Iowa!

We had stayed at the small KOA near LaSalle, Indiana last night. It is a lovely little park that we would have stayed at for another night, but they did not have any space. It was kind of interesting to see that this morning almost everyone had left, but to know they will be completely full again by tonight!

As we left Indiana, we kept looking at the fields of corn, trying to see if we could detect the damage from the drought. Some of the fields look stunted with short stalks.

We drove all except the last few miles on Interstate 80 (fortunately no longer a toll road). After we crossed the Iowa state border (the Mississippi River), we stopped at their Welcome Center to pick up an Iowa map. I do like the signs at their rest area!

I was surprised to see this historical plaque at the rest area. I knew about the Mormon handcarts, but hadn't realized they had started this far east. The mid-eighteenth century migration of Mormon converts was the direct result of Mormon missionaries in Europe. To think they walked all the way from here to Salt Lake City pulling hand carts with all their belongings. The sign went on to tell of the success of the first three groups, but how the 4th and 5th groups started too late in the summer and lost many of their number to snow and cold in the mountains.

We drove as far as North Liberty, Iowa to Colony Country Campground. Isn't that a neat hex sign on their office building?

This is another very neat, very nice small campground with just 45 RV sites. We will only stay here the one night as we are looking forward to meeting up with our friends at Adventureland near Altoona tomorrow.

Two States -- To Get Groceries?!

This morning we watched Juni and Tom go down the road --

and leave the RV Park here in Tunica are their way to Red Bay, Alabama and the Allegro Bay factory where they are going to have some warranty work done.

We were out of orange juice, so went into the Piggly-Wiggly in Tunica. I wanted to re-stock some staples for the kitchen as well as pick up a few things for next week. The prices were extremely high; the vegetables all looked wilted; and the meat department area smelled bad. I decided that I'd much drive the extra twenty miles to the Krogers that the GPS had shown.

I always forget that the GPS shows mileage as the crow flies... It was more like 30-35 miles! It was a nice drive through what they call the North Delta country. We saw this line-up of what looked like round bales.  But, when we got closer, we realized

that they were actually tightly packed bales of cotton. Quite a bit different looking then the boxcar-sized rectangles of cotton we saw in fields in Arizona last winter.

Not much later we found ourselves crossing this narrow two-lane bridge over the mighty Mississippi River into the State of Arkansas. The store in Helena, Arkansas that the GPS said was a Kroger, no longer was. It still wasn't great, but it was a lot better than the one in Tunica.

We got back to Mid-South RV Park just as the sun was setting --

These first two pictures were taken facing east --

While this one was towards the west --

Sunsets in Mississippi are gorgeous!

Tunica, Mississippi

We got ourselves semi-organized this morning and left Tom Sawyer's Mississippi River RV Park and went to find the State of Mississippi. It was only a short drive to join our friends Tom and Juni at Mid South RV Resort in Tunica, Mississippi.  They've been here for a couple of days while we were enjoying our time at the River watching the tugs and barges.

Juni and Tom had arranged for a site right beside them, but when we got to the office about noon to register, we discovered that the people in that site had asked for a late check-out and were still there! The staffer gave us a site down the way a bit and said if we wanted to wait, we could move when the people left. So we just parked Auntie Violet and went to visit with Tom and Juni for a couple of hours. We needed to get our puppy fix anyway and Tika and Izzie were glad to oblige!

By 1:30 our site was free, so we drove over and got ourselves set up. It was a gusty, windy day and by the time we had everything done, we were chilled. It felt good to curl up with my afghan on the couch and read. Well, actually to take a nap...

While they were here, Tom and Juni had discovered a wonderful seafood buffet at the Hollywood Casino. It was so good, they were more than willing to go again tonight (it's only on Friday and Saturday nights). We ate King crab and Snow crab, along with lots of shrimp, stuffed crab, scallops, crawfish, frog legs (not me!), oysters, crab cakes, catfish, etc, etc.  It was so good! There was barely room for a scrumptious chocolate cupcake with chocolate mousse topping.

11-11-11

It's been interesting today to listen to all of the comments about it being the eleventh day of the eleventh month of the eleventh year of the two thousands.  Lots of people got married and lots of elective c-sections were done so that the baby would have 11-11-11 as a birthday. And it wasn't just in the US, but all over the world. I guess a lot of people perceive it to be an auspicious day.

It didn't get near as cold last night as they were predicting, our thermometer only show a low of forty degrees. There was a cold wind today and you definitely needed a jacket outside.

We saw this HUGE contraption making its way down the Mississippi River this afternoon when we were leaving the RV park to pick up some groceries --

It was so long, it took me three pictures to show any detail of it. This is the front end.  There was some sort of floating canoe-like boat that held up the boom or pole in the front...

There were at least two more small tugs alongside.  Not sure if they were helping to move it or if they were part of the equipment being taken downstream --

And then there was this very big tug at the back pushing it all along.  It looks there may have been another boat tied up alongside.

One thing about watching traffic on the river -- it sure makes you curious! It would be fun to know what is in some of the barges? And what was the purpose of this huge contraption?

Life on the Mississippi

Juni and Tom left for Mississippi today, but we decided to stay on at the Tom Sawyer RV Park a couple of nights longer -- just so we could watch the activity on the river.  This tug came very close into shore this morning pushing its barges --

It was really moving along putting up a bit of a rooster tail --

This one was a bit farther out. Its barges had some kind of tanks -- maybe oil?

Some of the tugs dropped off their barges for unloading and then tied up a little farther up the river --

This is the office of the RV Park.  It, like the bathhouses and laundry, is on wheels so that it can rapidly be moved to higher ground.  Since the RV Park is on the river side of the levee, it does flood. The receptionist said that the water this year was higher then the power lines -- and she was very thankful they were able to be open.

There was a beautiful sunset looking west on the river tonight --

While to the east the full moon was rising --

It was a nice day to spend watching the activity on the river, but it was chilly enough to need a jacket.  I took the bedspread from our bed over to the laundry and got it washed.  It's a bit too much for Auntie violet's little Splendide washer. Another nice thing about this park -- the laundry is free!  There are two fairly new washers and dryers in the bathhouse near to us and I understand there are a few more in the one at the other end of the park.

There is a "freeze warning" in effect for the Memphis area this evening.  Sounds like the temperature may get all the way down to 32 degrees!

The King, Ducks and BB King

What a fun day we've had today!  We started out at Graceland back across the Mississippi River in Memphis. The home that Elvis Presley bought when he became a star is now a shrine to him and his music.

You sign up for a tour of the mansion and then take a shuttle bus basically across the street.  These are the gates of Graceland as seen through the shuttle bus windshield --

The living room at Graceland -- can you believe that l-o-n-g white sofa?

The tour takes you through the downstairs portion of the house and the basement, plus the addition that housed the racquetball court. The former racquetball court is lined with gold and platinum record awards.  And that's not all of them!

Glass cases hold many of the fantastic jumpsuits and outfits that the King wore at his performances. I don't recall what he was wearing the first time we saw him when we were teenagers -- at Joe Albi Stadium in Spokane.  When we saw him in the early seventies in Las Vegas, he was wearing something similar to these. I remember he had a red scarf around his neck.  He wiped his face with it and then tossed it into the audience.  I thought the lady who grabbed it was going to swoon --

Elvis Presley and his music was such a part of our teenage and early married years.  I can remember watching him on the Ed Sullivan show when they so carefully did NOT show anything below the waist! Elvis' grave is in the Meditation Garden behind the house along with those of his parents and grandmother. There were multiple bouquets of fresh and silk flowers that continue to arrive at
Graceland every day --

In the automobile museum next door are many of Elvis' automobiles, motorcycles and other mechanized toys.  I think I liked this purple Cadillac the best.  Or maybe the pink one?

Both of Elvis' airplanes are also on the tour. We had to chuckle at the color schemes and what was "hot" so many years ago.

From Graceland we drove downtown to the historic Peabody Hotel.  It was time to take a break in the lobby --

And to see the famous Peabody Marching Ducks in the fountain! Four females and a drake march down to the lobby from their penthouse quarters every morning at 11 AM and march back up at 5 PM.

The hotel has a "Duck Master," who trains and cares for them --

Here they are climbing out of the fountain for their trip down the red carpet --

People were lined up all along the mezzanine and the lobby to watch --

They follow the Duck Master down the red carpet and across the lobby to the elevator.  --
(The jerk in the blue shirt is a professional photographer from PBS... he kept getting in front of everyone!)

From The Peabody we walked a couple of blocks down to Beale Street to BB King's,  (King was not there tonight, but was playing in concert on the huge video screen) where we had wonderful ribs and the best catfish I've ever eaten. When I had asked the concierge at The Peabody for directions to BB King's, he gave me cards good for two free appetizers...

Memphis is much like Nashville -- even on a Tuesday night, downtown is alive and active! This shot is looking down Beale Street which was barricaded off from vehicle traffic --

It was an absolutely delightful day!  And we came back to Auntie Violet in time to watch the Country Music Awards being broadcast from Nashville. We had checked into the possibility of getting tickets last week when we were in Nashville, but they were already sold out.  Besides, it was "formal attire required." I don't think any of us have anything that fulfills that requirement in our RVs...!

And Now, Arkansas

When we were discussing what we wanted to do in Tennessee besides go to the Grand Ole Opry, I immediately said that I wanted to see Graceland. Well, we were in Nashville and Graceland is in Memphis -- almost across the state.  Tennessee is not a real big state, it's wide and skinny, but it was a good two hundred and thirty miles.  We followed Tom and Juni out of the Nashville Country RV Park this morning headed for Interstate 40 West --

It was long trip, but we finally came to the western edge of the state and approached the Mississippi River --

And right in the middle of the bridge, we crossed into Arkansas --

We had originally planned to stay at the RV Park at Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee, but Tom was on-line making the reservations and he found this really neat RV Park across the river in West Memphis, Arkansas.  It's called Tom Sawyer's Mississippi River RV Park and it really is right on the river!

I'm standing beside Auntie Violet where we are parked beside Tom and Juni in the above picture looking to the right across the gravel --

 And then looking to the left --

The weather forecast is predicting a thunderstorm tonight and the wind is really blowing already, but once it clears off, it should be a gorgeous night with this full moon --

The line of thunderstorms in Oklahoma, Texas and southern Arkansas is predicted to spawn tornadoes tonight, so everyone is a bit jumpy.  We have the NOAA weather radio turned on, even though it's not supposed to be bad this far north...