Here we Go!!!

Nature’s first green is gold,

Her hardest hue to hold.

Her early leaf’s a flower;

But only so an hour.

Then leaf subsides to leaf.

So Eden sank to grief,

So dawn goes down to day.

Nothing gold can stay. Robert Frost

I left North Carolina almost three weeks ago to Travel with a capital T. I went to Largo Florida to handle some legal matters and from there I launched into my Travels. Travels, plural. First stop was Nola, home of Dixie Land Jazz bands, good food and good friends. My first night in town I met friends Bethany, Julie and Bridget for some of the best Mediterranean food I have ever had at Saba on Magazine Street. I highly recommend the Wood Roasted Broccoli and the Charred Cabbage. The homemade pita and hummus was also outstanding.

I enjoyed the excellent hospitality of my friend Bridget in Harahan La for several days and got to witness the excitement when her daughter was listed for a scholarship from one of the colleges she is eyeing. As Mardi Gras had just concluded, there were beads everywhere. In the streets, on the sidewalks, in the trees and hanging from fences. Additionally toilet paper adorned ancient oaks along most of the main streets in Nola. We road around site seeing one day and visited the lake near Metairie. I have now gotten to the point that I can almost pronounce Metairie correctly close to half the time. I'm almost a native.

My last night in the NOLA area we went to D.B.A. for the song stylings of Joy Clark. What a fun time and most excellent artist!! I wish to award her with best grin accolades. Super smile. Go listen to her if you get a chance, very good singer-songwriter.

From NOLA and Harahan I moved on to the hospitality of my friend Bethany in Biloxi/Ocean Springs Mississippi. I took the long way and drove the 24 mile bridge over lake Pontchartrain ( the longest continual bridge over water in the world) and along the way to Biloxi I cruised through Bay St Louis, Pass Christian and De Lisle and remembered how much of these places were completely under water during Katrina and it's aftermath. The effects can still be seen these 18 years later.

Bethany lives in the generation family home on a bayou in the very edge of Biloxi. Gorgeous old home with real wood paneling and huge windows. I was given the fancy room to sleep in and was quite comfortable there as I was at Bridget's place. We went out to an entertainment dinner of food and Belligerent Bingo called by a local comedienne. Bethany even won a bucket of cookies. I on the other hand, have NEVER won a bingo game in my life. After that night, my streak holds. While in the area, I took the time to do a bit of sight seeing. I road the bridge over to Biloxi and found the beach front full of Casinos, turned around and came back to the Ocean Springs waterfront. There was a lovely little park at the waters edge that lead to the Ocean Springs Harbor. Unfortunately it was raining by the time I got to the Harbor with its fishing fleet of shrimp trawlers lined up. It reminded me a bit of how Beaufort, NC used to look and how Coresound waterfront looks now. I did get a picture from the little park

Not my best photo, but I will add it was fixing to rain.

I spent a leisurely morning the next day catching up on emails and business then pointed the car north towards Hattiesburg, Mississippi to continue to visit with Bethany and Julie. There I met Julie's polite sons that yes ma'amed and no ma'amed me like true southern gentlemen. Hattiesburg is the home of the University of Southern Mississippi and is full of that college town fun. Great places to hang out, good food, great fun. I passed the weekend hanging out, talking, eating great food and generally relaxing with my friends. We spent some quality time visiting with some of Julie's lifelong friends and listening to live music. A very fun time. On my way out Monday Julie and I had breakfast at the Midtowner restaurant that I highly recommend.. Really good food, also looks like an old time diner. Very good food and atmosphere.

From Hattiesburg I headed north to Birmingham, Alabama to visit my Mom's last remaining sibling, my Aunt Mary. She is mid 90s, still feisty, still kind and sweet and tired. She has seen the death of all her siblings including little brother and little sister. It cannot be easy. She lives in the Mountain Brook area of Birmingham and although I forget it every time Im not there, it is very hilly. I fail to recall every time that Birmingham sits on the southern part of the Appalachian Mountains. That is, until I get there. So as to not stress her or over tax her too much with my visit, I didn't stay but about 36 hours, had a great visit with her daughter and son and some good good homemade food including cornbread. We talked about my momma a lot, it was a good visit.

I decided rather than go straight home from Birmingham to take a little sojourn through the NC mountains and visit around Black Mountain for a few days. I found a room in a 1937 boutique hotel and drove north from Alabama along the Appalachian range through Alabama, Georgia (just the edge), Tennessee up to Knoxville and hit I-40 to traverse the Pigeon River Gorge. Yes, past DollyWood, Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg. I thought about stopping in Sevierville but chose to continue on driving. The reason was the mountains. They were breathtaking everything budding out, Redbuds, Mountain Laurel, periodically the non native Bradford Pear in full bloom escaped from some homeowner,s lot on the wind has planted itself on a slope. Then dropped its seeds to form a small stand of pear trees on the mountain. Everything budding out but the redbuds and pears some laurel here and there was a shimmering gold. Which reminded me to the Robert Frost poem I opened with. Nature's first green is gold. It truly is.

This picture does not do it justice, but it was beautiful. At about halfway there I could see the Smokies in the distance. They just seem to jut up from flat land into the sky. That is not how they really are, but it looks like it.

I stayed three days at the Monte Vista Hotel built in 1937 in Black Mountain and highly recommend it. Beautiful room, nice sitting area, great restaurant, Milton's, although all the food I have eaten in the Black Mountain area has been very good. I went to the local lake, Lake Tomahawk, and the local river, The Swannanoa, and walked around in downtown Black Mountain to see the cute little shops and businesses there. I also napped and relaxed. I will be adding some pictures to a page named The Southern Route in the Portfolio Section of the website after I get home in the next week or so. I have lots of business to tend to at home and then be on the lookout for Rosie On The Road again!! (as per normal if you see spelling or grammar issues, I have no ego on those, just let me know and I will fix them