Clarksdale

25th June 2011

Clarksdale Mississippi - birthplace of the blues.

We didn't take many photos but I found heaps on the internet. Check out this link to get a feel for the place.

 Clarksdale Mississippi

This is me with one of the locals.

When we arrived our cabbie gave us a tour of the downtown area where all the clubs are. There is a lot of history here.  The clubs certainly have a lot of character.

Mike is having trouble coping with paying more for my bottle of water than his beer. He bought a 32oz can of beer today for $1.05 and my water (half the size) cost $1.59. He reckons I should give up water and take on beer......but hard as I try I cannot get a taste for it.

We sampled "the best tamales in town" which, according to Mike, went down really well with the beer. As we have encountered in quite a few places getting wine is near impossible. People just don't seem to drink it much here. I am having withdrawal symptoms but it is probably really good for me.

Today we visited our first Walmart store. And I found the biggest marshmallows I have ever seen. They call them "campfire marshmallows". They are so big it would be hard to get a whole one in your mouth.

Memphis is next......

Vicksburg

Friday 24th June 
Back at the Jackson bus station waiting for the bus to Vicksburg.

We met up with two lovely ladies, Elaine and Janey who were waiting for a friend to arrive. They gave us some good advice for our trip to Vicksburg and also for Memphis.

Our hotel is in downtown Vicksburg only a short walk from the river and historic area.

There are lots of little shops, mainly art, antiques etc. There is music playing all along the street....coming out of the rocks....true story. I think they have speakers in them!!!

There is a long wall of historical murals which form a levee bank along the river. They each have a plaque giving a particular piece of the areas history. They are very impressive.

The other big attraction on the river front is the hotel and casino. The casino is in a big old converted paddle steamer. The hotel is opposite and they are joined together by a walkway over the road. We were not allowed to take photos inside the casino but they have done it out really well keeping all the old charm and history. The hotel is very plush too. They have a couple of restaurants on site and we decided to go for the buffet. Unlike the buffets in OZ they didnt have labels on them to tell you what you were eating so I conned the chef into talking me through all the dishes (which I then had to sample of course). Following dinner we headed back to the casino where they had a country cover band playing. A round of drinks $5. Stayed late!!!!

Jackson

Thursday 23^rd June

Greyhound station in New Orleans is the nicest we have seen. Large modern clean building which it shares with Amtrak, the rail system.

We still can't get over the cheap prices here. Today I bought two coffees from Subway for $1-70. And at some stations when you buy a coffee they offer you a refill for 25 cents. I have drunk more coffee lately than I usually do. And it is all the good stuff too. There is virtually no instant coffee. You can buy it in supermarkets but there is not much choice. Bit hard for us when we are travelling round.....we don't have room for a coffeemaker in the backpack. 

Moving on…..to Jackson Mississippi. By train this time. Strangely the bus does not take you directly to Jackson from New Orleans so we thought we would try something different.

And what a difference travelling by train. There is enough leg room to hold a party between the seats!!.

And you don't have to stay in your seats. There is an observation deck and a dining car where you can come and go as you please.

And Mike managed to sus out where to get a beer while I wasn't looking.....typical!!

We met another Australian couple on board, from Cairns. They are over here for only 3 weeks and on their way to Memphis.

We arrived in Jackson mid afternoon. We had booked a hotel and got directions from google maps. Well that didn't turn out well. Turns out there is a fair ground where there is suppose to be a road.

We backtracked, asked directions and ended up a long way from where we were suppose to go.

And it was soooo hot, even for me. We must have walked for miles. And it was so quiet, hardly anyone around. Very few cars and almost nobody on foot. Eventually we found a supermarket intending to find a cab number from someone.

This couple, hearing our story, offered to take us to our destination instead so we gratefully accepted. They threw our packs in "the truck" and off we went. Very nice of them to go out of their way for strangers.

One bonus of getting lost - we got to see much of downtown Jackson. It is full of old buildings....lots of history. Very neat, tidy city from what we have seen.

Fast food for dinner tonight. There are at least 6 choices within a two minute walk from our hotel. Topped off with root beer and lemonade. Very local!!

We have decided to only stay one night in Jackson. We were going straight to Memphis but accomodation is hard to find due to the coming weekend.

We have several options but have decided to head west instead....to Vicksburg. Lots of history there. Mike looking forward to it.

New Orleans - 3

Our last day in New Orleans.

Breakfast  and a paper were delivered to  our room again. Getting used to this!!

Mike bought his only souvenier - A New Orleans cap. And as you can see he likes to get on the right side of the local force.

My souvenier pile is growing. I am only buying small stuff but we may need to do a parcel home soon.

I have found some nifty souveniers here.

There are lots of tee shirts with writing on them. One of my favourites was "I am retired but I work part time being a pain in the arse"........now I wonder who would that suit???

Mike got a hair cut and was not impressed at having to pay $30.

I gathered up some wine and food and we ate at our hotel out by the pool. When we had finished we wandered over Café Du Monde for their famous French doughnuts. It poured with rain while we were over there.

With the rain came the thunder and lightening but it was still warm. Mike reckons it is like Darwin weather. We decided a swim in the pool would be good. Swimming in the rain is great. I haven’t done that since I was a kid.

Well that is New Orleans done.....we both loved this place. I am just really glad Mike got to see his zydeco band. He was so looking forward to it.









We split up today, Mike doing a trek downtown to the WW2 museum and me hitting the shops.

New Orleans swamp tour

This must be the worlds happiest bus driver.

He was amazing. He greeted us all like long lost friends and asked how "ya...all going? He laughed, cracked jokes, sang, talked to himself and basically had us in fits of laughter all the way out to the swamp.

We already had our moneys worth before we got there.

We opted for the covered boat because the day was hot. We had the option of  and air boat but they were too noisy and we wanted to hear the commentary.

There were only 15 on the boat so we had plenty of room.

The tour took about 2 hours. Best part was the alligators.

We saw several, mainly small ones but one that would have been two metres long. That is the one the tour guide is feeding with a piece of chicken.

They also have a liking for marshmallows which is what the guide used to lure them closer to the boat.

The little one I am holding is about a year old. When he gets a bit older he will be released back into the swamp.

At the moment he is very friendly although we were warned not to put your finger too close to his mouth.

The swamp is not a good place to swim but the water was really clear.

A lot of different snakes also live in the swamp but luckily we didn't encounter any.

New Orleans - 2

Monday 20th, Tuesday 21st June 2011

Grabbing the opportunity to put photos on while they are loading quickly. Sorry about the order......they are not going where I want them to.

Bourbon Street – the heart of the French Quarter. It is about 2km in length and is a hive of activity day and night.

Just about every bar has music, much of it is live bands or solo singers. Music is varied depending on the place.  Mike was delighted to find a band doing Cajun zydeco music. 

There are lots of “girly bars” with scantily clad ladies parading at the doors trying to lure the blokes in. They were all protected by big tough looking blokes.

We were warned by a couple of people that New Orleans was not safe. But in the French Quarter we did not feel unsafe at all. Everyone there seems to be in party mode.

We have sampled a good portion of the local food. The first night we had had Jambalya, crawfish pie and file gumbo (didn’t they make a song about that once?). The Jambalya is a rice dish with prawns and chicken in it. The crawfish pie was shaped like a pasty and had fish inside with a creamy sauce. The gumbo is like a stew. They were all very nice. We finished with a pecan pie.....well I couldn't resist...

Second night we shared two dishes – one was blackened fish with garlic mash and veg. The other was chicken with rice which was topped with a spicy tomato sauce. Again, both nice. Then Mike decided Chocolate Suicide sounded like a great (authentic????) dessert to top off the meal. By the time we had finished it we both felt like big blobs…..but it was VERY nice.

Great thing about this place is that you can wander around with your drinks. They serve them “to go” in plastic and you wander in and out of anywhere you like.

The drink of choice here is either beer. There is a never ending choice and Mike is enjoying working his way through them all.

There is not much choice in the wine department so I have had to resort to cocktails. Shame about that!!! The big thing here is a “hand grenade cocktail” which is served in a long tall plastic glass. It tastes like straight Midori. Very strong. And you get to keep the glass......unfortunately it doesn't fit very well in the backpack!

I also sampled “Sex in the Quarter" a cocktail made of Coconut Rum, Peach Schnapps, Pineapple and Cranbury. All the bars and clubs compete with each other and have people out on the street trying to lure you in with special drink prices.

Not that Mike is influenced by price. Apparently size doesn't matter unless you are talking about beers!!

A couple of days before we got here we bumped into a New Zealand guy, David, on the bus……and ran into him again in one of the New Orleans bars……small world eh!!

More New Orleans to come...

Mike's Map...

New Orleans

Monday 20^th June 2011

We have reached New Orleans.....and I have finally got three photos to upload (although it took over 10 minutes for each - very frustrating)

We took a cab to the French Quarter. Our cab driver zapped in and out of traffic honking at anyone who got in his way. Seems he hasn't got a lot of patience!!

The streets are quite narrow and most of them are one way streets. Footpaths are old and broken up in many places. Not good for me. I am likely to end up on my face!!! And that is before I start on the cocktails!!

We are staying at the Chateau Hotel on the corner of Chartres and St Phillip Street which is two streets back from Bourbon Street. Our room is on the ground floor just off the courtyard pool area. There are several small buildings belonging to the complex, all double story and all opening out onto the courtyard.

Quite quaint and similar to many of the other hotels in the area. The weather is hot and humid. Even the locals are complaining. But it doesn't stop us from doing some exploring up and down the pretty streets. There are dozens of little shops selling souveniers (pretty much all the same stuff) and there are also heaps of little gallerys which sell local artwork, jewellery and craft. And a lot of antique shops and clothing shops too. There are cafes, restaurants and bars on every street many with music filtering out onto the street. And that is before we even get to Bourbon Street!!!

This place is certainly a lively spot. So far we are loving it and we can't wait to sample some of the local food and entertainment.

Lots more of New Orleans to come - Will wait till I can load more photos.

Lafeyette

Sunday 19^th June 2011

It’s 6am on Sunday morning and we walk past numerous homeless people. We are not threatened in any way nor approached by anyone but I have never seen Chris walk so quickly carrying her backpack!!

Houston, Texas to Lafeyette, Louisiana.

A couple of observations about Houston before we go:

• Many more negro people here and less Hispanics.
•   Don’t ask for a kettle or electric jug in your room – they don’t understand the question (someone arrived with a saucepan instead).

From Club Quarters Hotel to Greyhound to catch bus to Lafeyette. Three km walk down Main Street. 

One thing I have noticed is that Americans are very polite, extremely polite. Everyone will address you as sir, even the homeless people – seems very formal to an Australian.

We get a much closer security inspection here at Houston Greyhound terminal. There are armed security officers who inspect our carry-on luggage and run a scanning wand over our clothing. Curiously, they don’t examine luggage destined for under the bus, yet you retain possession of it once inside the terminal proper until you board.

Security ask about our accents and, as elsewhere we seem to get a friendly response to being identified as Australian. And note, contrary to popular myth in Australia – they all seem to know about Australia and know places like Sydney or Melbourne (perhaps not Adelaide). None have confused us with coming from Austria.

Once again the Greyhound booking system is different here than anywhere else. This time we are not to go to ticketing but to the ‘information Desk’ which is identified by the ‘Restaurant’ sign above it (there is no ‘Information’ sign at the ‘Information’ desk). There we get luggage tickets for the packs and are told to line up in the queue at the gate – we are no longer standby customers. 

Chris has to exit security to go back out and buy breakfast – egg burritos. I’ve discovered that I’m not really a Mexican food fan. It appears to be too heavy for me and often greasy (although this may be undeserved criticism as I’m sure we are not seeing the best of it at fast food outlets). In any event, I’m steering away from it where I can (but sometimes that’s not possible).

Chris got friendly with the security blokes. She even asked them for a photo which they willingly posed for. You will have to wait for that one!!!!

Mike

Trip to Lafeyette was not too long and the scenery was lovely. Lots of green vegetation and little rivers. Very pretty.

Our Lafeyette experience was not quite to plan. Bus station is downtown so we had to get a taxi to find a hotel. Unfortunately we got the "dodgy brother" who appeared to be about 90, mumbled in some accent we couldn,t hope to understand and had his radio up so loud we couldn,t hear him.....and he slugged us $12 for a mile and a half trip.

Luckily, after a bit of trial and error, we ended up in a nice motel but it was miles from any of the attractions as most of them seem to be (out on the outskirts of town near the motorways).

Rather than risk the another "dodgy brother" we opted to have a quiet night and save our partying for New Orleans.

We took a walk and managed to find a supermarket so we picked up some chicken and salad for dinner. A swim in the hotel pool capped off the evening.

Chris

Still no photos loading......will try again tomorrow.

Houston

Saturday 18th June 2011
Still no photos happening......will keep trying.

Early rise again this morning to catch the 7am bus to Houston. On the bus we note the changing countryside, increasingly more intensive farming as we move east. This means lots of farming communities and towns and green pasture rather than the western desert. We arrive at about 10.45am and book into the ‘Club Quarter’ hotel just off Main street on Franin street. Our first impression of Houston is that it is a clean and modern city.

There is a tram running the length of Main Street. We did think about taking it but decided walking was much better for us. There are a lot of homeless people on Main Street. Other than the occasional one asking for money they keep much to themselves.

The Club Quarter hotel is really nice. It caters to business people during the week and they have quite good prices on weekends when they are quieter. Rooms are a bit smaller than we have encountered so far but very neat and clean. They have a gym room (which we did visit for a half hour work out) and a restaurant downstairs where we had dinner.

Moving on again tomorrow so having an early night.

Mike

San Antonio - 2

Seems we still have an issue with uploading photos. We will keep trying……

In the meantime my take on San Antonio....

I LOVE IT!!! Even the heat, which Mike reckons it is too hot. Although it didn't stop us making the most of checking out the city.

Walking to the Alamo we noticed that the all day car parking is quite cheap - only $5 per day. And the ticket machine is strange. You pick your numbered spot then you front up at the machine and there are numbered slots where you put your money.
(photo to come)

Mike also spotted bikes which you can hire by putting the required fee into the machine. (photo to come)

There are colourful hop-on hop-off buses to take you around the town or if you prefer they have a horse and cart (photos to come)

We ventured to the Farmers Market which was full of shops all selling the same sorts of Mexican souveniers. There is a shopping mall full of these little shops too. No other shops in the mall though. There were however groups of old blokes sitting around tables chatting or playing cards and drinking beer. Mike liked that idea!!! (photo to come)

We took a stroll up one of the more prestigious residential streets and Mike decided on a house he would like to purchase......(in his dreams that is)It was a lovely house, just like you would see in the movies (photo to come)

We caught a fleeting glimpse of some squirrels but were not able to whip the camera out in time for a photo...Maybe next time.

The Riverwalk was the highlight of San Antonio. It is absolutely fantastic. Someone came up with a top idea and the business it attracts must be well worth the expense. (numerous photos for this one)

Apparently scenes from some well known movies have been shot here. And it seems people use the area for weddings too as it has a really romantic feel about it. There are several groups of musicians constantly travelling up and down the river serenading diners wherever they go. Ducks and birds wander into the cafes and accept offerings from whoever will throw something their way. The Rainforest Cafe is a kids paradise where people sit on stools fashioned to look like animals. There are indoor waterfalls, rocks, plants and animals and a gift shop filled with all the stuff kids love. And so many more shops, bars, restaurants - it would take you a week just to check them all out.

The little boats that take tours on the river were packed with queues of people waiting to get on. The tour was interesting. The tour guide pointed out all the buildings we passed and gave us history of the waterway. I must admit I missed a lot of the commentary because I was too busy taking in the scenery.

We decided to try a good old Texas Steak House for dinner. It was situated upstairs overlooking the river so we had a great view of what was happening below. When I saw people dining on the boats I almost wished I was hungry enough for another dinner!!!

If we thought the area was busy in the afternoon it was nothing compared to the evening. It was packed, everywhere. And of course the weather was perfect for it.

Shame to have to move on actually. We have loved every minute here.

This is a place I would recommend to anyone as a "have to see"

San Antonio

Friday 17th June 2011

Today was spent exploring San Antonio from our base at the La Villita Inn a short walk up St Mary Street to the ‘downtown’ area.

Firstly we visited the Alamo (remember the Alamo!!) Interesting for me but Chris got a bit bored.

Then we headed on to the cities famous ‘Riverwalk’.

The central city area is built on a horseshoe bend in the river which was once subject to flooding.

They fixed the flooding by dams and then instead of diverting the river past the city and filling in the bed, they kept the water flowing through a horseshoe bend.

They have created a central area of restaurants, night clubs and hotels. It simply bustles with atmosphere all day long and at night really comes alive.

They have a fleet of flat bottomed boats that run tours along the river which is about 10 metres wide and can be crossed by a series of walking bridges. In the evening they convert many of the flat bottomed boats to floating dining tables where guests can tour the canal while dining.

I’ve never been to Venice but this reminds me of the pictures I’ve seen of Venice (clearly on a much smaller scale).

Could this be an option for the Torrens river?

The only negative about San Antonio is that it is hot (humid hot). But that aside we loved it.

Our next stop was going to be Austin as many people here recommend it but we have decided to keep that for another time and will instead go on to Houston – a more direct route east which should keep us to our original schedule of making New Orleans by the 20^th of June.

PS. More photos to follow later- for some reason, after the first two, they are refusing to upload today. 

From El Paso to San Antonio

Thursday 16^th  June 2011

Early start - 4am to catch the 6.55 bus to San Antonio.

Last night's sammies were great. Cooked to perfection by chef Mike.


Bus heads through desert country typical of what we have seen in the west so far. Many of the towns are dusty and appear run down. We are heading parallel to the Mexican border.

Not far out of El Paso the bus stops at a Border Protection check point. Armed Officers board the bus and check our papers and do a cursory search of the vehicle. As far as we know we haven’t crossed the border into Mexico so this must be a prevention stop. They appear to be looking for illegal immigrants and drugs. A sedan in front has been pulled out of the line and its occupants stand to one side while a detector dog runs over the car. We see the dog react to a bag and the officers start emptying the contents unceremoniously onto the road. We drive off before we can witness the results of this search.

About half way through the journey, all seems to be going well until the bus breaks down (overheats) and coasts to a standstill on the side of the road some hours from the nearest town (we’re in the desert). It is 2.30 in the afternoon and about 37 degrees outside.





Fortunately it has broken down about 100 metres from an overpass (rural arterial roads here are fantastic – you never stop at lights, they have overpasses everywhere). 


The overpass provides us with shade while we wait.

We feel like a group of illegal immigrants trying to get into the country – and trucks and cars honk their horns at us as they pass by.

The driver informs us it’s going to take 4 hrs to get another bus out from San Antonio so we need to be prepared for a long wait. 

Not real welcome news, especially for the parents with kids on board. Anyway, we make the best of it and start to get to know our fellow passengers a little better.

Much humour as one guy informs everyone of his plans to sue the company (he’s recorded all the details and starts taking pictures of us all under the overpass as witnesses and potentially co-complainants (we think he’s planning a class action).

In 2 hrs the bus has cooled down enough for us to start off again so we are back on the road again. As we prepare to leave a ute (pick-up) arrives with cold water for the passengers  (this has been dispatched by Greyhound). A chain gang is formed to ferry the water to the back of the bus.

Finally heading east we start to see a change in the vegetation (greener, more dense vegetation with occasional trees). Up until now been mainly salt bush type shrubs similar to what you’d see In the north of South Australia.     At the same time as we go east the towns (Junction, Ozona) appear more prosperous, tidy and neat.

 

We arrived at San Antonio at 9.35 pm, several hours later than sheduled (and there is a time change too) We take the first motel closest to the bus station (in the city – downtown as they call it here). It’s the La Villita Inn on St Marys St. Nothing flash but close to where we want to be.

 

It’s hot and humid in San Antonio and we are told that will continue as we go east. We need to find a bar near the hotel for a cold drink but everything seems closed. We end up at a San Antonio outdoor film festival event. 

 

No photos unfortunately. One of the few times we walked out without the camera.

 

Quite unique. Big blow up screen, A double sided bar in the middle of an area resembling a large house block. Lots of tables and chairs and people enjoying a drink, food and the superb weather watching some sort of documentary film.

 

Lets order.....a local beer and a margarita. Just what we need after a hard day on the road.

 

And tomorrow we explore San Antonio.

Wednesday 15th June 2011

Cactus.....yep....they are everywhere down here.

Just like the one Mike is pictured with....minus

the colour and text!!

This morning we left our hotel and took a taxi to

the bus station. We met a young couple at there,

from Milton Keynes, England, heading to LA
and Disneyland. Their mother (or surrogate US
mother) was concerned about them taking the
bus....hence she thought that sitting next to "nice
looking people" (us) was a good thing.

Apparently we are now an authority on the Greyhoung bus system. Having taken several trips we now feel qualified to give advice to those who are new tothe system. Most important....take spare toilet paper!!!!


We arrived in El Paso at 5.45 pm. Being late in, and only intending on staying one night we booked into Camino Plaza Hotel just around corner from bus depot. Happy to take first option as the depot is in an area that couldn’t really be termed ‘up-market’. Had to pay a bit more than we expected but...hey, you do what you do when you have to........:)

Mike pretended to be unimpressed .....but as you can see he was quite at home!!!

The hotel building is lovely. The reception area and bar have some great features. The building must be quite old...... not sure about that....have not had time to research it.

Prior to dinner we had a drink in the bar. Beautiful stained glass roof. And lovely decor throughout.

We were advised not to wander too far from the hotel as the surrounding areas could be unsafe. Probably due to close proximity to the border.

Luckily there were a couple of really nice places to eat. In true US fashion we had far too much food. Seems the custom here is to offer a "box" or as we know it a "doggy bag".  This works really well for us when we are at a place that doesn't service an early breakfast.

As usual Mike has sussed out the cooking facilities.......yep......we have an iron. Looks like toasted sammies for breakfast!

One thing we have noticed here is that it is too bad if you drink tea rather than coffee. In most places they have a coffee maker but no facility to make tea......lucky that does not affect us.

 Mike reckons I drank too much at  dinner.....mmmm....unusual for me:) ....the kahlua cocktails were rather nice though!!!



But who was the one who misplaced the key to the room and had to go to the desk to get a new one????

That would be MIKE!!!!!         Me.....well I was just pretty relaxed!!!

And so to sleep.....overlooking the lighs of El Paso.

And Mike Says... (Map)

...

Phoenix

Monday 13th & Tuesday 14th June 2011

The journey to Phoenix didn't take long and by 8.30 we had found a hotel, booked in and were happily munching on their complimentary breakfast.

We are at the Spring Hill Suites in Tempe, not far from Phoenix airport.

We really struck it good with this one. Only $59 per night, fantastic room, pool, spa, gym, breakfast, free shuttle into town.

We previously intended on only one night here but I have had to assert my authority and insist on two nights......

How many places would let you check in at 8.30 AND offer you breakfast? And the breakfast is awesome. AND they provide take away containers so you can take some back to your room for later. AND as well as a coffee maker in your room there is free tea and coffee all day downstairs.

Monday eggs and bacon but Tuesday...... waffles. They have a waffle machine and you make them fresh yourself.

With banana....and lots of maple syrup...YUM......

Lucky we can work it off in the gym.........nah......I think the pool or spa would be better.

Nothing like a bit of water therapy. 

Tough life this. Decisions, decisions, should I go for the spa? Or the pool?



And then after the swim maybe a siesta....not far from Mexico, have to start taking on the local customs.
 
And a little relaxing around the pool maybe.....


And then dinner. The shuttle bus dropped us on a street that has dozens of great places to eat. As usual I couldn't decide because they all looked so nice. We finally settled on MY BIG FAT GREEK RESTAURANT. Wonderfull food. And when we came out that is exactly how I felt......Like a big fat greek.

Before calling the shuttle to pick us up we wandered up to one of the little bars and finished the evening with another drink.

Mike had a local beer called Kilt Lifter....???....

Not sure what mine was called but it was made of cherry vodka, vanilla vodka, red bull and sprite. Very refreshing.

I could get used to this life....It certainly beats working!!

Tomorrow we move on. Next stop is El Paso. Better start packing......