Category: Travel

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Blogging Driving Nature Photography Travel

My November Vacation 2021 Road-Trip

#TravelThursday continues now with Part 2 of my 7-part blog series on my recent 18-day road-trip between South Florida and North Texas.

At the end of Part 1 I was enjoying food and fellowship at a Thai restaurant in Semmes Alabama – a northwestern suburb of Mobile. From there I got back on U.S. 98, and I headed northwestward into Mississippi. I enjoy driving this mostly peaceful stretch of U.S. 98 – particularly on the Mississippi side, as it’s a rural divided 4-lane highway (versus a narrow 2-lane road on the Alabama side west of Semmes). I think there have been plans to widen the 2-lane stretch to 4 lanes over the years, but due to environmental concerns regarding the Big Creek Lake reservoir and its watershed those plans have been postponed indefinitely. (The reservoir serves as the municipal water supply for the Mobile area.)

On the south side of Hattiesburg Mississippi I took U.S. 49 northwestward through the heart of the city and beyond. (I wrote about “The Hub City” Hattiesburg 3 weeks ago here on #TravelThursday.)

In the past I’ve taken U.S. 49 90 miles northwestward from Hattiesburg to Jackson – the capital and largest city of Mississippi. But this time I took a much different route. From U.S. 49 I jumped on U.S. 84.

U.S. 84 is a major east-west highway that extends over 1,900 miles across 7 states from high up in the Rocky Mountains of Southwestern Colorado to the low-country of the Atlantic shores of Georgia. It crosses the U.S. Continental Divide in northern New Mexico at an elevation above 7,700 feet.

I took peaceful and scenic U.S. 84 mostly a little south of due westward (and mostly with the mid-November afternoon sun directly in front of me) all the way to the eastern banks of the mighty Mississippi River at Natchez. I didn’t get to see much of Natchez (other than the drive through the city to my hotel), but I did walk over (across the street from my hotel) to the grounds of the Natchez Visitor Reception Center – where I captured a few nice photographic memories as the sun was getting ready to set on the bluff. Here’s one of them overlooking the Mississippi River. (Louisiana is on the other side of the river.)

I didn’t get to visit the museum inside, as I got there about 20 minutes prior to closing time. I’ll have to visit Natchez again on a future trip to and from North Texas.

“The River City” Natchez looks like a fun destination city for locals and others in the region to experience and enjoy for a few days and nights right along the mighty Mississippi River. It has a large downtown district with a stand-alone convention center. Many of its hotels have their own convention centers and rooms. There are about 1,200 hotel rooms in and around Natchez. Tourism supports this city. Its population has actually been declining over the past 40 years, and less people call Natchez home today than they did in 1940. But it still looks like a fun town to visit.

I spent the night in Natchez at the conclusion of Day 2 of my road-trip. I drove 462 miles on this day (Friday November 12TH 2021), for a grand total of 981 miles since the start.

And that’s where I’ll end Part 2 of this 7-part blog series. I’ll continue with my road-trip adventures and experiences next #TravelThursday. We’ll cross the Mississippi River into Louisiana, continue along the Interstate Highway System into Texas, arrive at my family’s home, enjoy a fun Japanese hibachi grill Lunch, and finally visit two of the top tourist attractions in Dallas Texas.

All rights reserved (c) 2021 Christopher M. Day, CountUp Ministries

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Driving Food Travel

Whataburger

I’m not much of a fast food consumer. In fact here at home I generally avoid all of the big fast food restaurants. (I don’t consider Starbucks or Panera as fast food; although, a case could be made that they are.)

They say “When in Texas – eat at Whataburger“. I don’t know who “they” are, but I understand it. There are hundreds (870+) Whataburger locations across the deep U.S. south – most of them (700+) in Texas. They were founded in Corpus Christi in 1950, and their corporate headquarters is in San Antonio.

There are actually 37 locations along the I-10 corridor of the Florida Panhandle eastward from Pensacola to Jacksonville and its beaches. My family used to live in Jacksonville and its suburbs. That’s when I discovered the Whataburger experience.

There’s nothing really special about the experience. They specialize in burgers and fries. They also serve chicken and fish sandwiches, sodas, shakes, and pies. It’s your typical fast food fare. The prices are comparable to all other fast food restaurants. I think the service is a little different in that you order and pay at the counter, and if you’re eating-in then they give you a numbered placard which you take to your seat. They then bring your order to you – no matter how small or large it is. They also bring you an entire tray of condiments, and then you select which ones you want.

I always try to remember to order the apple pie. They make it the way McDonald’s used to make it a long time ago – fried and piping-hot !

I didn’t get a chance to enjoy the Whataburger experience on my last few visits to North Texas, so I made it a point to do so on my recent visit. I ate once while there, and then I enjoyed an encore shortly after the start of my long drive home just after leaving Texas on the south side of Shreveport Louisiana. Both experiences were positive, and I was no longer hungry following my burger and fries meal.

You know I forgot to order the fried apple pie on my 2ND visit. I won’t make that mistake again next time.

All rights reserved (c) 2021 Christopher M. Day, CountUp Ministries

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Bible Blogging Christian Church Driving God Ministry Scripture Travel

Sunday Scripture

Greetings my friends. It is Sunday December 05TH 2021, and this is the day that our LORD has made. Let us rejoice. Let us be glad in it. Let us celebrate this great new day of believing, following, trusting, loving, and being more like our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ.

I’ve returned home from yet another road-trip vacation, and this was a long one – one of the longest of my life. It started on Thursday November 11TH, and it ended on Sunday November 28TH – a total of 18 days. I’m blogging my road-trip adventures and experiences over the course of 7 Thursdays through December and into January. Part 1 of my 7-part series was posted this past #TravelThursday.

I missed 3 Sundays in a row with my church family here at home. I did not attend a church service during my road-trip even though it was in my plans to do so. I missed the pre-service fellowship. I missed singing about our God up on stage. I missed learning more about our God from our Pastor. I missed the post-service fellowship Lunch at a local restaurant. I missed it all – 3 times over. I’m excited about returning later this morning !

This past Wednesday December 01ST in the afternoon a bunch of us gathered at our church building to put up all of our Christmas decorations within our sanctuary. It all looks very festive now. We did a great job, but the important part of it all was the fellowship that got it done. God’s fellowship. God’s love among His children.

It’s the first Sunday of a brand new month, so we’ll observe and celebrate Communion this morning.

I may incorporate this Scripture into my Communion this morning:

Then Jesus said – “Come to Me – all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you. Let Me teach you – because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30 NLT)

If you wish to learn more about the God I know then stay tuned to #SundayScripture. Tomorrow it’s #Top10Monday, as I present my personal Top 10 hits this week that honor our God Almighty on the radio.

Thank you for reading my blog for this day, and may:

The LORD bless you, and keep you.
The LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you.
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. AMEN.

All rights reserved (c) 2021 Christopher M. Day, CountUp Ministries

Categories
Blogging Driving Food Holidays Military Travel

My November Vacation 2021 Road-Trip

I have returned back home (where I belong) to Homestead Florida after 18 days on the road between here in South Florida (30 miles southwest of Miami) and my family’s home in North Texas (25 miles northeast of Dallas).

#TravelThursday continues now with a recap of my adventures and experiences along this extended multi-holiday road-trip. In fact I’ll be looking back on this road-trip for the next 7 Thursdays (starting today). I’ve got a lot to cover. I’ve got a lot to look back at with joy. If you’re interested in this trip then read on and stay tuned, for we’ll visit some fun places together (virtually).

Let’s get started – at the crack of dawn on Thursday November 11TH (Veterans Day here in the U.S.A.), as that’s when this road-trip commenced. I took Florida State Road 997 (known locally as Krome Avenue) onto U.S. 27 up the spine of the Florida peninsula. I refer to Krome and the southern portion of U.S. 27 as the #CMDRH. (That stands for the “Chris M. Day Retirement Highway” – for obvious reasons.)

Every military veteran knows that on Veterans Day you can pretty much eat for free at selected restaurants for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. Many restaurants offer free portions of meals (appetizers, desserts), and other restaurants offer assorted discounts. Denny’s and Bob Evans are two restaurant chains that offer free meals on Veterans Day. As I cruised up U.S. 27 into Central Florida I intended to stop at either restaurant – as long as the respective parking lot wasn’t jam-packed. I passed by about a half-dozen Denny’s and Bob Evans locations that were bustling with cars and people – even lines waiting to get in. An ideal situation would’ve been to eat at Denny’s for Breakfast (free) – and then Bob Evans for Lunch or Dinner (free). I finally found a Bob Evans with a few empty parking spaces at around 11 AM in Clermont, so that’s where Lunch was to be. After a short wait in line I enjoyed a nice, hearty, and delicious “Country-Fried Steak – Dinner Bell Plate”. #Yum

After my free meal at Bob Evans I continued up the road, over to the Nature Coast (“Big Bend”) of Florida, into the Panhandle, and just past Tallahassee for my first night’s pitstop. I drove 519 miles on Day 1 of my 18-day road-trip.

On Day 2 I took I-10 westward for another 180 miles to the Alabama state line. That’s right – it took me nearly 700 miles just to get out of Florida !

Incidentally driving through Pensacola along I-10 is never fun. It’s actually rather intimidating (for me). It’s a close call as to which stretch of I-10 in the Florida Panhandle is more challenging – Tallahassee or Pensacola. In both cases I-10 skirts the northern fringes of the cities (rather than traversing right through the middle of them). But due to the combination of local and Interstate traffic there’s a whole lot of merging going on, and merging traffic gives me anxiety attacks.

Rivaling both Tallahassee and Pensacola is I-10 through Mobile Alabama. I prefer to cruise the scenic route along Battleship Parkway (the concurrency of U.S. 90 / 98 which runs adjacent to and closer to the water than I-10).

I wrote about Mobile Alabama 4 weeks ago here on #TravelThursday. On this visit (on Friday November 12TH) I drove past a few more places that I’d like to spend some quality time at in the future – including the USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park. I really need to return to Mobile and spend several days there exploring the attractions of the city on both land and sea. It would also be nice to spend more quality time with my friends there.

I did make a 90-minute stop in Semmes (a suburb northwest of Mobile). I think I know about a dozen people who live in or near Semmes who also lived in Homestead 10 years ago. I ate with one of those people. I enjoyed good Thai food and fellowship with one of my great friends. I’ve known her for nearly 15 years – since the first 3 minutes of my very first Sunday morning church service as a born-again Christian on January 21ST 2007.

And that’s where I’ll end Part 1 of this 7-part blog series. I’ll continue with my road-trip adventures and experiences next #TravelThursday. We’ll cruise-up U.S. 98 into Mississippi, and we’ll cross the state via old rural U.S. highways – over to the eastern bank of the mighty Mississippi River.

All rights reserved (c) 2021 Christopher M. Day, CountUp Ministries