New Orleans

 

We arrived in Mandeville a suburb of New Orleans on Wednesday.  We stayed at Fontaine Bleu State Park.  Our drive was very eventful. To get to New Orleans, Louisanna we had to go through Florida, Alabama, and Mississippi. It was a very cold, windy, rainy day. The winds were 112 kmh they were strong enough to blow and break the Carnival Cruise ship’s ropes and it went free.  We got to see this in Mobile Alabama as my dad was trying to keep us and the trailer on the road. We passed over many bridges and bayou’s (French word meaning slow moving river).

 

 

Our first stop in Mandeville was at Louie and the Red Head Lady a DDD(Diners,Drive-ins, and Dives) choice restaurant. We really liked their bread pudding with toffee sauce and fried green tomatoes. There was a map to show where people were from that had eaten at the restaurant and I made sure to add a pin on the map to show Kilworthy.



On Thursday, we made a trip across Ponchartrain Bridge a 30 mile causeway to New Orleans. The buildings were a mix of new and old architecture. We met one of my dad’s friends from highschool who is a professor at a university there.  We ate lunch on Bourbon Street at Le Bayou. We had oysters, chicken and Andouille sausage gumbo, crab chowder, shrimp Po boy sandwhich, Cajun jambalya, crawfish etouffee, red beans and rice.

After lunch, we toured the street and went into a store that had lots of beads, unappropriate shirts, dolls, masks, voodoo dolls and mugs. We bought a mask, beads, and a doll for Grace. Next was our riverboat cruise along the Mississippi River.  It stopped at the site of the battle of New Orleans. This battle was part of the war of 1812 between Canada and the USA. The battle was fought two weeks after the war ended but the soldiers did not know that because they did not have cell phones.

 

 

This is a statue of General Andrew Jackson in Jackson Square.  He was the US hero of the Battle of New Orleans because his troops killed, wounded or captured 2000 British soldiers while the US side only lost 20 men.  He would go on to become the President of the United States and his picture is on the US $20 bill. 

 

 

New Orleans and Louisiana Facts

Mardigras happens every year a big party that celebrates food and fun. People exchange beads and listen to jazz music. Louisiana was named after King Louis XIV. Louisiana is the only state to not have counties it has parishes instead. Louisiana has a large settlement of Cajuns, who are decscendants of the Acadians who were driven out of Canada in the 1700s because they would not give up their French heritage and pledge loyalty to England. It is the birth place of jazz music which led to blues and later rock and roll. New Orleans is the second largest port in the US and the 3^rd largest in the world. The Fleur- de- lis is a popular symbol that is seen everywhere as it is in Quebec.



This is us in line at the famous Cafe du Monde.  Here they serve Beignets (you say it "Ben-Yay`).  These are a warm white sugary donut.  They are really tasty.

 

 

This is my new aligator head I bought on the way to New Orleans.

 

For dinner we bought fresh crawdads )like a mini lobster and shrimp that had just been caught.  It is crawdad season right now in Lousiana.

 

All for now, off to Houston!!

 

 

Panama City

Our first stop on the trip was Panama City. Panama City is the largest city between Tallahassee (Florida’s State capital) and Pensacola.  It is located within Florida panhandle along the Emerald coast. It was a 7 hour drive from my Grandpa’s house and from Cape Coral it was 10 hours. Tyndall air force base is located in Panama City. While on the beach it was not uncommon to see and hear planes flying above us. A navy dive museum is located here as well with submarines and dive equipment.



                We stayed at St. Andrews State park our campsite had an ocean view.  Our fire pit area was surrounded by palm trees and Panama hat plants.  It seemed like we were on a deserted island. We saw dolphins jumping outside our window! The park had a beach with a jetty. A jetty helps the beach sand from eroding and provides a safe swimming area.

 

 

 There was an alligator swamp and many hiking, biking trails. The information center had many cool hands on experiences. I really liked a cute puffer fish that seemed to follow us as we walked around the aquarium. The center had many shells, butterflies, eggs, and stuffed animals native to the park. There was even a display showing how turtles hatch. The beach is 1.5 miles long with white powdered sand.  Grace and I found many pieces of sand dollars and shells on the beach.  We also saw a dozen dolphins jumping in the waves.  The coolest thing we saw was a black tip reef shark that had been caught by a fisherman on the beach. We got to see its teeth they were very white and looked very sharp.

                I bought this cool wave runner ball that when you throw it side arm on an angle it bounces on the water.  It is very awesome! We played monkey in the middle.

 

 



On the Road!

Today we started our travel adventure in our 17 foot travel trailer. Here is a picture of it.

By the time the trip is done I will have travelled to 17 states, 5 provinces and 5 countries.  

Here is the schedule of my trip.  I will try to write about the different places as I go. 

April 1-3 Panama City, Florida

April 3-5 New Orleans

April 5-8 Houston, Texas

April 8-10  San Antonio, Texas

April 10-11 Carlsbad, New Mexico

April 11-13 Tombstone, Arizona

April 13-14 Phoenix, Arizona

April 14-15 Grand Canyon, Arizona

April 15-18 Las Vegas, Nevada

April 18-19 Palm Springs, California

April 19-22 San Diego, California

April 22-25 Los Angeles, California

April 25- 28 San Francisco, California

April 28-30 Redwood Forest, California

April 30- May 1 Bandon, Oregon

May 1-2 Seaside, Oregon

May 2-4 Seattle, Washington

May 4-7 Vancouver, BC

May 7-9 Whistler, BC

May 9-10 Salmon Arm, BC

May 10-11 Banff, Alberta

May 11-14 Calgary, BC

May 14-15 Winnipeg, Manitoba

May 15-16 Thunder Bay, Ontario

May 16-17 Lake Superior Provincial Park

May 18 HOME!

 

Here is a map of where I have gone so far.

How to Juggle

When I was on the cruise ship my family and I went to a workshop to learn how to juggle.  The person teaching the workshop was Michael Holly.  He learned how to juggle in college when his friend showed him how to do it.  He has made a career out of juggling.  I will share the steps that he showed us and also give you the link for his website so you can learn how to juggle yourself.  I am getting better with 2 balls but still have not mastered 3.

 

 

 

 

The first step is to not even use any juggling balls. It is just to make a figure 8 (infinity symbol) in the air with your right hand first and then with your left hand.  This helps you to help your brain learn about the pattern that the juggling balls make in the air.

 

 

 

The next step is to use one ball and practice throwing it in the air from one hand to the other.  You do not need to throw the ball high up in the air because juggling is just small throws in front of you.

 

 

 

The third step is to use 2 juggling balls.  Start by throwing the ball in your left hand first followed very shortly after by the right one.  Try to get a rhythm going and picture the figure 8 pattern that you first practiced.  Even 2 balls can be challenging to catch.

 

 

Before you try to juggle 3 balls it is good to practice just throwing them up in the air and letting them land without catching them.  This gives you a feel for the pattern.  Start with 2 of the balls in your left hand and throw one of them in the air to the right hand.  Before you can catch it you have to throw the ball in your right hand to the left.  Before you can catch that one you have to throw the ball in your left hand to your right hand.  The whole act of juggling moves very quickly.

 

Here is a picture of  Michael Holly and his link is michaelholly.com  He suggests practicing on your bed or couch so that the juggling balls don't bounce away too far.  He also says that you can practice in your living room when commercial breaks are on.  He says that anyone can learn to juggle.  When Michael was a kid his mom took him to the doctor because he did not have good coordination but look at what hard work and dedication did for him!

 

 



Shells and Beach Things

During my time here I have gone to the beach many times and I have seen lots of cool things.  I will share some of the things I have found. 

Here is a photo of a fossil shark tooth. I found at Fort Meyers Beach.  This tooth could be millons of years old.



 

 

This is an olive shell. Seashells are actually the skeletons of mollusks (snails, clams, oysters).  They grow their skeletons on the outside of their body instead of on the inside like you or me. 

 

 

 

This is an abilone shell.  It  is very shiny.  Shells help protect the sea creatures from other animals, strong currants, storms and help hide the creature.

 

 

 

 

 

This a starfish but is not really a fish. It does not have gills, scales or fins.  They do not move with tails.  They have little tube feet to help them move.

 

 

This is a sand dollar.  It was once alive.  It moves around with tiny little feet on the outside of it.  The little round circle in the middle of it is its mouth.  It eats zooplankton and algae.

 

 

 

This is a conch shell.  You say the word "conk".  Some of these shells get really large.  When we went to a restaurant I ate conch fritters which is really the mollusk in the shell which is deep fried.

 

 

 

This shell is called a flat tellin.  It is a "bivalve shell" because it has 2 sides to it and probably at one time had an oyster or a clam living in it.  When the creatures living in the shells get too big for the shell they will leave and look for another larger shell to live in. 

 

 

Also one day I saw a dolphin swimming close to shore.  It might have been a Bottlenose dolphin which are common in Florida.  It was by itself but they often travel in pairs or in groups.

Blue Jays against Red Sox game

A couple of days ago we went to a Blue Jays spring training game against the Boston Red Sox.  The Red Sox train at Jet Blue Park in Fort Meyers. The ballpark is neat because it it very new and in the outfield they have a mini "Green Monster" wall just like they have in the real Fenway Park stadium in Boston.  

I went to the game with my cousins Emma and Mia who were visiting for March Break. 

The game was fun because it was a close game. The Jays did not win but they almost came back at the end of the game. Jose Bautista was playing in the game and did well.  The cool part was that after the game we went to where the Blue Jays walk out of their change room and get on to their bus. The Jays centre fielder Colby Rasmus stopped and signed a baseball for us. 

Here is a close up of the signed baseball.

 

We are going to a Minnesota Twins and Blue Jays game next Sunday and maybe I wil be lucky enough to get another autograph.

Manatees

Manatees

 

We went to Manatee Park.  It is in Fort Myers.  There is a river there that the manatees like to come to when the weather is cold.  The water there is warm because there is a hydro plant there that lets off warm water into the river. 

 

We saw five manatees at least. Manatees are relatives to elephants. They are mammals. Manatees weigh 800 to 1200 pounds. Manatees can hear from far away. Manatees usually stay to the surface of the ocean because they need air to survive. A manatees mouth and flippers are the like the elephants. Manatees eat sea grass, marina algae, turtle grass, alligator weed, water lettuce and musk grass. Manatees live alone the only relationship it has is with his or her mother. They live with their mother for 1-2 years after birth.

 

 

 Manatees are an endangered species. They are endangered because of the limited food supply and how humans have treated them.  Years ago, humans hunted Manatees for food, and oil. It is illegal to hunt Manatee but many Manatee are killed by boats.  In Florida, it is law to slow down in known Manatee areas and there is even a Save the Manatee Club. If you interested check out www.savethemanatee.org/

 

 





Cape Coral

In Cape Coral Florida I am staying in a house we rented for 6 weeks.

Here are some things I have seen at my house: An alligator, Burrowing Owl, A carp (which is a fish), Turtles, Geckos, Ducks, An osprey (a big eagle) and more.  I also had a close encounter with a Snake which I thought it was a Pygmy Rattle Snake.

 

One day my Dad and I were fishing in the canal in our backyard when we saw a small alligator swimming. He came and bit my bobber and then went to my Dads hook but luckily he shook it out of his mouth.

 This is the bobber that now has teeth marks in it.

 

We have done lots of fun things around here so far.  We went to Sanibel Island, the World’s largest shell factory, Lakes Regional Park (where we rented bikes and had an alligator cross in front of us on the road), roller skating at a place called Bamboozles, and explored an island near us called Pine Island.  We also biked to a sports park that is near our house.  It has 5 soccer fields and 9 baseball fields.  We played some soccer there.  Today we might go back there to play some baseball.

 

 

 

 



St. Thomas U.S. Virgin Islands

On the cruise we stopped at St.Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands.  It was a beautiful island.

 

Christopher Columbus landed on the island in 1493 and he named it Santa Cruz. It also used to be owned by the Dutch to grow sugar cane. It was a place that pirates used to go to. We got a taxi. It was a cool taxi because we sat outside in the taxi.  Our drivers name was 10-10.

 

We went to Magens Bay which is a beach. It is known as one of the nicest beaches in the world.  I went swimming and I built a sand castle and a moat that I could go in.

 

There are about 50 000 people who live on the island.  Their main language is English and they buy things with the U.S. dollar.  It is kind of strange because they drive on the left side of the road.  They are 1 hour ahead of us because they are so far east of where we live.  I really liked all the great views I saw when I was on the island.

 

At night we had a pirates night because of all the pirates that used to be in this area.