I made it down to Florida, with Josh. We had a good time seeing Michelle, taking a curve in the road to Missouri. Josh flew back to carry on with his own life.
Joe left a week later, staying for his grandson's birthday party. Planning to arrive in FL a few days later...plans changed...
He had a freak accident around Kentucky. Something fell off of a car in front of him and punctured Joe's gas tank. It held about 1/4 tank-he found this out while filling his tank and the gas flowed onto the blacktop.
He found a Kia dealer, rented a car and continued his trek to Florida.
Eight days later it's a "Road Trip" -to pick up our vehicle, being thankful Joe was not hurt.
Getting there on Wed. afternoon we thanked the guys at the Kia dealership and we were on our way. Back to Florida...well, not just yet. I spotted one of those brown signs dotting the highways. Smokey Mountains here we come! Oh, what a great choice! The colors in the mountains were spectacular! Mountains bursting with "Fall" colored trees. What a time to make this trip!
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Pictures do not justify the beauty we saw, for miles and miles and miles!
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Stopping at the National Park Center we spent some time reading information, viewing the exhibits and then on the road again.
Taking the road to Gatlinburg, TN the view was just as beautiful!
Earlier I saw a billboard - there was an arts and crafts fair going on at the convention center in Gatlinburg. Can't miss that! We made it into a crowded Gatlinburg, found a great parking spot and trekked to the convention center. It was large, with crafts I've seen before. I did purchase a lamp though. It will enhance our hall, connecting to the wall, not free standing.
As we have been in Gatlinburg a few times before, we left after viewing the crafts in all 20 long aisles. I viewed them/Joe was listening to the country music on the other side of the center.
Early morning in the Smokey Mountains. The fog hanging over the valleys.
A sight only to be seen in the mountains.
A traffic jam in the Smokey Mountains!? Yup, that's what we ran into. Making a left turn out of the mountains suddenly became a chore. Just as we made our way to the front of the line the police came to direct traffic, figures. Continuing on our way out of the mountains we really leaned to the east. Following the GPS we ended up driving through North Carolina, through South Carolina onto Savannah, Georgia.
I love Savannah! We've been there a few times so we went to the Riverfront for lunch. Sorry Geri, we didn't go to The Lady and Sons restaurant.
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| We toured this tall ship, called Peacemaker. It is the flagship of the Twelve Tribes. The Twelve Tribes being an organized tribal people in twelve different geographical areas of the world. |
They describe their life as not "religious" in the conventional way of thinking, but deeply spiritual.
The tour included the top decks. Below they have two potters wheels and two kilns. They sell pottery at their stops to help sustain their lives.
The ship has been totally restored and looks wonderful. The bedroom and bathroom that we were allowed to see were "decked" out in dark, smooth; beautiful woods.
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| A full bathroom, with beautiful wood, like the rest of the ship. |
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| A bedroom with a queen size bed and a walkthrough to the bridge, where the ship's wheel is. |
Varying from 12 to 20 crew at a time, each person has their own duties to perform each day.
Stopping for lunch in
Savannah, Joe picks
a typical "guy" place.
Continuing with the "guy" thing--can't keep his eyes off the football game!
There's usually a Nature Center in the plans. This one being The National Wildlife Refuge. Approaching the entrance we stopped to talk to the ranger, who was rescuing a yellow warbler, that hit the glass entry door. Left alone a bird will most likely snap out of it's "stooper" but this warbler was in the pathway to the entrance.
Watching a video of the area we learned there are some 40ish snakes living in Georgia, as well as all the "regular" birds.
A beautiful sight, to me, around Savannah are the trees hanging bountifully with moss.
Of course this picture does not do them justice. You really have to see them, walk under them to appreciate their beauty.
