Monthly Archives: January 2014
Florida!
Home sweet home. Well, almost. Peter wants to make a “quick” stop in Seaside and then Cedar Key…
NOLA
We stayed in a campground just on the outskirts of the French Quarter and were able to walk through some moderately scary areas to check things out.
We particularly liked seeing the razor wire, broken glass, spikes, and rusty nails that adorned many gate tops and ran along lots of walls and fences.
Oh yeah, we also thought the rental ad was pretty cute. “Not Haunted”. Wonder if the rent is more for an apartment with a ghost?
Mardi Gras World, it really exists!
Ever wonder about all those amazing floats you see at Mardi Gras? Ok, I haven’t been to the actual Mardi Gras parade either, but now I can say I’ve been to “Mardi Gras World”. This place was an amazing warehouse, design studio, and of course, gift shop, all in one. The place is run by 3 generations of a family that must know how to party.
Summer and Rachel enjoyed dressing up and annoying some of the props. (Grandma – did you know that if you click on one of the pictures it will bring up a larger slideshow-type version? Donna – I bet you knew that!)
The floats and how they build them was really cool to see. If only we can get back here and see them for the parade…
The Gin Jars Followed us from Seattle to New Orleans
Ok, maybe we followed them? But, seriously, what are the chances that on our first day in the French Quarter we would turn a corner and see the scraggly bunch. I mean, Peter’s new favorite band. Actually, it was just the lead singer (if that’s what he gets called?!) Jobydiah and some other hipstery, hobo-ish types singing more of the same. Peter has been torturing Summer and Rachel all over the country with the CD we bought in Seattle and now he has yet another CD of theirs to play in the motorhome. In case you were wondering, yes, the two-headed baby came all the way from Seattle and was there in the guitar case, it’s just not visible in the New Orleans video that Peter shot.
They are fun to watch live, but the music loses a little without the in-person experience. Close your eyes while you watch this & see for yourself:
Just in case you didn’t get enough of them, or if you somehow missed the previously posted video, I’ve attached it here for you…
New Orleans Plantations
Another field trip opportunity… Oak Alley Plantation, and Laura Plantation in one day. If the girls hear the words “Louisiana Purchase” one more time their heads might explode.
Despite the history lessons, the houses and grounds were interesting to see. In this area of the Mississippi River all the plantations grew sugarcane, not cotton.
Rachel is dipping her hand in a cool old sugar kettle. They used to use groups of four kettles in different sizes to boil the sugarcane in order to make sugar. Now the kettles make beautiful planters and can be found all around New Orleans.
This is Laura Plantation. Can you find the lego model? Hint: it has a post-it note on its roof…
Carlsbad Caverns
Carlsbad Caverns in Carlsbad, NM is a strong contender for our favorite National Park. We read that some consider it the Eighth Wonder of the World.
We took the natural entrance route which was a 1.25 mile route that is a 750 foot descent. It got very dark, very quickly. There are paved and lighted trails throughout, which made us really appreciate the early explorers and the challenges they must have faced.
Unfortunately, I didn’t bring our nicer camera (with a flash) and had to rely on my pathetic cell phone for pictures. But, the cell phone did make a great flashlight to illuminate all those cool stalagmites and stalactites. In some areas the ceiling is 255 feet tall! The “Big Room” is one of the scenic stops and has floor space equal to about 14 football fields. It didn’t feel that huge inside though, partly because of the darkness, but also because there were lots of twists and turns on the route.
There is an elevator inside which we opted to take back up to the surface. This sign made us a little nervous:
The thought of spending the evening in the cave with 400,000 bats was not very appealing. Yes, the cavern is home to that many bats! We didn’t get to see any, as the bats are smarter than we are and have already headed south for the winter. We’re getting awfully tired of the cold weather and will be heading back to Florida soon.
We also were less than impressed with the poor grammar on this lovely certificate:
Here’s what the natural entrance looked like as we hiked down in, and then there are some of my cell phone pictures for your amusement. Check out the “floor number” on the elevator in the last picture.
UFOs
What trip through New Mexico would be complete without a stop in Roswell? The UFO Museum was literally right on our way from Santa Fe to Carlsbad, so we just had to stop. I had to drag the girls into the museum under false pretenses. I told them that there was a bookstore inside.
The museum is pretty hokey – kind of like a do-it-yourself memorabilia collection, or perhaps my grandmother’s attempts at scrapbooking, with a fog machine thrown in for good measure.
The Miracle Staircase
Santa Fe is also home to the Loretto Chapel, which is home to the “Miracle Staircase”. If you’ve ever watched bad tv, you might have seen it featured on “Unsolved Mysteries” or one of the many made-for-tv movies about it.
Here’s the scoop: When the Loretto Chapel was completed in 1878, there was no way to access the choir loft 22 feet above. Carpenters were called in, but they all concluded that access would have to be via ladder, as stairs would interfere with the small interior space. Legend says that the Sisters of the Chapel prayed to St. Joseph, the patron saint of carpenters. On the ninth and final day of prayer, a mysterious man appeared with a donkey and a toolbox looking for work. Months later, a beautiful, circular staircase was completed, and the carpenter disappeared without pay or thanks.
Whoever this guy was, he designed and built a staircase that was innovative for that time, and some of the design considerations still perplex experts today. The staircase has two 360 degree turns and no visible means of support. It’s also said that the staircase was built without nails – only wooden pegs…
A railing was added sometime later – but in a picture of an earlier picture, you can see how the staircase originally looked:
I like the mini staircase that one of the congregants built. Can you find its picture?
The City Different: Santa Fe
Santa Fe prides itself on the nickname, “The City Different”. It’s the 2nd oldest city in the US – can anyone name the oldest? SunFlower friends?? You should know this…
Anyway, the city is home to a crazy number of art galleries, museums, and restaurants. We (ok, I) was desperate to see the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum (I’m not even really sure why, I just was) – and once the girls realized that Marie had shown a book of O’Keeffe’s work in class last year, the girls were desperate to go too. It’s a great museum, and they had a very interesting video describing the artist and her life. There were lots of film clips of her, and audio clips of her reading letters that she had written to friends over the years. She lived to be 98, and looked “exceedingly spry” in the videos, as Rachel so succinctly put it.
Santa Fe has lots of interesting shopping opportunities. Peter was interested in an authentic Navajo blanket, but with a price tag of $10,000, that wasn’t happening. I couldn’t risk getting taking a picture, I figured they might charge for the privilege. Pictures of dead animal skulls appeared to be free.
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