New Orleans to Pensacola, Feb. 19 - 25

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THE BASICS
We experienced an early Mardi Gras parade, then decided the next day to go back a bit west to visit a plantation. The tour of the Laura plantation has been called "the best history tour in the country" and we certainly learned a lot about Creole culture.

Then onward into Mississippi, and fortunately John opted for route 90, along the coast, rather than boring old I-10. We saw large areas that were still bare lots, thanks to Katrina, and other areas where fine new buildings had been constructed (people who had triumphed with their insurance companies, and then with contractors). The 200' wide white powdery-sand beach next to the road stretches for 26 miles along the coast, and is gorgeous. We stayed in Biloxi for a couple of nights, toured Jefferson Davis's last home, ate a shrimp lunch and a casino breakfast buffet.

The Alabama coast did not have the same features as the Mississippi coast - it was farther inland. At last, on into Florida, and we enjoyed touring Pensacola, observing Pensacola Beach's comeback since Hurricane Ivan.

Now we are back on turf that we have visited before, and I am going to cut back on my weekly blogs which John "coerced" me into doing. If we find places especially worth mentioning, I'll write one more blog, eventually. Otherwise, our best wishes to all.

THE FLUFF
I think I left off the last blog with the taste of confectioner's sugar in my mouth from the beignets (small, square doughnuts). Later that morning, John wanted a few hours at the computer, so I went shopping in the French Quarter, hoping to find a sparkly top and to see lots of "stuff." Both were accomplished. Royal Street has some of the classier shops, and it was enjoyable to visit what I call "retail museums." The streets were jammed with people, many of whom were already very festive by noontime. One young man, bent over with hilarious laughter, grabbed my arm and sputtered, "That t-shirt said 'I put ketchup on my ketchup.' " Crazy fun.

The buskers were out in full force. One band consisted of nearly a dozen, "hippie" looking youngsters. Or a solitary man would blow plaintive notes on a trumpet. A group of very talented gymnast/break dancers had gathered a large audience in an outdoor amphitheater near Jackson Square. (I'm curious about how many of the spectators responded to the pleas for donations at the end of that performance.)

Passing through the French Market, I spotted a tiny counter belonging to an operation that is advertised widely in brochures and magazines here, From the Heart. I was barely hungry, so ordered a black bean slider. I had to wait quite awhile, since everything is made fresh, but the owner gives you a little orange to occupy your time and take the edge off any hunger. Many folks came up to the counter, read the menu and walked away - maybe healthy food and New Orleans do not ordinarily coexist... I thought sliders are supposed to be like tiny burgers, but when mine arrived, it was full-size, with an avocado slice and other veggies - outstanding!

The walk back to the RV park consumed my remaining "walking energy" and I took a nap, then recovered fully by soaking in the hot tub, chatting with a nice couple from Jacksonville, FL. Then as dusk fell, we headed back into the FQ for the Krewe de Vieux parade. On the way, we stopped in at Pat O'Brien's for a quintessential NO drink, a hurricane, for me, to carry along. The other Mardi Gras parades go along Canal Street and St. Charles Avenue, which are wide boulevards, but this one goes along narrow Royal St. in the FQ. People toss Mardi Gras beads from their balconies, and I caught a necklace of large gold beads. We stood next to a very nice "older" couple (boy, were the streets ever full of college-age partiers!). The woman gave good advice - be careful of that hurricane drink, because they pack a wallop; go visit the Laura plantation. She was very friendly, she and her spouse had moved just around the corner from where we stood, but I wondered why she never smiled.

The parade lived up to its reputation for political satire and crazy costumes. I wish I could remember some examples of the satire, but it all went by so fast. I was trying to get "handouts" from the paraders, but since I had a darling little 2-year old boy perched on his dad's shoulders on one side (the parents assured people that it was the last year they could bring him to this particular parade) and a pretty young blond girl on my other side, I didn't harvest much. I do now have a bumper sticker that says, "TSA. The good hands people", but I don't think I'll put it on our car...

The next morning, we researched and checked into an RV park not too far west, then drove westward along the River Road to the Laura plantation. I was expecting to pass lots of lovely old homes with views of the Mississippi - as so often on this trip, I was struck again by my naivete. Instead, we could not see the river because of the levees. And the tiny homes reflected abysmal poverty. Laura plantation is not really huge, either, but it is so interesting. It had been badly damaged by decades of neglect and hurricanes, but has been largely restored. It was a sugar plantation, and at one point employed 67 slaves. Creoles are French, proud, many from aristocratic families back in France, whose life revolves around their families. Management of the plantation goes not necessarily to the oldest son, but to the smartest child, and in the case of Laura, that was all daughters. It was a hard life, and some of those women ran things in a "hard" but successful manner. So much is known about Laura because Laura, after whom the plantation was named, had written down a great deal and kept photos, and all that was tracked down in St. Louis, where she had moved when she married at age (causing the plantation to be sold) and where she died at age 102. I bought her book, if anyone wants to borrow it.

We were plenty ignorant about what to expect in Mississippi, but fortunately John avoids interstates whenever possible and we drove along the coast. As I mentioned above, there was much evidence of destruction and of rebuilding, and the 26-mile beach is amazing. The beach was apparently proposed and constructed by a man with a lot of vision. When we visited the Jeff Davis home, there were photos of people fishing just a few feet in front of the house, long before the beach was made. We did not spot any oil evidence as we walked along the beach, but there surely have been problems there thanks to the oil spill. More troubling yet were the reports which were coming in of dead baby dolphins washing up along the Gulf beaches - marine biologists say it might take a year to finish studying exactly what killed them.

Biloxi has several enormous new casinos, and one of the snowbirds at our RV park said there is "so much to do here: lots of places to go out to eat, casinos, and three, no, four, Walmarts nearby." Ohmigosh, what about all the historical sites??? Different strokes for different folks. We did join a group of parkees at a breakfast buffet at a casino. If you got a "player's card" the buffet could cost $5.00. On Tuesdays. When I got my card, actually two, on a lanyard, the lady proceeded to give me about fifteen sequential directions about how I could insert the card into a slot in one of those kiosks, then push such and such a button, and if so and so came out, I could take it to one of those other machines and push such and such another button, etc. etc. I just smiled... The buffet was lavish and we stuffed ourselves, but this is not our idea of a wonderful way to live.

I was relieved when our next RV park was totally different. It was by a bayou across from Pascagoula, a perfect spot for a canoe and for fishing. The park was very full, but there were not many people around in the afternoon; we realized that a lot of workers camp there - we inferred builders and oil refinery workers. Especially the next morning at 5:30, when there was a steady stream of exiting pickups. It was a peaceful place, but we would have enjoyed it more if we had not been attacked by gnats, no-see-ums, and had to stay inside. We have been so delightfully surprised, on our entire trip since July, at the shortage of insect pests, but our luck briefly ran out.

We don't have a whole lot to say about our drive through Alabama. We were looking for a cozy little place to have a coffee and sweet, and never spotted one! We did, however, luck out on some gas. We came to a corner where a station advertised $3.08 and diagonally across the street, another station advertised $3.30. No need to say which one we raced into. I went inside to buy a Coke, and the lady at the counter said that as soon as she could, she would get outside and change her price - corporate had phoned to tell her to put it up to $3.20, but when she told them that the price across the street was $3.30, they told her to match it. Fortunately, she didn't get outside before we finished topping off. (I am writing this when there is great turmoil in the Middle East, especially Libya, and oil is going nuts.)

The less said about Mobile, the better, unfortunately. I think John is still ticked off because I made him drive miles out of the way so we could go over a bridge with our propane HC (hazardous cargo). The signs were just not clear to me, and it appeared to me that the only other way to get across the bay was a tunnel. (We went through a tunnel the first day of the first trip in our RV, and I never want to make that mistake again.)

We arrived in Pensacola, and decided to stay in a Walmart parking lot for a night. It gave me a chance to get a manicure-pedicure by a very nice young man from Vietnam. That was my first experience with a hot rocks massage on my legs. (Fascinating, huh, guys?)

I had forgotten to pack our maps and guide books for Florida, so we relied on Bertha (our GPS) the next morning to get to Pensacola Beach. Hence we went way out of the way, but were glad because we saw some very attractive residential areas in the city of Pensacola. We had been to Pensacola Beach a few years ago, after Ivan had devastated it, and were curious to see how much progress had been made. There is no longer sand covering the residential streets close to the beach. But there are "for sale" signs on most of the houses. We did find a cafe along the main road, and I enjoyed cheese and grits, a new favorite dish for me. When we were here before, the western end of the island was pretty much closed, and now it is open, with dozens of new condo/apartment/rental buildings. On the way back into town, we tipped our hats to the only Hooters where we have ever eaten, on that earlier trip.

Back in Pensacola, we stopped at the city tourist info office and got a Florida map as well as directions back to the Walmart where our RV was waiting for us. (Negotiating Bertha, I had somehow lost the address for that Walmart, so we had only a vague idea of Harvey's whereabouts.) I have to say that it would be well worth considering a visit to Pensacola. The beaches are lovely and almost endless, and although there is some commercial beachy development, there is very little of a honky tonk nature. The city itself has very interesting downtown historic districts which would be fun to explore. And, on our previous trip we visited the Naval Aviation Museum, one of my favorite museums ever. (Our guide was a former Navy pilot, and his enthusiasm and respect enhanced the visit, as well as the many planes hung above our heads.) It strikes me as an area with most of a vacationeer's desires.

Maybe the sunny days we are experiencing here are adding to the pleasant aura. When we were in New Orleans, the days began with heavy fog. That probably works well for tourists who party late into the night and sleep late in the mornings. In Biloxi, we had a sunny day, but then a couple of overcast ones, and they were very gray and dull. That might send people into casinos, but that is not our thing. And I don't even want to think back to the cold we experienced in Texas!

Well, as stated above, we are now on somewhat familiar turf, so I will give my fingers a break. John is so looking forward to his fresh oysters in Appalachicola, at the other end of the Panhandle, but he will have to wait a few days if we can get some good beach time along here. Best to all, Linda and John

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