A Week Later - All Settled In

One week ago we arrived at our winter home.  After much unloading, unpacking, and cleaning we are settled in.

Wayne is taking a well deserved break.  He has been working very hard getting everything set up and checked out.

The patio is set up and the flowers planted.

Let the fun begin!  We're ready.

Texas At Last

Left our luxurious quarters at the Golden Nugget Casino and returned to real life.

Today was overcast, humid and drizzly.  The temperature dropped all day.  When we got to Victoria, Texas, Wayne dug way down to the bottom of the clothes bucket to find a pair of long pants.  Didn't think they would be needed for a long time.

We left the interstate just inside Texas.  For two reasons - I don't like driving through Houston and I do like riding on ferries.  We took a ferry from Port Bolivar to Galveston.  The ferry is free and runs 24 hours a day.  The trip takes about 15 minutes and the ship holds about 30 cars.  I enjoyed it immensely.

Ferry flag.  Flags are at half mast due to yet another mass shooting.

GPS depiction of our ferry ride.  Almost like driving on water. lol

We drove through some of the areas that were hit by hurricanes and very severe weather this fall.  I wasn't fast enough to get pictures of piles of debris along the highway.  Didn't really want to gawk at the hardship of others.  However we did pass some road signs stating that the roadway may flood.  I can believe it.  I think some of the roads are below sea level.

Ditches on both sides of the highway are still filled with water.  Of the over 500 roads that were closed because of flooding, only 1 is still closed.  That road is quite a ways from the main storm impact.  

Guess where we had lunch.

So at one end of Galveston Island, the ferry is free of charge and at the other end, there is a $2.00 toll to cross this bridge.  Sort of tickles my fancy.  

We are relaxing in our hotel for the last night of our 15 day trip.  Tomorrow God willing and the river don't rise, we will arrive at our home in Weslaco at about lunch time.  Hurray!

Farewell to the Emerald Coast - Moving On to the Golden Nugget Casino

Yesterday was another laid back day.  Walk along the beach front, a little shopping and lots of hanging out at the pool.

These little guys are everywhere. So cute.

We had a long drive today.  Over 450 miles or 700 kms.  We were on the road by 6am.

Sunrise as we travel across the bridge to the mainland

It was a long but uneventful drive.  We passed through 4 different states. (Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana)

Crossed the Mississippi River at Baton Rouge, LA

Our destination today is the Golden Nugget Casino at Lake Charles, LA.  It is a beautiful facility with outdoor pool, hot tub and lazy river ride with a poolside bar.  We arrived too late in the day to try the lazy river.

Our room is huge.  The bathroom alone is the size of a normal hotel room.

We also have a small balcony.  Love it.

Rear view of  resort from docking facilities.

The casino is located on an island backing onto the shipping canal.  It has docks for boats up to 206 feet long.  There is a nice boardwalk along the water.

After trying our luck at the slots, and making our donation, we strolled the boardwalk.  Then we enjoyed a delicious buffet dinner featuring BBQ, and southern fare as well as Asian, Italian and Mexican.  There was lots of shrimp prepared in different styles.  But we are seafooded out after our week in South Carolina.  We found lots of other choices.  The desserts were beautifully presented.  I finally found bread pudding.  Yum!

Super Sunday at the Beach

Contemplating life

My happy beach face

Destin Beach

The Emerald Coast

We walked along the beach this morning.  It is so gorgeous.  The water actually looks emerald green.  Amazing.

And yes Kathy, I went into the water.  Just along the shore, though.

The cottages at our resort ring around the pool.  It is so lovely.  The cottages are pastel coloured with one unit on each of the two floors.

We spent a couple of hours lounging and swimming while I did a load of laundry.  Best way to do laundry.

This afternoon we went in search of a J C Penney.  It was about a half hour drive.  We had a good look at a few of the local beach towns.  Spent a little bit of money and got lots of great deals.  Have to stop shopping as the van is now pretty full.

Back to the beach for a wonderful sunset.  A great day!

Destin, Florida

We're at another beach.  This time in Florida's panhandle.  Beautiful white sugary sand.  Destin is much more of a commercial town.  Lots and lots of restaurants and shopping choices.  Lots more traffic too.  A very different vibe.  Both beaches however are great.

We haven't had a chance to walk the beach yet.  Or to take exterior pictures of our condo.  Will do that tomorrow.

This complex is set up with two storey cottages ringing a small outdoor pool.  Very pretty.  We are in a ground floor unit with French doors and a small patio across from the pool.

There is no laundry in the units but there is a laundry in a building beside the pool.  Just a few pics of the interior.

Bunk beds for extra people.  In the hall. Right beside the living area. Kind of weird.

We caught a beautiful sunset on the way home tonight from the car.  Tomorrow we are going to the beach to take better pictures.

Last Day at Edisto Island

Beach:

Pool:

Scallops

Shrimp and Scallop Macaroni and Cheese

We've had a great week here in South Carolina.  Tomorrow we head for Florida.

Sunny Day in Savannah, Georgia

Another touristy day.  This time in Savannah.  I didn't find Savannah as pretty as Charleston.  You could tell that the focus to preserve the buildings and artifacts is not as strong as it is in Charleston.

However, it is still very pretty and well worth seeing.  Savannah is a planned city much as my hometown Guelph is.  The founders arrived with a set of plans to lay out the community.  Savannah's main features are all of the squares.  These are like small parks with trees, grass and statues. The squares are laid out in a grid fashion.  A popular walking tour covers many of these squares in a 10,000 step walk.

Today we utilized a hop on hop off trolley tour.  Great way to see and learn a lot in a relatively short time.  I didn't take many pictures as the trolley roof made it difficult.

This is the house featured in the novel and movie "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" (Excuse the tilt)

I believe this domed building is city hall

A war memorial

Lovely fall display

Road and building built from ballast stones used by the old ships travelling from England.  My vertigo flared up trying to walk on the uneven rocks and cobblestones.

Lunch time.  Yum

Paula Deen's restaurant and store

Such a rude dude.