Bahamas

22^nd Dec – Cruise from Tampa

A friend, Mike, from the RV resort gave us a lift down to the Cruise Terminal in Tampa where we boarded the Carnival Paradise – along with over 2000 other cruise passengers.  Boarding was very smooth and by 12.30 we were unpacked and ready to explore. The safety briefing was completed before we set sail and it took nearly 2 hours to get out of Tampa Bay and the sun had begun to set behind the Skyline Bridge.  There was a fun atmosphere everywhere and the (3) complimentary glasses of champagne added to the holiday feeling.

We had been allocated a dining time of 8.15 even though we had specifically said we wanted ‘open dining’ but decided not to change the arrangement.  As it was we met a very nice young couple, Jesse &Yolanda, from north Alabama who sat at our table during the whole cruise.

23^rd Dec – At Sea Day

This day was spent travelling south and then east below the Keys, towards the Bahamas.  There were a variety of activities to get involved in, including presentations such as boat orientation and on-shore excursions, advice on Nassau town and shopping etc.  We also did some sunbathing on the Adults only deck. 

A lot of families were on board for the school holidays and the passenger ages seemed to range from 2 to 82; some people were with their great-grandchildren.  There were around 13 different nationalities on board and the crew were very friendly and remembered our names.  Several of the crew were fellow ‘Brits’ too.  We understand the ship was fully booked so at times it seemed very busy, but we never had a problem finding a seat at the martini bar at cocktail time. (It’s always 5 o’clock somewhere).

We opted for the open buffet for our evening meal which gave us time to attend the Family Comedy Show and then the Song & Dance show on the Main Stage.

24^th Dec – Nassau, Bahamas

We docked at 9am on Christmas Eve morning at Nassau.  There were 3 other cruise liners here today and it took an hour to get off the boat and through the docking area into the town.  We had booked an excursion which started with a mini-bus tour around the narrow streets of Nassau, up to Fort Fincastle.  This Fort had been built on the highest point of the Island late 18^th century.  Our guide explained the pink buildings in town were Government buildings and the green ones were Police.  We noted the Police HQ was positioned right opposite the Treasury building. 

The Islands gained independence from Britain in 1973; and they have a “changing of the guard” at the Government Building every 2^nd Saturday of the month.  

Our tour then continued onto a boat that took us out to a semi-sub  boat, with glass sides below the water level.This semi-sub took us around the reefs within the bay area and we were eye-to-eye with the fish. 

 Our boat guide pointed out the celebrity houses along the shoreline. 

We could also see the Atlantis complex; the Bridge between the two tallest buildings was where Michael Jackson lived for a time.  The suite is rented out now at $25k per night (4 night min). 

Afterwards we wandered around the main shopping area – the usual T-shirts and souvenirs etc.  Alison also cast an eye around Diamonds International – just window shopping of course. At $3,500.00 for a small pair of ear rings Paul was glad it was just window shopping.

Back on board we watched the Holiday Xmas Show before our evening meal.  The food throughout our trip was plentiful so we used the stairs instead of the elevator.  Our cabin was on Riviera Deck 4 and everything else was Deck 7 to 10 above us – so we got some exercise.

25^th Dec – Little Stirrup Cay

It was 8am Christmas morning as we anchored just off shore from Little Stirrup Cay, which is owned by the cruise companies.  The Bahamas are made up of approx 700 Islands and 2000 Cays with a population of around 300,000.  An Island has to be at least a mile otherwise it is a Cay. .  There

The Tender boats took around 10 minutes to travel between the ship and Cay, and were continuous during the 7 hour stay.  The

amenities on the Cay could clearly cope with more passengers than our single ship so we were glad we were the only cruise liner here today as we had our choice of seating and sun-loungers. Even the Iguana were not too intimidated by the number of people and two of them put in an appearance at lunchtime wandering around the picnic area posing for photos.

The parasailing we had booked was cancelled due to too much wind so we rescheduled to go Snorkelling with Stingrays.  A 10 minute speed boat journey took us to another Cay where a fenced off section of the sea (approx 100m x 50m) held 41 female stingrays. 

We were all invited to hold a stingray and even feed them with squid.  The stingrays can weigh as much as 100lbs and live over 50 years.  The one we held was at least 20 years old.  She was a little agitated and holding her was not that simple as she had a tendency to slide off your arms, always towards our guide. 

We were told the sting/barb had not been removed and as long as we didn’t approach from behind them or threaten them we were safe.  Using the snorkel we watched the other Rays swimming under the water with some fish.  Sometimes they brushed against our legs – a strange feeling we soon got used to.  The current and depth of water was a little challenging for Alison and after being in the water for nearly ½ hour her teeth were chattering.  However it was a terrific experience – a very different Christmas Day.

26^th Dec – Boxing Day At Sea

This was another full day at sea heading back west.  We had been sailing all night too. Every night when we returned to our cabin we were greeted by an animal made from a towel. 

We attended another presentation this time on future cruises. 

The first 20 minutes, however, was all about the cruise company's credit card scheme.

At all the presentations we attended we would enter our names in the raffle …… imagine our surprise when both our names came out this time.  Paul won a Watch Gift Set worth $85 and Alison a Bella Perlina bracelet worth $95.

The weather had been cloudy on an off all day and when we went to play crazy golf on the top deck in the late afternoon it was blowing a hoolie!  On this deck there was a ‘running track’ which we had walked around earlier – 11 circuits made 1 mile.

After our evening meal with Jesse & Yolanda, we all went to watch the Adult Comedy Show.

27^th Dec – Return to Tampa

And so our first Sea Cruise came to an end.  Having sailed all night the ship docked as we were having an early breakfast.  We were back on dry land by 8.30am.  Our visa was queried at the Immigration desk and we were given more advice on the process requiring us to log-on to the immigration website for a print-out of our entry/exit details for our future use.

Mike kindly picked us up from the cruise terminal again and brought us back to our RV in Clearwater.

Travel to Florida

1^st Dec – South Carolina

After spending a fantastic four weeks with Louise we left Oxford, NC to drive 280 miles into South Carolina.  Louise’s dog Tazer, volunteered to accompany us and made himself comfortable in the RV as we were getting ready to leave.

We appeared to have a slow puncture in one of the RV tyres so we made a detour via a local tyre garage but fortunately it was only a leaking valve.  (A similar problem in Yuma last year but on a different tyre).

At the end of the drive we found a campsite on Lake Marion, it was a beautiful site for an RV park but the long term residence were not very tidy with their sites, it gave a bad overall appearance, but as it was right on the side of the lake it meant Paul could get in a couple of hours fishing before the sun set.  We knew we were in the southern states now as we were surrounded by trees with Spanish moss hanging from them.

2^nd Dec – Through Georgia

The following day we continued on the I-95 all the way through Georgia and into Florida.  The temperature gradually rose to a balmy 23C and we were back into T-shirts.

We camped in St Augustine and thought to drive the 3 miles into the town that evening to see the beach and the town’s Xmas lights.  Unfortunately the re-occurring battery problem with car raised its head again.  This was the 5^th time the battery was flat so we stayed in the RV for the evening; which was probably just as well as it started to rain.

3^rd Dec – Daytona Beach

We bought and fitted a new car battery and then continued on the I-95 to Port Orange.  

The temperature was rising and Paul was into his shorts again (not a pretty sight). 

Mid- afternoon we drove out to spend time on Daytona Beach ie sipping cocktails and watch the sun set on the waves etc. Ha! It was not to be.  A fog bank came in with visibility down to 50yds and a temperature drop of about 20 degrees. 

High tide meant the beach was closed to traffic.  We are destined not to enjoy the sunny Florida coast line.

4^th Dec – Palm Bay

In the morning we continued south on the I-95 towards Miami.  This time we stopped at Palm Bay to visit friends, Maggie and Grant, whom we met when we first began travelling in August 2012. When we arrived at their house we were greeted by another German Shepherd, this one was named Krieger.

At this point we had travelled over 600 miles on the I-95.

5^th Dec – Indian River & Sebastian Inlet

We got up early (ie 7am) to watch the Orion space shuttle take off from Cape Canaveral.  Maggie & Grants back garden makes a perfect place to watch space shuttle take-offs – except on this occasion there was too much low cloud to see anything.  So we watched it on TV.

Later in the day Maggie drove us onto the barrier island and we followed the Indian River south to  Sebastian Inlet. From the shore we watched people fishing, pelicans and dolphins and surfers riding the waves.  It had turned into a lovely sunny day and just how you expect “the Sunshine State” to be.

6^th Dec – Cape Canaveral

Maggie drove north up along the Indian River up to Cape Canaveral.  We stopped to walk on Cocoa Beach where there was a couple having some wedding photos taken.  However Paul chose to photograph the cheeky Racoon that was hanging around the café.  When we stopped for a meal near the docks we spotted a Corvette Car Rally group parking up and had a close up look at some of the vehicles.

7^th Dec – Fort Christmas

Grant drove us up to Fort Christmas in the morning where there was a big Christmas Market in the grounds of the historic Fort.  The Fort was founded on 25 Dec 1837 and was one of 200 forts built during the Seminole Indian War.  These forts were positioned to be a day’s march from each other.  The reconstructed Fort and old buildings were interesting to walk around.

 

 

We also learnt that Florida is the oldest cattle-raising state and were a chief supplier of cattle during the Civil War.  Florida Ranchers currently raise the third largest number of cattle east of the Mississippi.  The cowboys used herd dogs and also developed their own breed of horse called a’ Florida Cracker Horse’.

8^th Dec – Travel to Clearwater

We said our farewells to Maggie & Grant and set off west towards Clearwater near Tampa Bay. 

It poured with rain all day!

We arrived at the campsite where our friends Charlie and Doreen, from Michigan, were staying.  This campground is to be our home for the next month or so.

9^th – 21^st Dec – Clearwater, FL

We spent the next 2 weeks getting to know the area as well as meeting people at the campground and getting involved with activities. One regular visitor to our home is “Oreo” a black and white cat. We have been Ten Pin Bowling with about 12 other residence.

Many of the residents are French Canadian escaping the cold northern weather.

On the days that we do not go out we sit by the pool or in the hot tub.(its a hard life being retired)

One day Charlie took us out to see his Aircraft business near Lakeland where they repair aircraft etc.

We also had a day out to Tarpon Springs.  This town grew up around the Sea Sponge industry and was populated by Greeks so there were many Greek Restaurants around the docks.  Sponges are still harvested from this area of the Gulf of Mexico.

Campground activities included a Cookie Bake, 10 pin bowling, line dancing, karaoke, and playing cards in the evening.  We have learnt 2 new card games – Euchre and Auction 45 and everyone was very friendly and patient at teaching us the new games.

Alison was invited to join the Red Hat ladies for lunch.  Everyone dressed up in purple with red hats and accessories.

 

 

In the morning we will head down to Tampa ready to board our cruise liner. A five day cruise to the Bahamas would be a very different Christmas for us.
We wish all our readers a very merry Christmas and a prosperous new year. 

Oxford NC

19^th – 30th Nov – Oxford, NC, Part 2

The weather got colder and colder and we were glad to be staying in the house as we watched parts of northern USA (Buffalo, near the Canadian border) receive 70 inches of snow!  The temperature inside the RV got below freezing a couple of times and we checked it each day to ensure everything was alright.  We were nice and cosy in the house.

Clarence took Paul fishing several times and they caught some nice sized Blue Gill and Catfish which provided a tasty dinner on a couple of nights.

Alison was kept occupied taking Tazer, the big German Shepard dog, for walks.

We had some maintenance work done on the RV.  Paul did some tasks around the garden such as leave blowing and building a fire pit around an old tree stump which burned and smouldered for a week.

Eventually the visa extension we applied for

back in July, came through – literally on the last day that our current visa ran out!  That allows us to stay until the end of April 2015.  
30^th November is the official end of the hurricane season so we prepared for our trip down to Florida for the winter. 

We say our goodbyes to Louise and Clarence in the morning and get on the road again.

North Carolina

30^th Oct – Oxford, NC

We set off for the 240 mile drive east to Oxford NC just north of Durham, to stay with eldest daughter Louise for the next few weeks.  We drove the RV up the drive with just enough room to turn it around.  We then spent the next half hour trying to get it out of the mud as the gravel didn’t support the RVs full 12 tons.

The path.

For the first week or so we had some lovely warm sunny weather and Paul and Clarence were out doing odd jobs in the garden including laying paving bricks for a new garden path to the front door.

1^st Nov – Halloween Party

Scary

 

 

We were invited to a Halloween Party.  We had no costumes to wear so we improvised with some face paint……..

14^th Nov – THE Party

Tears of Joy

A proud Dad

It was Louise’s big Four Zero on the 13^th so we went out for a meal to celebrate.  However a surprise party had been in the planning for a couple of months for the following evening.  So on the pre-text of a girl’s night out, her friend Trudi took Louise and Alison to the local bar and restaurant, ‘Georges’, to meet a few friends for the evening. 

Unbeknown to Louise, Paul and Clarence had spent the afternoon at the airport collecting Fiona, a childhood friend she’d not seen for 9 years, and Rachel, Louise’s sister who had flown in from UK that day. 

Rachel, Louise, Fiona

An emotional reaction from Louise as the two of them walked into the bar totally unexpected. The party continued with many other friends in attendance until one in the morning with dancing and karaoke.

15^th Nov – The day after the Party

Empty Beer Tube in centre

Redneck bar

With the house prepared for the extra visitors for the night we spent the night in the RV.  Unfortunately a cold front had come in for the weekend and it was not the most cosy of nights for us. The day was spent inside the house chatting and catching up with news.  In the evening we went 10-pin bowling were they served beer in a "Tube".  On the way home we stopped at a Redneck Bar called ‘Munching Marvin’s’ (something along the lines of a local village pub in UK).  The entertainment not only included the singer with his guitar but also one of the locals chatting up Fiona(!).

16^th – 18^th Nov - Farewells

Fiona flew back to Colorado on 16^th and Rachel stayed for another two days before returning to UK on 18^th.  This was the first visit to North Carolina for Rachel and it was great to spend time with both the girls together.

 

Red Neck Country

15^th – 18th October – Davy Crockett Birthplace SP

We travelled north, up the I-75, passed Knoxville and then the I-81 to Baileyton, eastern Tennessee. We spent a few days here and visited the Birthplace of Davy Crockett which is now a State Park. 

The old cabin was there by the river and a small museum explained some facts about this legendary figure. He gained a reputation as a hunter and one year he was credited with killing over 100 bears.  He married twice and had 8 children. His grand-parents were killed by Indians and although he did not care much for them he did support their cause about the way they were treated by the Government when he was a Congressman. He died in 1836, at the age of 50 at The Alamo in Texas.

19^th – 21^st October – Panther Creek SP

We then moved to Panther Creek campground on the shores of Cherokee Lake for a few days. This park had some lovely hiking trails and we went out in the kayak on the Tuesday.

Pigeon Forge, TN

22^nd – 25^th October – Shopping/Lodging/Dining

We travelled down to Pigeon Forge to meet up with our friends from Michigan, Charlie and Doreen.

This area is on the Tennessee side of the Great Smoky Mountains and is one continuous sprawl of theme parks, amusements, shops, motels etc.Trolley buses travel up and down the main drag. At every stop an automated message tells you what is there – however it is always the same “shoping, dining, lodging”. At this time of year the area is very popular as people come to see the Smoky Mountains in the Fall Colours. However this year is a late Fall so the full splendour is not yet fully on show.

23^rd – Oktoberfest – Gatlinburg

The four of us took the trolley to the next town of Gatlinburg for the Oktoberfest up on Ober Mountain accessible via the Tramway. We enjoyed a meal with German-style musical entertainment. Audience participation was encouraged and Alison having been sampling the Moonshine Liquor earlier was invited out on the dance floor by one of the band members.

24^th – 25^th – Pigeon Forge            

The trolley buses are a great way to get around the towns and save the hassle of parking. They also enabled a guilt free sampling of the local moonshine which we all enjoyed (big improvement from Kentucky Bourbon!). 


There were about 12 different flavours to try and even at our mature age we had to provide ID each time. 

We took in a couple of shows in the evenings.  The Ole Smoky   Opry Variety Show was very enjoyable.The Hatfield and McCoy Show, was a comedy song and dance show, and included dinner.  Alison was ‘volunteered’ to go up on stage – this time Paul was dragged along too.
 (It’s that moonshine that does it).

North Carolina

26^th – 29^th Oct – Chimney Rock, NC

The four of us set off in our respective RVs to travel the I-40 over the Appalachian Mountains into North Carolina, heading for a campground near Chimney Rock, south east of Asheville.

On the Monday we visited Chimney Rock state park and travelled up the 26-storey elevator inside the mountain.  At a height of 2,280 feet we had a beautiful view down the Hickory Nut Gorge and over Lake Lure.  Lake Lure is where the 1987 film Dirty Dancing was made starring Patrick Swayze.  Some scenes in the 1992 film The Last of the Mohicans, with Daniel Day-Lewis, were filmed at Chimney Rock too.

The village had some interesting shops and we had lunch by the river on this lovely sunny day.

On the Tuesday Charlie and Doreen set off for warmer climes; south towards Florida.  We spent the next two days chilling out and taking the kayak out on Lake Lure. 

30^th Oct – Oxford, NC

We then set off for the 240 mile drive east to Oxford, just north of Durham to stay with Louise for the next few weeks.