Thursday 3rd November 2011….This and that!!!

An easy morning and a drive of just over 2 hours all on Interstate to

again Paula and Jerry had told me of a great RV park and I arrived here

just before noon.

It is another Passport America park so my cost was 16 dollars and for that I get hot showers, laundry, Wi-Fi and a great full hook up sight in a beautiful park!!

 

After lunch I got Bonita ready

and went exploring!!

These above ground cemeteries are everywhere!!

I really liked this tree!!!

The owners of the RV park also own a meat store in the town and I checked it out and they have Bangers!!!  So tomorrow I shall be stocking the freezer a little.

Back at the park my clothes that I had and hung out were dry and I did some small maintenance to Ramona, sunbathed and read for a while.

Really nice sunset!!!

Supper was great and now a movie….tomorrow I have a 2 hour Cajun Country swamp tour!!!

I also have to decide what to do and where to go from here.

The plan is to arrive in San Miguel on the 15th of this month but cannot yet decide if I should take my time through Texas and enter Mexico on the 13th and drive straight to SMA or to get a move on and get into Mexico as soon as I can and go down to the RV park on the south side of Lake Chapala, it is in the mountains and stay there a few days then go to SMA for the 15tth!!!!!  Will have to make my mind up by tomorrow.

 

This and that!!!

Been on the road now 132 days…9 of those days I have spent with couch surfer hosts, 17 nights in RV parks, many nights at good friends home’s along the way…the rest boon docking!!!

I have also driven 14189 miles!!!!!!!!

My health is great… my mindset good and getting excited about going into Mexico, seeing the girls, my wonderful friends Linda and Guy and settling into the routine that is SMA!!!

Wednesday 2nd November 2011……..The Big Easy!!!!

Had a great sleep and drove right away to the beach for my morning walk!!!

A lovely way to start a day!!

My friends who are turning into my full time tour guides, Paula and Jerry gave me great instructions how to get to the RV park in New Orleans but first I had to cross the State line into

I arrived at the RV park just before noon it is a Passport America park so I got the rate for half price but it still was 42 dollars but a bargain really when you consider it is 2 blocks from the French Quarter!!

I booked a van tour for 2pm so I had a couple of hours to spare so spent it sunbathing, reading and in the hot tub!!

The park is very clean and well organised but they do have lots of rules…..sometimes I don’t do well with rules!!!

The 10 seater van arrived at 2pm and was full and we went on a great tour of the city…..I learned a great deal and it might be interesting for you to Google the city and read about the Hurricane that ravished and caused so much loss of life and property!!

The river and the wall!!

Brad Pitt came to the city and funded the building of 30 homes and this one below is one of them interestingly enough it is built on pontoons!!

The foundations of a lost house with the retaining wall behind the trees!!

This was an usual display!!!

Had to try them out!!! MMMMMMMMMMMMM

Sandra Bullock’s home!!

The home where the movie Benjamin Button was filmed!!

The tour was very informative and I got the driver to drop me down at the Flea Market

I enjoyed a ride here

Then it was the famous

I did stop in to a couple of bars to listen to the music

 

 

This was a great bunch of players!!!

It was now about 7.30pm and I have to admit I was beginning to feel just a little bit uncomfortable…there was a lot of street drinking going on and lots of “alternative” folks around so I grabbed a cab and came back to the RV park…….it was a great afternoon!!

Just a relaxing evening for me and tomorrow I move further west..getting closer to Mexico!!

Tuesday 1st November 2011…Mississippi!!!

Please all my older readers go down to the next post and read the poem on aging!!!!

Well a great sleep, a beautiful morning and off on the road again I soon got off the Interstate and drove on a small highway but still managed good time but with scenery like this!!

I stopped in a small town to go to the post office and when I came out these  ladies Mum and daughter and friend

stopped me and wanted to know how come I was going through their little town, where I was from, my mini life history..we had a great chat, lovely and friendly!!

After a few hours I was passing by the city of Mobile and I stopped for gas when I came out to go back I had to get on Interstate 10 and I knew where I was going but boy did I make a big boo boo and not realize…I started going East on the Interstate instead of west!!!

I was heading for the town of Pascagoula and kept seeing the signs for Pensacola and when the penny dropped that I was on the right Interstate just heading in the opposite direction I had to go about 15 miles before there was an exit so for 2 minutes I was in the State of

before I turned around and back into

I reckon I lost about an hour of time but at least I can say I have been to the sunshine State!!!

So after another hour I crossed over into Mississippi and found this great town and drove down to the beach till I came to this sign!!

Now I know of one of my readers who will remain nameless, Croft, who may have tried this but not Ramona…parked in a school parking lot and walked to the beach!!!

The Gulf of Mexico!!!

Had a lovely walk on the beach the ocean is always so special to me!!!

A beautiful home!!

So I am now settled into the parking lot of Home Depot for a change!!

I receiver permission from the manager and MacDonald's is right next door where I am now….

I have had supper so going back to Ramona for a shower and then tea and I got a movie from the Red Box machine.

The plan for tomorrow is to drive the 125 km to New Orleans and arrive at the RV park at noon and take a tour of the city and stay the night..so stay tuned!!

Shows my error!!

Tuesday 1st November 2011…Rabbits, Rabbits, Rabbits!!!

Taken from Wikipedia

Day of the Dead (Spanish: Día de los Muertos) is a holiday celebrated in Mexico and around the world in many cultures. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. It is particularly celebrated in Mexico, where it attains the quality of a National Holiday. The celebration takes place on November 1–2, in connection with the Catholic holidays of All Saints' Day (November 1) and All Souls' Day (November 2). Traditions connected with the holiday include building private altars honouring the deceased using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed and visiting graves with these as gifts.

Scholars trace the origins of the modern Mexican holiday to indigenous observances dating back hundreds of years and to an Aztec festival dedicated to a goddess called Mictecacihuatl. In Brazil, Dia de Finados is a public holiday that many Brazilians celebrate by visiting cemeteries and churches. In Spain, there are festivals and parades, and, at the end of the day, people gather at cemeteries and pray for their dead loved ones. Similar observances occur elsewhere in Europe, and similarly themed celebrations appear in many Asian and African cultures.

Thanks to my friend Vicky who sent me the below mantra!!!

As I've aged, I've become kinder to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend...

I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.
Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM or sleep until noon? I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60 &70's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love... I will.

I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set.
They, too, will get old.
I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there
again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important things.
Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are
what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face.
So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.
As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think. I don't question myself anymore...
I've even earned the right to be wrong.
So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever,
But while I am still here, I will not waste time
lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day (if I feel like it).

I try to live by these rules!!!

Beautiful sunny day and off I go further south!!!