I left my daughter's on Tuesday and headed to Council Grove, KS to see the museums and historical sites (23) in this small Kansas town. Boy was I disappointed when nothing was open on Tuesday. I drove around town and saw the sites that were accessable and then made my way towards Topeka via the Skyline Mill Creek Scenic Route (which is old hwy K10). While in Topeka I tried to catch up with my friend but it just didn't happen. Hopefully the next time I come through we can get together. Since I had no luck reaching/finding her, I went on down the road and stopped in Atchison, KS for the night. As I arrived into town I stopped at the Santa Fe Depot (Visitor's Center & Museum) and found out a lot of information about the railroad and its importance to the town of Atchison.

After spending the night, I explored this little historic town. Many of the places were closed but the Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum was open for business. The house was built by AE's grandfather in 1861 (original portion) and she grew up in the house. AE was a woman of spirit and a true adventurer. I also realized that she and my youngest son share a birthday. There are many wonderful historic homes to see in this town and if you happen to be going in that direction, it is well worth the time to explore.

While at the AE Museum, I met a couple from St. Joseph, MO. Since I was heading that direction, I asked them what, if anything, I should stop and see in St. Jo, or just pass it by. They recommended that I go to the Pony Express Museum and the Patee House Museum. The Patee was closed (only open on weekends during the winter) but you can take a picture of the place Jesse James was shot and killed, just behind the Patee House. Down the street from there is the Pony Express Museum. This museum is great and gives not only the history of the short lived Pony Express, but also information about frontier life. I didn't realize that the Pony Express only ran for 18 months before the transcontinental telegraph line was completed. There is a lot more you can see in St. Jo (Glore Psychiatric Museum sounded interesting), but since I had purchased a Route 36 CD, I was itchin' to get on the road to see what other things I could find along the way to Hannibal, MO.

Along Route 36 in Missouri one can find the town where sliced bread was invented, the childhood town of Walt Disney, a covered bridge and a giant flying goose (among some other facinating trivia). The CD, which I purchased for $6.00 was a wealth of information of historic areas one can travel too off of Route 36. At the end of my days journey I arrived at Hannibal and tucked in at a hotel that overlooked the Mississippi River.

Hannibal, MO is the home town of Samuel Clemens, a.k.a. Mark Twain. Even in winter, this historic town has enough to do to fill an entire day. I explored the Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum, which included the homes and information about the people that inspired stories we all love to read. I even got a personalized tour of the cave that Tom and Becky got lost in. After I got my fill of Mark Twain I went to the birthplace of the "Unsinkable" Molly Brown (closed for the winter) and drove around Hannibal to see the wonderful houses and imagine life as it might have been during its hayday. Since my day was filled with Hannibal attractions, I spent another night along the mighty Mississip.

I woke up early and headed out of Hannibal along the Great River Road towards St Louis. Though a bit windy, this road was awesome and offered some wonderful views of the Mississippi as well as some great little towns along the way. I stopped in Clarksville to see the glassworks, but since they had so many kids coming that day (Eagle watching weekend) I did not get to view the artisians at work. I did however, explore the little town and found some wonderful shops. Once I made it to St. Louis, I stopped to see the Gateway Arch and get a Hard Rock pin for my collection. As many times as I had been through St. Louis (many, many, many), I had never taken the time to stop at the arch. I was glad I finally got to stop at this American icon. From the Arch, I jumped back on the road and caught the Great River Road in Illinoise (just across the river from St. Louis) and continued this wonderful, scenic journey following the Mississippi River. Driving along, enjoying the trip, I saw a sign that indicated the home of Popeye is ahead. Sounding intersting, I took a side trip into the little town of Chester, IL. Chester is where the cartoonist, Elzie Crisler Segar, was born and raised and where he got the inspiration for his characters of the famous cartoon family (as a side note for my comic friends - Metropolis, IL is where Superman was inspired). After stopping at the Spinach Can (museum & collectibles) I drove around Chester taking pictures of the various character statues. Chester was a great find along the way. If you happen to be in that area the weekend after Labor Day there is an annual Popeye's Picnic (3-day) event that sounds too good to miss! In the later afternoon I made my way to Cairo, IL and found a place to stop for the night.

After driving around Cairo and checking out the famous houses and places there, I crossed the Ohio River (convergence of the Ohio into the Mississippi) and entered the Bluegrass state of Kentucky. I stopped to take a few pictures at the site of Fort Jefferson which overlooks the Mississippi and now has a memorial cross there. My next intended stop at the Wickliffe Mounds was closed, so I kept on trucking into Tennessee. After I passed through Jackson, TN I found out that there was a Casey Jones Museum and I was a bit bummed that I had unknowingly passed it by. I found this out while I was at the Pinson Mounds outside of Jackson. The mound complex was large and I made the suggestion that the museum rent out bikes for those that don't want to walk 5 miles to see the entire complex. After eating my lunch I continued my southerly path into the northeastern corner of Mississippi and headed east into Alabama. I stopped at the AL Music Hall of Fame; however, it too was closed and so I found a room for the night in nearby Tuscumbia.

I knew not much would be open on Sunday and took a scenic route through the Appalachian Mountains in AL and made my way to Phenix City. Fort Mitchell was open and since I had arrived in the mid afternoon I took my time learning about the history of the area and more information about the Federal Road (had learned quite a bit from the volunteer at the Locust Stand on the Natchez Trace).

This week has been full of discovery in history and in the project I have been working on for the last year. The project had basically stalled and I was not sure which direction I was going to take with it and I had thought perhaps it had fizzled out. I struggled with how I wanted to approach it and how I wanted it to progress and could never get a real clear picture of exactly how it was to evolve. This week I gained much clarity and I have started to take detailed notes and putting things together. There are times I find I have to stop and write things down, least I forget them later - I now always keep my notebook on hand. I hope this momentum continues so that I can share it with you all soon.

First, I apologize that I did not take any pictures with my ipod and have none to post for the 2nd weeks journey and you will have to wait to see the pictures I took with my camera later.

Secondly, I am a bit frustrated with Weebly as I had written most of this post and it crashed and everything was lost. But hopefully this new post, with a different direction, will be better. :-)

After the very enjoyable weekend of visiting with friends and family, I left Jackson and headed in a general westerly direction toward my final destination of the Grand Canyon. Along the way I will stop at as many historical markers and sites as I could stand and continued to stay off the interstates as much as possible.

I started from Jackson towards Louisiana via the Natchez Trace Parkway. This beautiful drive actually runs all the way from Nashville, TN to Natchez, MS. I have traveled this road many times while I lived in MS but never grow tired of this relaxing scenic drive. Even though I have stopped at all the markers and sites on the parkway before, I stopped again to refresh my memory. At the Locust Stand I received a personalized tour from a volunteer (I was the only person braving the cool rainy morning). I did not stop in Natchez itself as I have toured the town and some of the many antebellum houses, but definitely recommend taking time to explore if you have never been.

From Natchez I drove across Louisiana, again stopping at markers along the way, and into Texas. My stop for the night was just outside of Rusk at a campground at the Railroad State Park. This park runs a working railway from Rusk to Palestine; however, the train does not run in January or February - so I guess another time for the train journey. As I paid for my campsite I asked the volunteer if it was supposed to rain that night and she informed me that it was only going to turn bitter cold. I prepared my tent, put in all my warm gear and burrowed in for the cold night. At around 4:00 a.m. it became too cold to stay in the tent any longer and as I exited the tent I was very surprised to see a thick layer of slush on my tent! I cranked up the heat in the car for about 30 mins and then slept the rest of the night in the car.

The next day I left my campsite with frozen fingers from taking down my sleet soaked tent and headed towards Waco with the understanding that my tent camping on this trip was over. From Waco I headed north to Abilene and from there I will continue west.

The stretch of road to Abilene reminded me so very much of western Kansas and it reminded me how much I missed my God-parents. It was hard to believe that it had been almost a year since they both passed. As I made my stop in Abilene for the night my heart pulled at me to continue north to Kansas. I knew a good nights sleep would reveal the answer to me in the morning.

The next morning I packed up my car and headed north. Along the way to Woodward, Oklahoma I made some stops at a few museums about the pioneers and the plains indians, and of course those roadside markers.

In the morning I headed to Kansas with a few stops before Kinsley. I made it to Kinsley around lunch time and at my PBJ at my God-parent's graveside and then went out to the family farm, the only place I call "home." From there I headed east to Fort Larned for a self-guided tour of the fort. I continued east and stopped to see my dad in Salina, but he was not home and continued on to Manhattan to my daughter's house, where I stayed for 4 days.

It was wonderful to visit my daughter and her family. We visited the zoo on Saturday and attended a bridal show with another daughter on Sunday. Overall a very enjoyable weekend with family.

Though I have changed my original plan of destination, I am happy that I did. A friend asked if I was going down memory lane. There were times when memories would flood into my mind but that was not the intention I had set out for. My heart just yearned so strongly to go to Kansas that I could not refuse it. Perhaps it was a need to get back to something familiar, a reconnection to my roots.

I am enjoying my road trip and many of you know how much I detest driving, but the driving I have been doing on this trip has been so very enjoyable, and I find it strange myself. I think it is the perpetual motion of the last 6 months that just keeps me wanting to go on and on, never stopping. I think I have an underlying fear of stopping for too long but I know at some point I will have to make that decision, at least for a while.

Preparations for the road trip included securing a rental car, sealing and waterproofing the tent, packing my bags and determining a general route to travel. My sister loaded me up with some extra supplies and an atlas, Bronnie took over navigator duties and I as on my way.

I left from my sister's house and took the coastal highway to West Palm beach. Though it was a bit slow going, the coastal views were very enjoyable. I got to see the toursit side of the Florida east coast. From West Palm I cut west toward Lake Okechobee and made my way to Sebring. Not enitrely sure of the rules and regs of the FL state parks, I arrived around 4:00 at the Highlands Hammock State Park. I opted for a primitive campsite and was the lone camper in the area. The spanish moss hung loosely among the brances of the trees and it was a very peaceful location.The next morning I hiked around the park on some of the trails that were available. Some of the paths were via catwalks through the swamp. For the first time ever, I got to see the fish that spit water to catch

The next morning I hiked around the park on some of the trails that were available. Some of the paths were via catwalks through the swamp. For the first time ever, I got to see the fish that spit water to catch bugs. One of the volunteers told me that the otters come to that area but they were not there on that day. I also got to see a lot of birds and a few snakes. I traveled to my mothers for the next two nights.

I left my mom's around 9:00 and made my way to the Crystal River Wildlife Sanctuary. There is not much to see at the sanctuary, but they had a lot of information about local things to see and do. I was directed to the Homosassa Spring Wildlife State Park. This park showcased Florida wildlife and included a boat ride to get there from the visitor center. I did find out later that you could drive to the park or take a tram, but the boat trip was nice and relaxing. There were many animals and birds. From the underwater observatory one can see where the spring cames through the aquifer. The spring water remains at 72*F and this is one of the winter locations for manatee. The manatee had not yet arrived for the winter yet but the snook were there by the hundreds. I took the boat ride back to the visitor center and drove to the Crystal River Archaelogical State Park. This archaeological park is a pre-Columbian indian mound complex. I would have liked to learn more than what I did as I had missed the bout tour by 10 minutes and the days they do the boat tour the museum is closed. After wandering around the mounds I headed to my campsite for the night at Manatee Springs State Park. There are quite a few trails around the park but I did not have time to walk any of them.

The next morning I woke up to a small herd of deer eating their breakfast next to my tent. It had rained a bit in the night and there were no leaks to be found. I made a sidetrip to St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge and lighthouse. The area was all marsh or swamp and is on the Gulf of Mexico coast. I saw a huge gator and many birds. There are a lot of dike trails but I only went a short way on the one by the lighthouse as I still had a bit of driving to make it to my location for the night. I spent the night at the Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou State Park. My campsite faced the bayou and I was surprised that this park was just off the highway. Unfortunately, the newly sealed tent seams did not perform well under the downpour that occured and since the dripping was directly in the middle of the tent, I quickly relocated to the back seat of the rental car.

After my scrunched up night in the car I drove to my weekend location of Jackson, MS. I intended to visit friends and relatives in the Jackson area over the weekend. So far I have avoided any interstate driving; however, to navigate around Mobile, AL, I would have to drive 100 miles on I-10. With Mobile behind me it was only a few hours left until I would get to talk to those I had left only 6 months ago.

My first week on the road has been very relaxing and enjoyable. It is nice to take the slow lane (not driving on the interstates/motorways) and stopping at the sites along the way. It was strange returning to Mississippi. On one hand it was exciting to see my friends and family. On the other hand I found it hard to believe that I had lived there for 16 years.

As I traveled I didn't think that I had really changed, internallly I thought I felt the same. Going back to MS and hanging out with everyone, I realized that I had changed. It is a subtle change and at this time I cannot put my exact finger on it but I do know for sure that I am not the same person I was 6 months ago.

This blog will bring me up to date and rounds off 2012. :-) I hope each one of you have had a wonderful holiday season and I hope that 2013 is the year it (whatever "it" is for you) happens!

I stayed on at my sister's after the Thanksgiving holiday. The week after Thanksgiving was my birthday and I got to enjoy my first Mexican meal in over 6 months - boy did I miss it! I had to wait a few weeks for the other part to my birthday present as "The Hobbit" did not come out until the 14th and we waited until closer to Christmas so that our parents could enjoy it with us.

The other thing we did for my birthday actually took place the day before my birthday and that was the Miami Herald Hunt. This urban puzzle/treasure hunt took place in about a 6 block radius and was loads of fun! We did not do as well as we would have liked, but we learned a lot and will be better prepared for any future hunts. It all started with an insert in the Miami Herald - if we had realized that we had this insert already at home, we could have read through it all before we headed to the event location. This little paper held clues and a map that we would refer to through the afternoon. We went from station to station to figure out the various puzzles that would ultimately get us to solve the puzzle and hopefully win a cruise on the Carnival Breeze (the ship I took the transatlantic on). Of the 5 clues, we figured 3 out 100% correctly, on another we misunderstood the clue of "finality" for "totality" (so we miscounted), and the other we took a wrong turn and ended up with the incorrect sentence. It was a great event and we had a lot of fun figuring out the puzzles - next time we will do much better now that we have got the taste for it!

For the next few weeks I piddled around, took some long walks,  read books, saw a few movies, entertained my sister's cats, researched a couple of projects, researched/applied for jobs, did errands around the house, etc. With Christmas soon approaching I decided to hang out at least until the holidays were over. The weather, for the most part, has been wonderful here in sunny Florida. We have had a few days that were chilly, but nothing compared to what it was like in the Netherlands before I left Europe. We enjoyed New Years at home with a nice dinner, watched movies, and watched the fireworks from my sister's dock as we rang in 2013.

Since I had not planned on being back or working until this coming summer, I did not put any real effort into any one area in particular. I wanted to see where the wind would blow me on its own. There were a few gusts throughout the month of December, but no real strong tail wind to set me on my way. As I have not felt that my travels are yet over, I spoke with a few friends about hiking, taking a road trip, doing some other travel related things and in the end, everything fell through on their ends. Clearly my solo travel adventures are not over. Therefore, I will continue traveling, but in the USA for now and the blogging will continue. With the New Year here and my bags pretty well packed, I will be starting with a road trip and may show up on some of your doorsteps with very little notice. ;-)

I am now up to date and the blogging will continue.