A Week (and A World) Away...

Well maybe not a world away... but now that we're back home and settled in again our adventures of last week seem that distant. Some of you guessed from my teaser photo that we were in the midwest; but, no, that photo was taken somewhere in Lousiana. This photo might me more indicative of our Gulf Coast exploration, we drove across a few swamps and bayous as well as through cotton fields and sugar cane plantations. Our route took us from Panama City, FL along the Gulf of Mexico to western Lousiana, we took in all the sights and lots of shrimp along the way!  My birthday lunch last week was a shrimp Po' Boy... it might just have been the best thing I have ever eaten! Oh. My. Goodness!!  C'mon along with us...

Panama City Beach, FL 

We heard that a stop here might just include a training session by the Blue Angels if we were lucky... 

We were! 

 This might have just been the highlight of the trip as far as Mr. Goodneedle was concerned!

The Pensacola Lighthouse, the oldest light on the Gulf Coast. 

 Lunch on the beach along the Pensacola Boardwalk, Hannes rested under the table (he was welcomed and had his own water bowl served) while we feasted on... what else... gulf shrimp!

The sugar-sand beaches of Gulf Shores, AL 

The almost 25 mile Lake Pontchartrain Bridge leading into New Orleans, I had no idea how vast this body of water was until driving across without being able to see land in any direction whatsoever!

The Metairie Cemetary was one more thing so much bigger than I ever imagined. There are driving maps to navigate among the named streets(!) between the elaborate marble tombs and statues. 

Historic and picturesque downtown New Orleans, LA

Yes, we had a beignet; it was required! 

New Orleans 

Lake End Park,  Morgan City, LA

 This was the perfect place for a slow-paced afternoon stroll... the weather was perfect.

One more stop along our way home, north of Dawsonville, GA; the spectacular Amicalola Falls. This waterfall, at 729 feet, is the highest cascading waterfall east of the Mississippi.

 A strenuous uphill hike of 600 steps to the fall's summit, this photo was taken at the halfway mark.

This was our weary pup on his backseat perch. I had taken a couple of quilts to bind in the car and his favorite position was leaning off to the side while he dozed with his head resting on them. Awwww! 

I did visit a couple of quilt shops along the way... Quilting By The Bay in Panama City, FL; this shop was fanatastic, well-stocked with a friendly and enthusiastic sales staff, I picked up a few things here to make some quick surprises for the grandchildren.  The second shop visited was Bright Hopes Quilting in Mandeville, LA; this shop was a disappointment to me. The sale room here was wonderful; a huge number of discounted, beautiful, bolts were artfully arranged for choosing... however, actually getting a sales person's attention was impossible. The staff here seemed much more interested in themselves than any customers; sadly, I felt as though one needed to belong to the secret sorority here to be acknowledged. My hopes were dimmed and I left empty-handed. We drove out of our way to visit Ginger's Needleworks in Lafayette, LA. if I had read my Quilter's Travel Companion for content ahead of time we could have saved the gas. Ginger's is only open to the public on Thursdays, we pulled up to a locked door on Friday morning! That's when I walked back to the car and read the fine print. Sigh. The remaining days of the week Ginger's fills mail-order, online sales, only. Live and learn.

Well, that's it; last week in a photographic nutshell.  

Thanks for riding along.

Life is Good!