Cross-Country Honeymoon Adventure Conclusion

We started our last day of our cross-country honeymoon adventure laying out on the beach and strolling along the oceanside. We stayed at the beach for a few hours and simply relaxed. Zac went back to Sharky’s again and got us some delicious food. Apparently, they got our order mixed up and gave us an extra box of salad with chicken strips. Yum!

We then walked about a mile toward the Panama City Pier. We stopped at the shops there and even got some frozen yogurt. Zac had the original tart while I got the key lime pie flavor.

After our afternoon snack, Zac rented a fishing rod and some fishing tackle and we headed to the pier to try our luck at fishing. It took a long time but Zac caught a couple of pretty fish. Yay!

We then went back toward our hotel but stopped after a sign for food caught our eye. The restaurant, Calypso, featured the guy on Man vs. Food and his challenge that was documented there earlier this year. We just had to go there. Man vs. Food ate there! We ordered not two but THREE dozen raw oysters. We also had the seafod gumbo. O-M-G! It was an amazing way to end our last night of our adventure.

We went back to the hotel, grabbed our flashlight that we bought, and took a nice last nightly stroll on the beach.

We had an amazing once-in-a-lifetime experience on our journey across America. It has been an incredible experience! Thanks to all who have followed our blog. We sure have enjoyed it! We are heading home to Chattanooga tomorrow morning!

Panama City Beach, Florida

We left the hotel this morning at 11:30. We got in the car and headed to the famous St. Louis Cemetary #1.

The cemetary was once featured in the movie “Interview with the Vampire,” starring Brad Pitt. Even during the day and with many other people there, the cemetary had an eerie feel to it. We took lots of pictures of the different crypts and mausoleums. One of the most famous tombs we found supposedly belonged to Marie Laveau, a Voodoo priestess of the early 1800’s. Surrounding her tomb were various offerings and “XXX” markings on it. These were said to invoke the spirit of Marie and allow her to grant any wish one desired. Many of the tour guides that were giving tours there said that was untrue and that to desecrate the tomb would be disrespectful. I had to agree. May her soul rest in peace.

We got back on the road toward Panama City Beach after our visit to the cemetary. We stopped at the Sonic to grab a bite to eat and then headed East. We drove through two states today - Mississippi and Alabama.

What should have been a five-hour drive turned out to be a NINE-HOUR drive! This was due to the severe thunderstorms and downpour when we drove in to Florida. Apparently, Panama City Beach has not had any rain since anyone can remember, much less this much rain! By the time we arrived at our beachfront hotel, it was 9:15 p.m. (Central Time)! We put our things in our room and went next door to Sharky’s Beach Club Restaurant. For an appetizer, we got two dozen raw oysters. Zac then got a fish and chips entree while I got the stuffed crabcakes with rice. Delish! Before we headed to the beach for a nightly stroll, we got some drinks to enjoy.

It was beginning to feel very romantic with the two of us walking on the beach with our drinks and the moon shining above when it started to rain again. This time, it was as though the skies opened up and dumped all of its pent up moisture on us. We were soaked! We thought we would make it back to our hotel next to the restaurant but we were wrong, so we headed back to the bar in the restaurant and waited until the rain subsided.

After an hour-and-a-half, the rain finally died down enough for us to run back to our hotel room. We cleaned up a bit and then got to relax. What a rainy night; hope tomorrow will bring us some sunshine!

New Orleans - Day Two

Our hotel is nice but it sure isn’t quiet at all. Apparently, there are several conventions taking place at the Sheraton this weekend. One of those conventions involves teenagers and they all seemed to be staying on our floor. Lucky us. They were so loud during the middle of the night that I had to call the front desk to send an “agent” up to send them to their rooms. Needless to say, we did not sleep well at all. By the time we did fall asleep, it was well into the wee hours of the night - something like five or six in the morning! Darn teenagers. When we woke up and got ready, it was two in the afternoon!

Our first stop of the day was the restaurant called The Famous Gumbo Pot. Zac ordered the Seafood Gumbo and I got the Gumbo Ya Ya. Both were delicious! After lunch, we went down the street and decided to get some beignets at the famous Cafe du Monde. Beignets are essentially French doughnuts and they were so good, especially with the powdered sugar on top!

We went to the French Market after our visit to Cafe du Monde. We got some souvenirs and then headed to Preservation Hall - one of the most famous jazz halls of all time.

Since we got a late start to our day and we had booked a Ghost/Vampire/History tour at six, we had to hurry back to our hotel room to change into cooler clothes and speed back to meet up with our tour guide. The tour turned out to be just the two of us with our tour guide; it was like we had a private tour! It was actually very nice and our tour guide was very knowledgeable and entertaining.

After the tour, we were told to go up to Frenchman Street to find some good dining for the night. Frenchman Street is several blocks up from the famous Bourbon Street. We stopped at a place called The Marigny Brasserie. Zac had the wedge salad with bleu cheese dressing and the Frenchman po-boy, which had fried green tomatos with shrimp on a French baguette. I ordered the Mahi Mahi special, which was Mahi Mahi marinated in coconut milk and rum served with linguine tossed in a garlic butter sauce and garnished with some green beans and fruit salsa. Mmm......

We walked back to Royal Street toward Bourbon and had to snap a picture of the statue of Jesus illuminated with a huge shadow cast upon the Catholic church in New Orleans. We kept walking and stopped at the Musical Legends Park to hear some jazz tunes and enjoy a couple of drinks. We then went back to our hotel to rest for a little bit before heading back out to Pinkberry, a delicious yogurt and fruit mix shop. Zac ordered the original flavor with blackberries, raspberries, and strawberry yogurt bits. I got a half watermelon/half mango yogurt with raspberries, yogurt bits, and mochi. Yummy!

We went to Harrah’s of New Orleans afterward and tried our luck at the casino. Then, we headed back to our room and went to bed. Ahhh......a nice way to end our last night in the Big Easy. Panama City Beach - here we come!

The Big Easy

Our visit with family in Lewisville was great but too short. We will have to go back and visit again soon. We said our goodbyes, hopped in the car, and headed southeast toward New Orleans, Louisiana.

Yep, I got behind the wheel again. Today marks the fourth day in a row on our honeymoon road trip that I’ve driven. I drove 350+ miles! We went about 100 miles before we stopped at a gas station while still in Texas to use the restroom. The gas station had its very own brew thru, which is a drive-thru beer/liquor store. Very cool!

We got back on the road and had to stop again; this time, it was for lunch. We found a place off of the interstate called Bodacious Bar-B-Q. It was DELICIOUS! After lunch, we got back on the road. I was getting a little nervous about driving on the jagged roads in Louisiana, so we switched. As soon as I got in the passenger seat, I passed out. If I’m not at the wheel, my body relaxes and shuts down. By the time I was awakened, we were in New Orleans! Zac said he saw an alligator while we were crossing a bridge but I wasn’t lucky enough to see that.

We checked in to our hotel and went to our room. Wow! I knew that when I booked the room, we would have a view of the French Quarters but we didn’t imagine how beautiful it would be! The blinds opened up to a floor-to-ceiling window that overlooked the city. It was gorgeous! We freshened up a bit and went down to Bourbon Street.

Bourbon Street was everything we imagined it would be. For a Thursday night, it was pretty lively. There were street jazz performers and all of the stores and restaurants were lit up and full of people. It was very neat.

We walked a few blocks before stopping at a little place called Fiorella’s Cafe. Zac had their world-famous fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy. I had the shrimp po-boy. OMG!!! Everything was amazing! We left the cafe and walked down the street some and came upon the famous and well-recommended Cafe du Monde. Since we were stuffed already, we decided we would go back tomorrow to sample their delicious beignets. Can’t wait!

We got back to our hotel, walked in to our room, and found a bottle of champagne with two glasses for us sitting on the table! How sweet of them to do this for us for our honeymoon! We popped open the champagne, toasted each other, and enjoyed the view from our room. What a great way to end our first night in New Orleans!

Lewisville, TX

Amarillo treated us well but we had to move on to our next destination - Lewisville, Texas, where my cousin, Alvin, his wife, Nannie, and two adorable children live.

Before we got on the interstate, we stopped to fill up our tank. Then, I hopped in the driver's seat again and drove toward Dallas. Yes - I drove AGAIN! This is the third day in a row that I've been at the wheel while Zac (tried to) relax in the passenger seat.

We drove a good 200+ miles before we stopped for gas and a little bite at Long John Silver's. When we got out of the car, the temperature said 108 degrees! That wasn't even the heat index either! We were melting in Texas!

It was 5:45 p.m. (Central Time) when we got to Alvin and Nannie's house. It was great to see them, my aunt and uncle from Chattanooga (woo hoo!) and my other cousin, Gloria, her husband, Al, and their two cute kids. We waited for them to get ready after their afternoon swim and then headed to the First Chinese BBQ restaurant.

I know I've said this a lot but the food was amazing! We had a wide spread and we ate it all up! Afterward, we went to the Ice Wizard Shaved Ice to get some yummy dessert. Mmm......a perfect way to end a hot night in Texas!

The Lone Star State

We spent the night in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and I believe it was the elevation change that affected our sleep last night. When the alarm went off this morning, we were not ready to get up at all. We finally made it out of bed at 10:00 a.m. (Mountain Time), got ready, and checked out of our hotel.

We put our things in the car and I hopped in the driver's seat. Yes, I drove again. It was the second day in a row that I had control of the wheel! I drove a while before we stopped to get some Mickey D's for lunch in New Mexico. After lunch, we got back on I-40 East toward Amarillo, Texas.










When we neared Amarillo, we passed the famous Cadillac Ranch, which is an art display of 10 Cadillac cars buried nose-down since the 1970's. We had to stop and take some pictures. It was sweltering! The heat was unbearable; it was at least 100 degrees! There were plenty of spray paint cans laying around for visitors to make their mark on the cars. It was an interesting sight to see.

After the brief stop at Cadillac Ranch, we drove to our hotel, checked in, and rested on the couch for a bit. An hour or so later, we headed back out to the local Mexican restaurant called La Fiesta Grande. We ordered one plate of food to share and that was plenty for dinner for the two of us. We left shortly afterward and decided to go to the local Sam's Club. We needed some more batteries for our camera and that was the perfect place to get them for a good price. After Sam's, we went straight to our hotel room and lounged in bed for the rest of the night. Can't wait to see more of my side of the family in Lewisville, TX, tomorrow!