It is now December 2nd and I find myself sitting in Bernalillo, New Mexico. I haven't written for quite some time due to one thing or another. We spent a lot of October and November visiting with family and friends in Missouri and Arkansas and headed back to New Mexico in mid-November to spend the holidays here with our son, Alex. I have a few more adventures I want to share that took place during those two months.
MISSOURI
I left off in mid-October while we were staying in Hermann, Missouri. We left there and headed to Cape Girardeau, Missouri, to rendezvous with Jim's sisters, Katie and Verna, and to meet up with Jim's brothers, Gary and Jerry. I had never met the brothers and Jim had not seen them since he was a child. This was a "family reunion" of sorts. We also met some of Jim's cousins whom he had not seen since he was a very young child.
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| Jerry and Katie |
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| Gary |
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| Jim and Verna |
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| Katie and Gary's wife, Doris Jean |
Jim's sister, Katie, has been working on the family genealogy for several years, having inherited photographs from her mother, aunt and sister. These photos started her on a journey to discover her roots. This trip to Missouri where we all met was a chance for us to further her research and to get to know the two brothers none of them had known as children.
We had a great time visiting the brothers and their families, and reuniting with Katie and Verna, whom we don't get to see very often. During our visit we ate together, drank together (a lot!)and shared stories about their Dad and grandparents. We visited various graveyards, looking for the family headstones of their fraternal grandparents. That was a fun day for me.....I love graveyards.
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| Old gravestone |
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| Monument to the past |
Jim and I stayed after the girls went home and we got together with Gary and Jerry a few more times. Jim and I both had a marvelous time and have vowed to keep in touch with the brothers. Can't wait to see them again!
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| Verna, Gary, Jerry, Jim, Katie |
ARKANSAS
We left Missouri and moved to Arkansas, where we met our friends, Janet and Jack, and stayed at an RV park right on the Mississippi River in West Memphis, Arkansas. The Tom Sawyer Mississippi River RV park sits on the banks of the Mississippi just across the bridge from Memphis, Tennessee. Our Excel 5th wheels were parked side by side about 50 feet from the river.
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| Barge on the Mississippi |
Most nights we sat outside watching the barges ply their goods up and down the river, slowly and carefully, especially when they passed each other! As Jack and Jim would say, "nothing like cheap cigars and Jack Daniels to while away an evening." (Janet and I preferred cheap wine!) We highly recommend this RV park if you are in this area.
The day after we arrived, Janet and I went into Memphis and visited Graceland, world famous home of Elvis Presley. I know it sounds hokey, but it is one of the best house tours I've ever been on. Probably because it was Elvis' house. I saw him perform in person when I was in high school. I went with 3 of my siblings to Las Vegas, and I remember thinking I was too cool to be going to see Elvis! Now I'm glad I went. He was truly a superb entertainer.
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| Me, in front of Graceland |
His home was everything I'd heard it would be. Janet and I felt like we'd stepped back in time to the 70's. All the furnishings and decor were left as they were when Elvis was alive.
I took way too many photos to include here, but here is a link to the album. (Graceland)
One night while we were there, we visited Beale Street in Memphis, home of the Blues. Even though it was a weeknight, every joint had live music. The street is blocked off from cars, so we could wander down the street from one place to another sampling the different bands that were playing. That was a fun night. Sometimes the music was a little loud but overall, the groups were very good. The people watching opportunities were great!
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| Beale Street |
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| Bridge from Arkansas to Tennessee |
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| In the tram to Mud Island |
Another day we all went into Memphis and took the tram to Mud Island, which is a long, skinny island just offshore in the Mississippi River. This island is the home of the Mississippi River Museum - everything you always wanted to know about the history and evolution of the life and times on the Mississippi River, along with a recreation of the river itself in cement, with actual water flowing down the channel. Beautifully done museum. We spent a few hours learning about life on the Mississippi through the ages.
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| In the museum - Riverboat exhibit |
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| Salon in the Riverboat |
We were really sad to bid Jack and Janet adieu, but they were moving on to the Natchez Trace and ultimately Florida. We headed toward Hot Springs, Arkansas, on our way to New Mexico.
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| Our last night in West Memphis on the Mississippi |
We spent a week in Hot Springs. We didn't do any touristy things there. Jim worked some and I read a lot of books. Left there and went to Oklahoma, stayed in a little RV Park near Atoka, called the Little Pines Cabins and RV Park. The gentleman who owns the place, Chester Hall, only charged us $85.00 for a week with full, 50 amp hookups! The park is really nice, full of well-spaced pine trees and has it's own little walking trail. It is less than a mile from the entrance to McGee Creek State Park so the area is pretty nice. If any of you are in that area, we recommend this RV Park. We will definitely go back when we're heading that way. We spent 6 nights in this park. Decided to leave a day early to get to New Mexico a little sooner than planned. We stopped just outside of Albuquerque, in Moriarty, to have a few things fixed on our rig. Spent 3 days in Moriarty, then headed to Bernalillo, where we are now.
