Many Miles Later (Branson, MO)

Branson, MO

We have been doing a lot of traveling since our last post.  We are in Branson, MO and we are planning to stay a couple of weeks.  We are a little tired of the faster pace we have been moving.  We are staying in an Escapees’ campground called Turkey Creek.  We have full hook-ups and cable TV.  A real plus is the campground’s  location.  We are within a 10 minute drive from Branson that is across the river and yet, we don’t feel like we are that close to the hustle and bustle of the downtown Branson.

Historic Downtown Paducah

Mural on flood gate in Paducah

So, to get you caught up with where we were and what we were doing….Leaving Knoxville to Paducah, KY turned into a very long travel day.   We found a nice little campground through RV Reviews that has only been in business for about 5 years.  They have suffered through floods, ice storms, and renovations already.   Can you imagine spending a winter there? Our site faced a small pond that had one Great Blue Heron fishing in it a few times a day.

Sandy has wanted to visit the National Quilt Museum for many years.  We picked one of the hottest days to visit the historic downtown Paducah.  We got downtown early, but it was so hot and humid, we could barely breathe.  We walked along the city’s flood gate while checking out the gate’s mural and Ohio River.  The downtown area had some very unusual buildings and yes, Sandy took photos of a few of them.  We did not last long walking before we decided it was time to spend some time inside with air conditioner!  We were soaked! Ugh!  We had lunch and Sandy went off to the museum.  No photos were allowed.  Sandy did not get enough of quilts, so she walked over to Eleanor Burn’s Quilt in a Day shop.  The employees greeted her with an invite to take photos which surprised Sandy since most quilt shops discourage it.

New kitchen faucet

While Sandy did her quilt thing, Dan headed off to Home Depot for sink parts.  He had installed a new kitchen faucet, but found the new faucet connections have changed.  Of course, they did not fit right and there was some minor leaking.  The next day, he worked on the sink and now it is perfect!

Jay & Sandy in front of Kindly Geppeto

We left Paducah two days later and headed north to see Sandy’s brother Jay in Illinois.   The trip turned into another long travel day with too much traffic.  We were happy to settle at Scott AFB FamCamp despite only having 30 amp electrical and no sewer drop at the site.  We had a wonderful time visiting with Jay’s son Ryan, his wife Kim, and their two boys, Hunter and Caiden.  The following day, Jay played tour guide and took us into the downtown St. Louis area.  We wandered around the City Gardens and under the Arch.  Sandy could have spent more time taking photos, but again it was just too hot and humid to spend too much time outdoors. So we went shopping instead!

1 Fish-eye lens and 2 Arcs x 4

Thanks to Jay for showing us around St. Louis, cooking delicious vegetarian meals, and for letting us talk him into adopting a cat!  What a guy!  It all started when we went to Pet Smart and saw two very cute cats.  They were both quiet and wanted a lot of loving.  I guess we talked about the cats a little too much.  By the end of the evening, Jay was heading home with a 3 year old cat and a trunk full of supplies.  He changed her name from Paine to Charmin as in “Please don’t squeeze the Charmin. You have to admit she does look soft enough to squeeze and she has a very mellow attitude that we can see someone wanting to hug her a lot.

Charmin making herself
comfortable in her new home.

That night Jay sent this text message:

Litter box set up, cat tested and approved: CHECK!
Flea prevention applied while cat purrs: CHECK!
Water & food bowls cat tested and approved: CHECK!
House & owner (servant): Still under inspection, approval pending.

Post note: Jay sent an update today.  Charmin has Jay on a schedule and it sounds like the beginning of a beautiful friendship! 

Key West "America's Caribbean"

It is a whole different world here. It has sometimes been referred to as “America’s Caribbean”.

The beaches are from crushed white limestone and it is hard on the feet, so best to wear water shoes into the warm waters.  There's a few sandy beaches open to the public in Key West such as Smathers Beach, Higg’s Beach, and Ft. Zachary State Park.  As a matter of fact, all of the keys are made from limestone and an ancient coral reef giving this area its tropical setting.  Even Hemingway’s home is made from limestone. The first owner excavated limestone from the very spot the house was built. This gave the house a basement area and the first pool on the island.

Of course, we had to visit Hemingway’s home and all the cats. Hemingway had not planned on living in Key West. He and his wife, Pauline stopped in Key West to pick up a Roadster to drive to their final destination, but the car was not delivered for 7 weeks. By the time the car was delivered Key West had worked its magic on Hemingway and he decided to stay. Well, for at least the next 10 years, then he moved to Havana, Cuba after his divorce.

A sea captain gave Hemingway his first 6-toed cat and that cat apparently did a lot of tomcatting for many years based on the number of 6-toed cats on the estate. There are quite a few cat houses, food dishes, and water dishes throughout the grounds. One special drinking fountain for the cats has an old urinal catching water from a Spanish olive jar. The urinal came from Joe Russell’s “Sloppy Joe’s” place. Pauline disguised it with tiles. Pictures of the Hemingway Estate are in a separate album.

We bicycled all around the island one day. There are bike trails and designated bike lanes all over the island. Drivers learn very fast to keep an eye out for Jay-walkers, scooters, and bike riders so we felt safe riding our bikes on the narrow main streets in the downtown area. We were able to see more on our bikes than when we are in the car, not to mention that we got a lot of exercise. It is just over over 12 miles to ride around the island of Key West. We will probably do it again since it is easier to park a bike than to find a parking space for our car without paying.

Last week, we went to Casa Marina Resort for a Pet Masquerade during the week of Fanasy Fest.  Some owners were more dressed up than the pets. It was still a lot of fun and we took quite a few pictures. Many of the pets were enjoying the attention as much as their people. We swear that many of them were actually posing for the camera.

After the pet show, we walked downtown to check out Fantasy Fest and the sunset celebration at Mallory Square with the blowing of the conchs.  We cannot post many pictures of Fantasy Fest as it is a bit wild and not PC.  No nudity is allowed, but body paint and scraps of cloth constitute suitable clothing for some in the main blocks of the fest.  The theme this year was Habitat for Insanity.


Even grocery shopping is a different experience. We came across frozen bags of yucca and plantains. We tried the fried plantains at a restaurant and they were very good. We will have to try the yucca sometime in the near future.


We try to either walk, bicycle, or kayak each day.  Dan has a new case for his small digital camera, so will try and get some on the water kayak pictures posted soon.


When we are here at the motorhome in the evening, we go outside to watch the sun set. We have added more pictures to our Sunset album. A few of the campers blow on conch shells signaling the setting of the sun. It is so peaceful and so beautiful that it is hard to believe such a place actually exists. Pinch me!

Key West Photo Albums: More Key West
Key West Sunsets/Sunrise
Key West Critters
Key West Week #1