Where can you find the world's biggest pizza?

If you are looking for the world's biggest pizza check out Big Lou's in San Antonio, Texas.  The whole huge pizza idea was a publicity stunt and thanks to an episode of Man vs. Food the business has boomed.  The wait is almost two hours on a typical night and longer on holidays and weekends.  It is worth every minute.  Not only is it fun to watch these enormous 48 inch pies delivered to the oversized tables, but the pizza is some of the best I have ever had.  AND they have not capitalized on their fame and raised the prices.  This place is good, fun and a bargain.  Big Lou himself even came by to check on our table.

 

Remember the Alamo

I knew I was not suppose to forget the Alamo, but I am not sure I ever really learned much about it in school in  the first place.  I think our tour guide might have happened upon the reason why.   She explained that there were no Americans fighting at the Alamo.  It was only TEXANS and TEJANOS against the Mexican army.    

Unlike many Americans I have not seen any of the "Alamo" movies.  I had this bizarre image in my mind of a wooden fort single-handedly protected by Davey Crockett.   Before we toured the Alamo I followed a strange suggestion in my guidebook and took the kids to "The Alamo" at the nearby IMAX theater.  I was so glad I did.  It gives you a much better idea of what the surrounding area looked like 175 years ago.  Thanks to the film and the guide talks we attended I  now  know  that the Alamo was actually built as a mission, later abandoned, and it's involvement in Texas' fight for independence was strictly because of strategic location.  

Today the Alamo sits in the center of urban San Antonio and while most of it has been restored and preserved you still find these markers in the pavement directly in front of ice cream parlors and tourist traps.

Around the corner is the San Antonio River Walk.  I had seen this in a movie once (yes I am referring to Miss Congeniality) and it looked so picturesque that we walked the length of the canal.

After having all of my misconceptions about the Alamo refuted, I decided I wanted to know the actual history of the river walk. As we took a boat ride down the canal we not only learned about it construction under the New Deal, but we also learned about the architecture.  For instance the lack of railings along the river is deliberate.  The original architect insisted on  this because he felt the closer people were to the water the more serene they would feel. 

Houston we have a problem..

Kennedy Space Center, Shuttle Launch, and one last space stop-  Johnson Space Center.

In case anyone is wondering, Spring Break in Houston is March 14th - 18th, and the Space Center has  great 1/2 off coupons online  Gone were our days of off season, deserted amusement park touring.   I am pretty sure the entire town of Houston was at the Space Center on Tuesday.

We bypassed the crowds in the space exhibits inside and joined the crowds lining up for the tours of the astronaut training facilities. 

 I was under the impression that NASA maintained some kind of anti-gravity chamber.  In actuality the only way they achieve weightlessness on Earth is in an airplane that can maintain a free fall for 22 seconds and in this massive 40 foot deep swimming pool.  Because training for 22 seconds at a time is impractical, all astronauts training for space walks spend much of their time in this pool.  Eleven hours of training in the pool for every one hour they will walk in space.

After waiting over an hour in line for the tour our timing could not have been more perfect.  Like the tour immediately proceeding ours, we got to see the astronauts working below the water, but unlike anyone else that day we got to see them lifted out of the water and helped out of their spacesuits. 

 On our tour to mission control Andy was looking forward  to seeing the actual "Houston" that Neil Armstrong was talking  to.

 It was a bit disappointing, but at the same time exciting that we were instead allowed to see the current mission control center.  There is only time to see one during the tour and our guide said it is infrequent that NASA allows tours of this facility.  After touring CNN I think we were expecting something a bit more high tech, but all of the space shuttle missions have been managed from this facility and it has 131 plaques to prove it.  Two plaques, one for Challenger and one for Columbia remain hanging on the wall in an "ongoing mission" status to commemorate astronauts that did not return home.

As we left Houston we couldn't help but compare it with our time at Cape Canaveral.  Kennedy certainly had a flashier facility, but both centers seemed a bit dated.  Houston did win the prize for out of date when a video during our tour frequently mentioned  when the US would start construction on the International Space Station.  Regardless, both Space Centers offer a fun glimpse into the real working side of NASA and in hindsight I am not sure I could choose one over the other.  I would probably just skip many of the exhibits and spend my time on the "behind the scenes" type tours.

An afternoon in the Big Easy

After a not so perfect night in a cheap hotel we had a perfect afternoon in the Big Easy.  I cannot recommend the La Quinta Inn in Meridian, Mississippi but I can recommend sightseeing in  New Orleans. 
Our visit was one week after Mardi Gras; this was not exactly coincidental.  Someday I would love to come and see Mardi Gras in all of its glory, but not for my first time in New Orleans and NOT alone with my kids.  I was so excited there were still decorations everywhere and beads hanging from the trees.  Kristen even acquired a few strands that were low hanging and ready to fall.

The kids thought I was crazy when I said we were going to the oldest cemetery in town, but this place is so cool.   Like nothing we had ever seen. 

Andy's favorite thing in New Orleans, "The beignets at Cafe du Monde"

Kristen's favorite thing in New Orleans, "The beignets at Cafe du Monde"

My favorite thing in New Orleans, "The architecture, touring the cemetary,  exploring the French Quarter, admiring the houses in the garden district, AND
the beignets at Cafe du Monde!

Farewell to the Motorhome

Sunday, March 13th
Farewell motorhome-
We have had the best of times, we have had the worst of times.  We wish we could take you with us, but it is time for us to go on alone.  No tears, David will return and take you to see all of your rv friends at the  NASCAR race in Talledega next month.  No laughing as we try to fit everything we need into my tiny little Corolla.  A new adventure begins... 

The World of News and Coca Cola

In sharp contrast to our days spent touring historical sights we spent a day immersed in up to the minute news and pop culture.  First up was a tour of CNN.  Initially the the kids had no desire to tour the network, but later exclaimed it was the favorite part of their day. 

The tour starts with a trip up this seven story escalator into the "world."  In the screening room at the top we saw our first glimpses of the destruction in Japan.  It was incredible to see the news from overseas "breaking" right in front of us.

 Across Centennial Park from CNN is the World of Coca Cola.  It is an extreme glimpse into pop culture of the past hundred years.  My picture did not come out, but I loved a sign from the 40s boasting of the new "family size" 16oz coca cola bottle with "three servings" to share.  

 Coca-Cola really is everywhere- even in space.

At least she was honest.  By the end of the day I think Andy had persuaded her to try to Coke.

 It was an exhausting day touring a entire world.

Nothing that a trip to the all you can drink tasting room can't cure.

We were camping at Stone Mountain campground so the next morning we took a gondola ride to the top.

The sun was out so we decided to ditch the gondola ride and hike down the mountain.

Andy of course had his own idea for how to get down.

Stone Mountain is a family amusement park (mostly closed for the winter) that is known for it's carving of three leaders of the confederacy- Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and Stonewall Jackson.  It is hard to tell from this photo but Davis' horse is the size of two school buses.

The Birthplace of Girl Scouts

I just couldn't resist referencing another "birthplace" just to annoy Andy.  I have been a Girl Scout leader for 12 years so I couldn't wait to visit the home of Girl Scout founder, Juliette Gordon Low.

This mid 1800s house was considered a typical upper middle class dwelling in Savannah in it's time.   My thought was "mansion,"  but I guess the south has a very different view of upper middle class.  The house is filled with art created by  Low, period items, and memorabilia from the early days of scouting in America.  I always love hearing the story of Juliette Low finding her true passion late in life and overcoming critics to share her love of art and nature with the girls of Savannah and beyond.  

 After dining at a few "Bubba Gump Shrimp Co." restaurants, Andy reminded me that I had never let him actually watch Forrest Gump.  So one night we stayed up after Kristen went to bed and watched the movie on the little TV in the motorhome.  After that we couldn't leave Savannah without visiting the iconic movie location..

 where "Life is Like a Box of Chocolates."

In real life there wasn't a bus stop with a park bench in Chippewa Square.  The benches used were props and one was left in the park after filming completed.  Unfortunately, it was plagued with vandalism.  We were thrilled to find it housed at the Savannah History Museum nearby.

Just picture a feather fluttering in the wind...

 We had dinner at the Pirate House, known for it's labyrinth of tunnels leading straight to the Savannah waterfront.

It may seem like fun and games now, but legend has it that many inebriated men (including a Savannah police officer)  were escorted through the tunnels from the bar to find themselves in servitude on a ship bound to China.

 (I am assured this is not how my husband began his seafaring career) 

Make new friends, but keep the old- March 4th

In the morning we made some new friends:

I had this brilliant plan that when we got to Tampa we would go see lots of manatee at the Manatee Viewing Center for free.  Although, November through mid March is "manatee season"  the 80+ degree weather had sent many of these gentle giants back out to their home in the Gulf of Mexico.

Plan B- we drove up to Crystal Springs to swim with the manatees.  Again, with the warm weather, we were warned that many had already headed out of their winter lodgings.  I can't imagine what it is like in the cooler months because there were manatee everywhere.

This one came within a foot of mine and Kristen's faces.  Kristen kept saying she wanted a manatee kiss, but this was plenty close when you realize how huge they are. 

Enjoying some hot chocolate on the boat, on the way back to the dock.

After our morning adventure we reconnected with some old friends (not friends that are old):

Our friend Amy, who watched my kids for many weekends when she lived in Hansville, lives just west of Tampa.  We made plans to meet at Pier 60 in Clearwater, Florida for the sunset celebration.

  This is a terrible picture, but there were two dolphins jumping the wake of this boat.

Take me out to the ballgame

Andy could write his own blog describing our weeks of fun at Spring Training, but  I will simply consolidate it down to a few highlights. 

1.  My favorite ballpark:  George Steinbrenner Field.  It is like being at Yankee Stadium only smaller and cheaper.

To promote his concert that night, Kenny G performed the National Anthem.

2.  My favorite game experience:  In addition to countless practice sessions, we attended four afternoon games.  In each stadium we had the least expensive seats so I feel confident I can make a fair comparison.  The Boston Red Sox vs. Minnesota Twins wins hands down in my book.  The stadium is a bit older (in fact they will have a new facility next year), but it is the perfect intimate setting for spring training.  We arrived when the stadium opened and laid out our blanket on the lawn at the wall in right field.  You are so close to the action you have to pinch yourself to remember that this is the same major league action we watch with 10s of thousands of people later in the season.

David Ortiz' walk off home run.

Can't forget a visit from Wall-e

3.   Least favorite game experience (not bad, just least favorite):  Sorry Mariners, but the Mariners v.  AZ Diamondbacks landed  at the bottom of my list.  It was the only stadium where we truly felt like we were in the "cheap seats."  On most of the lawn you can barely see the scoreboard and you can't hear the stadium announcer so you feel a bit disconnected from the fun.  Unfortunately, because of the Peoria locale, 90% of the attendees were AZ fans.  Not to mention that AZ won :(

4.  My favourite spring training player:  Nick Swisher.  We acquired a substantial collection of autographs, but most of the "big name" players usually passed right by.   Swisher not only stopped, but he signed before a game and signed for a huge crowd. 


Bottom line,  I am completely hooked.  I was as excited as Andy to finish schoolwork so we could head off to watch practice everyday.   If you are at all a fan of baseball this is the way to see it.