Still in Georgia!

We decided to stay another day. We are both on the mend but not feeling up to much.  Trevor took the rental car back this morning; I did the washing. We are also making plans for the next few weeks and particularly Thanksgiving Day on Thursday.

Thanksgiving Day is celebrated in the US on the 4th Thursday in November - this year it is on 22 November which is also the anniversary of the assassination of President Kennedy. It has been an official national day since 1863 when, during the Civil War President Lincoln proclaimed a national day of Thanksgiving; a day to give thanks for the food collected at the end of the harvest season.
Traditionally families and friends get together for a special meal.  Some have a 4 day long weekend. It is also one of the busiest periods for travel in the US.
Thanksgiving Day is followed by Black Friday - again traditionally, the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. For many years it has been the busiest shopping day of the year. It was known as Black Friday to describe the heavy and disruptive traffic after Thanksgiving Day. More recently the term has come to refer to the point at which retailers begin to turn a profit or are 'in the black'.

Most major retailers open extremely early on Black Friday - 4 am, then midnight. This year Walmart, Target, KMart, ToysRUs and Macys will open at 8pm on Thanksgiving Day!! I don't think we will be joining the shoppers, although it is also Trevor's birthday and as yet I haven't been near any stores to buy a gift - serious!!

Here are some more photos I took on Sunday. Sorry about the road signs! I think I was trying to be like Dustin Hoffman in Rainman??? Remember all the photos of light poles and traffic signs?

Turtle crossing!

Talmadge Memorial Bridge
 to South Carolina

Despite our unwellness, we did manage an icecream from Leopolds, another must do.

Savannah, Georgia ... we will remember you!

Well we have had several challenging days! Arrived in Savannah on Thursday afternoon - continuing cold and drizzly weather and Trevor's cold getting worse by the minute. I think he has had a flu really.

We didn't move anywhere on Friday.  Trevor was very unwell; coughing, sneezing, headache, body ache and tired, tired.  He slept/ dozed on the couch most of the day.

Friday's activities - feeding the squirrels

Saturday turned out to be a better day ... the sun came out! We rang Enterprise Car Rentals and booked a car. Trevor went into the office to sign it all up, but it was a struggle for him.  He is not right.
We went into down town Savannah and explored as much as we could. By now the sun has gone and is replaced by cold winds and threatening skies!



Savannah is said by some to be 'the most beautiful city in America'. It was established in 1733 on the banks of the Savannah River, approx 16 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. The town grid was laid out with small squares designed to deter invaders; today the squares serve as scenic parks filled with statues and fountains.

The city has a beautiful historic district including River Street and Factors Walk both of which are lined with restaurants, cafes, taverns and souvenir shops housed in old warehouses constructed of ballast stone.

 

It looks to be a city designed for walking and we did walk around the historic areas mentioned above. But we came back to the RV late afternoon. Trevor has completely had it!
He had a tiny dinner then back to bed. I stayed up and watched a movie  - Bodyguard. To bed far too late and not feeling so good.  Oh no!

Its a struggle!!!!

Spanish Moss hangs from the trees

Sunday was another cold day! Not even any sun to brighten things up!
I don't feel very well but of course can't say much; after all I had the flu shot so I should be just fine?
Again we head out in the rental car. We have been recommended the sea food at The Crab Shack on Tybee Island on the coast.
Neither of us are feeling like food! We have a drive along the coast. Even the sight of the ocean fails to perk Trevor up - he must be ill!
I get out and take the photos.

Almost a bridge too far ....

We find The Crab Shack.  We had talked of dining there but just can't face it. The next best thing was a 'to go' cup of their Crab Stew. We parked on the coast and ate it and it was good!!!

Some things just have to photographed!

Perry, Georgia

We enjoyed Perry. It lies in the heart of Georgia ; known to many as the 'Crossroads of Georgia' because of its location at the intersection of Highways US 341, US 41, GA 127 and I-75. It is this location which has encouraged tourism making it the area's number one industry.
Incorporated in 1824, Perry took its name from Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry for his triumph at Lake Erie in the War of 1812.



Perry is also the home of the Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter  a state owned, multi purpose 1100 acre rental complex which hosts over 900,000 visitors a year. It is specially designed for conferences, livestock and horse shows, concerts, rodeos, RV rallies and trade shows.










We took the bikes off and settled in. We arranged for Ron to send our mail out to us. We did  all sorts of housekeeping things which we had been promising to do; we biked around town each day; we rode into the Fairgrounds and Agricentre one afternoon which is a very comprehensive affair. We found one coffee place!

The days were lovely and sunny; quite warm too.  The nights were cold at first. Then as the day time temperature fell a bit the nights seemed to warm up?? We weren't able to get a rental car for the weekend - they were all taken. It didn't really matter as we were mobile with the bikes.















Monday 12 November was Veterans Day. In the US, Veterans Day is usually observed on the 11th of November. If it falls on a Saturday or Sunday then the following Friday or Monday respectively is designated for holiday leave.  Veterans Day coincides with other countries marking Armistice Day or Remembrance Day which commemorates the armistice between the allied nations and Germany, effectively ending World War 1.
Trevor read that the marking of Veterans Day was to take place in Perry at 11am. at The Perry Art Centre.

So we biked into town and joined several hundred people for the Veterans Day Program. It was a moving ceremony.The Star Spangled Banner was sung along with other patriot songs. The guest speaker was a presbyterian minister who had spent  2 years in Penrith, NSW as a missionary. Trevor got talking to the guy next to him who then introduced us to the minister. We felt very welcomed!

While in Perry we found  DQ icecream! DQ is a fast food chain which sells the most amazing icecreams! No they are not a classic or speciality  icecream. They are just enormous! We each had one in a chocolate coated waffle cup, full of icecream, topped with cream then sauce and topping. My topping was maple and pecan syrup and pecan nuts. It was called a 'turtle'! I pedalled very hard on the way back!

We left Perry on Wednesday - yesterday. Our mail arrived on Tuesday. I received a replacement Visa card. We were good to go!

We had a short driving day - decided to make the drive to Savannah in 2 hops. Trevor is getting a cold; he says he has a tickly throat and has started to cough!!

We stayed last night at the Beaver Run RV Park at Metter.  The weather had become quite cold, not getting above the mid 50's all day. Last night it rained.

Today has been cold again. Trevor's cold is worse.  We have bought capsules and throat lozenges. He slept a lot this afternoon. We have arrived in Savannah and plan to stay for the weekend. Depending on how Trevor is feeling tomorrow, we will rent a car for 2 or 3 days.

Here are a couple of photos Trevor took yesterday of a cotton field and some of the cotton he 'pinched' off a cotton bush. It is beautifully soft and very white.

A bale of cotton.

So now I am up to date!!!! It is Thursday 15 November about 10pm. Trevor has gone to bed with the hottie and a heat pack; he has had a honey and lemon drink. Fingers crossed!
Today we bought a small crockpot and had a lovely meal tonight - slow braised beef and vegies - real comfort food.
We spoke to Kim and Finlay yesterday. Fin has been accepted into the Higher Performance Learning stream for her first year at Shenton College next year. We are very proud of her and feel a long way from home at the moment.

Nearly caught up!

I last posted from Tiffin Motor Homes in Red Bay, Alabama. We were checked out by the service guys on Tuesday 6 November - a couple of seals needed a bit of attention and we were good to go.

Service Centre looks like a busy RV park

We shopped in Red Bay - at last found a Piggly Wiggly supermarket! Yep - it doesn't take much ....!
We are heading south east; planning to go to Savannah, Georgia. The weather is fluctuating a bit - some cold, grey days and then some beautiful days with cold mornings.



We took 2 days to drive through Alabama. It seems hard to believe that only 3 months ago we flew into Huntsville, Alabama to buy the RV. We have travelled more than 7500 miles and  are now back in the state.

Our trip to Tiffin was such a good idea.  We have not seen so many Tiffin RV's in one place before. We always look out for other Tiffin's on the road and in the parks, but this was something else! Tiffin produce 11 motorhomes a day and over 65,000 since they started business in 1973.

In Heflin we had a real frost; 30 degrees outside! It was a beautiful morning and warmed up quite quickly.  But the grass was very white and crunchy to walk on first thing.

Cotton fields

We ran into rain again. We are travelling on smaller highways; very pretty (when its not raining); farming country. The roadside is still clothed in fall colours with the occasional brilliant golden yellow or bright orange leafed tree.
On 8 November we cross the state line into Georgia and go forward an hour in time; we are now on Eastern Standard time. It is 70 miles to Atlanta but we ain't going there! We are headed for a small town called Perry and the Fair Harbor RV Park.

A few weeks ago we joined a club called Passport America which membership entitles you to a 50% discount at participating RV parks. So far we haven't found a participating RV park!  But that is about to change. The cost of staying at RV parks is probably one of our biggest expenses.  We belong to the Good Sam Club, KOA and now Passport America. The first 2 clubs entitle you to a 10% discount at various RV parks.

We get a rate of $22.00 a night at Fair Harbor which is great -  full hook up with power 30/50 amp, pull thrus, water, sewer, cable and free wifi.  Also showers, restrooms and laundry. We stay 6 nights!