Our next plantation tour was at Belle Mead in Georgia. This was once a working farm and dairy that also raised dogs and horses. We enjoyed walking the grounds.
 |
| the mansion |
 |
| the maze we went through |
 |
| in the tennis court |
We drove through southern Georgia with its many cotton fields. Since it was harvest time, there were cotton clumps all over the roads, and trucks filled with bales too. We picked up a handful of cotton alongside the road.
 |
| bales of cotton on the truck, and cotton on the roadside |
We drove from Montgomery along the Civil Rights Trail, and stopped in Selma to see the famous bridge where three marches to Montgomery for voting rights were started.
In Birmingham, we went to the Civil Rights district and saw the 16th St. Baptist church which was bombed, and the park where many protests were held for civil rights.
 |
| 16th St. Baptist Church |
 |
| beautiful Fall colors at the park |
The Ave Maria Grotto in Alabama was our next stop. This lovely little grotto was on the grounds of a monastery and school. The works were made by one of the monks, and were fascinating to see. There were famous buildings from around the world, as well as scenes from the life of Christ.
 |
| California missions |
 |
St Peter's Basilica in Rome, and other Italian buildings
See the leaning Tower of Pisa in the top right? |
Thanksgiving arrived, and we spent a quiet day cooking and watching movies. We had our favorites: green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes, turkey, cornbread dressing, cranberries, rolls and butter, and pumpkin and pecan pie. It was delicious!
The next day we went to Huntsville for the Rocket and Space Center. It was amazing to see all the huge rockets, a space station, a space shuttle, and more. The Army's defensive rockets were there too. It was really interesting to see all those rockets, tried the similators to understand space travel, and see the technology we have now from the space research.
 |
| multi rocket launcher |
We drove on through farms to Nashville, Tennessee where we saw some famous places . . . .
 |
| the Grand Ole Opry . . |
 |
| the Ryman Auditorium, the former site of the Opry . . . |
 |
| the Parthenon . . . |
then we drove to Memphis to famous Beale St, where we ate at Dyer's, a place known for its grease fried burgers. It was delicious! We had to have some Memphis BBQ, so we had a rib plate complete with baked beans, coleslaw, and a roll.
We also saw many Memphis sites including....
 |
| Graceland . . |
. . . Took a tour of the Gibson Guitar Factory and learned all about making these world famous guitars. . . .
 |
| Beale St.. . |
 |
| the wreath marks the spot |
the motel where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot
We made a brief stop in Mississippi, then drove across the Mississippi river into Arkansas.
No comments:
Post a Comment