Summary

We all met in the lobby at 5:45 Tuesday morning to begin our journey home.  Carl and I had to walk the block to the parking garage to retrieve our vehicle and were relived to find that it was still there!  We were loaded and on the road by about 6:05.

Before talking more about the trip home, I will share some photos from our last night in the city.  Carl's knee has been bothering him for the entire trip, he is in the process of getting knee surgery setup, but he has been a trooper, trudging miles and miles every day with us.  Tonight he decided he would not make the last trip out before the long drive tomorrow.  Kay, Janet and I decided to walk down to Woldenberg Park, by the river.  This is a great place to sit and people watch along the river.  As the sun started down and the temperature begin to drop, we were treated with a group of skaters an skate boarders.  We watched these guys for about a half hour before heading back to the condo.

They decided to do a little "Evil Knievel".  Starting by jumping one person lying on the ground and worked their way up to three persons.  You have to really trust the jumpers to do this!

The costumes, tattoos and piercings were also interesting...

The group getting ready for a celebratory photo.

On the way back, I got a good photo of one of the trams.  They run 24 hours a day, but reduce the runs to once a hour from midnight to 6:00 AM.

                            

Now, back to Tuesday morning.  As I said, we were on the road by 6:00AM and watched the sun rise.

We had an uneventful drive back, using I-10, I-65 and I-85 back to the ATL car rental return.  It was a relatively fast 460 miles, but quite boring compared to the nice quiet leisurely drives we have been experiencing for the past two weeks.  

It was quite an aggravation dealing with the cars.  We had to drive the rental back to Park and Fly, where we had left our car at the airport.  We were really ticked that they made us pay $4 just to enter the lot to retrieve our vehicle.  It was only a 10 minute drive from the Park and Fly to the airport rental center, but was a pain to get to the correct place.  The actual return of the vehicle was fast and smooth. It wasn't until we were back to Woodstock where we stopped for dinner at Chile's that Kay realized she had lost her phone.  After thoroughly searching the car and calling the phone, it was not to be found.  We walked across the lot to Chile's and found this sign.  Fortunately it was only about 5 minutes to 4:00 when we arrived.

Talking to the manager, it was the same old story, no help.  The workers they had have been working 50 and 60 hour weeks due to being short handed and they were needing and deserving of a break before summer was over.  Several were on vacation or scheduled for vacation and the only alternative was to shorten operating hours.  During our travels through nine states from near the Canadian border to the Gulf of Mexico, it was the same story; HELP WANTED.  We saw numerous signs advertising hourly rates and many times signing bonuses. 

After our meal, I tried to call Kay's phone again and got an answer immediately.  It had been found in the auto return area but they could not mail it to us... Wednesday morning we made the drive back to the airport and retrieved the phone.  Thankfully it was easier than I thought it would be.  Their website lists items left in vehicles by day.  For Tuesday only, they had 5 cell phones, several wallets a purse a couple of sets of keys and other miscellaneous items.  I was amazed at how much is left.  I was also amazed that there were enough honest employees that the items were retrieved, stored, cataloged and made available for pickup.  

Now for a short summary of our trip.  These observations are mine alone and none of my fellow travelers are responsible or perhaps even agree with my observations.

Itinerary:

7/13 - Flew from Atlanta to Minneapolis, overnight in Bemidji, MN

7/14 - Overnight in Little Falls, MN

7/15 - Overnight in Red Wing, MN

7/16 - Overnight in Dubuque, IA

7/17 - Overnight in Fort Madison, IA

7/18 - Overnight in St. Louis, MO

7/19 - Overnight in St. Louis, MO

7/20 - Overnight in Dyersburg, TN

7/21 - Overnight in West Helena, AR

7/22 - Overnight in Vicksburg, MS

7/23 - Overnight in Natchez, MS

7/24 - Overnight in Metairie, LA - drove to Venice LA and back to N.O.

7/25 - Overnight in New Orleans, LA

7/26 - Overnight in New Orleans, LA

7/27 - Drove back to Canton

We traveled for 15 days, spent 14 nights in 12 different locations, spending two nights in St. Louis and two in New Orleans. We traveled through all 10 states which border the Mississippi River, but I didn't realize we had been in Kentucky until a week after our return.  The ferry ride across the river was from Missouri to Kentucky and we thought it was to Tennessee.  We were only in Kentucky for about 6 miles and there are no state sign markers on the small roads we were travelling.  I had to make revisions in the blog for that day!

Our rental car registered 3050 miles, added to that is the 105 mile round trip to the airport for a total mileage driven of 3155 miles.  In addition my Fitbit showed that I walked just under 100 miles (98.7mi.)  Our vehicle was a  2020 Chrysler Voyager van.  This was not a vehicle I was especially excited about, but I got a surprise.  It proved to be exactly what we needed.  It was very comfortable, it drove nicely, the sliding doors made entry easy and it had plenty of storage.  

We mostly made plans along the way having only booked lodging for the first two nights and the last two nights before our departure.  For days 3-12 we basically decided the night before how far we would travel and where we would stay.  Sometime we had to slightly change our plans because of availability of lodging.  We stayed in everything from an economy motel to Courtyard by Marriott and our timeshare condo in New Orleans.  Some of the lodgings were definitely better that others, but none were horrible, all were clean.  Our biggest disappointment was in Vicksburg MS and it was my fault.  There were very few rooms available and I finally found two at Best Western.  The rooms were fine, I just failed to notice that they were NOT non-smoking rooms.  The odor heavy.  I obtained a can of de-odorizer from the front desk and met Janet on the way to do the same as I was returning.  When we went out for dinner, we stopped at a Dollar General and picked up some additional air freshener.  We survived, but from then on I was careful when booking our rooms.

Overall, I think we all would deem the trip a success.  When we left, none of us really had any idea how it would go.  Although we have traveled together many times, it has always been on cruises or organized tours.  Spending two weeks in the same vehicle was a different experience.  Fortunately, we knew from past trips that we were compatible.  Our interest are similar and our tolerance for less than ideal situations is also similar.

I personally gained a lot of history about the Mississippi and the development of our country on this trip. We all enjoyed making spontaneous stops, whether to eat a freshly baked pasty or to gaze from a roadside overlook or take an unexpected ferry ride across the river.  I enjoyed talking with locals, and as I usual find, when in smaller towns the people are genuinely NICE.  Whether asking for directions, making a purchase or just striking up a conservation on the street, most people in this country are good people.  Unfortunately the news we are inundated with 24 hours a day focuses on the "other" half of the country, the urban areas.  I firmly believe we do live in a divided country.  But, it is not divided by race or socio-economical differences or religion.   It is divided by rural and urban.  The cultural differences in these areas far exceed any of the other differences.

We were disappointed a few times when there was something we wished to do but could not get tickets for the activity.  Due to the nature of our travel we could not plan far enough ahead to make a commitment for a specific time (or sometimes even a specific day) and some activities required reservations days or weeks in advance.

Driving along the secondary roads, staying as near as possible to the river was very relaxing.  We literally passed through 100's of small towns and communities.  I think the smallest I noticed was population 18.  We agreed there were many of them we could certainly live in.  I was especially impressed with northern Minnesota as well as Wisconsin and Iowa.  Only if they weren't so cold in the winter!

Did I have fun?  Absolutely.  Would I do another trip like this?  I certainly would.  I hope my fellow travelers enjoyed it as much as I did.  

I hope those of you who lasted to the end of my tale found it at least a little entertaining.

Until our next travels....

Day 14 - Monday, July 26, 2021

Welcome to the Big Easy.  We were out early this morning for breakfast.  As we crossed Canal Street, we encountered a "gentleman" urinating into a trash can (sorry no photo).  It is really a bad situation here.  There are a lot of homeless and almost NO public restrooms.  Of course if there were the homeless would make them unusable for anyone else.  Still it is sad.

Our plans were to visit the Garden District.  On our previous trips to New Orleans none of us have been to that area.  Taking advice from the consignor at our Condo, Wyndham La Belle Maison, we decided to purchased a one day trolley pass.  The cost - $3.00 per person.

After breakfast it was a short five minute walk to our trolley stop and with cash in hand it took only seconds to purchase our pass and board the trolley for the 15 minute ride which would have taken 40 minutes to walk.

The ride was pleasant with few other passengers at this hour.  The only downside was the requirement to wear a mask.  It became more obvious why on our trip back a few hours later.  It was standing room only for a while.

After leaving the trolley, it was a short walk to begin our self-guided tour from an app I had downloaded to my phone.  I have only shown a few of the beautiful houses we saw.  The Garden District was created in the mid 1800 by Yankees who moved to New Orleans and were not accepted into the Creole Society.  There are many interesting stories about the houses.

This is my favorite house.  It was the home to Anne Rice, the gothic horror author of the Vampire Chronicles.  These stories were started in the mid 1970's and are excellent reads.  Rice said she loved New Orleans and received many inspirations from living here.  It is rumored that the house is haunted and it has been on the market several times since Rice moved, so perhaps it is.  The Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 is only a few blocks away.

This little beauty is being renovated and can be yours for only $9.5 million. 

We next visited Lafayette Cemetery #2 since it is the only one currently open to the public.

It's no wonder that Rice got inspiration from here...

By the time we got back to the French Quarter, around 11:30 we were hot and exhausted.  Having walked several miles in 90+ degrees and 60% humidity.  We decided to rest a while and have a late lunch, early dinner around 2:00 PM.   We went with what we knew was good, Acme Oyster House, located about 8 minutes away just off Bourbon Street.  Below those massive pieces of fish were about a dozen small delicious oysters, a like number of shrimp and sweet potato fries.  Yum, yum.

Afterward, we walked the length of Bourbon Street.

Kay waiting to get some of the famous Café du Monde beignets. 

We expect to go out once more tonight after it cools off a bit, to just walk around the riverfront.  Our plans are to leave New Orleans in the morning around 6:00 AM.  It's about a 6.5 hour non-stop drive to Atlanta to return the rental and pick up Carl's car for our return trip to Canton.  We want to miss as much morning traffic in New Orleans and afternoon traffic in Atlanta as possible.

I hope to make one more post with a summary and last thoughts, but it might be a few days.  I hope everyone has persevered through my wandering muses has at least been slightly entertained.

Day 13, Sunday, July 25

 Day 13 - July 25, 2021

It was only a 15 minute ride from our hotel to Jackson Square and we thought Sunday morning would be a good time to visit.  Also we had some time to spare because we were planning to have lunch in Venice and didn't want to arrive too early.

I realized that the first time I visited Jackson Square was June of 1970, a little over 51 years ago on my senior high school trip.  Myself and two friends, Steve and Ricky made a three week driving trip to Acapulco Mexico and our first start was here.  Still looks pretty much the same.

After leaving Jackson Square and New Orleans, we headed toward Venice near the mouth of the Mississippi.  Traffic was heavy for the first few miles but then it opened up and about all we saw was similar to the photo below.

We finally reached our goal, the farthest point where the Mississiippi is still a single river and not splitting up into the Delta.  It doesn't look like much, but this is the mouth at it's southernmost point.

After a short walk and a few photos, we were ready for lunch.  Having previously read reviews, it was decided to have lunch at Changes Resturant.

I 

I had an excellent meal of fried shrimp and oysters with broccoli and a side salad.   Our waitress Trinity (above) took good care of us.  When we told her about making the full trip down the river, she said a few folks came in who and done it.  What was really deflating though was a couple of guys, in recently who had done the trip on bicycles.  It took them 69 days.  Trinity had a photo she shared with me.  These guys were not "spring chickens" either; good for them.

On our way back to New Orleans we stopped at Fort Jackson, a 200 year old fort which was used up until World War I.

We arrived in New Orleans about 2:30 and checked into Club Wyndham La Belle Maison, a unit of our timeshare.  The only unit available was a studio, but it is fine for a couple of nights.

After a rest and drop in the temperature, we walked down to the riverfront.

The girls needed to make a comfort stop so we went into the casino.  While waiting, I played the slots for about 10 minutes.  I started with $5.00 played for about 10 minutes.  I got up to almost $10 and when I had lost back down to $5.11 I cashed out.  Made a whopping 11 cents!

I'm not sure what we are doing tomorrow, but will let you know...

Day 12 - Saturday, July 24, 2021

We were meeting for breakfast at the Hotel at 7:00 this morning.  I was out at 6:30 to get a walk in before the morning meal.  It was already warm, in the high 70's but the streets were quiet.  I walked down to the river and got some nice early morning photos.

In the above photo it was just good daylight and the river was beautiful from the bluff.

The photos below, taken about 15 minutes later shows the clouds clearing and river traffic beginning to pick up.

This is our hotel, the Natchez Grand Hotel on the left.  It sits high on the Natchez Bluff and affords a beautiful view of the river.

We were on the road just before 8:00 AM on the way to our stop for the evening, Metairie, just outside New Orleans.  It was an easy drive down highway 61 until Baton Rouge.  Just outside the city, traffic picked up and traffic lights were plentiful.  Staying true to our goal of driving the Great River Road, we elected to stay on Hwy 61 rather than the faster and easier I-10.  Since our drive proceeded so quickly and we were going to reach our hotel by 11:30, we decided to try to take a diversion and do a swamp boat ride.  It was only about a 7 mile deviation but when we arrived we found they were completely booked for the day.  Since we were only half a mile from I-10, and it was actually as close to the river, we made the last 20 miles in about 15 minutes.

Surprisingly, our hotel room was ready when we arrived just before noon and we were able to check-in.  We asked the desk clerk about good restaurants and she referred us to Acme Oyster House, just a 5 minute walk away.  I looked up the reviews and found it was 4.7 STARS with over 4,000 reviews.  Kay and I had seafood gumbo and Carl had jambalaya, both were excellent.  Janet enjoyed a grilled chicken salad.  I later found that the company has been serving since 1910.  It has to be good!

After a brief rest in our room, we drove to Audubon Park, about 7 miles away on the river.  Our intention was to just enjoy a walk along the river.  It turned out to be a longer walk than we intended because several trails and roads were closed behind the Zoo and we had to make a large circle.  I expect they were closed because of Covid.  

One interesting thing we saw was the Tree of Life, almost 300 years old.  A beautiful old tree.

After a couple of hours recovering from our walk, we thought we might go back to Acme Oyster House, but the wait line was beyond long.  Instead, we decided to just grab a bite at the TGIF, just up the road.  It wasn't bad, but it wasn't the Oyster House...

A story I left out of yesterday's blog begged to be told.  While driving down the Natchez Trace, I pulled over in a small rest area.  There was one other car in the parking lot but no evidence of anyone.  We were just going to stretch our legs for a few minutes but I noticed that there was a small stream down a steep bank through the woods.  I scrambled down, through bushes and over logs to the stream's edge and heard someone.  I looked upstream to a sandbar on the opposite shore and saw a pile of clothes and then noticed two heads sticking out of the middle of the stream.  It appeared I caught a couple skinny dipping.  I just waved and made my way back up the bank.  I think we were both surprised!

Tomorrow we complete our journey.  It is about 85 miles from where we are to the Venice at the mouth of the Mississippi.  Our plans are to stop by Jackson Square in the morning, it being Sunday it should be a good time to walk around the area.  We will then head to Venice, spend a little time, have lunch and then travel back to our timeshare in the French Quarter for two nights.