Day 57 July 9 Thursday

Well that concludes our 2009 trek. We arrived home about 12:30 PM with heavy rain and traffic 90% of the last day of the trip. Some numbers:

• Total miles: 5,431
• Total $ on gas: $1,528.78
• Total gallons of gas: 615.9
• Average cost/gallon: $2.48/gallon
• Average miles/gallon: 8.8

Other info (off the top of my head):

• We traveled through Florida panhandle, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, eastern half of Kansas, eastern half of Nebraska, Iowa, just a touch of Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and straight down the middle of Florida to home again.
• Visited presidential homes/libraries of Clinton, Truman, Eisenhower, Hoover, Lincoln and Polk (although closed). Also visited the birthplace of McArthur and I might as well throw in the home of Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy.
• Best breakfast: Stanley's in New Orleans
• Best lunch: Des Moines Art Center
• Best dinner: Lester's at Shorty's Casino in LA
• Best camp: Oak Lake in Arkansas
• Most interesting site: Poverty Point Mounds in Louisiana
• Best evening: Being declared the euchre savant playing cards with the Apels and Hahlens.
• Best thing I brought home: creation of potter Hahlen
• My favorite museum was Fort Smith in Arkansas, although there were others. Jack liked the Prairie Museum in Holdredge NB. The Clinton Library was wonderful. We learned about terrible public policies along the Trail of Tears, Central High in Little Rock, the Civil Rights Monument in Montgomery AL. We also learned that despite it all, it's a pretty great country with wonderful people who are helpful and working hard.
• Biggest concern: empty shops and rv parks, closed gas stations and other businesses, very little traffic.

I would definitely go back to many of the places in Arkansas and spend a lot more time in Alabama. For right now it is kind of nice to be all unpacked and chilling out in front of a big TV.

Day 56 July 8 Wednesday

Well we made it across the FL border and staying at the Stephen Foster Cultural Center State Park. It is very near the intersection of I 10 and I 75. We probably could have made it the 170 miles remaining but storms threatening and we were up very early to get this far. Some pictures of our campsite. It is an award winning state park but don't know who is the awarder and the criteria. We are able to hear the carillon near the museum on the quarter hour. Concert coming up at 4PM. We have been here before and I am sure Suwanee River will be heard.

Day 55 July 7 Tuesday

Quiet day at the old rv park. Pouring down rain all afternoon. I had some of the Chilton County Alabama peaches I bought yesterday. There was a huge billboard with the County Commissioner and the 5 peach queens from Mrs. Peach, I guess, down to a preschooler. So when we saw a roadside stand I had to get some. They are yummy. Smallest peaches I have ever seen. The lady who ran the stand wanted to know about the rv so I gave her the tour. She said it was just what she needed. Who knows, we may have a buyer :)

Day 54 July 6 Monday

Another very stormy day and lots of traffic on the way to Montgomery. We made only one stop - the Civil Rights Memorial Center which is part of the Southern Poverty Law Center. The memorial was designed by Maya Lin the same person who did the Viet Nam memorial in DC. Beautiful. See pictures. The little museum is quite moving and there are exhibits honoring the 40 people whose names are on the memorial although they know there are many many more who died in the cause of civil rights that remain unknown. The last exhibit is a Wall of Tolerance where each visitor asked to "sign" a pledge that they will commit to justice, equality, and human rights. Your name then is added to this huge wall of names that evolve with each name in a different color. It is really something as the names scroll from floor to ceililng. The Southern Poverty Law Center is a very imposing building across the street. There is lots of security. The guard told Jack that they frequently get bomb threats.

When we got back to the rv, a guy came up to us to ask where we were from because he saw the plates. He is from Plant City. He is an electrician who is working on the new prison across the street. I think it may be a federal jail if there is such a thing. I don't know because we got all turned around with the one way streets but I think it was the back of the Federal Courthouse. As we were walking along, I told Jack it looked like a jail or some kind of archives because there are no windows. He said the wrought iron fences looked like they were to keep people out not in. Anyway, I told the guy the museum was great and he said he was surprised at how much history there was in Montgomery and he was hoping to get around on his next trip to finish the work. Jack strongly hinted that our retractable step that won't retract just needs a whack of a hammer, but he didn't bite. I said he's an electrician, not a carpenter.

When we came into town there was a big traffic jam at a major intersection just before you get to the capitol. Could not figure out what was going on. It was people waiting for people to pull out of the parking places so they could pull in and pay their electric bills. As we were leaving town, we were at the same corner and it was the same thing. You wouldn't believe the confusion. Seemed strange to me that people go through all that. I guess because I pay all of our bills online.

Although still raining we made our way to Tuskegee to see museums of Booker T Washington and George Washington Carver. The parking lot for the home of BT Washington was full. We parked in the bus lot and walked up quite a few steps and a block or so to the front door. Guess what? Sign on the door saying that it's closed. Aggravating. Turns out there is a huge sign in the front lawn that you can't see from the highway saying they are renovating and it is closed for our safety. Still don't know who was parked in the lot that said visitors only. Walked across the street to the campus. It is very, very nice. Reminded me of Howard University but smaller. All of the bricks of all the buildings and the home were made by the students in the 1880s. This part of the campus is a national historic site. There was not a soul in sight which also doesn't explain all the cars in the lot. I think I'm going crazy?!?! See picture.

Because it was raining and foggy we didn't even try to find George Washington Carver museum or Tuskegee Airman Monument. Sad to say that the town of Tuskegee is pitiful. Shabby and so many closed stores etc. Stopped in gas station for directions. The clerk was clueless, but a very nice black guy walked me outside to show me the direction to go. He didn't recognize the road numbers but knew what I meant when I said we were headed to Union Springs. A sign on the door of the gas station said that everyone had to remove their "hoodies" before entering. Probably not a good sign. An old man came in for gas while I was there and only had $2. Not even enough for a gallon.

From Tuskegee we headed to Eufaula AL and Lakepoint State Park. It is beautiful. We are staying another day to kind of recuperate from the rain and traffic and gear up for the push to Tampa. Along the way we discovered that Union Springs is a center for hunting with a monument to a hunting dog. Large plantations/resorts for hunters as we traveled along a good highway, although we were the only ones on it, through these small deserted towns. We stopped at the Dollar General in Union Springs for pork and beans. I was the only white person in the store except for one clerk. The store was very, very busy. As the commercial at Grand Ole Opry said, Dollar General isn't cheap, it's thrifty.

Jack, who loves to be by the water, is out in the rain with a poncho. It is a great view. The park is, sadly as usual, empty. I would say there are about 10 rvs in this section of the park that would hold at least 60. I would definitely come back to do all the things we missed in AL and other things in west AL that weren't on our way this time.

Day 53 July 5 Sunday

What a disappointment today. Long story short is that we got to the Hermitage. RV parking was down a hill and far away. Handicapped parking in the car lot was impossible because of the way the parking was arranged. There was no one there so Jack just pulled around and parked across 2 1/2 spaces of regular parking. We paid the $14/person senior rate for tickets. While Jack went to bathroom I decided to go back for umbrella because we were told it was 300 yards to walk to the Hermitage from the visitor center plus more for the other things to see.

As I was returning the security guard stopped me and said I had to move the rv to the rv parking lot. I explained that I could not drive the rv in such tight places and it would be really hard for my husband who walks with canes to come all the way back out and then walk from the rv lot back to the visitor center. I said we have a handicap permit but the spaces are too small but we would be willing to move there since they are closest to the door. He rejected the handicapped parking because the rv was too long. I said I thought it was an unreasonable request since at that point there were maybe at the most 12 cars in this huge lot.

I went and got Jack and by that time the security supervisor became involved. He said that these were the rules of the executive board and had to be followed. Jack said he was sure the executive board expected him to use common sense. Because they were standing with legs spread and thumbs in their belts, we just got our money back. They could have let it go or offered to pick Jack up in their golf cart in the rv parking lot. Or give us a time limit because they were expecting big crowds, etc. None of that happened because it wasn't the rule.

The point is on this trip we have gone to presidential homes of Clinton, Eisenhower, Truman, Hoover, Lincoln. I think we violated the parking rules one way or another at all of them without a word from anyone. Essentially we try to do what is most convenient -that is what will be least tiring. When they see the handicap sticker that tend to be a little more gracious perhaps because we don't have unreasonable requests. We scope things out and see what is best without disturbing others.

Anyway, we did not go back to the rv park for the second night. I called and they were very upset with the way we were treated although it had nothing to do with them and refunded the second night's fee. Very, very nice of them. I of course I have been composing my letter to the Exec Comm of the Ladies Society for the Hermitage, National Foundation for Historic Preservation, Nashville Tourism, and the State of Tennessee. They just spent $2.5 million upgrading the home, etc.

We left town headed for Birmingham. Saw a sign at Columbia TN exit for James K Polk presidential home so stopped there. Closed of course until one and it was only 11. Seems like nice little town. Never saw anything about Polk this advertised in any of our tour books. The home looks great and I know nothing about Polk so it would have been interesting. Everything in town is Polk this and that. They need a PR person. See pictures. Looked like it was privately owned home too.

That's the other thing about the Hermitage. We were there at 9 AM so even if there was an anticipated crowd, we would have been long gone before they got there. We would have even moved if they needed the spaces while we were there. There was just no good reason to go through all that commotion in an empty parking lot.

Made it to the south side of Birmingham AL. Turns out what we wanted to see in Birmingham is closed on Monday so just kept on going. Very cloudy, threatening day and traffic picked up a little as we approached Birmingham. Great park, also empty. Lots of thunder and some rain. Onward to Montgomery tomorrow. Getting close to home and a little eager.

Day 52 July 4 Saturday

Made it to Nashville. Seemed to be very slow going along the way. Several miles of the interstate were one lane. Had late breakfast in Paducah KY.

They had shuttle to Grand Ole Opry from the rv park so decided to do that. It was one of those, been there, done that kind of things. Got to give them credit for being on the radio live since 1925. Auditorium is set up like the old Ryman with pews. Not very comfortable. I don't know, it smelled funny to me. Either the baby next to Jack or the old guy next to me or the cushions on the seats. You get the picture. People drinking, talking out loud, getting up and down. No one seemed to mind though. Another whole subculture I know nothing about.

Some good music and lots of tribute to soldiers and vets. Would think it was Memorial Day rather than 4th of July. Highlight was the Browns who were reunited to receive recognition for 50th anniversary of their song The 3 Bells. I know you know it -- " I hear the chapel bells ringing. . .. " then later on "lead us not into temptation, da da da da, salvation and eternal love" They also sang Scarlet Ribbons and The Old Lamplighter which are also their hits. All of which we recognized.

The other picture is of Mike Snyder. His song was the best. The fiddles were great in the number they did. He also told some great jokes. One was: two Jehovah's Witnesses came to the door and he invited them in and asked them to sit down. He asked them what they wanted. They said they didn't know because they never got that far before. TeeHee.

Terrible storm and the rv park was pretty full of deep puddles when we got back. Glad we decided to use the shuttle. Hoping for better weather tomorrow. They also had a dinner and live music here at the park but we missed it to go to Grand Ole Opry. The picture is of the warm-up guy.

Day 51 July 3 Friday

We went to the Lincoln Home Historic Site run by the National Parks this AM. It is wonderful. They are restoring the 4 square blocks around Lincoln's home in Springfield where he lived for 25 years. They are off to a good start. It is so well done and the movie in the Visitor Center is much better than that in the museum yesterday. I took the tour of the home. Too many steep steps for Jack and there are 20 people in a group. Attached is picture of the home and the desk in the bedroom that actually was Lincoln's as is all of the black leather furniture in the house. Lots of the other stuff in the house is "of the period"and very nicely done. The wallpaper in the bedroom is an accurate reproduction. It is very "yikes" when you walk into the room. There were some craftsmen working in one of the empty lots and I bought a shepard's hook for the yard. See picture.

We then left Springfield and made our way south to Marion IL. It is about 10 miles from here to I-24 which is then a straight 3-hour shot to Nashville tomorrow. Quite a bit of local traffic today so we stopped early to get out of everyone's way.

Day 50 July 2 Thurs

We got a little bit of a late start because we were hoping to get the other tires but they were unable to do it. We did decide to take what looked like a short cut to Springfield, IL. Turned out it was shorter and also a smoother road than the interstate.

We made a brief stop at the Lincoln New Salem Museum which just happened to be on the shortcut road. It is reconstructed to look like the New Salem IL when Lincoln lived there in his early 20s (the 1820s). It is where he first got into politics, taught himself law, met Anne Rutledge, etc. I just went into the visitor's center to check it out. We weren't in the mood for lots of outdoor walking with costumed people explaining things. See picture of the rail splitter statue at the end of the pictures. Sorry it's in the wrong order.

On to Springfield. The Lincoln Museum and Library is all new. This weekend is the official celebration of the 200th anniversary of Lincoln's birth. The new place is celebration of this bicentennial. What can I say. It was way to Disneyesque for me and not enought oomph. For instance, there is this huge room that recreates the death bed of Willy in the White House with background music heard through the door that is ajar as Lincoln (a model of him of course) comes in the room. It's huge with this tiny little tablet explaining that both sons were ill but it was the first ball that they were hosting in the renovated White House so they kept coming up from the ball to check on the boys. He died that night. The whole thing seems like the target audience is kids.

The thing I liked best was the 4 minute Civil War. It was a map with a time line of the Civil War across the bottom. The battle lines changed on the map and a small box showed the tally of Union and Confederate causalties on each side as an arrow moved across the time line. The North had higher numbers consistently and ended up with 80,000 more total casualties. Do you know how many soldiers died in the Civil War? 1.3 million. Jack thinks it was injured and dead and now that I think of it, it wasn't clear on this map. Any way, it makes me wonder if Lincoln was all that great of a president with that horrible statistic to his credit. Over a million soldiers for cryng out loud. I never knew that. He was not popular at all during his time and I also wonder what history might say if he hadn't been assassinated.

Any way, there is a big theatre (beyond the myth but it really wasn't) and a hologram theatre which they are set up exactly like Disney. Although there was no sign and no one told me on the way in, one of the attendants told me photos were not allowed except if I was standing on the marble in the main hall. Said sorry, I didn't know. She told me I should have read my ticket. Whatever. But then when I got to the next room the security guard came rushing over to me to tell me no cameras. I didn't even have the camera out. She must have told on me or I was caught on camera. See pictures I did take on the marble floor.

There was an Illinois exhibit which reinforced Abe's role in the Homestead Act which we already knew and his role in development of the Department of Agriculture which was interesting. Otherwise there was not really much new info about Lincoln that we didn't know. Saw his stovepipe hat but I think I saw another one in the Smithsonian. Stayed to closing and we found an rv park just a few miles south of Springfield. Thinking of driving back tomorrow to go to the Lincoln home which is a National Park. That may strike us more positively. I don't know who controls the Library and Museum. Illinois? The Library stuff must belong to the US government but I don't know. I bought a book on presidential libraries. I guess I better get that sucker out.

Day 49 July 1 Wed

We made it to the world's largest truck stop in Wolcott IA called Iowa 80. It was not worth the detour but it is kind of interesting. We did see truck with a vane for a wind turbine. Go prarie power! Another truck was filled with turkeys. Heard a gobble as I walked by, turned and couldn't believe it. There is parking for 800 trucks.

The rest of the day was not so good. Had a tire blow out just past the Quad Cities (Moline and Rock Island IL and Bettendorf and Davenport IA) Wonderful guy came out when we called Geico BUT had to take the wheel off, go with him to buy a tire, drive back for him to mount it. Only to discover that there was no air in tire and the battery went dead because we wanted to leave the flashers on. So back to the tire store for air and finally to rv park in Rock Island about 6 or so. Ugh. Oh well, tomorrow is another day.