Pensacola – Day 1

You forget how nice a 4 ½ hour drive can be after you have experienced multiple drives in a row of 7 hours or more. We left Baton Rouge this morning (June 8th) for Pensacola, Florida and the famous white beaches they lay claim to. The drive was smooth and quick, and it seemed as if no time had passed at all as we arrived to our newly booked hotel. You see, last night (the 7th) we wanted to check out our Pensacola hotel one more time before we got there, and after we looked on googlemaps (which can literally see your front door or anywhere you well please to look – hopefully they don’t have cameras in our bathrooms), we decided to make a change. The area around our original hotel didn’t look “inviting”, and by that I mean the area was dungy and dirty looking, something like our Van Horn room only on a wider scale. So, we rebooked with a new, Towne Place Suites Marriott hotel and I think both of us are pleasantly surprised. While the room was a bit more spendy, it is well worth it. We have a refrigerator, microwave (and you KNOW I was stoked about THIS), a flat screen LG television, a stove (didn’t really care about that one), and some other basic amenities that make your stay just a tad nicer – remember, it’s the little things that can add a lot sometimes! However, all these things won’t be used much (I reserve the right to change this statement based on the usage of the microwave), because we will be spending the majority of our day 2 in Pensacola on the absolutely gorgeous white beaches that surround “the Island”, or the main attraction in Pensacola. A bridge that is about 4 miles long leads out to this stunningly beautiful beach island with hotels, restaurants, condos and shops that all look out over the enormity of the Atlantic Ocean – a site that never ceases to amaze me. This is my 2nd trip to the Atlantic, and I’ve had quite a few to the Pacific, (this is Rachel’s first to the Atlantic and I don’t think she believed me that the water was like a swimming pool, unlike the Pacific that feels like an Arctic blast the second you step in the water). But each and every time I get near an ocean, I can’t help but be filled with awe and wonder at this place God has given us, because it is so overpowering and inspiring and absolutely thrilling to be a part of it all.

The minute we got into our hotel, we were itching to get back out and drive down to the Pensacola Beach area to check out the sites and mostly, the water. It was warm as expected, and the beach was packed! Hundreds of people filled the water front, many playing a game of beach soccer, beach volleyball, some laying out in the Pensacola sunshine, and others just out enjoying the feel of the sand on their feet with their families and a family pet. It was peaceful and pleasant, something we all need to experience! We gathered some shells (as you can see in the picture), walked around a few of the shops for a while, and grabbed some dinner at a place called Crabs. I ate something called the White Dory fish, and after I finished it I came to a sudden realization that I may have just finished off millions of kids’ dreams – if you recall, Marlin (Nemo’s dad in Finding Nemo) made a good friend along the way in his adventure of trying to find Nemo. Yeah – did it just hit you too? Marlin’s friends name…DORY! Ahhhhh! What did I do? I’m sorry! Well, guess I’ll have to get over it because the White Dory fish tasted excellent. Rachel’s grilled chicken burger wasn’t too bad either. Before dinner we enjoyed a rousing game of mini-golf at the Tiki-Torch Arcade and Mini-Golf course and I have to say, this was one of the best mini-golf courses we’ve ever played at. The course had this one hole that dropped a good 30 feet through twists and turns to where the hole was…it was really cool. As I began to write this segment, Rachel gave me permission to mention that I won our little competition, but silly Rachel, she should have known that the only reason I was willing to mention mini-golf was because I won…maybe she’ll know me 100% someday ;o)!

Another cool part of today was passing through four different states. We went from Louisiana, to Mississippi, to Alabama and finally in to Florida (and no time zones – something is weird there.) The land down here is SO green! I guess that’s what you get with 70% humidity year round. It’s amazing to see an area so different from the one you live in – the people are different, the buildings and roadways are different, even the air is different. But as I sit in this Pensacola hotel, with a humid Atlantic night sky just outside the hotel window, I know that I can see the same red moon that my family can see back in Boise, the same lit up night sky that the business man laying down for a nights rest can see in New York, the same big dipper that orphaned Rawandan children will see tomorrow night as they look up at the heavens wondering when someone will come help them, the same blackened blanket that covers the wide expanse above us that the son and daughter of a drug-lord in a South American jungle will see…we all experience this miracle called life. It’s the spin we put on it that makes the difference. It’s the circumstance of our very being that enables us to see these things with the attitude that we do, and our situation allows us to see it all with a sense of gratitude, amazement, bewilderment…you name it. I just hope that someday, I can help someone less fortunate than myself to come to see it the way I do. Someday, I hope I can help someone see it in a way they’ve never seen it. I hope you can too.
By the way, tomorrow it’s supposed to be bright and sunny here in Pensacola.
In some places it will be rainy.
But tomorrow will be a great day anyway!
More soon!

From the Road Less Traveled,
Rachel and Josh

Pensacola Day 1 Highlights: Seeing the ocean!!!, warm ocean water, a quick drive, M&M’s, Microwaves for the long-awaited hotdogs, Mapquest directions to the beach & back, last minute hotel changes (for the better), digital cameras on mini golf courses to capture fun moments!

Bridges and Swamps

I’ll never understand how changing lanes at 80 plus miles per hour with a car 2 feet in front of you and 2 feet behind you is safe. But apparently in Houston, that’s the daily norm. Personally, I don’t like being able to see the neck hair of the driver in front of me nor the raging nostrils of the driver behind me – call me crazy but I’ve always felt at least 3 car lengths was safer than 6 inches, but maybe that’s just me. We both understood quickly why Houston is the 4th largest city in the United States.

Not a lot of new things to report from the road today, but a few things that may be of some interest to you. For as grand as the Mississippi River is made out to be it sure goes by quickly. The bridge that crosses it is over and done with in a matter of 30-40 seconds. Now if you want to talk about a bridge – wow, there’s one that runs through Louisiana that dwarfs any bridge I’ve ever seen. Our sympathies go out to the construction workers who were subjected to the arduous task of drudging through the swamp infested area all the while having to maintain a construction-based mindset while building the bridge between Lafayette and Baton Rouge. This thing, I’m not kidding, was at least 40 miles long. It makes the Mississippi bridge look like a simple hop across a stream. More than the length of that bridge stands out though, as we suddenly felt a little closer to home when we came upon a fellow Idahoan in a white Camry. It was odd to see the red, white, and blue plate that sticks out like a sore thumb 2,800 miles from home. It was a pleasant sight for some well-traveled eyes in our own vehicle, and it made me realize just how much cooler Idaho plates are than just about anywhere else. Just a hunch, but I’m guessing like most people in the Southeast, our fellow Idahoan was wondering if all these people down here even know where Idaho is at. If you’ve discussed geography with Easterners, you know that they get Iowa and Idaho mixed up quite often. It makes me want to punch somebody in the jejunum – just kidding, but seriously people, Idaho and Iowa are NOT close, is it really that difficult?!

It’s quite obvious that we’re a few measly miles away from the Atlantic Ocean because you can feel it when you step into the air; you’re breathing becomes somewhat labored. If you didn’t know any better you just might think that one of your lungs has collapsed. The humidity in Boise as we looked it up was 56% on a rainy day, the humidity in Pensacola, Florida (where we’re headed next) was 74% on a partly cloudy day with no rain. Maybe that will give you a clue as to what we are facing for the next 4 days. Don’t you feel so bad for us?! *cough*

Finally, the La Quinta Inn in Baton Rouge was a very pleasant stay. The staff was nice, the bed was comfortable, the ice machine was near by, and the air conditioning worked great. As we drove through Louisiana, we thought about the craziness of actually being in the state of Louisiana. Neither of us had been there before and it was almost surreal to think that we are truly into a week of our honeymoon. While we enjoy the trip of a lifetime, life outside of our month long dream world goes on. I realized this as we watched the news last night and saw that 2 United States news reporters have been sentenced to 12 years in a labor prison in North Korea for “illegally entering” the communist country. As we leave each and every state as freely as when we entered it, our thoughts and prayers are not only with those 2 journalists but with everyone who does not possess the freedoms we do as Americans. I would encourage everybody who is reading this to take a second to think about just how lucky and blessed we are and to look at just where this nation is headed. That is not a political statement, but a statement that has with it a deep-rooted belief that this country was founded on strong moral principles and that the government works for US, not the other way around. Thanks to everyone who has commented and for the encouraging words – it means more to us than we can say in a blog. We look forward to reading your words every night!

From the Road Less Traveled,
Rachel & Josh

Baton Rouge Highlights: another night of Dominos Pizza (delivered to our hotel room!), a close NBA finals game (come on Magic!!), the ability to back your car up right to your hotel door, getting out of San Antonio easier than we entered, a friendly hotel desk attendant, having each other to enjoy this trip with!

License Plate Update: Idaho, Washington, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Indiana, Texas, Florida, Oregon, California, Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, Illinois, Oklahoma, Maine, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Minnesota, Alaska, Michigan, Iowa, New Mexico, Arkansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, North Carolina (go Tar Heels!), Virginia, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, New York (37/50)