New York, New York

The weather outside on our New York bound adventure.

After the tumultuous uncertainty of the last week of road tripping across America our final destination before the UK and Europe was the light at the end of a 9000 mile tunnel. We are very happy, and relieved, that there was no damage to the RV and even with the sleepless and stress filled days now behind us we can look back on the great American road trip with very fond memories and plenty of stories. Our trip into New York from New Jersey happened to fall right in the middle of one of the worst winter storms to hit the area this season. After struggling into a taxi with all our worldly possessions we arrived in New York after two short taxi trips and a half hour train ride. While waiting in line for a taxi at Penn Station we had our first encounter with New Yorkers who quizzed James on why he had a stuffed animal strapped to his luggage and after claiming to ‘just be holding it for a friend’, who happened to be standing out of sight at the time, the whole situation was an unexpected and entertaining way to enter New York City.

Our apartment. Spacious

Our apartment is on West 15th Street just off 7th Avenue, in Chelsea for those of you playing at home, and is in a really nice neighborhood with everything within a five minute walk or subway trip. Granted we have been living in an 17 foot RV for the last four months, but having to walk more than two steps from the kitchen to the bedroom is really luxurious and we are really glad to call this place home until early march. After settling in after only a matter of hours it became clear there was so much to do and it didn’t take long to make a list of things we wanted to do in The Big Apple. Our first impression of New York, regardless of the mountains of snow and ice on the sidewalks, was a good one and New York is a really easy city to live in and enjoy. The public transport is incredible and we have not had to wait more than a couple of minutes to catch a subway train to any of Manhattan’s destinations.


Our first destination was the downtown area and financial district to pick up some winter essentials, better jackets, gloves and scarves, to bear the bone chilling winds whipping through the cavernous streets of New York’s boroughs. After experiencing some seriously good coffee [from a little place called Kaffe on Greenwich] we wandered through the World Trade Centre Memorial and were unexpectedly moved by the stories and artifacts portraying the heroic and tragic loss of life on that fateful day in September. After a challenging half hour of self reflection it was time to pick up what we needed for winter and it took all afternoon to stroll the gargantuan expanses of Century 21 to find what we needed and it didn’t cost nearly as much as expected, which gave us a little more cash to burn in this fantastic city.

Mmmmm...gluten free brownies.

It has been so long since we updated the blog and we have done something nearly every day, unless the mercury drops well into the negatives, and with each day we both feel more at home and in love with this bustling metropolis. We have done all the usual things early to give us time to explore the different and distinctive areas of Manhattan. One notable highlight so far has been the food and coffee scene here. We have been able to find top quality products and experienced some seriously good stuff in the last couple of weeks. We have nearly worked our way through the menu at Babycakes, a bakery specializing in gluten free and vegan cookies, cakes and more, and we really cannot speak highly enough of what Babycakes are capable of. Their cupcakes and cookies, all gluten free for Antoinette’s sake, are so close to the real thing and free of most of the things that make cupcakes a sometimes food. Seeing Antoinette’s expression after biting into a brownie, something she had cast into the ‘I’m never going to have those again so I’m not going to think about it’ pile, was entertaining enough to see us return three times in the last week. Another incredible taste of Manhattan’s cuisine was made possible through NYC Restaurant Week and a little place called Megu. This place takes Japanese food and twists it into a modern double helix of taste and design and the results were exceptional. Great sushi, great kobe steak and a great vibe in the restaurant made this a wicked experience and we were even able to put the $9 price tag on the spring water behind us.

We were also fortunate enough; at least James was, to be in America for the Superbowl. Getting into the spirit of things required some research into peri peri marinades and the results were pretty damn close to our beloved Mt.Barker chicken wings from home. The result of the game was kind of irrelevant, but the commercials were entertaining enough and these 30 second snippets were the only reason Antoinette was able to bear the three hours of padded meat wagons running into each other to prove their ‘stick-to-it-ivness’ [a very intelligible phrase used by a NFL commentator].

Another highlight of Manhattan is, of course, the shopping. Everything from custom kicks to shelves and cabinets full of belt buckles are right around every corner and the areas surrounding Soho have definitely made our wallets a little bit too light for our liking. Then again sacrificing meat for a week to gain the last pair of US 9s limited edition Star War Adidas kicks was always going to be an easy decision. We have been able to splurge a little in this city and we are very glad we toughed it out in the middle of our trip to leave cash to spend here as the opportunities and potential for entertainment in this city are limited only to our imaginations. The only limitation on our spending is the practicality of transporting our latest acquisitions via very limited luggage space into the UK, where the inevitable accumulation of belongings will continue and probably require the purchase of another bag to carry everything home.

Steel on ice. What can go wrong?

The weather here has been what you would expect in the depths of a North American winter and the sidewalks are finally visible for the first time in two weeks. The maximum temperatures have been floating between five above to nine below for the last two weeks and seeing maximums in the double digits for the next couple of days is really exciting for us. There have been days when we have been forced to cut our explorations short because of the bitter winds and cold weather eating through our many layers of clothing. The weather hasn’t really stopped us doing what we want to do and we have thoroughly explored central park, despite a foot of snow covering everything. Ice Skating, or more precisely, Ice Stumbling [seriously the guy who thought it would be a good idea to put metal and ice together for fun needs some therapy] was good for a laugh and taking a horse drawn carriage through the park was something pretty memorable. The weather has been made bearable, mostly because of the public transport, and you never really have to spend to much time in the cold and it doesn’t take long to warm up as every store and restaurant has their heating on overdrive.

For us Manhattan has been about the little things. Babycakes’ brownies, the shake shack at Madison Square Park, the little sculptures throughout our local subway, hot dogs in central park while seeing a crazy guy dancing on the sidewalk, the crazily busy comic book store and the really average buskers on the subway are some examples of the little things that continue the stream of pleasant surprises. Just walking the streets makes the little strips of cafes and shops visible and there is plenty more for us to do before we leave in a little over two weeks. We have planned day trips to Brooklyn and some of New York’s other boroughs, a few more museums, a debaucherous night at a comedy club, a night out with a few beverages and a plenty more to keep us busy and out of trouble. Apartment living is definitely a luxury we are taking advantage of while it lasts and we know the reality of living in the UK will have us sharing space with more than a few people. All the more reason to take in this city while we can.

'Till next time,

Antoinette and James.

The End of The Road: Almost

Leaving Florida was easy, it would have been less easy had we known the sunshine we saw would be the last we would see until reaching the northern most parts of North Carolina. We headed for a place called Charleston on the South Carolina coast and arrived just ahead of bad weather that seems to have been stalking us since we left like a shadow. Charleston is a place full of history and architecture stretching back to the conflicts that shaped the United States into what they have become today. Charleston is a quiet port town thriving on the near by college and tourism for more than a couple of reasons. Our first day in Charleston saw us brave the cool conditions embracing the area to check out the Ft.Sumter Island and cruise around the museums and restaurants dotted along the riverfront.

Ft.Sumter

Ft.Sumter is a fortification used throughout the last two hundred years to defend the strategically important coastal access and was where the first shots of the United States civil war rang out. Charleston was also a hub for the trade and sale of slaves in the 1700s and learning about the history of the time and the area was a humbling and thought provoking experience. The labor purchased was used to fuel the growth of plantations in the area and drove the local economy from strength to strength and maintained many households throughout the Charleston area. There were some amazing examples of architecture spread through the downtown district and we finally got to see the inside of one of them after trying about four others in the pouring rain. The splendor of these houses was an impression of the lifestyles lived by those with the means and money to make something of their family name and seeing very well preserved furniture well over 200 years old was fascinating.

Check out those cannons on the North Carolina

The colder weather meant our expeditions outdoors were becoming shorter and our planned route would see us travel further northwest towards Central America. We changed our minds after driving through a winter wonderland and constant sleet on our way to see Bishopville. After two days in the freezing cold and our new route that would see us stay closer to the coast all the way up to Washington DC meant the coastal town of Wilmington, North Carolina, would be our home for a couple of nights. To pass the time we decided to tour the USS North Carolina, the most decorated US battleship from the WWII Pacific Campaign. The size of the ship is really deceptive and being able to walk through nine levels of solid steel makes you realize how massive these ships really were. There were some eerie moments below decks, including one were the lights turned out momentarily, and seeing the massive projectiles the USS North Carolina fired through the 16” cannons above was frightening in an awesome kind of way. The tour seemed to take forever and it took most of the afternoon to wind our way up and down through the levels and sections of the ship before coming back out onto the main deck to get hit by a seriously chilly wind. Wilmington is also renowned for its boardwalk shopping district, but it was far from what we expected and after a few hours of pointless and fruitless meandering we headed back to Phoenix to take in a good hot dinner, our last southern dining experience [mmm…ribs] and a little rest and recuperation.

Mmmm...cold.

After a few relaxing days in Wilmington we continued our north bound adventures with the Outer Banks and Cape Hatteras of North Carolina well and truly in our sightes. The weather was atrocious and we were both fighting colds while the wind and rain rocked our little RV from side to side with us well and truly thanking our decision to invest in top quality thermal gear. Now would be as good a time as any to mention the lengths we are going to in order to stay warm in these sub zero temperatures. A typical outing requires two pairs of socks, a singlet, two shirts, two jumpers, two pairs of thermal leggings, a pair of jeans, a rain jacket, gloves and a beanie. Getting in and out of this gargantuan collection of thermal clothing is a time consuming task, but necessary as even this still sees our extremities feel the bite of the cold more than both of us would like. Driving isn’t the bad part, because the heating keeps us really warm, but when we stop and the chill sets in it doesn’t take very long for Phoenix to cool down. Keeping warm is tough enough, but with the sights and attractions becoming sparser and further apart it wouldn’t take us to long to get through what we had planned in the Outer Banks.

I believe I can fly

For those who know their aviation history the Wright brothers certainly need no introduction and the first point of call in the Outer Banks was paying the first men in flight a visit. Over 100 years ago two brothers who owned a bicycle store started coming to the Kitty Hawk area of the Outer Banks to test their imaginations and engineering skill. The results landed their names in history books as the first men to achieve self propelled flight and kick started the aviation industry. Seeing the area where the brothers conducted their historic tests and seeing first hand the distance achieved by the first flyer was really something special and inspiring. After wandering around the parkland and checking out some of the exhibits we headed south along the Outer Banks to check out the tallest lighthouse in the United States.

The Cape Hatteras lighthouse looks like a massive barbers pole and is one of the oldest operational lighthouses left in the country. The lighthouse is a massive building and was impressively moved from its original location away from the crumbling sea wall several years ago. The weather at the time made it difficult to see the top of the lighthouse, but it was more something to pass the time than a ‘must do.’ Typically during the warmer months the lighthouse is open to the public allowing wicked views of the banks and the small coastal island, but with tourism season well and truly over we just had to take their word for it. The Outer Banks area really does thrive on tourism and most of the businesses in the area were closed for the season and this would definitely be an amazing place to visit during the summer months. This concluded our North Carolina adventures and DC was our next point of call.

Arriving in the nations capitol was exciting for a couple of reasons, one being the feeling of seeing the places we have seen so much of through modern media and the other was the fact our road trip of a life time was close to its conclusion. For two days we took in the history and culture of the DC area and visited the Smithsonian museums and monuments that make this area a hotbed for tourism and everything American. Standing on the stairs of the Lincoln memorial and being in a place where so many brilliant minds and movements have pronounced their missions to the world was a very surreal feeling for both of us. Another favourite place of ours was the American Museum of National History, which features everything from original Muppet dolls, Dorothy’s red slippers from The Wizard of Oz and one of the very first star spangled banners ever made. Seeing so much in such short a time made it difficult to absorb, but standing before a copy of the Magna Carta from 1297, original copies of the bill of rights, the United States’ Constitution and the declaration of independence was a humbling experience. It is not the age and condition of the documents, but instead the knowledge that surrounded these documents when they were written and being in the vicinity of something so historically significant is something we both will not be forgetting in a hurry. So after two jam packed days of overloading our brains with more history than we have witnessed before and a winter storm closing in on New York we cut one day from our intended stay in DC to beat the storm and return Phoenix the next day.

The drive was uneventful, and we wish we could say that for the events that followed, but we have run into what could be a costly issue with Phoenix. Upon checking into yet another budget motel and taking Phoenix to the drop off location everything seemed to be going to plan until we were asked if we had ‘winterised’ the RV. This was the first time we had heard of this and we asked what it meant. Apparently RVs are incredibly susceptible to cold weather [well at least the plumbing, pumps and fixtures] and the pipes and attached accessories are supposed to be either emptied by air pressure or filled with non toxic anti freeze to ensure the system does not suffer freezing damage. Our vehicle supplier never made us aware of the potential damage cold weather could inflict on the RV and the documents they supplied mention nothing regarding maintenance of the system in preparing for sub zero temperatures, so needless to say, we feel a little cheated. After such an epic adventure and road trip to have something like this happen and have a potentially hefty bill hang over our heads is absolutely devastating and we both have a few sleepless nights ahead while the rental company assesses the damage. Not really the way we wanted to say goodbye to Phoenix and we are looking into our options and awaiting further information before deciding what to do. So stay tuned for more.

‘Till next time,

Antoinette and James.

Mission Accomplished: Well Almost

Antoinette's XMas Tree

We left you with a massive interval between entries last time and believe us when we say our days have been full on for most of the last three weeks. With Christmas, New Years and so much in between finding time to rest, let alone update you all on what we have been doing, has been hard. Christmas Day was amazing and we both got to chat with family, which was a boost we both really needed, as was the cocktail with vodka, juice and champagne poured into a novelty yard glass procured in Vegas. We had so much good food and were able to spend the day drifting in and out of sleep while watching movies and tv, which is something we have not been able to do since we left home all those months ago.

Prawns: Cuban Style

Tampa is a city sharing a lot of similarities with Perth due to it’s size, population and proximity to the ocean and nearby porting facilities. The port of Tampa is still one of the most important and busiest in the USA as all goods must pass through Tampa from South America onwards up to the east coast and even further for Europe. One afternoon was spent on a cycling tour of downtown Tampa, which was thoroughly deserted because of school holidays and the Christmas break. The tour was a great way to get acquainted with some of the history of Tampa and how this city has evolved through the last century. What started as a small colony was not a destination until the railroad was installed and allowed a port to be established on the west coast of what would become the Florida peninsula. It then became a hotbed for immigrant populations and Cubans, Italians and Spanish peoples would settle and influence the areas food and culture over the coming years. Tampa was once home to the largest cigar manufacturing plants in the world and it was not until the 1930s that their economic influence could not overcome the depression, advances in cigar manufacturing production and subsequent downturn in demand for hand rolled cigars. Since then the plants have been permanently closed. The evening was finished with our first Cuban dining experience, which took place at the largest family owned restaurant in America, in a place capable of serving 1500 people for each meal. The food was good and plentiful and left us with a very satisfied feeling for downtown Tampa.

Our view from the mountains.

Tampa had one last event in store for us and after freezing our asses off in the nosebleed section of Raymond James stadium watching the Buccaneers comprehensively beat the Seahawks, it was time to head west for St.Petersburg. St.Petersburg is billed as Tampa’s dysfunctional brother, but we did not really see the wild side we expected. The day we spent in St.Pete’s dissolved taking in the largest public display of works by the genius Salvadore Dali and chilling on the pier. The collection of Dali’s masterpieces is quite amazing and seeing the different stages this artist went through to achieve his ‘master’ status was intriguing and insightful to say the least. The magnitude of his bigger works is really something and the intricacies and illusions he places on canvas firmly cements his position as one of the most impressive and unique artists of recent history. Our detour through St.Pete’s was a welcome change from the ill managed RV park we found ourselves trapped in over the Christmas break, but with the east coast calling our names it was time to head south for Miami and some much needed sunshine.

The infamous Ocean Drive in South Beach, Miami.

The drive to Miami was brilliant, purely because the temperature increased as every hour passed, and it was not long before we were in our dodgy motel room literally across the road from the airport. We can say, with great humility, WE DID IT! We have crossed the country from San Diego to Miami with everything in between and although the gravity of what we have accomplished has not fully sunk in we both know we will be very proud of what we have done when it does. Within two days of being in Miami we had our RV serviced, picked up genuine hand rolled Ecuadorian cigars and toured the art deco district of south beach leaving us just enough time to prepare ourselves to celebrate the year that was. We headed back to South Beach to enjoy the pedestrian heaven that was made possible by road blockages on Ocean Drive, the road running alongside Miami’s most famous beach, with bars and restaurants moving their al fresco areas right out onto the roadway. Most of the entertainment was compiled into a very compact area and the evening involved us having a drink inside one art deco hotel after another taking in the freak show that was unfolding in front of us on the foot path. Being in such an iconic location for New Years was really something special. The first day of 2011 was anything but classy with a serious sleep in, junk food and plenty of trashy television and, in all honesty, it probably was not much different from many we have spent at home previously.

Sleeping alligator.

Another thing we had on our to do list in South Florida was checking out the everglades and cruising around in one of the airboats, pretty much just a dinghy with a massive fan on the back. This would happen at Billie’s Swamp Tours and Safari’s where we also saw a trainer put an alligator to sleep by rubbing its belly and were also taken on a slow drive in monster trucks through the reserve to see a variety of animals. We were able to see more animals, including some not native to the area, than we did on both of our previous swamp tours, but after seeing the everglades one swamp looks much like another. It was a nice relaxing day and was good to get out of the hotel after spending the previous day inside the confines of our small room. We have both decided to live in the moment a little more in 2011 and a spontaneous decision to take a cruise to the Bahamas was just what we needed to kick start our resolution.

Junkanoo Beach and clouds. :(

The all-inclusive tour started with a 5am pickup and being the first people aboard the shuttle we also knew we would be the last dropped off much later that night. After picking up other passengers we were taken to the terminal and were on board the discovery cruise ship in no time. The breakfast was wicked, or more wicked than anything we have had in a while, and not having to do any dishes was a great bonus. The beverages were flowing freely by mid morning, although there was no matching to table of Germans across the room who looked like they had been enjoying the free booze since boarding the vessel, and we settled in for our five hour trip to the Bahamas. The weather was not fantastic and we were told we would need to purchase tours if we wanted to do anything on the island we were headed towards because the port area is isolated from any of the sights. This pissed us off a little as we thought an ‘all inclusive’ cruise would cover things like this, but alas we caved and organized to be transported to one of the islands best beach clubs. After an okish lunch and a few hours on a sandy beach covered by an endless patchwork of clouds it was time to head back to Miami. The time flew by really quickly this time, as we tipped the waiter a little more to make sure our glasses were rarely empty, and even the god awful tunes the “DJ” was playing all night couldn’t dampen our spirits. What did end up dampening our spirits was the bus ride home which saw us open our hotel room door two and a half hours after reaching shore in Miami at about 11:30pm.

Any higher and we would need oxygen.

Like we have mentioned before we have been doing something pretty much every day and the following day was no different. On our last night in Miami we cruised back to South Beach to soak it all up one last time and give Antoinette a chance to get some photos of the brightly lit fluorescent signs adorning the classic art deco hotels in the area. Afterwards we headed for American Airline’s Arena to see the Miami Heat clash with the Milwaukee Bucks, host of fellow Australian Andrew Bogut. Seeing some really classy NBA players like Lebron James and Dwayne Wade make shots with such ease was really wicked and even Antoinette managed to stay interested right through to the end of the game. The game was surprisingly close right throughout until the last five minutes when the Heat rolled over the top of the Buck’s and forged ahead by a dozen or more points. Even after such an American experience the dilemmas awaiting us upon exiting the arena sum up Miami’s worst aspect. Traffic in Miami is $#@!&^! Drivers use their horns excessively and do nothing but put those around them on edge. We were abused a couple of times by very ugly women speeding around in SUV’s with no regard or care for road rules let alone the state of their bashed up faces. It seems like red lights are optional and seeing people rush through them at the last second or block a busy intersection because they don’t realize their car is not going to fit behind the one in front is frustrating to a point you would find hard to fathom without experiencing it. We now totally understand why people in the country have such big trucks. It is so if anyone pisses them off they can run right over the top of them. Every one seems in such a hurry here and perhaps if they made it compulsory for drivers to listen to 93.1 Easy FM, our favourite station while driving, the soothing sounds of the Beach Boys, Elton John and more would melt away at the tension rising on Miami’s roadways. This traffic is the one thing we are both glad to see behind us upon leaving Miami.

Leaving Miami left only one destination in Florida before saying goodbye to big cities until Washington DC in late January, Orlando. Of course if you haven’t already made the connection between Antoinette and Orlando we will give you a second to figure it out…

WALT DISNEY’S DISNEY WORLD!

Antoinette and her house.

This is the other half of what we started in California a few months ago and we had quite a challenge of cramming four Disney Land size parks into one day. To do this we had to skip a few attractions, pump ourselves full of caffeine, eat on the run and spend time busing between parks, but we both had a really good time. A highlight for both of us was the first ride we went on, and Animal Kingdom’s newest ride, in Everest. The ride was nuts and was a great way to kick start the adrenaline we would undoubtedly need to keep firing all day to make sure we did not stop. After Animal Kingdom we headed straight for Disney’s Hollywood Studios and tackled the Tower of Terror and put up with Aerosmith’s freakishly wide face waiting in line for over an hour for a ride that lasted less than a minute. The rest of the day was spent wandering to Epcot and then the Magical Kingdom, waiting excessively long times for rides and scouring the souvenir places for a second time to make sure Antoinette did not miss anything. Disney World is a massive place and trying to cram so many worlds into one day really is not the way to go and we both would have loved another day or two to really experience it, but we now have a valid reason to come back to the US that does not involve BBQing animals. The lines were a real drawback and we spent somewhere between four and five hours of the day in lines waiting for rides and the fastpass system was impractical as the return times were past what we could afford for each park. We both agree that Disney Land is our preferred destination between the two for a couple of reasons, less people crowding the good stuff and more characters. The only character we saw all day was an ant from one of the animated movies, but we did catch a glimpse of Mickey, Donald, Minnie and Goofy’s head while on a monorail ride past one of the resort dining rooms.

We returned back to Phoenix, our RV in case you have forgotten, exhausted and crashing from a sugar high that lasted most of the day. Nothing a stiff drink couldn’t fix though. This was our last day in Florida and we now have only a handful of states and miles resting between us, Washington and then New York. The countdown to apartment living has definitely begun and we are both looking forward to having an oven, a bathroom we don’t have to walk outside to get to and somewhere we can unpack more than the cloths we are wearing that day. Florida really did deliver some pleasant and unexpected surprises and we cannot wait to go back to Miami and Orlando to experience it all again some day, alas we have plenty more ahead of us yet.

‘Till next time,

Antoinette and James.

So Close To The East Coast

First and foremost I would like to apologise for how long it has been since updating the blog, but we’re not going to. The last two weeks have been a traveling whirlwind and we will get you up to speed very soon.

Saying goodbye to Texas was easier than either of us expected because it did not take long to cross the border into Louisiana and we had no idea when we actually said goodbye to Texas. Another gargantuan seven-hour drive was just what we needed, NOT. The destination we selected, however, proved itself worthy of our patronage and our first stop in Louisiana was a place called Lafayette. This small metropolis is known for its live music, great Cajun and Creole cuisine and swamp dwelling animals. Among other things we were drawn to this place because it is the where Tabasco sauce was born and is still the only bottling plant for the world famous and instantly recognizable McIlhenny product.

The worlds biggest Tabasco bottle.

Our first order of business was to get settled in a cozy RV park and get set for another night below freezing. All we can say is thank god we have top quality sleeping bags and we both know we are pushing their boundaries as some nights on our adventure have been cold enough to shorten any mans…well you get the picture. After figuring out how to get to Avery Island, the home of the McIlnenney family for generations, we arrived at one of the Lafayette areas biggest attractions. The factory tour was free, our wallets were grateful, and explained some of the history and pulled apart almost all the mysteries of Tabasco sauce. The peppers are treated with salt taken from the Avery Island salt mines, regardless of where in the world the peppers are grown, and then left in oak whiskey barrels to mature for three years. Once the mash is ready it is stirred constantly for 28 days and bottled in the trademark red capped, foil sealed bottles that have become synonymous with the brand.

Cooling our tongues after the sample bar. 

After the factory tour there was a gift shop offering samples of all the Tobasco products. Needless to say, due to the fact we have been deprived of Mt. Barker chicken products for so long, we were craving the burn and proceeded to sample everything they had on offer. Our personal favourite was their latest invention. An earthy chipotle pepper sauce that had an amazing BBQ feel to it. All you chili lovers should really look out for this, we could not get enough of it and after blasting our tongues into oblivion we had to save them with some jalapeno ice cream [which was actually pretty damn good]. The aftermath of the Tabasco factory left us feeling satisfied and in need of a change of pace to allow our tongues to cool down before our first taste of Louisiana cuisine. The rest of the afternoon was spent driving through Avery Island’s Jungle Gardens, which were nothing spectacular, and becoming acquainted with a local snack known as boudin balls, a very satisfying mix of spices, pork and rice deep fried to a deep golden brown.

Louisiana Swampland

Not satisfied with the lack of local wildlife at the Jungle Gardens we headed to our first swamp experience with hopes of seeing gators galore. The day was really overcast and quite windy so our chances were dashed before we even arrived at our starting point. For two and a half hours we were driven through the calm waters of the lake and swamp with flora and fauna being pointed out along the way. Plenty of birds were eyeing us suspiciously and we did see one tiny alligator, but the highlight of it all was being driven around for two hours and doing nothing other than soak up the scenery. Some of the trees in the swamp, which has been devastated by logging in times gone by, are over 500 years old and some of the birds looked more than a little weird.

A Cajun / Creole Feast

The day would be completed with our first Louisiana dining experience and even though we did not know what to expect it was kind of a good thing we had low expectations. The food was ok, but nothing special. The alligator was tasty, the bbq prawns’ sauce was disappointing [un-shelling these was not much fun either], the jambalaya was horribly bland, but the chicken and sausage gumbo was very delicious. Overall we tried a few of Louisiana’s most recognizable dishes and were happy we did, but we really felt this place did not do the food justice so we are still on the look out for a quality southern cuisine establishment.

Beignets and Coffee New Orleans Style

The next day we were headed for New Orleans, or N’awlins depending on how thick your accent is, and had scheduled a tour for the very same day. The tour guide was very informative and really explained the history of New Orleans and the surrounding area incredibly well. This part of the city is bustling with activity and the buildings are a throw back to what was cool centuries ago. The square in front of the church and old priest’s accommodation was very picturesque and you could not help but feel the history oozing from every street corner in a place like this. There is, however, a dark side to New Orleans and even five years after the events of Katrina this is still a city very much on the mend. The RV park we were staying at had a shuttle bus driven by a New Orleans police officer who made it very obvious areas outside of the French Quarter is still not safe for locals, let alone tourists. The French Quarter itself is across the road from some of the worst projects in the area and the driver also pointed out ‘you hoos’ standing on the borders of the French Quarter who spot tourists leaving the area and let their friends know to come and collect their prize. This is definitely a place you want to be on your toes and from impromptu street poets wanting to serenade you for a cost or people wanting to guess where you got your shoes from there is always someone looking to get after what you have.

With a line this long it had to be good.

We did not let this deter our expeditions as we managed to wander the quarter incident free for almost two days and get accustomed to what the locals do. We made a few stops for coffee at Café Du Mont, which specializes is coffee mixed with chicory and also offers beignets, delicious traditional French donuts smothered in icing sugar, that are so very addictive when fresh. Another thing on our to do list was the infamous po boy sandwich. These monsters are a long French baguette cut in half stuffed with baked ham, roast beef, potato frites and gravy. The modern day equivalents have any variety, meat or filling you can think of. These N’Awlins sandwiches are an amazingly satisfying and messy meal that was so very worth it. After lunch we were rolling around the streets because walking was out of the question, but we could not say goodbye to the French Quarter so soon. We still had to get up close and personal with a ‘real jazz’ band.

The 726 Jazz band.

This was to take place in a historic building called Preservation Hall, which has been an institution in New Orleans since the 1920s or 30s. We arrived an hour and a half before the doors opened and we were surprisingly not the first people there. Within 20 minutes the line was bigger and minutes before the door opened the line disappeared around the corner. The old mantra of ‘if the line is this long it HAS to be good’ is definitely true at Preservation Hall. The band was incredibly tight and every member was a master of his or her respective instrument. The songs were delivered with passion and soul like we have never experienced and Will Smith, the singer slash front man slash trumpet player for the 726 Jazz Band, had a voice that demanded your ears’ attention even before he launched into the lyrics. The venue was a perfect reminder of the history that surrounded us in the French Quarter and being in such an intimate venue and hearing such talented musos go about their craft was exactly what we came to New Orleans for.

A manatee. Seriously strange and slow.

Leaving New Orleans after such a wicked taste of live music was hard and even though we would have loved to stay and listen to more the road was calling once again. Our destination was Tallahassee, Florida, which is getting closer and closer to the east coast and we are both so excited to be close to accomplishing our goal of driving across the United States. To think we were chilling on a beach in San Diego not long ago and in under a week, by the time you read this, we will be lazing in the Miami sunshine. The gravity of this accomplishment has not even begun to sink in yet, but we know it will probably kick in when we arrive in New York on January 26 and hand the keys back for our RV. Tallahassee was a quick stop before heading further south in Florida and we made the most of our time by heading to Wakulla Springs, the worlds deepest freshwater spring, and getting outdoors before the madness of more American big cities. Getting there was easy and once there we were told there were some manatees grazing in the main spring and these things are certainly one strange creature. Think of underwater cows crossed with dolphins and you can imagine what they look and move like. They have the speed of an underwater steam roller, but can definitely move when confronted with a boat of tourists, and the mobility of a fridge in a small apartment building. The manatees were an unexpected surprise, but we also saw plenty of alligators, something we did not see on our swamp tour, and plenty of turtles as well so it was nice to see all the things we should have seen in Louisiana in Florida, but no hard feelings of course.

Christmas came and went quickly and was filled with champagne, luxuries like bacon, cheese, mushrooms and a new season of entourage to help the day cruise by, which you will hear about in greater detail in the next entry. On boxing day we headed to Raymond James stadium to see the Tampa Bay Buccaneers take on the Seattle Seahawks and being at the game was really entertaining and had all our attention not been turned to keeping our extremities from freezing the game would have been more of a spectacle. After Tampa we were bound for St. Petersburg before touching down on the coast of the Atlantic in Miami to complete our transcontinental road trip and get closer to our ultimate objective, New York.

‘Till next time,

Antoinette and James.

Houston: We have a problem...with your BBQ sauce. It's too good.

A little bbq shack in Alvin.

After arriving in the US’ fourth biggest city we were reluctant to get our hopes up after our previous big city experience, Los Angeles, but saying we have enjoyed our time here is a bit of an understatement. We think it is the realization that we are indeed doing something you only get to do once in a lifetime and only now are we starting to spend a little bit more time, and money, enjoying ourselves. Houston is more than a big city, if you know where to look and where to go, and we feel we have really got a feeling for most of what this place has to offer.

Houston highways: A tarmac nightmare.

Our first morning in Houston was spent navigating the many causeways and underpasses en-route to a shopping complex called The Galleria [which is kind of like the one in Perth, just as many shops, just as little variety]. After spending a good half hour trying to find parking, which was made ever more frustrating when you see meadows of outdoor parking obscured by a height restriction of less than seven feet [pointless much], we grazed through the food court and meandered through the twists and turns of the main complex. Unfortunately, we have been trying to come up with an acronym capable of describing the bland and repetitive shopping big city complexes offer but have failed miserably, so if you come up with one we would love to hear it. Do not get us wrong, if you were looking to find all the usual stuff then this place would be great. However, after being on the road for so long we are always on the look out for the different and unique places offering more than the promise of familiarity and low, low prices. We have both developed a taste for things you do not find in department or chain stores. For James he does not want to dress in a flannel shirt [sorry boys] and Antoinette wants a dress capable of being worn by a model who eats at least one sandwich a day. If nothing else The Galeria served as a helpful distraction from Houston highway traffic, which managed to doubled in the time we were in the centre.

Aollo XVIII's permanently grounded Saturn V

This city sticks out in modern history for more than it’s contributions to the great Texan tradition that is BBQ and if you are thinking of possibilities that are out of this world you would be very warm. We were bound for the Houston space centre to find out about this whole ‘man in space’ business and take in a little history and see if they have room for any +1s on the space shuttle’s guest list. For starters the space centre is not really in Houston, more like the Houston greater area, but it is crammed with stacks of stuff that draws your inner science geek to the surface for a few hours. We were able to take a tram tour, which was pretty good if you forget about the frozen extremities due to the cold, and see the original mission control room restored to its former late 60s glory. Seeing the room where the decisions and communications assisted the astronauts who first landed on the moon was pretty cool and considering they did it with computers less powerful than a modern graphics calculator this was no easy task. After seeing the actual frame from the Saturn V rocket for the canned Apollo 18 mission, the training facility and trying on a few space helmets for ‘research’ it was time to call it a day.

The iguana at the butterfly house: Churro

Houston may be a metropolis, but like so many, it has its oases scattered through the dense concrete jungle and one of them in the heart of the city is home to the museum district. We were looking for a lazy afternoon and being in what most would call a desert we did not expect to end up in the Butterfly House. The Butterfly House is a maintained habitat with tropical temperatures, humidity to match and more wings than a Texas sports bar on game day. The collection of butterflies they have is really impressive and when surrounded by so many it is a unique feeling difficult to capture through any photograph or paraphrase. We hung around and discovered an iguana named Churro staking out a spot under his conveniently placed heat lamp before heading back to the RV and our temporary home. This morning was also a special morning because we did our first shop in over two weeks. Our food shopping has been lasting us a long time and we have taken some ‘creative culinary’ steps to make each shop last a little longer than the last. Cutting down on luxury items has been hard, but with the bigger picture of more money to spend in the big apple as a reward it will be worth it in the long run. It seems strange that only now are we getting the most out of what we have and we only have just over five weeks left before we have to hand, Phoenix, our trusty steed back to her rightful owners.

After that little blast of sentimentality for our RV we needed to get our heads straight so after being in Texas for almost two weeks we did what any Texan would to relax, shoot a gun. This is something we have both been reluctantly excited about since crossing the border from New Mexico and after a little research we found a place that looked the goods. Right from the moment we walked in it was clear it was going to be less intense than either of us thought, but still the excitement and nerves of holding a genuine Smith and Wesson 357 Magnum is something we will not be forgetting in a hurry. After a quick training session and being told about how to load and unload this kick ass revolver, how to shoot straight and that the range was all out of Osama Bin Laden targets we hit the indoor range. We were both a little nervous, but got the hang of it in the end. Antoinette stuck it out and actually had a smile on her face every time she turned after letting off six shots into, and around, the target despite the deafening thunderclaps going on around us while James was happy just laying shot after shot into the head of the blue silhouette, with a few exceptions. We were both surprised at how unnatural and controlled it felt and were both happy that most of the shots landed somewhere in the blue zones. We both buzzed our way down the highway and after a good cup of tea and a few hours it was time to experience another Texan tradition.

Our first visit to Joe's BBQ. Mmmm ribs.

A forty minute drive down the Texas Six took us right where we needed to go, Joes BBQ. We searched for BBQ places a few nights before and this looked the most tantalizing and we were both a little confused when we walked in and saw what looked like a food court smashed together with a taxidermy practice. A powerful lesson to learn in the southern US states is that good food comes from places that look anything but. Some of the best food we have had in Texas has been from places that look like little more than a dilapidated farm house on the outside and Joe’s BBQ is a perfect example. Any vegetarians or animal rights activists should skip the next part, you have been warned [please skip to Section A], but carnivores or those who enjoy being at the top of the food chain can read on with envious eyes. Any doubts we had were overshadowed by the one and a half kilos of meat, BBQ sauce and sweet potato fries we had split between two plates and we took the first available seats to save precious eating time. The pork ribs were the best we have had since arriving in the US and the pulled pork was arguably the best chance we have taken in a while. The flavours and textures were bang on, so much so we went there again two days later and it was even better, and we cannot wait to try and recreate the experience for all of our carnivorous friends back home. The ribs were as thick as two fingers and the meat dropped off the bone with a feather like touch, the pulled pork was seasoned beautifully and required very little chewing while their famous beef brisket was succulent and matched perfectly, better than the ribs at least, with their house made BBQ sauce. Overall these are the sort of days you hope for while traveling. A unique experience with someone you love, good food and memories that will last a long, long time.

SECTION A – Broccoli [irrelevant we know, but we are thinking of you.]

Beer can house.

Another attraction in the Houston area is a labor of love most men can relate all too easily with. A house decorated and adorned with beer. The Beer Can House is testament to one mans undying love of the amber carbonated beverage and his passion for artistic self development. This house has so many cans, pull tabs and tops all over the place it is incredible to see and you just have to wonder if he drank all of these himself. After taking a couple of snap shots and satisfying our curiosity, while James had to contend with the  sudden and overwhelming desire for a beer, it was time to head onwards to Rice Village for a coffee. All we can say is…FAIL. We found our way there easily enough, but because it was a Saturday afternoon it seemed all of Houston was in this small shopping district and parking, traffic and pedestrians were a nightmare. It took us twenty minutes of scouring the side streets and inadequate public parking sections before we cut our losses and got out of there. We were not that phased about missing another shopping area because five weeks in New York will present far more than this 12 block district in Houston.

Sunday was a clean out day and our mums, James’ at least, will be happy to know the RV is spick and span. If we were still getting paid pocket money [no really, feel free to give us some cash ;)] we would get bonus for our efforts. We are both adamant Phoenix will be cleaner when we drop her off than when we received her and we hope missing hubcaps that we lost somewhere between Roswell, New Mexico, and Junction, Texas, will be unnoticed [we are hoping the fact both rear hubcaps are missing will be seen as ‘natural’]. For what seems like the first time in a long time a city has delivered more than what we expected it too and we are both happy to be moving on. Houston really has been great, not our favourite part of Texas, but it definitely has its moments and if we ever come back we will be picking up where we left off [ribs???]. The last couple of evenings have been spent mapping our route from Orlando to Washington and we will be seeing most of North and South Carolina in that time with most of the destinations being small country towns. We are really looking forward to our next couple of stops in Louisiana, which will hopefully deliver more than grilled swamp dwelling animals. Alligator kebab anyone?

‘Till next time,

Antoinette and James.

Howdy Y'all: Texas 1.1

Our first Texan Sunset

We will begin by saying we are both feeling much better after being quite under the weather for a couple of weeks with bad colds and so forth and being in the deep south has definitely lead us to warmer weather. The drive from Roswell to Junction, a small town on the interstate en-route to Austin, was the longest one we have completed yet at just under eight hours. The scenery was spectacular and we passed through a number of old shantytowns on the way through, with some looking more suitable as sets for old western movies, with plenty of abandoned buildings and ruins kicking around. Our first Texan sunset lived up to the reputation we had heard about and even though we saw it through our small rear view mirrors it was still fittingly beautiful. Needless to say we were both very glad to arrive in Junction, hook up the RV and chow down on some dinner before passing out happily in the back under a very stunning Texas night sky.

The town of Junction is a little further east than the town we intended to visit, Sonora, but we are glad we did. We are both finding it more relaxing and rewarding visiting the country-side and small towns rather than the big cities crammed with freeways and people who, genuinely, do not think of doing any thing for another person. Southern hospitality has a tremendous reputation and we have encountered it in spades in the smaller towns while in the cities we have found people to be less friendly. Anything you hear about these country people being simple is, quite frankly, untrue as there is nothing simple about what they do or how they do it, but rather they disregard all the usual bullshit that burdens so many people and all that is left is genuine. We have had very few unpleasant encounters with American’s on a whole, and we hope this trend continues, and are grateful the stories we heard back home have very little to do with a vast majority of this country’s citizens.

Armadillo: We called him Arnold

Our first outwards expedition in Texas was to a small state park about 20 minutes out of Junction with promises of wild deer and turkey roaming about the grounds. We managed to photograph the deer as they frolicked across the road at sunset, which had James scouring the roadside for any signs of movement to ensure safe passage for Phoenix, and we even tracked down a couple of Armadillos grazing, which was something we did not even think we would see on this trip. After getting off to such a good start in our latest destination we headed the way we came for Sonora and onwards to the Caves.

We do not know about you, but seeing caves is something we did not expect to hear of, let alone see, in Texas but we are very glad we took a punt and drove on down the interstate. The caves were found by a farmer who’s dog chased a raccoon down a small hole in the early 1900s and the farmer set about exploring the spaces below with no more than rope, a candle and a handful of good faith. What he discovered were some of the most decorated caverns and caves in the world and it is something you really have to see with your own eyes to appreciate. 

One of the highly decorated caverns of Sonora

We were there on a very quite afternoon and there were two other people on our tour, who for one reason or another really frustrated us [we cannot explain why; they just did], and we had an excellent guide show us the different sections, formations and history of the Sonora Caverns. There were all the usual formations, pools of water that looked no more than a few centimeters deep, but in reality were deep enough to dive head first into, and some very unique formations found only in a few places all over the world. The Sonora Caverns are frequently visited by geologists from all over the world and it was very easy to see why. This natural wonder speaks of Texas’ diversity and ability to deliver the unexpected to people willing to take a chance and take the road less traveled. This may not have been what we were expecting from Texas, but it was something totally worth seeing.

Our next stop was Ausitn, Texas’ state capitol, and after another taxing drive on America’s bustling and dim witted highways we arrived at what we thought would be our destination for the week. Upon reporting to the office we were informed even though we had made a reservation there were no spaces available. This was ok with us as we are never in any real hurry to get somewhere, but what pissed us off was her attitude. She made out it was our fault for not double checking and she then went on to explain she was having trouble with her email account and she said ‘I’m computer illiterate,’ which made us wonder why she has an online reservation system when she has no f&#$ing idea what she is doing? Apparently calling someone to tell them their reservation has been declined is something she never thought to do and when we combined this incident with a punctured tire, empty stomachs and post American highway tension we really did start to feel a little dejected. We ended up checking in at a close by RV community, and they only had one space left so it was meant to be [take that discourteous host @ Austin Mid Town RV Park]. The rest of the afternoon was spent at Walmart [a classy place were all your troubles can be forgotten or drowned in responsive consumerism] waiting for our tire to be fixed and picking up a few essentials for Antoinette’s birthday.

Antoinette's birthday invention complete
with multicoloured candles.

Even after a bad first impression we quickly fell in love with Austin. There is something about this city that just seems so right and after spending a day wandering through Austin’s downtown shopping district and speeding through Antoinette’s Texas shopping list [hat, boots and a belt buckle] in less than a few caffeine fueled hours it was time to head back to the RV park and re-coup for the next day. Antoinette’s birthday started with a champagne breakfast served with a weird and wonderful birthday breakfast cake consisting of French toast with peanut butter, chocolate marshmallows and dark chocolate sauce. The results were delicious and we both felt the buzz from ingesting so much sugar so early in the day, but we needed our energy as more shopping waited around the corner of South Congress Avenue. Before hitting the stores we made our way to Austin’s capitol building and learned a lot about ‘the six flags of Texas,’ Austin and the south in General. We were amazed to hear Texas has been ‘owned’ by six countries during it’s history and was even an independent nation for short time after the revolutionaries seized the state from Mexican authorities.

Antoinette in her new boots outside of the
State Capitol.

The little utopian society of Texas shopping better known as South Congress Avenue has a wicked range of all the things you would expect to find in the south and also plenty of whacky objects and antiques with questionable uses and origins for that matter. Antoinette found an authentic pair of cowgirl boots made right here in Texas, a couple of other items and just in time for her birthday too, while James settled for a hand made pair of cufflinks to use when he actually starts wearing anything other than t-shirts. The afternoon wafted away gently with James getting his hair buzzed at a real barber shop, coffee and dinner before trudging back to the RV park with heavy feet and significantly lighter wallets. Coming to Texas we knew we wanted to see a rodeo and the only one we could find was in Fort Worth, approximately three and a half hours north of Austin, so being no stranger to longer than usual day trips at this stage in our adventure that is where we headed.

Action shot of the Cowtown Coliseum in action.

The Stockyard District of Fort Worth was tactfully laid out and really brings out the cowboy or cowgirl in any one walking through the area. Stuck between the old railway station, souvenir shops and saloons is the Cowtown Coliseum, which was host to the worlds first indoor rodeo. The two hour show was really entertaining and with bull riding, run a way roping, barrel racing and more bull riding we really got a taste of what rodeo is all about. By no means are we experts on the subject after this event, but we definitely have an appreciation for the skill and dedication the cowboys, cowgirls and bull fighters [the clowns that distract the bulls after the rider ‘exits’ the bull] have to their respective crafts. The bulls are absolutely massive with most of them weighing close to, or over, 900kg and how the riders hold on is a feat that defies sense and physics. The day trip was possibly one of the best things we have done recently and we with our rodeo lust satisfied we headed back south for Austin on a Saturday night.

Synth player from
Bright light Social Hour

For this nocturnal escapade we would hopefully employ the lessons learned in Las Vegas [warm clothing, no happy hour and most certainly no more espresso martinis], and were destined for a club just out of the central entertainment district called momos. The night started on a promising note caffeine, ice cream and frangelico [aka affogatos] and it was not long before we were stumbling around trying to find where we thought the club was. In the end we both got half of the location equation right with it being on Sixth street, but in the opposite direction and after poking our heads in to see an empty club we staggered across the road to the beckoning neon lights of a local pub. We sat down to two of our favourite beverages [James had his favourite beer La’Fin Du Monde, which is near impossible to get in Perth and Antoinette tucked into a cider, something that is very uncommon in most American bars]. 

We think this guy looks
like THIS GUY

After this intermission we headed back to Momos and the placed was rammed, which was surprising because it had no more than a few bar staff in it an hour ago, and the 71s were revving up a sizeable crowd. After the 71s a crew called ‘The Bright light Social Hour’ came on and really stepped it up to another level. One of the singers looked like this guy [youtube link], another one rocked out on a keytar and the other looked like the cousin it of Adams Family fame had a musical lovechild with Cher on drums. Both the acts we saw were phenomenal and had such an eclectic energy and stage presence that really drew you into their performance. To top it all off we had a wicked taxi driver who made our cab ride disappear faster than we can come up with a David Copperfield joke. Leaving Austin was very hard after such an amazing night. Nights like this really made us want to stay for longer as the club and music scene here is the best we have experienced so far and it would be lovely to kick back and check out what this fine city has to offer.

Even signs in Texas have a slack jaw.

We are currently in Houston and will be here for a week before heading on through Louisiana for some quality Cajun cookin’ before roaming through the south east and onto Florida, where we will be spending Christmas and New Years. The trip is starting to wear us down a little as the repetition and lack of motivation is overtaking the excitement of entering and exploring a new destination. This week however, we had a nice moment, when we locked down our accommodation in New York. After a couple of tough weeks of research, emails and long distance phone calls a fully furnished apartment in Chelsea will be our home for around $90 a night for both of us and we are both relieved we will have a little space to luxuriously spread out and call our own after living out the back of a van for over two months.

‘Till next time,

Antoinette and James.