We were driving around Tampa one dreary day in early January when, crossing a river I looked to the right and saw forests of cypress trees. Immediately looked where we could park off this busy road. Turned right into the Florida College campus and found parking close to the road and river. There was a walkway at the edge of the road crossing the river on the Bob Woodard Bridge where I could get the best view of the water and the trees. This was my first, up-close look at these wonderful trees with trunks widening as they entered the dark, murky water. It feltRead More →

It’s not easy to find an RV park close in to any major metropolitan area in the East. Fortunately there is a beautiful park in Stone Mountain State Park just outside of Atlanta. We made that our base of operations while in the Atlanta area. Being spring, we had a bit of rain each day, but not enough to alter any of our plans for seeing the area. And also being spring, there was lush greenery everywhere. Stone Mountain is a large quartz monzonite dome East of Atlanta, famous for the enormous carving of Confederate generals Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. StoneRead More →

Our first week in New Orleans was not much as we spent most of the time in the RV – rained almost every day. The second week we drove around Lake Pontchartrain (didn’t take the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway as it’s a toll bridge and quite expensive for RV’s – plus there’s a section that rises quite steeply and I was a little nervous to take the ‘Bagel Bagel’ over it). Our destination was the Abita Springs Resort and RV Park, a membership park. We had received an ‘invite’ to try it out free for 4 days, so decided to take them up on the offer.Read More →

The beach dominates much of Viña’s life – both in terms of tourism and attitude. High rises front the coast along Calles San Martin and Jorge Montt. The city has done a magnificent job developing the beaches with beautiful stretches of parks with biking and walking paths along the entire stretch from Muelle Vergara to the amphitheater at Playa Marineros, enticing locals and tourists to come out and enjoy.   Graffiti adorns concrete blocks buttressing Muelle Vergara   High rise apartment buildings overlook Playa El Sol’s sand and sun seekers.   The sign says “Beach not suitable for swimming” – but the water’s too alluringRead More →

Horcón lies 43 kilometers north of Viña del Mar. If you drive to the end of the avenida Principal you’ll find yourself at one of the most picturesque coves in Chile – Caleta Horcón. On warm summer days, the small beach is littered with sunbathers intermixed with old, colorful fishing boats. Lining the beach are a host of restaurants featuring typical Chilean seafood and other delicacies.     Restaurant row   Beachgoers among the fishing boats   Ad hoc wiring – seems to work   Beach cacti   At the south end of the cove is the “Puente de los Deseos” (Bridge of Desires), adornedRead More →

Leaving the summer heat of Santiago, we travelled back to Viña del Mar, about 73 miles west of Santiago, where we stayed in an apartment on the 15th floor of an apartment building on Viana and Quillota, a block and a half from the Plaza Vergara. I’m not generally fond of tall buildings, especially in a city known for violent earthquakes. We were calmed somewhat by the fact that Chilean’s have learned to construct some of the best earthquake ‘proof’ buildings in the world. But, to our unease, we could feel vibrations from time to time from the construction of a large building next door.Read More →