the Island, you must carry off. You can only buy small bottles of water at the bookstore at the Light Station Visitor Center. So we would highly recommend if you are in the area, a trip to the Island for a few hours is a MUST, you take a picnic, food , drinks and something to put up for shade so you can enjoy the island for a few hours. The boats come and go every hour or so. Even though we were only on the island for a short time, it was one of the highlights of our trip.
The last day at Cherry Point , time was spent on the Atlantic Beach on the Crystal Coast near Fort Macon. We also had time to rest, play games and get ready for our next adventure at Williamsburg, Virginia.
Arrived in Williamsburg, Virginia after a short 4 hour drive from Cherry Point. We drove the back roads here. Saw some beautiful countryside. We spent a few hours visiting Colonial Williamsburg after we checked into our billeting at Navy Gateway and Suites at Cheatham Annex. It was fun walking about the streets of Colonial Williamsburg which is the world’s largest living history museum. The girls enjoyed the walk about the town and taking pictures in the gallows and various statues like with Thomas Jefferson. Molly was especially happy to see that they had a book store....she loves to browse in book stores!
The next day the morning was spent at Yorktown, Va. The girls said that was one of their favorites. They spent time walking around 18th Century Architecture of Yorktown and really enjoyed the American Revolution Museum and and the Yorktown Waterfront. Next on the list of must see was Jamestown where we toured the Jamestown Settlement where they experienced walking about America’s first permanent English Colony in 1607 and seeing the history through films, gallery exhibits and outdoor living history of the Powhatan Indian Village. Also were able to board and tour the replicas of the original settlers’ ships, the Susan Constant and the Godspeed.
The girls really seem to enjoy all that they are experiencing on this family trip.
Now we are at Naval SupportActivity Bethesda and Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda staying at the Navy Lodge. We arrive here on June 9th. Experienced lots of traffic on the drive here from Williamsburg. We will be here for 4 days. Yesterday Kelly and girls drove to see friends from their neighborhood in Vail, AZ that now live in Virginia. They enjoyed spending the day in the mountains with their special friends. Tom and I spent the day getting caught up on some stuffs we needed to do...and resting. It seemed so quiet without Kelly and girls!
Tom spent the first day here showing Kelly how to get around on the Metro so she could go into the city and spend time with her friend and kids. They went to the Natural History Museum and to the Tidal Basin to ride the Paddle Boats. The next day, Kelly was able to take the Metro with the girls back into D.C so they could spend the day and then the night with their friends.
Kelly’s friend lived in Kelly’s neighborhood in Vail and they did a lot of volunteer work together at the school. The kids all went to school together. They went to the National History Museum, and went paddle boating at the tidal basin with their friends. They also spent a night with them and the next day had a beautiful day to walk about all the Memorials on the National Mall. They also walked to the Capital building and to the White House. Kelly and her friend even got to go to a movie together while her husband watched the girls. It is so fun for them to be able to spend time with these good friends.
Tom and I decided to drive into Georgetown and have a nice lunch...after almost an hour, we decided to come back to Bethesda as there was so much traffic and no place to park. We had a nice lunch here in Bethesda. Tomorrow we will leave Bethesda and go to Lancaster, PA and spend the night and then to State College , PA to spend a few days before we go to Niagara Falls for a few days with Kelly and girls.
~~“ WHERE EVER YOU GO, GO WITH ALL OF YOUR HEART”~~
I will put the pictures from the above travel days on Facebook since have not figured out how to add to my blog! I must learn how to add the pictures to my Blog before our next travel adventure!!
We continue to thank God for all our safe travels and keep you all in prayer too.
Thank you for continuing to keep us in your daily prayer for safe travels.
Tom and Maryann
Monday, June 11, 2018
6 June 2018 Our Road Trip North has begun
6 June 2018. Well we have been traveling several days now. There was a storm going up the east coast but it seems that it has stayed ahead of us. There were a couple days that the area we were in had some downpours BUT it did not affect us as for some reason the downpours happed just as we finished an outing or were headed back to the hotel! We have our car and Kelly’s van. Molly is the designated co-piglet.....I meant co-pilot riding with Granddad! She is also the designated Official Tour Guide.. These titles were given as she is safe to ride in the front seat!! Samantha and Kirsten have the back seats of the van to themselves.. I ride with Kelly! Molly has information and warnings etc. that she explains to us each day and before and after we make a stop on our sightseeing adventure. One day Samantha and Kirsten wanted to watch a movie so Kelly and i had the van to ourselves. During the rides they have readings, homework etc. each day that Kelly gives them to complete. Electronic devic can be only used one hour a day. I also play a car card travel game with them. THERE is never a dull moment in or out of the car/van! So nice to have these days to make such memories.
The first day we just traveled about 2 hours to Jacksonville, Florida and went to the Sweet Pete’s Candy Factory in downtown Jacksonville. It is a 3 story candy factory, candy store and restaurant. The girls had fun checking out all the candies. Of course Kelly let them each buy a small container of various candies that they picked to take on our trip. Some ate their candy quickly and others had their candy for 2 days or more.
We traveled just an hour or so up the coast to Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base near St. Mary’s on the coast near the town of St. Mary’s which is a city that is the gateway to the Cumberland Island National Seashore...the largest of the Georgia Coast Barrier Islands. We spent 2 nights at Kings Bay. We spent the morning walking about the historic town of St. Mary’s and toured the St. Mary’s Submarine Museum. They had a really nice little park on the waterfront that we walked about. Just as we were getting in the car we had some rain drops and dark sky’s. As we drove along the coast we stopped at The Crooked River State Park where we walked “The Everliving Trail/Sempervirens Nature Trail.” The girls went into the visitor’s center and A very nice gentleman showed them a couple snakes and turtles that he took out of their cages and let them touch while he told them all about them. We also saw a full skeleton of a snake. We walked thru the park and marsh area seeing lots of different mushrooms, hundreds of baby crabs on the pathway,flowers and different types of trees. We took the River Trail that went to the Marsh and not after we arrived, there was a huge black cloud forming. Earlier we had talked to a couple of rangers and they told us about a short cut on the way back....so we started on that trail. They decided to come back to see if we were on the right trail....of course we were not so they redirected us. How nice of them to think that maybe we misunderstood so came back to find us. If we had continued on the trail we were on, we would have been drenched from the large black cloud opened up with a torrential rain just as we got back to the car!..
We traveled just an hour or so up the coast to Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base near St. Mary’s on the coast near the town of St. Mary’s which is a city that is the gateway to the Cumberland Island National Seashore...the largest of the Georgia Coast Barrier Islands. We spent 2 nights at Kings Bay. We spent the morning walking about the historic town of St. Mary’s and toured the St. Mary’s Submarine Museum. They had a really nice little park on the waterfront that we walked about. Just as we were getting in the car we had some rain drops and dark sky’s. As we drove along the coast we stopped at The Crooked River State Park where we walked “The Everliving Trail/Sempervirens Nature Trail.” The girls went into the visitor’s center and A very nice gentleman showed them a couple snakes and turtles that he took out of their cages and let them touch while he told them all about them. We also saw a full skeleton of a snake. We walked thru the park and marsh area seeing lots of different mushrooms, hundreds of baby crabs on the pathway,flowers and different types of trees. We took the River Trail that went to the Marsh and not after we arrived, there was a huge black cloud forming. Earlier we had talked to a couple of rangers and they told us about a short cut on the way back....so we started on that trail. They decided to come back to see if we were on the right trail....of course we were not so they redirected us. How nice of them to think that maybe we misunderstood so came back to find us. If we had continued on the trail we were on, we would have been drenched from the large black cloud opened up with a torrential rain just as we got back to the car!..
When I woke up on the next day, I discovered that had picked up two ticks THAT were imbedded in my side and arm AND were still alive! Must have picked up on the walk the day before. OF COURSE then we needed to calmly tell the kids (and let out that the ticks were still alive when I found them) and had to check all. With their long hair took awhile to look over their heads! We left King’s Bay on the 1st of June and headed to Savannah, Georgia where we stayed at Hunter Army Airfield. First we went to downtown Savannah as Kelly wanted to have the girls tour the Juliet Gordon House (who began the Girl Scout’s in 1912). We also went and walked around one of the “reportedly” haunted cemeteries in Savannah. Before we left we stopped by the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist Catholic Cathedral and attended mass. The church was dedicated in 1876 but in 1898 much of the structure was destroyed in a fire. The Cathedral was rebuilt and opened in 1900. The Cathedral is on the top historic sites to visit in the United States. The statues and paintings etc. were beautiful and felt so peaceful in the cathedral. We also spent time walking through the Colonial Park Cemmetery. More than 700 victims of the 1820 yellow Fever epidemic are buried here along with many of the graves were looted and desecrated by the Federal Troops. It is a popular stop for Ghost Tours as there is a history of ghost sightings in this cemetery. We left Savannah and headed to Tybee Island. It is a barrier island east of Savannah. Kelly and the girls went to the Tybee Island Lighthouse. They walked up the 179 steps to the top. Kelly made it to the top but she did not go out on the pad to look around and Kirsten had to just look form the doors as Kelly thought she might fall off the lookout pad! Did I mention that Kelly does not like high places?? Molly and Samantha went out and took a look around. Once again the rain down pour did not start until we were ready to leave!! We drove back to Savannah and had a late lunch at a restaurant on the Historic Riverfront Plaza. Then we walked down the cobblestone street to the River Street Sweets Candy Store. We tried samples of their famous Pecan Pralines. Of course we bought some candy to go too! While we were in Savannah, Kelly had discovered a Oakland Island Wildlife Center that is owned and ran by a local school district. We attended a 40 minute “show and tell” given by two employees of the center. They gave excellent information about and gave an opportunity for everyone to gently touch an alligator, snake, armadillo and screech owl. YES, some of our group were brave enough to take part in the hands on touching!
The next day was time to leave Savannah and go toward Charleston. On our way we took a side trip to check out the Angel Oak Tree which is on Angel Oak Road in Johns Island, South Carolina. This tree is estimated to be in excess of 400-500 years old and stand 66-5 feet tall and 28 feet is circumference and produces shade that covers 17,200 square feet . From tip to tip it’s longest branch branch distance is 187 feet. What an amazing site. We could have stayed there forever just walking around and looking at this unique tree. It is on a back road and you would never know it was there if did not have the GPS address.
We stopped in Charleston to check out Fort Sumter National Monument. Traffic in Charleston is very heavy. We had reservations for the 4 PM ferry to go over to Ft. Sumter....but arrived in Charleston earlier so found a parking garage and ran over to the the dock where can catch the ferry to see if we could get an earlier ferry.....WE DID!
The boat was just leaving so we JUST made it to walk onto the boat before it was scheduled to leave Charleston Harbor to go to the fort. It was a beautiful sunny day so the ride across the harbor was perfect. The ferry and touring the island took us about 2.5 hours. A fun adventure!! Molly had already told us what she learned about Ft. Sumter in school. We spent the night in Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base in Jacksonville, North Carolina. The next day we headed to Marine Corps Air Station at Cherry Point, North Carolina where we would be for the next the four nights.
I am finally getting another blog done and published.... it seems that I would rather play games with the girls in the evenings or afternoons so our blogs will continue to be behind.
“WE DIDN’T REALIZE WE WERE MAKING MEMORIES, WE JUST KNEW WE WERE HAVING FUN~~
We are keeping you all in thought and prayer.
We appreciate you keeping us all in your daily prayers for safe travels.
God Bless You All,
Tom and Maryann
The next day was time to leave Savannah and go toward Charleston. On our way we took a side trip to check out the Angel Oak Tree which is on Angel Oak Road in Johns Island, South Carolina. This tree is estimated to be in excess of 400-500 years old and stand 66-5 feet tall and 28 feet is circumference and produces shade that covers 17,200 square feet . From tip to tip it’s longest branch branch distance is 187 feet. What an amazing site. We could have stayed there forever just walking around and looking at this unique tree. It is on a back road and you would never know it was there if did not have the GPS address.
We stopped in Charleston to check out Fort Sumter National Monument. Traffic in Charleston is very heavy. We had reservations for the 4 PM ferry to go over to Ft. Sumter....but arrived in Charleston earlier so found a parking garage and ran over to the the dock where can catch the ferry to see if we could get an earlier ferry.....WE DID!
The boat was just leaving so we JUST made it to walk onto the boat before it was scheduled to leave Charleston Harbor to go to the fort. It was a beautiful sunny day so the ride across the harbor was perfect. The ferry and touring the island took us about 2.5 hours. A fun adventure!! Molly had already told us what she learned about Ft. Sumter in school. We spent the night in Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base in Jacksonville, North Carolina. The next day we headed to Marine Corps Air Station at Cherry Point, North Carolina where we would be for the next the four nights.
I am finally getting another blog done and published.... it seems that I would rather play games with the girls in the evenings or afternoons so our blogs will continue to be behind.
“WE DIDN’T REALIZE WE WERE MAKING MEMORIES, WE JUST KNEW WE WERE HAVING FUN~~
We are keeping you all in thought and prayer.
We appreciate you keeping us all in your daily prayers for safe travels.
God Bless You All,
Tom and Maryann
Sunday, June 10, 2018
blog from 30 May 2018. Delete
30 May 2018
Finally, I am going to update you all on our days since we returned from that amazing trip on the Rhine River Boat.
We arrived home late in the evening on the 14 May. It seemed like a much longer airplane trip home than going over to Amsterdam. Bill and Charlotte and Jim and Cher flew home with us to Orlando. We rented a car to drive to Cocoa with Bill and Charlotte and Jim and Char stayed in a hotel at the airport in Orlando. Charlotte and Bill and Tom and I went back over to Orlando to have lunch with Jim and Cher as they were not leaving to return to Tucson until the 16 of May. We took them to our favorite catfish and fried green tomatoes restaurant. The Catfish Place is in St. Cloud just outside of Orlando. They agreed with us that it was the best they have had too.
Tom and I have spent the last two weeks with Kelly and Bryan and girls. It was so fun to once again attend their school functions etc. We attended Molly’s school awards night. Kelly had gotten a letter that said that Molly was getting an award so the day after we arrived home went to the Awards Ceremony. We were so proud of Molly as she received several awards and honors. She was honored for being one of four digital information technical students of the year and a certified Microsoft Office Spcialist, All County Band Award, 4.0 Grade Point Average and Honor Roll student, Comprehensive Science 3 Advanced Student of the Year, plus several others. We also attended Samantha’s awards ceremony where she was recognized for a 4.0 Grade Point Average. Yeah Samantha. We were also very proud of Kirsten as she did very well as a 3rd grade student at the elementary school. She loves art and showed us some of her unique art that she did this year. They are all involved in the Girl Scouts and this year Molly and Samantha bridged over to the the next level to their next level of their Girl Scout Adventures. We were so excited to again be able to attend all their school functions as we did when they lived just down the road in Vail. During the last couple weeks of course, there was time for card games and dice etc. after school and in the evenings. Kelly and Bryan took time to go to Disney Date Overnight. They also went to Orlando for an afternoon and evening. And we had two more weeks to spend with Charlotte and Bill and made the rounds to as many of our favorite restaurants as we could. AND Tom fixed Liver and Onions for them...has become a tradition when we go to Florida. Charlotte helps Tom with the cooking...Bill and I just wait for the food to be done!! What a life.
Tom took time to go to Patrick Airforce base and check with a friend of his that he was stationed at Davis Monathan with several years ago. We also were able to meet up with our friends Gee and Christina Jones that we were also stationed with at Davis Monthan and we had not seen them for several years. They live in Orlando now so Tom and I and Charlotte and Bill went up to Orlando to have lunch with them. It was so great to spend time with them and give them hugs and catch up. As with many of our Air Force friends...it seem like just yesterday that we had spent time with them versus several years. They will always be a part of our hearts and family.
Kelly and Maryann have been busy planning our trip North.
Today is 10 June 2018
I just realized that I never posted this update from when we returned from our trip!
So here it is! Will post some of the pictures on Facebook as still do not know how to do on my IPAD.
~~NEVER FORGET WHERE YOU’VE BEEN. NEVER LOSE SIGHT OF WHERE YOU ARE GOING. AND MOST IMPORTANT, NEVER TAKE FOR GRANTED THE PEOPLE WHO TRAVEL THE JOURNEY WITH YOU~~~. And we won’t as feel so blessed to have so many friends that are just so part of our lives, whether we see them everyday of once every few decades!
God Bless You All,
Hugs and Loves,
Tom and Maryann
Finally, I am going to update you all on our days since we returned from that amazing trip on the Rhine River Boat.
We arrived home late in the evening on the 14 May. It seemed like a much longer airplane trip home than going over to Amsterdam. Bill and Charlotte and Jim and Cher flew home with us to Orlando. We rented a car to drive to Cocoa with Bill and Charlotte and Jim and Char stayed in a hotel at the airport in Orlando. Charlotte and Bill and Tom and I went back over to Orlando to have lunch with Jim and Cher as they were not leaving to return to Tucson until the 16 of May. We took them to our favorite catfish and fried green tomatoes restaurant. The Catfish Place is in St. Cloud just outside of Orlando. They agreed with us that it was the best they have had too.
Tom and I have spent the last two weeks with Kelly and Bryan and girls. It was so fun to once again attend their school functions etc. We attended Molly’s school awards night. Kelly had gotten a letter that said that Molly was getting an award so the day after we arrived home went to the Awards Ceremony. We were so proud of Molly as she received several awards and honors. She was honored for being one of four digital information technical students of the year and a certified Microsoft Office Spcialist, All County Band Award, 4.0 Grade Point Average and Honor Roll student, Comprehensive Science 3 Advanced Student of the Year, plus several others. We also attended Samantha’s awards ceremony where she was recognized for a 4.0 Grade Point Average. Yeah Samantha. We were also very proud of Kirsten as she did very well as a 3rd grade student at the elementary school. She loves art and showed us some of her unique art that she did this year. They are all involved in the Girl Scouts and this year Molly and Samantha bridged over to the the next level to their next level of their Girl Scout Adventures. We were so excited to again be able to attend all their school functions as we did when they lived just down the road in Vail. During the last couple weeks of course, there was time for card games and dice etc. after school and in the evenings. Kelly and Bryan took time to go to Disney Date Overnight. They also went to Orlando for an afternoon and evening. And we had two more weeks to spend with Charlotte and Bill and made the rounds to as many of our favorite restaurants as we could. AND Tom fixed Liver and Onions for them...has become a tradition when we go to Florida. Charlotte helps Tom with the cooking...Bill and I just wait for the food to be done!! What a life.
Tom took time to go to Patrick Airforce base and check with a friend of his that he was stationed at Davis Monathan with several years ago. We also were able to meet up with our friends Gee and Christina Jones that we were also stationed with at Davis Monthan and we had not seen them for several years. They live in Orlando now so Tom and I and Charlotte and Bill went up to Orlando to have lunch with them. It was so great to spend time with them and give them hugs and catch up. As with many of our Air Force friends...it seem like just yesterday that we had spent time with them versus several years. They will always be a part of our hearts and family.
Kelly and Maryann have been busy planning our trip North.
Today is 10 June 2018
I just realized that I never posted this update from when we returned from our trip!
So here it is! Will post some of the pictures on Facebook as still do not know how to do on my IPAD.
~~NEVER FORGET WHERE YOU’VE BEEN. NEVER LOSE SIGHT OF WHERE YOU ARE GOING. AND MOST IMPORTANT, NEVER TAKE FOR GRANTED THE PEOPLE WHO TRAVEL THE JOURNEY WITH YOU~~~. And we won’t as feel so blessed to have so many friends that are just so part of our lives, whether we see them everyday of once every few decades!
God Bless You All,
Hugs and Loves,
Tom and Maryann
Sunday, May 13, 2018
Basel, Switzerland 13 May 2018
I have been remiss in doing my daily blog....so shall do the weekly blog. Have just been this time cruising with our wonderful group.
Sunday , 13 May 2018
Today we are sitting in our Hotel in Basel...and I realize that because we were having such fun etc. the days have just flown by....so will continue to share our week...
Today we are sitting in our Hotel in Basel...and I realize that because we were having such fun etc. the days have just flown by....so will continue to share our week...
Monday , May 7
Ended the day yesterday (6 May) playing a dice game FARKLE with a few of the other passengers we have met on the boat up in the top lounge...quite an active loud group...but what fun!
Tuesday , May 8 ...we traveled to Cologne from the German Rhine River. We had another breakfast buffet in the main dining room. Our adventure this afternoon was a walking tour of Cologne, Germany with history of Roman and German history. The tour ended at the beautiful Cathedral which we explored on our own. It is a massive Cathedral with beautiful stained glass windows. After we left the cathedral, we stopped and had a jam filled Berliner Donut and also stopped for a drink at a Gasthaus and sat out side on the square for a drink...Bitburger Beer. Perfect day to sit outside! We also walked to the EAU de Cologne shop...it is the perfume thazt a 18th century pharmacist created in the 18th century. It is named after the town of Cologne.
Arrived back at the boat just in time for the nightly Port Talk by the cruise director , Helmut. Each evening he gives us the plans for the following day. Before dinner we listened to music by Kirin ...mostly songs from our era! After dinner in the dining room, we went to the lounge and listened to “The Groove Band”. It is a German Swing band.
Today it seemed we were eating every couple of hours...plus snacks in between. Had a beautiful sunny day. The Cathedral was visible by night from our docking area and was beautiful. Today we also played dice with our group in the afternoon.
Wednesday..May 9. Today we had a morning walk in the city of Koblenz which is on the picturesque stretch of the Rhine River. We walked along the streets of this city at the confluence of the Moselle River and the Rhine River. Our ship was docked near the center of town. Again today we had a lovely full breakfast before we began our walk. Then it was Lunch time and after lunch, our ship left to cruise down the Rhine River. It was so relaxing to sit on the top deck and just see the villages and the hills planted with wine vineyards etc. There were several beautiful views of several castles, vineyards, villages and The Lorelei Rock. It is a large rock on the bank at the narrows of the Rhine River. The rock is a legend of a beautiful maiden who threw herself into the Rhine in despair over a faithless lover and was transformed into a siren who lured fishermen to destruction. During our 3 1/2 hour trip down the Rhine River, our tour director gave commentary on the several different castles on the river. Also saw several grape vineyards and small villages. As we had been stationed in Germany, we had driven these roads on the side of the Rhine River several times so was fun to see them by ship. Seeing the Castle Liebensteim (the highest castle in the middle Rhine Valley in Germany) as we floated down the river brought back so many memories of when we stayed at the castle with Larry and Peggy Reinhart several years ago). It is a hotel castle and we had a room with a view of the Rhine River. We have been so blessed with such beautiful weather. AND of course had afternoon coffee and cake before we arrived in Rudesheim. Rudesheim is a wine making town on the Rhine Gorge. It has an old town with several decorated restaurants and shops. We took a small train like vehicle from the board to the center city of Rudesheim where we walked about town , did some shopping and then walked along the water and park back to the ship..just in time for Happy Hour and then dinner. DID I mention that because of the courses, we usually take about 2+ hours to eat each evening?? After dinner we all go up to the lounge and talk and listen to the music of the evening and share our days experience and Of course we laugh ALOT!
Thursday May 10
We traveled to Mainz today . It is the capital and largest city of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. The tour option was to take the bus to Heidelberg, however since we had been there several times...we decided to stay in Mainz and check out the city. Our ship was docked right at the city center. BUT it was their Ascension Day, which is a public holiday so all the stores etc. were closed so we spent the day relaxing in the lounges, on the top sun deck and talking with our friends and others on the boat. We spent part of the day playing some more dice and as always talking and laughing. We usually meet in the lounge before dinner or after dinner and share our stories and laugh!! We are definitely able to relax on this trip...seems only spending time in our state room before breakfast and when time to go to bed but mostly in one of the lounges talking and just enjoying being here. The crew members are all so friendly and some just make us laugh. There are two on the crew from Czech Republic where we traveled on our last trip to Europe. The lived on the other side of the country from where my grandfather’s family lived in ValkeFolkmar. When we were last here 2 years ago, we visited the town he came from and talked to the Mayer etc.
Again today it seems that we were eating constantly.
11 May...Friday......ALREADY
Today we sailed form Heidelberg area to Strasbourg during the night. The shipis very smooth and you don’t even notice boat is moving . All through the river we often see many swans in the waters. We were to be in Strasbourg early AM but had to go through a lock that was backed up with ships so did not arrive in time for us to take a river cruise in Strasbourg. Strasbourg is the capital of the Alsace Region. The charming old part of Strasbourg is called “Petite France”. The famous Gothic Cathedral is here. Also Alsace is famous for its white wines, sauerkraut and taste flambé...which is a thin crusted type of pizza with cheese, ham and onions. Storks have become symbol for Alsace as in the 70”s a regional breeding program brought them back as they began feeding them in the wintertime which means a lot of them don’t bother to fly to North Africa anymore but just stay here. We did see a few storks today. They also have many swans. We took the sightseeing tour of Strasbourg this morning but broke off from the tour in “Old Town” and went to a few shops before we joined our tour to go back to the boat. We returned to the ship just in time for a lunch on the top deck of the ship. Tom and a few others went to the Maginot Line to see the extraordinary complex of the defense bunkers. The Maginot Line was a line of concrete fortifications , obstacles and weapon installations built by France in 1930 to deter invasion by Germany and force them to move around the fortifications.
Ended the day yesterday (6 May) playing a dice game FARKLE with a few of the other passengers we have met on the boat up in the top lounge...quite an active loud group...but what fun!
Tuesday , May 8 ...we traveled to Cologne from the German Rhine River. We had another breakfast buffet in the main dining room. Our adventure this afternoon was a walking tour of Cologne, Germany with history of Roman and German history. The tour ended at the beautiful Cathedral which we explored on our own. It is a massive Cathedral with beautiful stained glass windows. After we left the cathedral, we stopped and had a jam filled Berliner Donut and also stopped for a drink at a Gasthaus and sat out side on the square for a drink...Bitburger Beer. Perfect day to sit outside! We also walked to the EAU de Cologne shop...it is the perfume thazt a 18th century pharmacist created in the 18th century. It is named after the town of Cologne.
Arrived back at the boat just in time for the nightly Port Talk by the cruise director , Helmut. Each evening he gives us the plans for the following day. Before dinner we listened to music by Kirin ...mostly songs from our era! After dinner in the dining room, we went to the lounge and listened to “The Groove Band”. It is a German Swing band.
Today it seemed we were eating every couple of hours...plus snacks in between. Had a beautiful sunny day. The Cathedral was visible by night from our docking area and was beautiful. Today we also played dice with our group in the afternoon.
Wednesday..May 9. Today we had a morning walk in the city of Koblenz which is on the picturesque stretch of the Rhine River. We walked along the streets of this city at the confluence of the Moselle River and the Rhine River. Our ship was docked near the center of town. Again today we had a lovely full breakfast before we began our walk. Then it was Lunch time and after lunch, our ship left to cruise down the Rhine River. It was so relaxing to sit on the top deck and just see the villages and the hills planted with wine vineyards etc. There were several beautiful views of several castles, vineyards, villages and The Lorelei Rock. It is a large rock on the bank at the narrows of the Rhine River. The rock is a legend of a beautiful maiden who threw herself into the Rhine in despair over a faithless lover and was transformed into a siren who lured fishermen to destruction. During our 3 1/2 hour trip down the Rhine River, our tour director gave commentary on the several different castles on the river. Also saw several grape vineyards and small villages. As we had been stationed in Germany, we had driven these roads on the side of the Rhine River several times so was fun to see them by ship. Seeing the Castle Liebensteim (the highest castle in the middle Rhine Valley in Germany) as we floated down the river brought back so many memories of when we stayed at the castle with Larry and Peggy Reinhart several years ago). It is a hotel castle and we had a room with a view of the Rhine River. We have been so blessed with such beautiful weather. AND of course had afternoon coffee and cake before we arrived in Rudesheim. Rudesheim is a wine making town on the Rhine Gorge. It has an old town with several decorated restaurants and shops. We took a small train like vehicle from the board to the center city of Rudesheim where we walked about town , did some shopping and then walked along the water and park back to the ship..just in time for Happy Hour and then dinner. DID I mention that because of the courses, we usually take about 2+ hours to eat each evening?? After dinner we all go up to the lounge and talk and listen to the music of the evening and share our days experience and Of course we laugh ALOT!
Thursday May 10
We traveled to Mainz today . It is the capital and largest city of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. The tour option was to take the bus to Heidelberg, however since we had been there several times...we decided to stay in Mainz and check out the city. Our ship was docked right at the city center. BUT it was their Ascension Day, which is a public holiday so all the stores etc. were closed so we spent the day relaxing in the lounges, on the top sun deck and talking with our friends and others on the boat. We spent part of the day playing some more dice and as always talking and laughing. We usually meet in the lounge before dinner or after dinner and share our stories and laugh!! We are definitely able to relax on this trip...seems only spending time in our state room before breakfast and when time to go to bed but mostly in one of the lounges talking and just enjoying being here. The crew members are all so friendly and some just make us laugh. There are two on the crew from Czech Republic where we traveled on our last trip to Europe. The lived on the other side of the country from where my grandfather’s family lived in ValkeFolkmar. When we were last here 2 years ago, we visited the town he came from and talked to the Mayer etc.
Again today it seems that we were eating constantly.
11 May...Friday......ALREADY
Today we sailed form Heidelberg area to Strasbourg during the night. The shipis very smooth and you don’t even notice boat is moving . All through the river we often see many swans in the waters. We were to be in Strasbourg early AM but had to go through a lock that was backed up with ships so did not arrive in time for us to take a river cruise in Strasbourg. Strasbourg is the capital of the Alsace Region. The charming old part of Strasbourg is called “Petite France”. The famous Gothic Cathedral is here. Also Alsace is famous for its white wines, sauerkraut and taste flambé...which is a thin crusted type of pizza with cheese, ham and onions. Storks have become symbol for Alsace as in the 70”s a regional breeding program brought them back as they began feeding them in the wintertime which means a lot of them don’t bother to fly to North Africa anymore but just stay here. We did see a few storks today. They also have many swans. We took the sightseeing tour of Strasbourg this morning but broke off from the tour in “Old Town” and went to a few shops before we joined our tour to go back to the boat. We returned to the ship just in time for a lunch on the top deck of the ship. Tom and a few others went to the Maginot Line to see the extraordinary complex of the defense bunkers. The Maginot Line was a line of concrete fortifications , obstacles and weapon installations built by France in 1930 to deter invasion by Germany and force them to move around the fortifications.
We have so enjoyed the crew members as all very attentive to us and all so friendly and always there to help us. Daniel one of the crew, who was from Greece was mostly in the bar area lounge working but also saw him in the dining area. We had such fun with him ...he was always making us laugh. Today after Mari cleaned our room, a towel made to look like a swan was on the bed. The beds are comfortable and room is just big enough since we spend most of the time out of the room. This was an amazing crew that was on the Avalon Affinity.....they were all so friendly and worked so hard but also so friendly that we felt that we had known them for longer than just a week. We also talked to and spent time with some of our fellow passengers on the ship and on excursions off the boat. So many of them told me that they really thought it was neat that our group seemed to make everyday fun!
12 May Saturday
Black Forest
Today we traveled by bus through the beautiful countryside of the Black Forest. It is a large mountain range in southwest Germany. It is also a border between Germany and France. It flows through six countries and serves as a link between northern and Southern Europe since Roman times. It has quaint little towns and wine growing and farming towns. We also stopped at a Cuckoo Clock Factory where we had traditional Black Forest Cake....Chocolate with cherries and whipped cream on top. It was really good. Some bought some cuckoo clocks and other handmade German treasures.
We came back to the ship and had a nice lunch before we went to Colmar. Colmar is in France, just a few miles drive across the Rhine River. It is a beautiful and charming town in the Alsace region of France on the Alsace Wine Trail. It is an old town renowned for it’s well preserved homes and streets. There are canals in the town and can take a little boat down thru the town and see the houses that are steeply pitched and a variety of colors...makes for a unique scene. We did a bit of shopping in the neat shops and walked through a market with fresh vegetables that was picture perfect. Also stopped for Gelato! Finished off our time in Colmar by sitting at an outside cafe and some had a beer. We returned to our ship and spent some time in the lounge before we went for our last 5 course dinner in the dinning area. We then went up to the lounge and bar area. Everyone met there and we spent our last few hours together before we went back to our rooms and prepared for leaving the ship the next morning.
We all agreed that this was definitely a wonder filled holiday for each of us (14) and that even tho we all did not know each other 8 days ago....we now felt like friends forever!
What memories we are making and we are just so blessed to be able to spend this time with our dear friends and family. Whether just sitting and watching the beautiful scenery, having a snack, eating our meals or telling stories about each other or just talking....we are so blessed that this group all decided to join us on this adventure....we are grateful to them all for certainly making this a trip with such cherished memories. AND we have had amazing weather...everyday but one was sunny and warm and just perfect for walking about. Thank you Lord! ON Saturday evening the cruise director drew a name out of the passengers and OUR Mike even won the raffle at the end of the cruise..he won waffles cookies and chocolate egg with a kids toy in the middle!!!! Yeah for Mike and Rita.
What memories we are making and we are just so blessed to be able to spend this time with our dear friends and family. Whether just sitting and watching the beautiful scenery, having a snack, eating our meals or telling stories about each other or just talking....we are so blessed that this group all decided to join us on this adventure....we are grateful to them all for certainly making this a trip with such cherished memories. AND we have had amazing weather...everyday but one was sunny and warm and just perfect for walking about. Thank you Lord! ON Saturday evening the cruise director drew a name out of the passengers and OUR Mike even won the raffle at the end of the cruise..he won waffles cookies and chocolate egg with a kids toy in the middle!!!! Yeah for Mike and Rita.
13 May 2018. Today we are in Basel, France. We arrived from the port in Breisach, Germany. From the time we left Amsterdam on Monday, our ship went through 14 locks.
A lock is a device used for raising and lowering boats, ships and other watercraft between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. Locks are built in places where the level of the water in the river or canal suddenly changes. The lock is like a big chamber with gates at each end. It was amazing seeing our Captain steering the ship between the walls of the lock. It seemed like there was only 6 inches between the walls of the lock and the side of the ship. At one time it took over an hour in line to go through the lock as there were several ships ahead of us. Amazing to see the water raise or get lower as the Captain maneuvered the ship through the many locks.
We were up early at 6 AM to get ready for our disembarkation form the ship. Tom had packed all yesterday. We met “our traveling group” in the dining area at 0700 and then went to the lounge with our luggage to await our time to leave. All left at different times as some went to take the train or airplane to travel to other destinations in Europe. OF course gave us time to give more hugs etc. to our friends before they left the ship! Tom and I, Charlotte and Bill, and Jim and Cher waited in the lounge after we set our luggage where the luggage was to be until our van came to pick us up from the ship and take us to the “Airport Hotel” near the airport in Basel. We will be here until 0430 in the morning tomorrow and then a cab will take us a few miles to the airport where we will board our flight to Heathrow Airport in London and then on to Miami and then Orlando.... We had a nice lunch here in the hotel and now I am having time to finish our blog for this part of our adventure!
Tom and I will be in Florida a few more weeks with Kelly and Bryan and family before we leave for another adventure with Kelly and girls for a few weeks. AND of course spend time with Bill and Charlotte plus go to our favorite restaurants again and again!!
I thank you all for the prayers for our safe travels. AND hopefully will figure out how to send pictures soon... I am keeping you all in prayer too.
God Bless,
Tom and Maryann
DEFINITELY TRUE for US..........see below quote!
“AS WITH ANY JOURNEY, WHO YOU TRAVEL WITH IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE DESTINATION”
“AS WITH ANY JOURNEY, WHO YOU TRAVEL WITH IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE DESTINATION”
Tuesday, May 8, 2018
Cologne, Germany. 8 May 2018
Good Morning,
Today is Sunday and we are waiting at our hotel for the driver to pick us up to take us to begin our Avalon boat journey. Jim and Cher arrived in Cocoa on 2 June from Arizona. They came over to Cocoa from Orlando. We all went to the harbor and had dinner at ONE of our favorite fish restaurants. Tom and I went back to Kelly’s for the night and make sure we had all packed and ready to head out on our journey the next day. We left Cocoa (in the van had rented) and stopped at Boston’s for lunch before we arrived at Orlando Airport. We were notified that our flight had been delayed and would leave later however we found an earlier flight so would not miss our connection at the airport in England to Amsterdam. SO we were on board of our British Air Flight by 5:30 PM. Had a couple hour wait in Gatwick,England before we had our flight into Amsterdam. We arrived in Amsterdam about an hour later. We met Diane and Jerry at the airport and headed to find our driver to transport us to our hotel in Amsterdam AND who did we meet up with at the Viator Transport...Pat and George and Rita and Mike! Tom said George was trying to steal our Transport Van....but of course that was not true. We all were seated in the van and then the luggage ....amazing how the driver made all the luggage for 8 of us in the van! After a short ride we arrived at the Holiday Inn Express in Amsterdam. It was a beautiful sunny day. We had a nice dinner just across from the hotel before we settled into our hotel room. George and Pat and Rita and Mike were staying just blocks from our hotel so came over for a visit. Sandy and Joe had also arrived in the late afternoon.
AND SO OUR ADVENTURE TOGETHER BEGINS!!
The next morning woke up to sunshine and a little chilly weather but a beautiful day.
We had researched and found the train we needed to take to our first tour here. We boarded our Viator Bus to Zaanse Schans Windmills, Marken, Volendam where we visited windmills, cheese factory, wooden shoe factory and walked about the towns. In Zaanse Schans, we saw several windmills and and toured a sawmill that was run by the windmill. We visited a clog maker and took a boat ride in Marken and Volendam where we saw a traditional fishing village. We also visited a cheese factory and had a taste of several types of Dutch cheese. Do you know that wooden shoes are still used today? The bus driver and the tour guide on the bus were great fun and very knowledgeable. The driver even had a keyboard in the bus which he played for us when we were at a stop. Very entertaining!! In the evening, we took a river boat cruise through the streets of Amsterdam in the evening. We quickly learned the tram and train schedule with Tom and George’s lead!! The traffic with the trams,and the bicycle riders was so congested. They call the bike riders, the death bikers as they have their own lane but come so fast and there are so many AND do not slow down for foot traffic. Charlotte saved me several times from being hit by the bicycle riders. Rode the tram during heavy use and there were four of us that were standing in this mass of people on the tram and all at once found that we were going down like a row of dominos before someone caught us all!
We had a nice riverboat canal trip through Amsterdam one evening going to several parts of Amsterdam. Seeing interesting homes including the Anne Frank Home and life on the canals while having a beverage.
I cannot even explain the beauty of the Tulip Gardens....amazing..took lots of photos but cannot describe to give you a picture of the beauty of the flowers justice. There must have been over a hundred buses and cars in the parking area. I did not count but must have been thousands on the day we were there. It was still fairly easy to walk about in the gardens. Do not think have ever seen any gardens as beautiful and so impressed with the cleanliness. Every color flower you could imagine. The next flower more beautiful than the last etc.
We found a good restaurant just a few steps from our hotel in Amsterdam and we all enjoyed dinner together after a day out and about. Then a group played FARKLE down in the lobby after dinner. Maryann decided to go back to the room and fell asleep immediately about 7 PM and did not wake until the next morning....much more rested!
Up and about on Sunday morning for a buffet breakfast at our hotel before we finished packing to get ready to go to our long boat. Played some more FARKLE before our driver arrived to take us to our long boat about 1 PM. We were thrilled that we had the same driver that brought us from the airport! He brought a bigger van this time so did not have to struggle getting the luggage to fit into the van with us. After about a 20 minute ride through Amsterdam, we arrived at the Affinity..our long boat and home for the next 8 days. Had a great welcome to our boat , and almost immediately we began to eat. We had a buffet lunch while we waited for our rooms to be ready. We were taken to our rooms....most of us are next to each other or just across the hall. Took us about 30 minutes to put away our luggage and put our belongings into our room. We have a huge patio like window in our room and a very comfortable bed with down cover. Our room also has a live potted orchid and just enough room for our queen size bed and a nice bathroom. We have a great view of the other boats on the river for the first night just outside our large window. Many barges and other boats on the water.
We had to have a fire drill with life jackets and then a greeting with the Ship Captain and staff AND hourderves with drinks. Minutes later we were in the dining area for a several course meal. We had several selections to pick form for all the courses of the meal...including dessert and drinks!! After dinner we spent time in the lounge on the third floor visiting with our group and meeting some of the other guests. AND of course had a night snack! We have a wonderful piano player who also has a wonderful voice singing and playing some oldies ....of course George and I could not resist spending some moments dancing as soon as we heard the music. We even managed to have a few bites from the late night buffet. Tom and I spent some time with Jim and Cher in the lounge before we headed to our cabin.
When we walked into our cabin, the bed had been turned down and there was a fireplace scene on the TV that made us feel like we had a fireplace in our room.
OF course throughout the day there was lots of laughter as we sat and talked. The staff are all so very friendly and fun to joke with them. Today, Tom and I and a few others spent the day walking about the ship (for exercise!!), sitting on the top deck and front of the boat enjoying the beautiful scenery as we moved down the river...and of course eating several times and still laughing lots!!
We know that we are so blessed to be able to be on this trip with our friends that are family to us. There are 14 of us from times we spent in the Air Force over the last 40+ years and Tom’s sister and her husband. Just happened that 3 of the guys were fireman in the Air Force ..Bill was in the Air Force for 4 years as active duty fireman and the rest are retired....2 retired medics, 1 retired nurse practitioner, 1 retired who worked in Fuels from the Air Force. To be able to share these days with such special people just makes us feel like we won the lottery!
Today is Sunday and we are waiting at our hotel for the driver to pick us up to take us to begin our Avalon boat journey. Jim and Cher arrived in Cocoa on 2 June from Arizona. They came over to Cocoa from Orlando. We all went to the harbor and had dinner at ONE of our favorite fish restaurants. Tom and I went back to Kelly’s for the night and make sure we had all packed and ready to head out on our journey the next day. We left Cocoa (in the van had rented) and stopped at Boston’s for lunch before we arrived at Orlando Airport. We were notified that our flight had been delayed and would leave later however we found an earlier flight so would not miss our connection at the airport in England to Amsterdam. SO we were on board of our British Air Flight by 5:30 PM. Had a couple hour wait in Gatwick,England before we had our flight into Amsterdam. We arrived in Amsterdam about an hour later. We met Diane and Jerry at the airport and headed to find our driver to transport us to our hotel in Amsterdam AND who did we meet up with at the Viator Transport...Pat and George and Rita and Mike! Tom said George was trying to steal our Transport Van....but of course that was not true. We all were seated in the van and then the luggage ....amazing how the driver made all the luggage for 8 of us in the van! After a short ride we arrived at the Holiday Inn Express in Amsterdam. It was a beautiful sunny day. We had a nice dinner just across from the hotel before we settled into our hotel room. George and Pat and Rita and Mike were staying just blocks from our hotel so came over for a visit. Sandy and Joe had also arrived in the late afternoon.
AND SO OUR ADVENTURE TOGETHER BEGINS!!
The next morning woke up to sunshine and a little chilly weather but a beautiful day.
We had researched and found the train we needed to take to our first tour here. We boarded our Viator Bus to Zaanse Schans Windmills, Marken, Volendam where we visited windmills, cheese factory, wooden shoe factory and walked about the towns. In Zaanse Schans, we saw several windmills and and toured a sawmill that was run by the windmill. We visited a clog maker and took a boat ride in Marken and Volendam where we saw a traditional fishing village. We also visited a cheese factory and had a taste of several types of Dutch cheese. Do you know that wooden shoes are still used today? The bus driver and the tour guide on the bus were great fun and very knowledgeable. The driver even had a keyboard in the bus which he played for us when we were at a stop. Very entertaining!! In the evening, we took a river boat cruise through the streets of Amsterdam in the evening. We quickly learned the tram and train schedule with Tom and George’s lead!! The traffic with the trams,and the bicycle riders was so congested. They call the bike riders, the death bikers as they have their own lane but come so fast and there are so many AND do not slow down for foot traffic. Charlotte saved me several times from being hit by the bicycle riders. Rode the tram during heavy use and there were four of us that were standing in this mass of people on the tram and all at once found that we were going down like a row of dominos before someone caught us all!
We had a nice riverboat canal trip through Amsterdam one evening going to several parts of Amsterdam. Seeing interesting homes including the Anne Frank Home and life on the canals while having a beverage.
I cannot even explain the beauty of the Tulip Gardens....amazing..took lots of photos but cannot describe to give you a picture of the beauty of the flowers justice. There must have been over a hundred buses and cars in the parking area. I did not count but must have been thousands on the day we were there. It was still fairly easy to walk about in the gardens. Do not think have ever seen any gardens as beautiful and so impressed with the cleanliness. Every color flower you could imagine. The next flower more beautiful than the last etc.
We found a good restaurant just a few steps from our hotel in Amsterdam and we all enjoyed dinner together after a day out and about. Then a group played FARKLE down in the lobby after dinner. Maryann decided to go back to the room and fell asleep immediately about 7 PM and did not wake until the next morning....much more rested!
Up and about on Sunday morning for a buffet breakfast at our hotel before we finished packing to get ready to go to our long boat. Played some more FARKLE before our driver arrived to take us to our long boat about 1 PM. We were thrilled that we had the same driver that brought us from the airport! He brought a bigger van this time so did not have to struggle getting the luggage to fit into the van with us. After about a 20 minute ride through Amsterdam, we arrived at the Affinity..our long boat and home for the next 8 days. Had a great welcome to our boat , and almost immediately we began to eat. We had a buffet lunch while we waited for our rooms to be ready. We were taken to our rooms....most of us are next to each other or just across the hall. Took us about 30 minutes to put away our luggage and put our belongings into our room. We have a huge patio like window in our room and a very comfortable bed with down cover. Our room also has a live potted orchid and just enough room for our queen size bed and a nice bathroom. We have a great view of the other boats on the river for the first night just outside our large window. Many barges and other boats on the water.
We had to have a fire drill with life jackets and then a greeting with the Ship Captain and staff AND hourderves with drinks. Minutes later we were in the dining area for a several course meal. We had several selections to pick form for all the courses of the meal...including dessert and drinks!! After dinner we spent time in the lounge on the third floor visiting with our group and meeting some of the other guests. AND of course had a night snack! We have a wonderful piano player who also has a wonderful voice singing and playing some oldies ....of course George and I could not resist spending some moments dancing as soon as we heard the music. We even managed to have a few bites from the late night buffet. Tom and I spent some time with Jim and Cher in the lounge before we headed to our cabin.
When we walked into our cabin, the bed had been turned down and there was a fireplace scene on the TV that made us feel like we had a fireplace in our room.
OF course throughout the day there was lots of laughter as we sat and talked. The staff are all so very friendly and fun to joke with them. Today, Tom and I and a few others spent the day walking about the ship (for exercise!!), sitting on the top deck and front of the boat enjoying the beautiful scenery as we moved down the river...and of course eating several times and still laughing lots!!
We know that we are so blessed to be able to be on this trip with our friends that are family to us. There are 14 of us from times we spent in the Air Force over the last 40+ years and Tom’s sister and her husband. Just happened that 3 of the guys were fireman in the Air Force ..Bill was in the Air Force for 4 years as active duty fireman and the rest are retired....2 retired medics, 1 retired nurse practitioner, 1 retired who worked in Fuels from the Air Force. To be able to share these days with such special people just makes us feel like we won the lottery!
We are keeping you all in our daily prayer as we take this new journey.
Our love and thoughts are with you daily.
“SOMETIMES ALL YOU NEED ARE GREAT FRIENDS AND THRIST FOR ADVENTURE”......and we are certainly blessed to have these friends on this Amsterdam-Rhine River Cruise to Basel, Switzerland 2018!!
Until our next post....please keep up in your prayers for safe travels.
God Bless,
Tom and Maryann
Sent from my iPad
Maryann Graue
Maryann Graue
Monday, April 30, 2018
27 April.....Melbourne, Florida
We arrived in Melbourne the evening of 16 April to spend time with the Walsh family and was so good to give hugs especially to the Walsh Grandgirls and Kelly and Bryan too of course. They only live about 20 minutes from Charlotte and Bill and their 3 cats that they rescued! So fun to just spend time with Bill and Charlotte and Bryan and Kelly and of course.....playing lots of games and cards with the girls! OF course Monopoly was the first game played!! The first weekend we were so excited that Kelly and Bryan went to Orlando for a couple days to celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary....so we had the girls to ourselves.Had plans to go play miniature golf but had a weekend of rain so we played lots of card and board games etc. Of course we are also spending time with Charlotte and Bill and also going to all our favorite restaurants for lunch with them too. So far getting our fill of seafood(catfish, shrimp, cod, crab, hush puppies etc.) AND THE BEST FRIED GREEN TOMATOES EVER....and sweet tea...can never have enough! We were also able to spent time with Mary and Rob Floyd, friends of ours from Tucson. Mary is active duty Air Force and Maryann worked with Mary at Davis-Monthan. They are now stationed at Patrick Air Force Base so are so glad to be able to see them every year on our annual Florida trip. Alway fun to catch up and give hugs. We are also spending time with Kelly making
plans for our trip with Kelly and Girls as we will be heading North on the 29 May. Spending about 3 weeks on the road before Kelly and girls go to Cape Cod to spend time with Bryan’s parents who will be at their home on Cape Cod for the summer. Bryan will fly up and join them and then they will all drive back together. We are so blessed to be able to make these memories with them. Tom and I will be staying with my sister, Joan and Tom when we reach Pennsylvania before we head back to Tucson.
We also have been making phone contacts this week with the 6 couples we will be traveling to Amsterdam with to take the cruise down the Rhine River on the 2nd of May. ARE WE ALL EXCITED....YES WE ARE! Today we went up to Orlando and spent some time with our friends, Nancy and Chuck. Tom was stationed with Nancy when he first came into the Air Force and then we were stationed with them when we were in Japan in the early 70”s. Always nice to share some time with them.
Tom and Bryan took the girls to see “Avengers“ this evening. Charlotte and I went to see “I can only Imagine” today. What a good movie.....strongly suggest you put it on your MUST SEE movie list.
Talked to Carrie and Emme last evening. Emme told me she was “focusing on putting a puzzle” together so we knew that she was unable to focus on talking to us.. She uses that phrase “am focusing on” a lot now!
Our two weeks here have passed quickly...have had pleasant weather days and there has not been a moment that we have not enjoyed being with our Florida family and Friends!
We are following the teachers walk out in Arizona and hope that they are able to convince our state that teaching our children and not having to buy all their own supplies etc. vs. spending our tax money on increasing wages for the administration is far more important!
We have been having beautiful days here ..nice to see the beautiful skies here in Florida and the cranes walking along and across the roads...and the occasional turtle slowing down traffic as they saunder across the highways. Also out into the country where we saw lots of cattle in the fields.
We will be packing our suitcases and finalizing our plans to be ready to fly to Amsterdam on Wednesday. Jim and Cher will be arriving from Tucson on Tuesday and stay with Charlotte and Bill until we leave for Orlando on Wednesday to board our British Airway Flight in the evening on Wednesday Of course we will stop by Boston’s Seafood Restaurant near Orlando on our way to our flight! In the past few days have talked with several family members and our family back in Tucson to catch up before we leave. We feel just so blessed to be able to take this adventure with friends that are family and yes it is blessed, not lucky. AND then when we arrive back in this wonderful United States of America...to continue on our road trip to hopefully visit more of you. Please help us pray for this world and for all the military, police and fireman that protect us each minute of each day..and for all of us to have travel mercies. We will keep you all in our hearts as we take this new adventure.
I found a few quotes that need to share with you as know that our summer trips always find us right in the middle of these words of truth...
~~Always cherish your connections and your relationships with your family and friends~~
~~Making memories with Family and Friends is not a waste of time. IT IS a LIFETIME of moments that you will surely TREASURE the rest of your life~~
NEXT post from across the Atlantic!!!
God Bless you and your family and prayers for all those in our families that need special prayers.
Love and hugs,
Tom and Maryann
We arrived in Melbourne the evening of 16 April to spend time with the Walsh family and was so good to give hugs especially to the Walsh Grandgirls and Kelly and Bryan too of course. They only live about 20 minutes from Charlotte and Bill and their 3 cats that they rescued! So fun to just spend time with Bill and Charlotte and Bryan and Kelly and of course.....playing lots of games and cards with the girls! OF course Monopoly was the first game played!! The first weekend we were so excited that Kelly and Bryan went to Orlando for a couple days to celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary....so we had the girls to ourselves.Had plans to go play miniature golf but had a weekend of rain so we played lots of card and board games etc. Of course we are also spending time with Charlotte and Bill and also going to all our favorite restaurants for lunch with them too. So far getting our fill of seafood(catfish, shrimp, cod, crab, hush puppies etc.) AND THE BEST FRIED GREEN TOMATOES EVER....and sweet tea...can never have enough! We were also able to spent time with Mary and Rob Floyd, friends of ours from Tucson. Mary is active duty Air Force and Maryann worked with Mary at Davis-Monthan. They are now stationed at Patrick Air Force Base so are so glad to be able to see them every year on our annual Florida trip. Alway fun to catch up and give hugs. We are also spending time with Kelly making
plans for our trip with Kelly and Girls as we will be heading North on the 29 May. Spending about 3 weeks on the road before Kelly and girls go to Cape Cod to spend time with Bryan’s parents who will be at their home on Cape Cod for the summer. Bryan will fly up and join them and then they will all drive back together. We are so blessed to be able to make these memories with them. Tom and I will be staying with my sister, Joan and Tom when we reach Pennsylvania before we head back to Tucson.
We also have been making phone contacts this week with the 6 couples we will be traveling to Amsterdam with to take the cruise down the Rhine River on the 2nd of May. ARE WE ALL EXCITED....YES WE ARE! Today we went up to Orlando and spent some time with our friends, Nancy and Chuck. Tom was stationed with Nancy when he first came into the Air Force and then we were stationed with them when we were in Japan in the early 70”s. Always nice to share some time with them.
Tom and Bryan took the girls to see “Avengers“ this evening. Charlotte and I went to see “I can only Imagine” today. What a good movie.....strongly suggest you put it on your MUST SEE movie list.
Talked to Carrie and Emme last evening. Emme told me she was “focusing on putting a puzzle” together so we knew that she was unable to focus on talking to us.. She uses that phrase “am focusing on” a lot now!
Our two weeks here have passed quickly...have had pleasant weather days and there has not been a moment that we have not enjoyed being with our Florida family and Friends!
We are following the teachers walk out in Arizona and hope that they are able to convince our state that teaching our children and not having to buy all their own supplies etc. vs. spending our tax money on increasing wages for the administration is far more important!
We have been having beautiful days here ..nice to see the beautiful skies here in Florida and the cranes walking along and across the roads...and the occasional turtle slowing down traffic as they saunder across the highways. Also out into the country where we saw lots of cattle in the fields.
We will be packing our suitcases and finalizing our plans to be ready to fly to Amsterdam on Wednesday. Jim and Cher will be arriving from Tucson on Tuesday and stay with Charlotte and Bill until we leave for Orlando on Wednesday to board our British Airway Flight in the evening on Wednesday Of course we will stop by Boston’s Seafood Restaurant near Orlando on our way to our flight! In the past few days have talked with several family members and our family back in Tucson to catch up before we leave. We feel just so blessed to be able to take this adventure with friends that are family and yes it is blessed, not lucky. AND then when we arrive back in this wonderful United States of America...to continue on our road trip to hopefully visit more of you. Please help us pray for this world and for all the military, police and fireman that protect us each minute of each day..and for all of us to have travel mercies. We will keep you all in our hearts as we take this new adventure.
I found a few quotes that need to share with you as know that our summer trips always find us right in the middle of these words of truth...
~~Always cherish your connections and your relationships with your family and friends~~
~~Making memories with Family and Friends is not a waste of time. IT IS a LIFETIME of moments that you will surely TREASURE the rest of your life~~
NEXT post from across the Atlantic!!!
God Bless you and your family and prayers for all those in our families that need special prayers.
Love and hugs,
Tom and Maryann
Sunday, April 15, 2018
GRAUE TRAVEL ADVENTURES ....APRIL 15,2018
4 April 2018
We spent the last couple days getting organized, packing and preparing for our Road-trip 2018. Busy days the last couple weeks as the time for our 2018 Adventure stared to come closer. AND here we are! It seems each year the days in the months go quicker than the year before. We feel so blessed to share days with our Tucson Family...and even though only gone for a few months, we miss them. Last evening we had a nice visit from Carrie and Emme with lots of kisses and hugs. After being so generous to watch our home , we did the final turning over of the mail key to Hilda who does an amazing job of taking care of our mail and just all around care taker of STUFFS while we are gone. Tom detailed cleaned the 4-runner and our Lexus (our travel car) and putting the luggage carrier on top of the Lexus for the trip.
Yesterday, we finished packing about 10:30 PM...we thought would take less time! Our intention was to be up and on the road at 0700..we pulled away from our Tucson home at 0738!! Feels like we are both more tired even after a good night’s sleep. BUT, we are taking our time and enjoying just beginning our adventure. Had some wind on Interstate 10 as we headed East on Interstate 10 this morning. We stopped in Las Cruces and had a nice lunch and then drove North through the .Sacramento Mountains, Sierra Blanca and the Lincoln National Forest. Along the way we are seeing some beautiful chapels. We have been this way before but this time lots of green on the mountains and hills...they must have some nice rains. I have been doing some sleeping and reading etc. in between Tom and I chatting about this and that and playing the Alphabet Game!
Seeing lots of cows, the stock yards were full of cattle..the most remember seeing. and Oklahoma certainly flat...this trip noticed how much red dirt, doing lots of work on roads and bridges all across the state. Stayed at Clovis NM at Cannon AFB. Tonight will be staying at Tinker AFB. Cattle pens..good beef this year. Slept in and did not get on the road unti 0830. Hundreds of windmills that generate power along most o the farmland and country areas. IT always amazes me that Tom does not get tired of driving...and I am thankful as do not like to drive , especially on the interstate...so many tractor trailer trucks going both North and South.
Thursday. Today was a nice relaxing day coming into Oklahoma heading here to Oklahoma City. What a flat state. Just fields and fields with lots of cattle and this time of year, many calf’s. Lots of road and new bridges being repaired on Interstate 40. What a flat state, lots of fields planted and lots of green in a state we usually see mostly brown fields when we come through. Arrived in Oklahoma City late this afternoon and went directly to Swadley's. Swadley’s is our favorite BBQ place here in this city. If ever near Oklahoma City...a must, they have several in the city. We are staying at Tinker AFB tonight. Tom’s sister and brother in law will be flying to the airport here in the late morning . We will pick them up and of course visit Swadley’s again before we head to Springdale Arkansas to spend time with Aunt Marilyn. We have been coming to Springdale for several years together to just spend time with Tom’s mom’s sisters. Sadly Aunt Lois passed last August so we will be remembering her on our visit too. Just listening to the news and they are calling for snow here and in Arkansas tomorrow.
Friday ..We arrived in Springdale Arkansas...and it is very cold and windy. Charlotte and I went and found some winter scarfs . We stopped by to see Aunt Marilyn and let her know we would be taking her out and about for the next two days. It is always nice to spend time with her. We are staying at the Doubletree here...and taking advantage of their great chocolate chip cookies a couple times per day. Woke up to snow on the ground and temperatures in the teens today! Saturday we picked up Aunt Marilyn and went to lunch at our favorite catfish place. Mike and Alicia, her son and daughter in law joined us. After lunch we drove took her around to places she wanted to go before we took her back to her assisted living residence so she could rest. Later in the afternoon we picked her up and all went to her favorite spaghetti place for dinner and then spent time driving around to places she had not been in awhile then spent time at her apartment with her. Sunday , we all went to another of her favorite restaurants. Debbie, her daughter and Steven, a nephew met us there for a nice lunch. Always so good to catch up on family. In the afternoon we took another drive with Aunt Marilyn , visited the cemeteries and then went back to her place and helped her with some stuffs and just talked. Gave lots of hugs and promises to see her again next year. It is such a blessing to be able to come each year and have this special time together.
Monday ..9 April...we are heading to Little Rock and then on to Memphis for a couple days. Beautiful day as we travel through the Ozark Mountains...much warmer today. We stopped in Little Rock and went to a favorite Mexican Restaurant and had the favorite cheese dip...and are not on Kelly’s favorite list as we did not have storage to take her some of this cheese dip which is her favorite too...
10 April...Yesterday, we arrived in Memphis and spent today in downtown Memphis going to see the Ducks take their ride down the elevator to spend the day in the lobby fountain at the Peabody Hotel. We then went to Beale Street to walk about and had BBQ lunch. When in Memphis, remember to watch where you walk on the sidewalks...there are several uneven sidewalks as Maryann found out as she tripped ..hit her head on some metal bars that were on a window and now has a 2 inch wound in her hairline and abrasion on her shoulder. ALL is well.
We cleaned out the wound, put Hydrogen Peroxide and Neosporin on the area. When we got back to our room, she washed her hair and cleaned the wound again. We are staying at the Naval Support Activity, Mid South Naval Base near Memphis.
Tomorrow we will continue to New Orleans. On our way to New Orleans, we stopped in McComb, MS to have lunch and had lunch at the Dinner Bell Restaurant. It is in an old southern style home. Concept is large round table that sit about 14 people and has a lazy Susan type top with about 14 different types of comfort food in bowls that you can help yourself too. We shared the table with other guest and had the best freshly cooked vegetable, fried chicken, desert etc. What a find! It was family owned for 40 years , the owner was very friendly and even gave us tips on were to eat in New Orleans.
Friday 13 April... We just left New Orleans after spending 2 nights at Jackson Barracks Billeting. Jackson Barracks is on the National Register of Historic Place and was established in 1834. It is now the headquarters of the Louisiana National Guard. It has quite the history through out the 18th and 19th centuries. Perfect place to stay as it is only 6 miles from downtown New Orleans. Billeting is open to active duty and retired military. Beautiful historic base structures.
We of course went to Bourbon Street and had Beignets at the Cafe Beignets and walked about Bourbon Street for a short time in the evening. Had a great seafood lunch at Deanie’s and then went to the Parkway Bakery and Tavern for one of the best Shrimp Po Boys in New Orleans.
We spent the last couple days getting organized, packing and preparing for our Road-trip 2018. Busy days the last couple weeks as the time for our 2018 Adventure stared to come closer. AND here we are! It seems each year the days in the months go quicker than the year before. We feel so blessed to share days with our Tucson Family...and even though only gone for a few months, we miss them. Last evening we had a nice visit from Carrie and Emme with lots of kisses and hugs. After being so generous to watch our home , we did the final turning over of the mail key to Hilda who does an amazing job of taking care of our mail and just all around care taker of STUFFS while we are gone. Tom detailed cleaned the 4-runner and our Lexus (our travel car) and putting the luggage carrier on top of the Lexus for the trip.
Yesterday, we finished packing about 10:30 PM...we thought would take less time! Our intention was to be up and on the road at 0700..we pulled away from our Tucson home at 0738!! Feels like we are both more tired even after a good night’s sleep. BUT, we are taking our time and enjoying just beginning our adventure. Had some wind on Interstate 10 as we headed East on Interstate 10 this morning. We stopped in Las Cruces and had a nice lunch and then drove North through the .Sacramento Mountains, Sierra Blanca and the Lincoln National Forest. Along the way we are seeing some beautiful chapels. We have been this way before but this time lots of green on the mountains and hills...they must have some nice rains. I have been doing some sleeping and reading etc. in between Tom and I chatting about this and that and playing the Alphabet Game!
Seeing lots of cows, the stock yards were full of cattle..the most remember seeing. and Oklahoma certainly flat...this trip noticed how much red dirt, doing lots of work on roads and bridges all across the state. Stayed at Clovis NM at Cannon AFB. Tonight will be staying at Tinker AFB. Cattle pens..good beef this year. Slept in and did not get on the road unti 0830. Hundreds of windmills that generate power along most o the farmland and country areas. IT always amazes me that Tom does not get tired of driving...and I am thankful as do not like to drive , especially on the interstate...so many tractor trailer trucks going both North and South.
Thursday. Today was a nice relaxing day coming into Oklahoma heading here to Oklahoma City. What a flat state. Just fields and fields with lots of cattle and this time of year, many calf’s. Lots of road and new bridges being repaired on Interstate 40. What a flat state, lots of fields planted and lots of green in a state we usually see mostly brown fields when we come through. Arrived in Oklahoma City late this afternoon and went directly to Swadley's. Swadley’s is our favorite BBQ place here in this city. If ever near Oklahoma City...a must, they have several in the city. We are staying at Tinker AFB tonight. Tom’s sister and brother in law will be flying to the airport here in the late morning . We will pick them up and of course visit Swadley’s again before we head to Springdale Arkansas to spend time with Aunt Marilyn. We have been coming to Springdale for several years together to just spend time with Tom’s mom’s sisters. Sadly Aunt Lois passed last August so we will be remembering her on our visit too. Just listening to the news and they are calling for snow here and in Arkansas tomorrow.
Friday ..We arrived in Springdale Arkansas...and it is very cold and windy. Charlotte and I went and found some winter scarfs . We stopped by to see Aunt Marilyn and let her know we would be taking her out and about for the next two days. It is always nice to spend time with her. We are staying at the Doubletree here...and taking advantage of their great chocolate chip cookies a couple times per day. Woke up to snow on the ground and temperatures in the teens today! Saturday we picked up Aunt Marilyn and went to lunch at our favorite catfish place. Mike and Alicia, her son and daughter in law joined us. After lunch we drove took her around to places she wanted to go before we took her back to her assisted living residence so she could rest. Later in the afternoon we picked her up and all went to her favorite spaghetti place for dinner and then spent time driving around to places she had not been in awhile then spent time at her apartment with her. Sunday , we all went to another of her favorite restaurants. Debbie, her daughter and Steven, a nephew met us there for a nice lunch. Always so good to catch up on family. In the afternoon we took another drive with Aunt Marilyn , visited the cemeteries and then went back to her place and helped her with some stuffs and just talked. Gave lots of hugs and promises to see her again next year. It is such a blessing to be able to come each year and have this special time together.
Monday ..9 April...we are heading to Little Rock and then on to Memphis for a couple days. Beautiful day as we travel through the Ozark Mountains...much warmer today. We stopped in Little Rock and went to a favorite Mexican Restaurant and had the favorite cheese dip...and are not on Kelly’s favorite list as we did not have storage to take her some of this cheese dip which is her favorite too...
10 April...Yesterday, we arrived in Memphis and spent today in downtown Memphis going to see the Ducks take their ride down the elevator to spend the day in the lobby fountain at the Peabody Hotel. We then went to Beale Street to walk about and had BBQ lunch. When in Memphis, remember to watch where you walk on the sidewalks...there are several uneven sidewalks as Maryann found out as she tripped ..hit her head on some metal bars that were on a window and now has a 2 inch wound in her hairline and abrasion on her shoulder. ALL is well.
We cleaned out the wound, put Hydrogen Peroxide and Neosporin on the area. When we got back to our room, she washed her hair and cleaned the wound again. We are staying at the Naval Support Activity, Mid South Naval Base near Memphis.
Tomorrow we will continue to New Orleans. On our way to New Orleans, we stopped in McComb, MS to have lunch and had lunch at the Dinner Bell Restaurant. It is in an old southern style home. Concept is large round table that sit about 14 people and has a lazy Susan type top with about 14 different types of comfort food in bowls that you can help yourself too. We shared the table with other guest and had the best freshly cooked vegetable, fried chicken, desert etc. What a find! It was family owned for 40 years , the owner was very friendly and even gave us tips on were to eat in New Orleans.
Friday 13 April... We just left New Orleans after spending 2 nights at Jackson Barracks Billeting. Jackson Barracks is on the National Register of Historic Place and was established in 1834. It is now the headquarters of the Louisiana National Guard. It has quite the history through out the 18th and 19th centuries. Perfect place to stay as it is only 6 miles from downtown New Orleans. Billeting is open to active duty and retired military. Beautiful historic base structures.
We of course went to Bourbon Street and had Beignets at the Cafe Beignets and walked about Bourbon Street for a short time in the evening. Had a great seafood lunch at Deanie’s and then went to the Parkway Bakery and Tavern for one of the best Shrimp Po Boys in New Orleans.
We arrived in Destin, Florida in the early afternoon on Friday. Destin is known for being Florida's Emerald Coast, because of the beautiful white beaches and emerald green waters. We had a nice lunch at the Back Porch in Destin as we enjoyed sitting on the porch with the white beaches and beautiful waters just below us. We are staying at the Destin Army Recreation Area on the bay in Destin. They have hotel rooms and condo’s a RV park etc. here for military. We are staying in one of the condos. We took time to take a walk around the area and out onto the pier in the evening. Saturday, we walked about Destin area by the sand dunes and harbor. Also stopped by one of our favorite places here for lunch called “The Donut Hole”...wonderful food and the best bakery. We picked up a coconut cream pie, brownies and pineapple upside down snacks to take to Sandy and Joe’s for dinner at their home. It was so nice to see Sandy and Joe and Hope and Lizzie Grace (their darling Shih Tzu dogs). Good to catch up and also discuss our trip in a couple weeks to our Rhine River Cruise with them and 5 other couples. Today , Sunday, we met Sandy and Joe for lunch and then spent time at a shopping area with them before we gave hugs and looking forward to seeing them in a couple weeks in Amsterdam.
We are so enjoying sharing these travel days with Bill and Charlotte...as we make our way to their home in Cocoa and to spend time with Bryan, Kelly and OUR GRAND GIRLS!!
I will get this posted today. Will send pictures later as have to figure out again this year how to get on the blog!!!!
~~WHEREVER YOU GO BECOMES A PART OF YOU SOMEHOW~~
Sending our prayers and love you and we are keeping you in our daily prayers.
Tom and Maryann
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)