..we finally left New Orleans on Monday the 22nd....still vibrating from the experience of the colorful, most musical city with the good wishes of the couple we learned to love.
We were buzzing/vibrating down the highway....not quite as thrilling (because the north east side of N.O. is very industrial)as our entrance to the city five days prior, but it fit the mood.
We had a late start - which was to be expected and were looking soon to find something to settle for the night. A State Park - why not!
Back in CA you can camp at a hiker/biker spot for $5-$10 a night...we’ll try it and see what Mississippi has to offer.
Just a little out of the way, but towards the coast was a green spot on the map called “Buccaneer State Park”. The gate was closed, but the sign told us $.50 per person (and -yes- the dote is in the right place) if you don’t have a car.....that’s us!
Needless to say, when we left the next morning, we couldn’t find a soul to pay our $1 for the two of us. The hot shower alone was worth a million. Nice place! We left clean and happy riding the Gulf coast again towards Alabama and into Mobile.
I like big cities, but I didn’t have high expectations for this one...not sure why? The name....maybe.....I recall riding through a little town in the States near “Port Arthur” (what a dump of a city) in Louisiana, named “Amelia” and felt cheated, because the town was less than attractive; there wasn’t even a corner or a park where I would have sat my foot down to linger a while. How can it have an “aromatic”, “clean” name like “Amelia”, tainted by pollution, encircled with refineries?
We connected with a WS family prior to our arrival and that seemed promising. It always helps to have a personal connections to learn about a new place.....and a whole family at that (with 3 kids - girls). A place seems to be defined by the people I meet, so, therefore Mobile was a success!
Now that I think about it - in reality - we didn’t even see much of Mobile!
Our stay was the people, the open hearts, the world view, the kindness and trust from each member.
A friend of the family opened the door while the couple and the girls were still absent..family members trickled in during the later afternoon and another WS (WarmShower) guest from France arrived that same evening.
Over plenty of food - BBQ meat and other stuff, mounds of nourishment for all of us hungry cycling wolfs and conversations about the emotional state during cycling - alone - cycling with a partner -...conflict, religion, education and bringing up children. Food for the soul and the body. Laughter, astonishment, surprises and open minds were present at this dinner table.
It never ceases to surprise me that we land in places that feeds us on so many levels.
The one time we spend in Mobile downtown, was, to visit the “Delta Bike Projekt” http://www.deltabikeproject.org
We got to meet up with Alex and tuned up our bicycles which were in need of some well earned TLC.
