Our Winter trip lasted sixteen weeks, we covered 8,862 miles in the coach, and 3,647 miles in the Jeep as we toured the areas we stopped at.
We saw a lot of interesting places, met a lot of nice people, and traveled some of the most beautiful roads and scenic byways in this country.
When asked what we thought was the best place we have traveled, it was difficult to answer because there were so many that would fit into different categories.
An example would be Savannah Ga. as the most beautiful old city. In past trips I would have to say Utah for there National Parks which we would pick Zion and Canyonlands as the best, and if you enjoy the prairie and the old west, it would have to be Texas.
We do not enjoy traveling the highway unless we are in a hurry to get to our next destination. We'd rather take the back roads away from the big cities because those roads take us to the small towns where we get to see how a good part of the people in this country live.
The thing that surprised us the most is the level of poverty in so many of these small towns yet we found the people to be very friendly and happy. We passed through one town where there were people lined outside a soup kitchen, and as we passed these people waved and cheered at us. We were probably the first motorhome that ever traveled through their town, maybe they thought we were some rock group!
We also found that so many of the campgrounds in the south and west were populated with people living in their trailers with their BMW or Mercedes park outside. These people lost their jobs and homes but kept their high priced cars. We talked to one couple that had everything they could save packed into their van and were traveling in search of work.
Then there were the people of New Orleans. Most of us don't realize that so many of those people are still rebuilding there homes after the flood. We drove through the 9th ward and were so surprised that the people of this country are still in need of so much yet we see advertisements on TV asking us to give to the people of other countries in need. Am I missing something here??
And the one thing that Joyce and I both noticed is that the population in these poverty areas strangely seem happier and less stressed than the individuals living close to the cities and trying to hang onto their jobs.
There may be people that read this and think that I am putting down those that "Have not" but that isn't the case. The point is so much of what is going on in our country is not mentioned or shown in the news.
We live in a great country that should be taking care of it's people first before looking to the needs of others.
I guess I got off track a bit but our eyes were open to things that we knew existed but didn't realize the proportion of the problem.
Anyways.........we hope that you will all continue to join us as our travels take us to the upper portion of the States. We hope to depart in July unless fuel prices go through the roof.
We want to socialize Casey with people and other animals.
Her and the Pot Belly Pig hit it off really great.
There's also a really nice memorial garden that you can stroll through or just sit and relax.
In memory of
Very nice area.
Some of the flowers were just starting to bloom.
There were ares where children can play.
Casey did pretty good by the time we were ready to leave but still needs lots of practice walking on the leash.
The fish & chips were delicious as always.
The restaurant across the street has palm trees and is a fancier place but the foods not as good.
After eating, we walked along the shore so we could take Casey down to the water.
We couldn't believe how much she enjoyed running and jumping in the ocean water. She totally went nuts running around, then she would lay down for a quick rest.
The water was just the right depth for her and the tide was low.
After a while, she was finally ready to move on.
So we found a spot on the grass in the sun where we could relax. That is the Mayflower II.
Then we walked on a little further to Plymouth Rock where the Pilgrims landed.
This is where the Rock is located which is right along the main road that runs out of town.
And here it is, Plymouth Rock. It represents the rock that the Pilgrims stepped on as they landed in the new world.
On the lighter side, I wanted Casey to experience some of the finer things in life like eating watermelon. Mac, our last dog loved watermelon, I guess all dogs would love the stuff. Here we are sharing some.
Casey wanted her own slice so I just held on to it for her. Mmmmmmm what a treat!
And here's the after pic.
The Bursa was removed complete without draining it. The surgery took only about twenty minutes and I had it done under a local because I didn't want to spend an hour in the recovery room. The knee was numbed and I was given a light sedative so I would be conscious but not able to remember what happened. I will have to have the staples removed in ten days.
Joyce had to get a bigger dish so she could get all four paws in.
The training is going better than we expected but whereas we will be on the road again soon, we have to keep at it.