Florida or bust

 

Met up with the WIN, Eastward Ho We Go Too group, Our group was called Eastward Ho We Go, 

In Jacksonville, FL., December 6 , to celebrate that we had made it.

From right to left- Janet (EH2), Randy (EH2),  Frosty (EH2), Donna (EH2),  Jean, Carolyn, me

On December 6, Randy from the EH2 group, me Jean , Paul, Brian and Lois, went to Walt Disney World and stayed at Saratoga Sorings.  I still can't believe they let us park our 6 rigs right in front of the building.  Made it easy because Brian cooked breakfast and most dinners each day and it was easy for someone to run to their RV's to get what he needed.  

Jean and I

Randy,  Jean, Paul, me

Jean, Lois. Me

Lois, Jean, Me 

Randy brought all our tickets with his military discount, it was worth marrying him for a few minutes

Paul, Jean, Me, Randy

Randy knew that I was looking for the Mickey Raincoat antenna topper, so he brought it for me

The gang having a toast after before one of Brian's fantastic spaghetti dinners

We went to Magic Kingdom to see the parade

And Hollywood Studios to see the last performance of the Osbourne Family Lights

A bride and her bridesmaid dress as Disney characters invited me to join them for a photo op at the Canada pavilion in Epcot.

Randy said goodbye to join back up with the EH2 group and the rest of us headed to Port St.  Lucie to meet up with our group.

I had just purchased the Volcano 3 collapsible stove/grill.  You can use either propane, wood or charcoal as fuel.  You can use it to grill, with your Dutch Oven, wok, bake, roast, fry, or as a fire pit.

I have done everything but the firepit. 

Stir frying

E baked bread 

I have made chicken pot pie, lasagna, pizza using the Volcano

You can stack them.  I have meatloaf in the top one and I am not sure what was in the bottom one

Okay, that is enough for today.

 

Let's go a little further

 

I left the group for a little break and to visit my children and friends.  

One problem I have is that my crafts have taken over the RV.  I did not want to get rid of my bike and put a storage container on the rear of the RV, so I decided to go up...and get a roof pod for the car.  Now my yarn and fiber have a home.

My son made me a present that comes apart so I can store it while traveling.  It really came in handy one night when we were getting ready to eat and found that there was no light in the shelter.

I joined back up to the group and we went to Assateague Island National Seashore campground in Berlin, MD.  I knew that the wild horses roamed  but did not expect to wake up to find them outside my window.  These horses are descendants of domestic animals that have reverted to a wild state.  

My daughter and son-in-law came and spent the weekend with me.

Are next stop was Hampton, VA.  The group went to the Commodore Theatre in Portsmouth, VA.  This is a restored 1945 Art Deco style motion picture theatre that presents first run films with a fine dining restaurant within the main auditorium.

From Right to left- Paul, Judy,  Jean and me

For Halloween , Paul made dinner in his RV and invited me and Jean.  I volunteered to decorate the table.

 

While we were in Winterville , NC, or friend and fellow traveler, Carolyn,  arranged with her son for us to go to the QAR laboratory (Queen Anne's Revenge-Blackbeards ship).  Her son works at the lab where they conserve, document and investigate the artifacts recovered from the shipwreck identified as Blackbeards flagship.    

We were taken through the warehouse which contained one of the largest collections of cannon excavated from a single wreck.  We also got to see pieces of the pirate ship including a 12 foot anchor and parts of the hull.

Map showing where artifacts from the ship was found.

  

After our tour, we went to the Mellow Mushroom for lunch.

Far right side of the table is Carolyn and her son

Our next stop was Wilmington, NC.  We took a trolley ride to look at the beautiful architecture.

The cute guy in the green was the trolley driver.

Off to Myrtle Beach, SC.  Had to eat at this restaurant.

The food was quite good

From Right to left -Bagpipe  Bob, Joyce, Mary Jane, Tom, me, Jean, and Al

I just loved these planters outside a restaurant.

There a Christmas craft show in the area, Mary Jane went with me.

I did a little crafting.  I needed a footstool and the one I wanted was from MacKenzie-Child's and cost over $1000.  Paul cut the base for me, this is what I came up with.

In Charleston, SC., I wanted to go to an authentic Low Country Boil or Frogmore Stew as it in called by the locals. That turned out to be impossible, but I did find a restaurant that served it in buckets,  The Charleston Crab House on Wappoo Creek Drive.  They were  even willing to serve it the way it is done at picnics or home which is The Frogmore Stew  is drained from its cooking liquid, spread out on a newspaper covered picnic table and eaten with your hands.

 

Next stop was Savannah, Ga.  We toured the city by trolley and took the free walking 

From left to right-Paul, Jean,Me, Tom, Mary Jane, Kim (MaryJane's daughter), Kim's boyfriend, and Al.

We had breakfast at Mrs. Wilkes Boarding House

Jean and I ordered Thanksgiving dinner, everyone pitched in to pay for it and brought a dish.  

Next stop was Florida for the winter.

I discovered these great apps, I love manipulating photos.  This is what you can do with the app Pip Camera

My daughter

Not sure what app this was made from.

Well, I will let you rest from reading and will start on my time in Florida another day.

I 

And There is More

Paul joined us just before we got to Martha's Vineyard. I decided that he needed a party to welcome him back to the group and celebrate his new life as a full time RVer.

I came up with the idea of a 50's party.  

I texted invitations

And hoped that people would dress up and join in the fun. I made soda jerk hats for Paul and Gene, and put them in charge of making coke floats.  Jean and I made poodle skirts and Mary Jane made saddle shoes from sneakers she got at the Family Dollar store.

From left to right-Paul, Jean, Gene, me, Tom, Mary Jane, Al

Off to Martha's Vineyard.  We have been the three Musketeers for the last year and a half but now we have a fourth, Paul.

From left to right-Paul, Jean ,Me, Gene

Gene clowning around as usual.

We continued our journey down the coast heading to Florida for the winter.  We stopped in Groton, Connecticut, to see the USS Nautilus (SSN-571).  This is the first operational nuclear-powered submarine.  She was launched in 1954 and decommissioned in 1980.  Because her nuclear propulsion allowed her to remain submerged far longer than diesel-electric submarines, she broke many records in her first year of operation, and traveled to locations previously beyond the limits of submarines. 

Paul

We also had a chance to eat at the original Mystic Pizza in Mystic, Connecticut,  that was the set of the cult movie Mystic Pizza.  The movie charted the lives and loves of three waitresses one summer that lived in Mystic and worked at the restaurant.  There was Daisy (Julia Roberts) , her sister Kat (Annebeth Gish) and their friend, Jojo (Lili Taylor).

The lady in the picture is from our group

We stopped at Hershey Park in PA.  Took the chocolate factory tour an ate  chocolate .

From left to right- me, Gene, Jean, DJ, Tom, Mary Jane, behind her was Al, and Paul

It was strange to see a horse and buggy at a gas station

Paul, Jean and I wanted to tour the Harley Davidson Factory in York, PA.

I left the group and took a little time to be by myself for a little while.  I found an Elks Lodge in Ephrata, PA, . It was nice, had electric and water which is a luxury for me.

 I really don't watch QVC but the place they film the live episodes in West Chester, PA, was only an hour from the lodge.  You had a choice of several behind the scenes tours for various fees,  the one that fit my time frame and budget was the QVC BackstagePass:Behind the Scenes Tour. It was about an hour an half and was well worth the fee.  We had a guide to explain the inner workings as we walked, got to see a live production, and check out what they do to bring the products to the air.  I did not know who David Venable was but everyone else on the tour was disappointed he was not there.

When the tour was over, we received a gift. 

The chicken is actually measuring spoons, now I have a cup to remember David Venable and a knitting project bag,

I had an enjoyable two weeks on my own and met up with the group in Maryland.  This was a joyous time.

Now you are at the end of September giving you a brief recap of my travels last year.