Our nine day road trip is history.
Charlotte cruises along the highway in Louisiana headed home.
Travel
Road Trip 2010 – On the road again
The I’m Getting Too Old For This Tour continues. We’re nearing the end of the tour as we’re heading home. We left Bay St. Louis Mississippi this morning and ended the day in Memphis Tennessee. Total mileage today 390.
When we got to Memphis we headed for The Commissary in Germantown (a suburb of Memphis) for the best BBQ ribs and chicken. Absolutely delicious! It took us a while to find the place, but the quest was worth it.
Tomorrow we head out on the final leg of our journey – the 300 miles from Memphis to St. Louis.
Road Trip 2010 – WWII Museum to Bourbon Street
The I Can Not Believe It Hasn’t Rained Yet Tour continues…
This morning started at 8 am for breakfast at the Waffle House. Then we were off to New Orleans and the World War II Museum. It’s also known as the D-Day Museum. I’m not a big history buff but I really like this museum. I was here about 10 years ago and took a brief tour of it them. It’s been expanded since then and will undergo another expansion in the next couple of years.
They’ve added a really good movie in the theater across the street. If you ever go here, make sure you see the movie too.
After staying longer than we anticipated we headed to Bourbon Street and Pat O’Brien’s for a light lunch of alligator bites and chicken wings. We had planned to go to Mandina’s, but the timing just didn’t work out.
After our late lunch and some brief shopping we got caught in some rush hour traffic getting out of town. We headed down highway 90 from Bay St. Louis through Biloxi, Gulfport and into Ocean Springs where we met Mike’s niece and her husband. They led us to Aunt Jenny’s, a local favorite, where we dined on fried chicken, catfish and shrimp. We also had some fried green tomatoes and fried pickles. We then headed back to our hotel in Bay St. Louis – arriving at 10:45. Another long day!
Tomorrow we’re off at 8 am heading for home. We plan to stop at the Commissary in Memphis Tennessee for BBQ and spend the night there.
Road Trip 2010 – From Galveston to Bay St. Louis
The 12 Hours and Sore in the Saddle Tour continues…
Dawn’s crack as seen at 7:15 this morning from our balcony in Galveston.
We were up at the crack of dawn and on the road by 8 am. We took the ferry from Galveston Island to Bolivar Peninsula and then over through Beaumont, Lafayette, Morgan City, New Orleans and ended up in Bay St. Louis Mississippi a little after 8 pm.
Place of Remembrance
In memory of the victims lost at sea during the Galveston hurricane of September 8, 1900, Galveston artist David Moore created this sculpture to commemorate the one hundredth anniversary of the hurricane that claimed 90 children and 10 nuns at St. Mary’s Orphan Asylum in Galveston.
Today was a long day on the road – 12 hours covering 421 miles, but the weather was pretty good. It wasn’t too hot for most of the trip. The sun was setting as we went through New Orleans. Bay St. Louis is about an hour beyond New Orleans.
Tomorrow we’re heading into New Orleans to visit the World War II Museum and Bourbon Street. We’ll hopefully be out of there before rush hour. We’re going to meet up with Mike’s niece for dinner tomorrow night.
Road Trip 2010 – Dirty Laundry and the Space Center
The Space Laundry Tour continues as we had a light day today. We slept in and then walked the beach this morning. Then after breakfast we headed to the Washeteria (laundrymat) to do some laundry. After doing laundry we headed to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, about 40 minute ride.
Saturn 5 rocket
All in all I wasn’t that impressed with the center, having been to Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center there. But we didn’t get there until about 1:30 and they closed at 5, so we didn’t get to see too much. We took the tram tour and it was OK. We did get to see Mission Control room where all of the Gemini and Apollo missions were controlled from. We saw mockups of the Space Shuttle and parts of the International Space Station.
After leaving the Space Center we headed for The Spot, an eating and drinking establishment near out hotel that was recommended by our friend Charlie. Another excellent reference. Excellent food, great view from the upper deck and good atmosphere.
Tomorrow we head out early towards New Orleans. We’re hoping to get to Ocean Springs Mississippi which is about an hour beyond New Orleans. We might not make it that far in one day. Time will tell. Off to bed for now.
Road Trip 2010 – San Antonio to Galveston plus one burger
The Best Burger in Texas Tour continues…
The day started out in San Antonio. After breakfast we got on the road about 9 am. First destination: Bubba’s Texas burger Shack in downtown Houston. We arrived right at 1 pm. The ‘Shack’ in the name of the place isn’t just a catchy phrase… Bubba’s is a shack, sitting in the shadows of a highway viaduct. we ordered our food and sat outside to eat.
I had the buffalo burger. It was absolutely great. As a matter of fact I can unequivocally say it was the best burger I’ve had in Texas. The fact that it is the only burger I’ve had in Texas doesn’t diminish how good it was. It was excellent.
B&P reader and Trading Station contributor, Charlie joined us for lunch.
After about an hour and a half we left and headed for Galveston. Galveston is on the Gulf of Mexico. We found a hotel on the seawall road with rooms facing the gulf at a very reasonable price. We’re going to spend two nights here.
This is the view from our balcony.
Looking for a place to eat. Relaxing at the pool after dinner.
The view from a jetty looking back at the seawall and Galveston.
Tomorrow we headed to the Johnson Space Center and then just kind of hang out in Galveston.
From Waco to San Antonio… and an Oasis
The I Can’t Believe It Didn’t Rain Yet Tour continues today with leaving Waco Texas after breakfast and heading down to Austin. 
We debated about taking the extra 30 minutes off course to visit the Oasis on Lake Travis. But I convinced them to go. I think they thought it was worth it. The ride up there was pretty and hilly, with hills being something we haven’t seen much of so far on this trip. They’re in the middle of a major expansion at the Oasis. Building more shops and restaurants and lofts. The view is spectacular. We had lunch, but I was there about 8 or 9 years ago for a sunset dinner and it was spectacular. Our food today was good and the service was good too.
Click pics to enlarge.
After leaving Lake Travis we headed for San Antonio. Scattered storms were predicted for this afternoon and evening, so I kept my eye out on the sky waiting. I don’t like riding in the rain. We were hoping we’d stay ahead of the rain, and I guess we did, because we didn’t hit it…. yet.
Once we hit San Antonio we headed straight for the Alamo downtown.
The River Walk is just a couple of blocks from the Alamo. So we called around and got a reasonable rate at a downtown hotel, so we parked the bikes and headed out on foot to explore the River Walk. The San Antonio River Walk (also known as Paseo del Río) is a network of walkways along the banks of the San Antonio River, one story beneath downtown San Antonio, Texas. Lined by bars, shops and restaurants, the River Walk is an important part of the city’s urban fabric and a tourist attraction in its own right.
After dinner and drinks we decided to walk back to our hotel and call it a night. After getting lost and walking around in a complete 4 block circle we DID walk back to our hotel and call it a night.
Tomorrow we’re off to Galveston. We’re passing thru Houston and stopping at Bubba’s Burger Shack about 1:00–1:30 pm. Charlie, are you gonna be there?
Road Trip 2010 – The Tragedy Tour
Following the Are We There Yet Tour, today’s episode is the Tragedy Tour. We visited two of our nations great tragedies.
Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial
This morning we visited the Oklahoma National Memorial in downtown Oklahoma City where 168 people lost their lives on April 19, 1995 when the Murrah Federal Building was bombed.
Click to enlarge
The memorial features a reflecting pool, two gates of time, the Field of Chairs, the Survivor Tree, a Memorial Fence, a Children’s Area, Rescuer’s Orchard and a museum. More information can be found here.
The memorial is very well designed and presented.
The Sixth Floor Museum
We then moved on to Dallas and Dealy Plaza where President John F. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963.
This is the old School Book Depository building overlooking Dealy Plaza where the young president was in a limousine at about the same location as the second car (above) when Lee Harvey Oswald fired from the sixth floor corner window killing President Kennedy. Oswald had bought the gun for $12.78.
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The building now houses a museum and it’s very moving to visit, especially if you remember the events of that day. More information on the Sixth Floor Museum.
I would have posted more pictures but I’m having trouble with my graphic software on my laptop.
Tomorrow it’s off to Austin and then San Antonio. We’re supposed to run into some rain tomorrow afternoon or evening. Hopefully we’ll be done riding for the day.
We miss you Mel and Janet.
Road Trip 2010 – St. Louis to OK City and a good steak
The Are we There Yet Tour begins…
We rode down to Cattlemen’s Steakhouse. We had about a 40 minute wait to be seated, but it was worth it. The steaks were excellent and our waiter, Billy Jack, told us we had to try lamb fries. Lamb fries are battered and deep fried lamb testicles. They were delicious too.
Mike and Pat thinking twice about the lamb fries. But we all shared them. They were served with cocktail sauce. I thought they tasted like fish, but maybe that’s because the batter and the flaky texture.
Tomorrow we’re off to visit the Murrah building memorial and then heading towards Dallas which is about a 4 hour ride.
Texas Road Trip 2010
One week from today we’ll be heading out on another road trip. Pat’s bike is still in the shop, so it remains to be seen whether we’ll be on motorcycles or take the car.
We’ll head out Saturday morning from St. Louis down I-44 to Oklahoma City. We want to see the Murrah Building Memorial and then head out for Dallas. We plan to visit the Sixth Floor Museum at Daley Plaza there.
Monday we’ll go on down to Austin and/or San Antonio.
I’ve eaten dinner at The Oasis on Lake Travis at sunset. Not sure we can make that happen again, but I’d like to. Also might visit the LBJ Library. We plan to visit the River Walk in San Antonio and the Alamo. Tuesday we’ll head over to Houston and the Gulf. We may try and tour the Johnson Space Center. We’ll stay somewhere near the Gulf. Wednesday we’ll travel along the gulf to Ocean Springs Mississippi where we’ll spend a couple days. While in that area we may visit the French Quarter and the World War II Museum in New Orleans On Saturday we’ll start the journey home, heading on up to Memphis. Sunday we plan to leave Memphis and arrive home that afternoon or evening. Total mileage is 2,485 if we don’t vary the route at all, so I’m thinking we’ll hit 2,600 or 2,700 miles.
Here’s where you come in…
We’re looking for suggestions of things to see or do, or places to eat along the way. We usually try to stay at cheap to moderate hotels. Our only requirements are that they be clean, safe and have internet access. Any recommendations on that front would be appreciated also.