Happy Chanukah, Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy 2015
We finally made it from SUNNY, WARM Florida to COLD NYC. So what is wrong with this picture? This is from someone who swore never to be cold again.
We are here to see all of our NY family and friends. Also to say hello to all of our Doctors.
And, most important…to see Evelyn!!!!!!!!
We will be back in Florida next year around January, 8th.
See you soon.
Life is great, no matter where we are, on the Roan Road…
We will be taking a break from Disney for a month. Tomorrow we put the house in storage and rent a car to drive up NYC. Look out NYC, here we come! We will return to Kissimmee on Jan. 8th, 2015 for a month.
Friday we went to Disney, getting there around 5PM. We went with our friend Dale and met the rest of the gang at the German Pavilion in Epcot. The other day when we went to Epcot I took a video of the Flag Dancers at the Italian Pavilion.
The Gang of 9
Bob, Dottie, Me, Ann, Bob, Dale, Barb, Max, Judy
We ate at the Biergarden Restaurant in the German Pavilion. Along with the buffet they provided a show.
After the Biergarden we lined for the Christmas show, the Candlelight Processional. The narrator that was at our performance was Whoopi Goldberg.
On the was out Disney said Good Night.
Life is great on the Roan Road…
Last night we made use of our season pass to Disney World. We went to the Disney Osborne Lights at the Hollywood Studio with our friends Dale and Donna.
Later we met up with Judy and Bob Emerson.
The Osborne Family is from Arkansas. They had a display that grew and grew. Finally in 1995 Walt Disney brought it to Disney World. It was crowded but from what we are told it was a slow night. From a technical and aesthetic standpoint, it is wonderful. The choreography was not to be believed.
THE OSBORNE LIGHTS from Roy Brody on Vimeo.
The same night after the seeing the Osborne lights we walked over to a show called Fantasmic!! It is a combination of a Laser Light show a pyrotechnics show, a water show and even real people! It is truly a show not to be missed.
Here is a short clip and pictures, that really does not do the production justice.
Fantasmic from Roy Brody on Vimeo.
Wherever you go in the various parks, you see Disney characters…especially Mickey!
Ann is now in her packing mode getting ready for our trip up north. She is tired and cranky. I thing we both need a vacation.
Life is great on the Roan Road…
We are now in Kissimmee, Florida soaking in the warm Florida sunshine, I hope. Today we spent our first day at Disney World. We started at Epcot Center. The last time we were here, somewhere around 1981, where they were building Epcot so we never got to see it. Today we spent the first day touring this part of the park. My first impressions, there are a lot of kids here. Where do they all come from?
As Florida residents we get a discount on an annual pass. We chose the Weekday Annual Pass. Which is perfect for us, as we have time to use it weekdays. Today was our first day. Boy was it an experience. First thing we learned. get there early when the park opens, before the crowds. Next, bring food for lunch. Eating at the park is not cheap.
Ann is definitely in the Grandma mode. We had to stop in every Disney Shop that we could find. Ok, maybe not every. I did put my foot down after 10. OUCH!! that hurt.
This is what I am talking about
We did have a great time though.
Life is great on the Roan Road…
We want to wish all of our family and friends a very Happy and Healthy Thanksgiving 2014.
We will be going out to dinner with some friends to celebrate Thanksgiving. Now,don’t eat too much tomorrow.
We will see all of you guys in NYC in a couple of weeks. We will be driving up, leaving Kissimmee on December 8th.
Here is my new toy. It is a Quadra Copter. or call it a Drone. It has a gyro stabilized camera that can take photos or video. I am going to use it to take videos as we travel.
These are the pictures Ann took while I played with my new toy.
Here is what it looks like from the air.
This is a video of my first flight of the Drone. Sorry for the video, but it will get better with practice.
FIRST FLIGHT from Roy Brody on Vimeo.
Again, Happy Thanksgiving to all!
Life is Pretty darn good on the Roan Road…
I keep getting these “Freeze Warnings” on my smartphone. This is Florida, it ain’t supposed to happen here! Although it does warm up to the 60’s during the day.
We revisited Savannah, GA. Last time we were here we took one of the Trolley Tours. We really did not care for the tour. This time we met our friends and fellow New Horizon owners, Madeline and Jerry, at the visitor’s center by chance. The four of us decided to take a waking tour together. Savannah is known for it’s many parks. The four of us took the free trolley that goes around the city and did a walking tour of the parks. Afterward we had a great lunch at Anna’s at the City Market.
Next we visited Hilton Head, SC. We have mixed feelings about Hilton Head. First stop was the Coastal Discovery Museum. We completely enjoyed the experience.
The part we did not like, was when we decided to take ride to the Hilton Head Lighthouse. It is in a part of the town called Harbor Town. I plugged in the address into the GPS and off we went through some very nice neighborhoods. Then we turned a corner and came to a gate house with a guard. I politely said that I just wanted to visit the lighthouse. “OK”, he said, “because you have a dual wheel truck, that will be $25.” Ok, so that is $25 for the privilege of driving through their precious street and then the admission fee to the lighthouse. I DON’T THINK SO. I said “ thank you very much” and made a U turn and left. We drove to the end of the street in Hilton Head and turned around. So you can see I was not impressed.
Here is a photo I downloaded from the internet of the lighthouse. The one I never got to see.
Nice picture, too bad I did not take it.
On the bright side, Ann picked out a great restaurant outside of the town called Hudson’s Seafood House where we had a great lunch. Good choice, Ann.
Once more. Life is really great on the Roan Road…
We are following the migrating birds south for the winter and warmer weather. Last week we spent the week at James Island County Park in Charleston, SC. This is a county park like no other we have seen. Beautiful campsites, walking and riding trails, lakes, fountains. When we were there the workers were preparing for the 25th anniversary of the Festival of lights. There were light displays all over. Unfortunately we had to leave just before it started and we could not extend our stay. The campground is booked up all year round. They even have a carousel that was closed and not opening until the light festival started. Boy, was Ann disappointed!
The first day in Charleston we went to Fort Sumter. Fort Sumter is on an island in the middle of the bay. To visit Fort Sumter you need to go to the National Park Visitor Center and take a short ferry ride out to the park. Once on the Island a park ranger gives some history of the park. Then you can walk around by yourself.
Fort Sumter
A shell embedded in the wall from the original attack.
Drayton Hall is a typical plantation of the times, pre Civil War. The main crop was rice. The conservancy of Drayton Hall’s philosophy is to leave everything as it was. They did no restoration to the building other than structural. There is no furniture and the walls have the original paint.
The second Sunday of every month in Charleston they close off King Street and turn it into a street festival. Local merchants and food venders open their doors. Musicians are on every corner.
We also visited the Charleston Museum. This museum is America’s first museum (founded in 1773). It told the history of South Carolina. It is beautifully done. We really enjoyed our visit there.
Charleston is known as the “Holly City” it has many churches of many denominations.
We did a walking tour of downtown Charleston.
While staying at Hardeeville we also revisited Savanna, but that is next.
We are having so much fun on The Roan Road…
We got that itch again. Hitch Itch, that is. We will be here in Atlanta until Thursday (11/6) and then heading to Charleston, SC for a few days. Then heading south, and warmer weather. This cold weather will not do.
First, I will finish up in Atlanta.
CNN world headquarters is an amazing place. We took a tour of the facility. From Atlanta they can control any of the cameras in any one of their news rooms anywhere in the world (fyi, that includes Dubai).
Then we visited the Fernbank Natural History Museum. Beautiful displays, especially for kids.
Lastly, The Atlanta History Museum. We were here three years ago but decided to revisit it.
The museum is on the Inman estate. A beautiful wooded area in the heart of Atlanta. The museum consists of The Swan House, which is the mansion the Inman’s built around 1930, The Smith Farm and the main museum buildings. The Swan house was used in the movie “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire”.
Atlanta History Museum main building. A history of the Civil War.
The Swan House.
The Smith Farm.
In addition to the Civil War Exhibit, the museum has a wonderful exhibit of the 1996 Olympics which was held in Atlanta. Also, NPR fans, the museum is a StoryCorps location.
Next, on to Charleston.
Life is Great, traveling with my best friend, on the Roan Road…
We left Atlanta and headed for Sevierville, TN and the River Plantations RV Resort. The resort has good possibilities as a possible site for the rally. It is Big rig friendly, a number of sites are pull through. Those that are not, are easy back ins. A large conference center, good WiFi and utilities. But there are more RV parks to see and choose from.
Sevierville is right on the west side of the Smokey Mountains. From Sevierville you pass through Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. If you like country music, shopping and pancake breakfasts and Dollywood, then this is the place for you. (Sorry Judy, I did not see any Costco).
We drove into the Smoky Mountains and to the highest point, Clingmans Dome.
After four days we started west to follow the Natchez Trace Parkway. We stayed at Fall Hollow campground right off the northern part of the Trace. We went north on the Trace toward Nashville stopping at all of the overlooks and historic sites. We took a side trip off the trace to Leiper’s Fork and Franklin.
Leiper’s Fork, Tennessee
Both of these towns are home of the rich and famous in the country music business. The weather was cold and rainy. Next day we headed south stopping at the burial site of Meriwether Lewis of the Lewis and Clark expedition.
Yesterday we came south through a small piece of Alabama to Tupelo, MS. We took the back, back roads, passing some beautiful farms and really nice homes. We also passed some real lousy looking shacks and mobile homes. We are staying in a nice RV park in Tupelo, Campground at Barnes Crossing. Nice pull through, good full hookups and great WiFi. It has cable hookups but I have my Satellite so I didn’t connect to it.
Within the next few days we will be exploring more of the Trace and Tupelo.
Happy 5 month old birthday to Evelyn.
Happy Birthday to Alyssa.
Happy Anniversary to Judy & Bob and Alyssa & Mike
Life is relaxing on the Roan Road…
The plan was to go down the Natchez Trace Parkway. The Natchez Trace is a National Park Parkway that extends from just south of Nashville, Tennessee through Alabama and ends up at Natchez, Mississippi, similar to the Skyline drive that stretches from the Shenandoah NP to the Smokey Mountains NP.
Well, change of plans (we stirred the jello pot!). At the last New Horizons Rally we became Rally Masters for the next rally in the Spring of 2016. So, we have to scout out places to hold the next rally. We are concentrating on the East Coast. We are going to check out River Plantation RV Resort in Sevierville, TN, for a possible site for the rally. The resort is on the west side of the Smokey Mountains with lots of things to see and do. We will spend 4 days at the resort and then on to the Natchez Trace Parkway. I know it is hard work, but someone has to do it.
We are now in Atlanta taking it easy. We spent Rosh Hashanah with Cheryl and Harris and the family. Then we surprised Ann’s sister and brother-in-law, Francie and Rick, who came to Atlanta from their home in Florida, for their grandson, Ethan’s, birthday.
Life is “hard work” on the Roan Road….
We left Marquette, MI and headed south over the Mackinaw Bridge. We stayed in Grand Rapids, MI for a couple of days and down to Elkhart, IN. After two weeks stay in Elkhart getting things done on the camper. We headed to the Amana Colonies in Iowa. You can read the history of the Amana Colonies here.
Since we are on the Rally Committee we arrived early to help set up. There were 3 other couples on the committee who arrived early. We did some shopping at Costco and Walmart with Judy and Bob. Judy, I will not mention how long it took to do ALL of the shopping.
Before the main Rally started several of us celebrated Ann’s birthday.
Surprise !!!!
At the start of the rally after the BBQ, we had another birthday cake. It was a special birthday with great friends.
At the Amana Colonies we took a guided tour which included Tom Metz’s house, the local tin smith. His shop was in the basement and the first floor was set up as it was in the 1920s.
We then toured the different colonies.
That’s a Amana Radar Range. The Amana Colonies is where Amana Appliances started.
This is proof that “Life IS good on the Roan Road….”
First, Happy, Happy Birthday to my wonderful wife Ann. Soon I will be as young as you are now.
Summery, We left the UP of Michigan and headed to Elkhart, Indiana to have some work done on the camper. We stayed in Elkhart for two weeks. During the two weeks we went to Big Foot, to have the hydraulic levelers checked. No charge. Then to Mor/ryde to have the suspension and alignment checked. They found two of the springs were bad. Also the springs that were installed were not stiff enough and they suggested replacing all six with stiffer springs. No charge for that, but the two Tee shirts we received cost $1545. The rest of the time we just hung around with friends Lynn and Ed. We then headed for the Amana Colonies in Iowa for the New Horizon Owners Group (NHOG) rally.
I guess we are still covering the Upper Peninsula (UP) of Michigan from the last blog. After staying at Ste. Ignace at the foot of the Mackinaw bridge, we headed north to Sault Ste. Marie and the Soo Locks.
We stayed at a campsite right on the river, Aune-Osborn Campground, where we could sit and watch the ships going into and out of the locks. We visited the viewing platform at the Locks. I took some timelapes pictures of a ship going through the lock.
While staying at Sault Ste. Marie we took a side trip to Tahquamenon Falls.
We then headed west to stay at Marquette. We stayed at a nice town park and used it as our base. From there we went to Pictured Rock National Lakeshore. In the morning we drove up the coast of the park. In the afternoon we took a boat ride along the shore for a completely different view of the park.
Driving Pictured Rock National Lakeshore.
Boat tour of Pictured Rock National Lakeshore.
The next day we headed back up the coast to the Au Sable Light House.
That afternoon we took a glass bottom boat tour of ship wrecks in the area. Pictures do not show much, but the tour was very interesting.
Main cargo hatch
Bow of the ship
Almost caught up.
BTW, Evelyn turned 4 months old on Ann’s Birthday! Also, Happy Birthday to Jonathan, Scherrie and Ethan.
Also, we hope that Caroline & Andrew and Maryann & Santi celebrated their anniversaries in style!
We want to wish all of our family and friends a Happy and Healthy New Year,
Life is Great on the Roan Road…
