Campground day, Sunday, October 18, 2015.

We spent today in the campground, washing clothes, updating this blog, and reading. Tomorrow we checkout Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Hot Tamale Festival, Saturday, October 17, 2015.

 

When Kathy and I were eating at Doe's with Jerry and Lee, they told us they were in Greenville for the Hot Tamale Festival. Greenville is the Hot Tamale Capital of the World. Kathy and I spent most of the day at the festival on Washington Street. Like all festivals, this festival contained lots of people and booths selling all kinds of stuff, not just hot tamales. In fact, hot tamales could not be sold until 11:30 after the judging. Kathy and I stayed until the grand prizes were awarded. We ate only 13 tamales which turned out to be some of the winners. We also bought some salsa, hummus, and brown rice from the growers. We noticed was the Geenville police were black guys. Kathy noticed the guys in the sheriff running office booth were white guys.

Kathy and I had never seen waterballs. Kids are sealed inside a clear plastic ball which is then pump full of air as shown in the foreground of the picture. The ball is pushed out onto a large plastic pool in the background of the picture. It sounds cool at first. However, no kid appears to be able to stand up and actually walk inside the ball. Instead they roll around. I am not sure how fun this actually is.








Several booths sold sport team stuff, mostly team signs. Kathy and I learned Delta State University's unofficial mascot is "Fighting Okra". Ben and Jason, why didn't you tell us about "fighting okra"? DSU's official teams are called "Statesmen". Fighting okra sounds way tougher. Delta State appears to also be proud of having "the World's Most Annoying" pep band. 

Confederate Flag Demonstration to Eating at Doe's, Friday, October 16, 2015.

Kathy and I woke up and decided to buy breakfast. Unfortunately, we hadn't seen breakfast places the previous night's trip to "The Square." Since our main job today is to visit the University of Mississippi campus we headed toward campus in hopes of running across a breakfast place first. We didn't. We drove right up to the front gate of the campus and asked the guard at the gate we were looking for breakfast. Without even looking at us like we were stupid, he informed us that we were at the University of Mississippi. We said, "Yes, we know. Can you recommend a place to eat breakfast?" And he told us about "Big, Bad Breakfast". And that is where we eat. The place was full. Kathy and I sat at the lunch counter. The menu is interesting. We learned that Tobasco produces spicy salt and spicy worcestershire sauce. Kathy had an omelet. I had "The Gentleman," fried chicken first soaked in Coca Cola. The meat was tender. The batter was thick. 

On the way back to campus, we took a picture of Faulkner's house, three blocks from "The Square". It is a private residence and doesn't give tours.

 We arrived on campus just in time for an NAACP protest demanding the Mississippi state flag be removed from campus because it has the "southern cross" in the upper left corner. Kathy and I assumed that a state university would certainly not remove the state flag from campus. However, two other state universities already have. The demonstration was orderly. Three black students spoke about their attachment to the university and the alienation by the southern cross on the state flag. Kathy thought they should have had a white speaker to show this is not just a black issue. I think they should have played Steve Earle's "Mississippi, It's time". 

Soon after the anti-flag demonstration, about ten pro-flag demonstrators showed up. This was about five men and three women and two children with one more in a baby carriage, waving Mississippi and southern cross flags. These were not students. One of the southern cross flags had a skull and crossbones on it. One of the guys was wearing a white power hat and carrying a sign saying, "Succession". So much for "heritage, not hate." Newspaper accounts made conflicting claims about who these people were. One claimed that they were members of the KKK from Georgia. Another gave another identify. Anyway, they were greatly out numbered by the protesters of the first group who peppered the second group with insults and questions. Since Kathy and I were standing in the back with the hangers on, we could here the insults and questions of the nearby black students, but could not hear the responses of the further away rebels. Police were keeping the groups apart. A newspaper article said the police eventually lead the group off campus and prevented the black students from following. 

Since Kathy and I couldn't hear well, we left before the end and walked to the university library. We found the James Meredith statue in front of the library.  In 2014, Graeme Phillip Harris and two other students of the Sigma Phi Epsilon hung a noose and an older version of the Georgia flag with the southern cross on the James Meredith statue. The fraternity was closed and the three boys charged with a felony.  In September 2015, a federal judge gave Harris six months in jail, followed by 12-months probation. James Meredith wants the statue torn down and ground to dust because the statue gives a false sense of progress. Back in 1962, federal marshals forced the University of Mississippi to enroll James Meredith. Now 50 years later, Meredith points out that still a federal court, not Mississippi, punished Harris with the hate crime.  

Kathy and I visited the library and the student union bookstore, walked the "Walk of Champions." The university has a tradition of the football walking through the grove on game days. The purpose of the arch is to remind athletes that they play for championships with teamwork, loyalty, and trust. The walk itself will be composed of 17,000 engraved bricks, $250 each. As we left town we passed the baseball diamond. Two teams were there playing a game. The diamond looked new and very nice. 

Kathy and I drove from Oxford straight to Doe's Eat Place in Greenville, Mississippi. Doe's Eat Place is an internationally known dump serving some of the best steaks we have ever eaten. Kathy and I discovered Doe's in previous visit to Greenville in 2009.  Doe's has other locations, but people say they don't give the same run down experience of the original. I am sure this is true. Doe's serves great food and a unique experience. This time Kathy and I shared a table with two guys: Jerry and Lee. One of them was from a small town near Greenville. The other was from Iberia, Louisiana. Now they both live in Texas. Kathy and I had a good time sharing travel stories with them. After finishing our meal at Doe's we camped at Warfield Point Park beside the Mississippi River.

Thursday, October 15, 2015. Driving through Memphis etc. (humming song... see below)

OK, the title of today is a poor play on the song "Walking in Memphis" because it comes to mind everytime I think about Memphis...

We didn't actually do anything in Memphis because we decided to go visit Oxford, Mississippi, and "Ole Miss" because our grandson, Blake is looking at it for college. We decided we would get a picture of the town in our heads in case he decides to go there!

By the time we arrived in Oxford, it was going to be dark, so we first stopped and got a campsite west of town at the Oak Grove Campground (Corps of Engineers) on Sardis Lake. It's a nice campground with well-spaced sites and lots of trees. I'd definitely stay there again if we ever go to visit Blake at the University of Mississippi!

Once we registered the site, we decided to drive in to Oxford and see The Square at night. Chris had read about Oxford and said The Square was supposed to be "the place" to be at night. Well, for a Thursday night in October it was pretty busy!! The Square is centered on the courthouse and there are lots of stores, bars, and restaurants, many still open. There might have also been a concert at one of the sites that night.

We ate Italian food at one of the places on The Square. We walked around and also visited a bookstore, Square Books, before returning to the camp. Tomorrow we will return in the light to see the town and, most importantly, the campus!

Wednesday, October 14, 2015. More of Eureka Springs...

Eureka Springs, Arkansas, KOA

We decided to stay a second night at the KOA near Eureka Springs and visit some of the attractions during the day. The campground is built on hills (can we say Ozarks?) and achieves flat camping sites by using terracing. Our site was small, but our camper van is too. The terracing makes you feel that your site is more isolated, plus we had our own little deck with table and grill.

We decided to head in towards town and visit some sites we had decided on.

The first was Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge. They rescue and then take care of mostly large cats (tigers, lions, ligers, bobcats, ocelots, cougars, for example) and a few other wild creatures (bear and some others). They are gradually, as they receive the funding, building large enclosures that are natural habitat for the cats. What was amazing is that most of their rescued cats actually came from Arkansas or the surrounding area! I couldn't believe how many private individuals have large wild animals.

We took a guided tour of the facility, too, and met a very nice young intern that told us tales about the animals, the facility, and the rescues. As you might expect, she told us that any people purchase, say, a tiger cub and it's so cute, etc. But about a couple of years later the owners realize that this is turning into a LARGE, wild animal! So they try to find somewhere like the Wildlife Refuge. But she also told us tales about rescues of twenty or more creatures from the same place, living in terrible conditions. It's upsetting.

Next on our agenda was a visit to Quigley's Castle. We really enjoyed visiting this simple site. I suggest you click on the previous link and read the story about the house rather than retelling all of it. I loved the part about Elise and the kids tearing down the old house while the husband was at work! But it is also quite a love story because her husband, Albert, obviously understood his wife and helped her with her artistic ventures over the years.

Elise designed her own house and the main feature is the fact that she planted trees and other plants INSIDE and planned everything around that. The house is actually extremely comfortably designed and I'd love to live there. The windows on the glass side are all like french doors and you walk across a little brige to open them.

Chris' mom designed and built her own home, also. She also loved nature and gardening, so we decided that she would have loved what Elise did with her home.

In the garden, both Elise and Albert built stone structures out of stones, cement, and other found objects. This includes benches, tables, birdbaths, and many more.

The whole place would go well in Lucas, Kansas, we decided. It fits the description of outsider art under whatever name you want to call it (found art, folk art, etc.)

We then returned to the Historic Downtown of Eureka Springs. We caught the trolley from a parking lot and that was nice. We basically walked around, but especially enjoyed visiting a magic shop (and talking to the clerk who would like to become a magician), Gourmet Eureka (a cool little shop with lots of goodies, both food and gadget. The proprietor let us taste lots of neat things and we reciprocated by buying many of them!), and a gem and art shop that had some great pieces.

Back to the campground to eat a supper of goodies we bought from Gourmet Eureka and a salad with our new balsalmic vinegar!

Tuesday, October 13, 2015. To Eureka Springs, AR.

It didn't take long to get to Eureka Springs, Arkansas, in the morning. Part of our vacation plans have been to see some of the sites Chris remembers going to several times with his Mom and Grandmother when he was small. But we aren't sure whether it might be Eureka Springs or Hot Springs, so we plan to see both during this vacation.

Yes, Eureka Springs is definitely a tourist town. Most people know this, but it's possible that someone that doesn't travel much might not be aware of that. But that can even be fun for those of us that aren't big shoppers, in a kitchy sort of way.

Before we even got to town we stopped at the Thorncrown Chapel outside of town. This chapel opened in 1980 and contains 425 windows and over 6,000 square feet of glass. It's surrounded by woods. They ask that you simply enter, sit, and keep talking to a minimum and quiet. There were quite a few people there when we arrived. The atmosphere and view are inspiring and peaceful. Although we didn't find any mention of it in the promotional literature, we feel there are definite nods to some of Frank Lloyd Wright's work.

On entering town we discovered Fresh Harvest Tasting Room. They have lots of various olive oils and balsamic vinegars to taste and purchase we had lots of fun tasting, especially the vinegars. Although they have the basics, most of the items are either fused or infused with all sorts of other foods. We found a number we really liked, but both really liked the Espresso Balsamic Vinegar. That also happens to be their best-seller!

We then went to a store called The Amish Collection. Kathy wanted to go in and drool over the furniture. So we did. I'll gladly take at least one of everything in the store, if someone is willing to bankroll me! There were scads of simply beautiful pieces; but even if we wanted to purchase something large we couldn't get it back in the camper van. It looks like a trip to Yoder, Kansas, is now on the agenda to look at their furniture.

We did purchase one smaller item: a table that can be pulled up to a chair or couch to eat, etc. OK, it's maybe a glorified TV tray, but it's beautiful wood! We think it will come in handy when all the family is at our house and those sitting on the family room couch need a place for drinks rather than the floor! We also discovered that it actually makes eating in the camper easier for Kathy. However, moving it from the bed to the driver's seat and back each day/night is somewhat irritating.


We called for reservations at the Eureka Springs KOA and then proceeded to go on in to the historic downtown area of Eureka Springs. We walked around mainly, bought some chocolate candies, and then decided to eat some supper in town. We ate at the 1905 Basin Park Hotel. We found the meals to be simply OK. Walked around a bit more and headed to the campground.

We're watching our way through season one of The Blacklist, in addition to reading...

Monday, October 12, 2015. Off and away.

As we have the last few years, we took our time getting around today and finally pulled out in the late morning. I forgot to make a brisket this year! (Thanks, Ben, for reminding me and making me feel guilty.) We do miss that we won't have brisket sandwiches along the way.

So, we headed across Kansas to the east and decided our first goal would be... wait for it... the Goodwill store in Joplin, Missouri. For those that have followed our travels over the years you will remember that the store in Joplin has impressed us as the "best laid out" of the thrift shops we visit. We tend to visit stores like this on vacation; sometimes for some item we left (this year it was the microwavable large bowl that I left in the dishwasher) and sometimes just for fun.

Joplin's Goodwill had to move because the one we had visited was in the area hit be the tornado a few years ago. It's now near that spot, but smaller. We still liked the way it's laid out with the racks arranged by color in each department (all the red blouses together, etc.)

After finding a suitable item to cook in, a fork (yes, left some other things in the dishwasher, too!), and some jeans for Chris, we headed out again. We ended up staying overnight near Neosho, Missouri, at the Stage Stop Campground. It's small and sites are fairly close together, but was plenty OK for a quick overnight stay. We had a nice visit with the campground host.