My Day

We joined Ron and Sharon for breakfast, and Sharon made my favorite breakfast sandwich - sausage, egg and Velveeta slices on thin bagels, with a side of Diet Coke. These reminded me of the yummy breakfast sandwiches we got at Harold's on Hilton Head Island. 

Then we did a little stuff, a little more stuff, laundry, grocery shopping, a quick trip to DQ, and suddenly it was time for dinner. Randy fixed Ramen crunchy salad, grouper with pineapple salsa, and cheese grits. And for dessert Sharon made magic cookies.

Thank you, God, for the life I live!

USS Alabama

We decided to get an earlier start today - no more leaving the RV park at 2 pm! We went to Mobil, to tour the USS Alabama battleship. This beautiful ship, which served in WWII, is now a museum ship. 

We've toured a couple of other WWII ships but they were both aircraft carriers. This ship is one of the ones who surrounded aircraft carriers, protecting them. That, of course, is the reason for her 129 guns. The biggest ones are the nine 16" guns on the main deck. These shoot projectiles that weight 2,700 pounds, and can hit a target up to 20 miles away. 

The turret they are mounted on turns 120 degrees to each side. An armored tube that protects the turret extends down to the lowest level of the ship. In front and on each side of it are big catapults that boosted Kingfisher floatplanes out to do reconnaissance. 

The planes couldn't land on the deck when they came back, but since they had pontoons, they landed on the water. Then they were picked up by a huge crane, which is mounted at the front of the ship.

As we went inside, we passed the "Roster of Officers". This little gizmo is how they kept track of which officer was ashore. It's a simple and effective system; the little knob can be twisted to flip the rod to either show or hide the name plate.

Inside the ship were the kinds of accommodations we saw on the other ships: medical, laundry, chapel, sleeping quarters, etc. The bunks were different, though. These were just metal racks hung by chains from the ceiling. 

On one of the lower levels, the tube that protects and supports the main turret runs through the mess area, so they ran a table all the way around it and attached chairs. The table has a lip on it, to keep the trays from sliding to the floor as the ship tilts in rough seas. I guess you can get used to anything.

I learned there is a "Degaussing Room" on board. Because the ship is steel, it's can explode magnetic mines or torpedoes. In the Degaussing Room a large electric current is generated and sent through copper coils around the ship, to neutralized the ship's own magnetic field. 

This is the first ship we've been on that has a big ice cream station. I imagine this was a very popular area!

The technology looks so old and complicated, but they did amazing things with what they had.

This ship has an unusual exhibit; guests can go down into the Barbette. The Barbette is the protective armour support for the main gun turret, and it is also where the process of loading the big 16" guns start. Big projectiles are stored along the round walls of its  upper level.

The 16" guns are "bag" guns, which means they get their thrust from powder. One of those projectiles was loaded into a gun chamber, and six big powder bags were packed in behind it. 

Outside is one of the ship's four propellers. Each propeller weighs more than 18 tons - that makes me feel skinnier already!

There are a lot of other interesting things to do and see in this area - there is a submarine right next door - but we decided we were done for today. We drove to Foley to eat at Lambert's Cafe, Home of the Throwed Rolls. As usual, the food was great and there was way too much of it. They serve great rolls, plus pass-arounds like tomatoes-and-macaroni, cabbage, fried okra, fried potatoes, black-eyed peas, all in addition to the actual dinners. Lambert's never disappoints!

It's a beautiful day in Dozier

This morning we got together again for breakfast; today Randy made oatmeal with bananas and pecans. Then we got a few jobs done; laundry, repack the Jeep, and fixed a leak in the hot water line. Since we weren't in any hurry, that took most of the morning. So it was early afternoon when Ron drove around the lake to see the area. It's a nice lake, and some (but not all) of the houses on it are beautiful. 

Then we went into town, stopping first at Ward & Co. This is a men's store but the front windows are full of antiques. Inside it looks like American Pickers decorated it. There are first-rate antiques on all the walls and in many cabinets, and in-between are racks of clothing.  

We stopped at a couple of grocery stores before going home for dinner. Randy made shrimp and cheese grits, with the shrimp from Joe Patti's. Some of these are huge; it seems wrong to call them shrimp!

Journey to Joe Patti's Seafood

Today we got up late, had biscuits and gravy for breakfast. Then Ron drove us all to Pensacola. Now Pensacola is about 2 hours away. But the sun was shining, the company was good, and the destination was calling: Joe Patti's Seafood Market. Randy and I go there whenever we are close, but we haven't been here since 2012. First thing we did when we arrived was stop at the little food truck outside and get a few beignets. And they were OK, but after the beignets at New Orleans, they were a little disappointing. 

So we went into the market, where the long counter of fresh fish beckoned. Randy wants to make shrimp and grits, so he got some large shrimp (what an oxymoron!).

Then he picked up some grouper, and a nice piece of salmon to cure.

The staff packed our little cooler full of ice for the journey home. Next it was time to eat! They have a little restaurant nearby so we went there for lunch. Fried fish baskets, clam chowder and seafood gumbo - all pretty darn good. 

After the 2 hour drive home, we were all pretty worn out and still full from lunch. So dinner was a casual: a few things from Joe Patti's - tuna spread, sourdough bread and Frog Jam (which sounds awful but taste delicious) - plus summer sausage, smoked Gouda cheese, cheese dip and Sharon's yummy carrot cake. By 7:30 I was ready for bed!

Tornado watch

A lovely, casual day today, with an odd ending. We got up late and joined Ron and Sharon for breakfast. She makes a great breakfast sandwich! Then Ron drove us around this area. There isn't a lot here, actually. But the scenery was nice and it was so good to get out of the RV for awhile! We ended up at Walmart for a few groceries, then back home. Randy grilled some steaks for dinner, but we kept the Weather Channel on all through the meal. There was a super-storm headed our way, with the threat of hail and tornadoes. As the reports came in about an RV park being trashed, with the 5th wheels turned over, we decided to prepare for the store. We put our dogs in one kennel, the cat in another, packed a backpack with a few essentials, and joined Ron and Sharon at the concrete restrooms. We sat out the storm there, visiting and listening to the weather radio. We got a ton of rain and strong winds, but amazingly, the big storm passed us by.

Where is Dozier, Alabama?

We left New Orleans early this morning because we had about 270 miles to go today. Missy did not get sick again today - yay! The weather was overcast all day but Randy made good time and we pulled into Cypress Landing RV park in Dozier, Alabama in the early afternoon. We are here to spend time with Ron and Sharon; the last time we met up with them was in 2011, and it's wonderful to see them again. 

We all went out for dinner - Beef O'Brady for burgers and fries - then back to their RV to enjoy good company and Randy's Tiramisu. 

Revisiting what the tour showed us

3rd day in New Orleans; today we decided to revisit some of the spots we found on the tours. First was "Blaine Kern's Mardi Gras World". Our bus tour guide had said that there are tours here but that it's also OK to walk through a lot of it for free. There was a big parking lot outside, so we drove the Jeep down there instead of walking from Basin street. When we arrived we discovered there is a $10 parking fee. Before committing to that, Randy parked around the corner and we looked inside. The short Entrance hall is full of big, colorful statues from past floats.

But that's all. Everything else is part of the $20 tour. I just didn't feel like paying to see more of these, so we left. It was time for an early lunch, anyway. We went to Felix's on Iberville Street. We have eaten at Acme in the past, but it's gotten so famous that it's outrageously expensive and the quality seems to be suffering. Felix, which is right across the street, has better oysters and because it isn't burdened with a famous reputation, it's easier to get in and it's a little more affordable. As we came up to the door, a group of four young people walked by, saying "Acme, that's where you get the best oysters". So we told them to go to Felix. Inside we ordered a dozen raw, and got a baker's dozen of fresh, delicious oysters.

I scooped some horseradish on one and ate it. Then I got a reminder that the horseradish here is very, very hot! I gasped for breath, took off my glasses to wipe my eyes, and when I finally recovered, I ate a lot more, but skipped the horseradish. Randy, however, piled it on. The quartet who came in behind us had ordered full dinners, and told us it was outstanding! Outside, the crowds were still in line for Acme. Silly tourists.

We walked around the area until I was hungry again (oysters aren't very filling). This time we went to the Croissant d'or, on Ursulines Avenue. 

Our walking tour guide had recommended this place. We both ordered the Royal Brioche. And it was great. This is now on my list of places to eat, when I want something besides a full meal.

Time to walk around again. This time our feet led us to a store of dog stuff. Randy noticed that this place is affiliated with "Pitbulls and Parolees". We think highly of the effort to save dogs, so we left a donation before leaving.

Along the street, occasionally we saw chalk-drawn koi. Someone is doing these during the night. It's graffiti, but people don't remove them. They are so cute. 

Next we walked along Frenchman street. The walking guide said this is becoming the new music scene. But I think it comes alive during the night, because it was quiet today. So we went back down (excuse me, riverside) to the French Marketplace, where we tried "Alligator on a Stick". It's alligator meat in what looks and tastes like a mild polish sausage; not bad, but nothing I'm going crave. We nibbled on it as we walked throught the market. Lots of things for sale here, but all we got were a couple of paperbacks. As we left we a group of young people doing an awesome job with horns and a drum. These kids were really enthusiastic and really, really good. They got tips from most of the crowd, including us - the earned it! 

At the edge of the market we passed Jude Acers, a Chess Master who spends his time here, playing and teaching chess to tourists.

Then we went back to Bourbon street. We enjoy the fun of this place but we don't love the drunkenness of it. But Bourbon calls everyone, somehow. We walked a bit, then headed home.