Bruno’s desk…
ROAD TRIP!!! … We are back! Not Lost!
That road trip was an experience to learn from. Not only did we have lousy weather for the duration, except 2 warm and sunny days, but apparently, we got lost!
Once we reached New Orleans, we got our room, put away our luggage and went for a walk to Bourbon Street. The weather was windy, cloudy and cold. Almost needed a jacket or sweater. Walked around to see the sights for a few hours taking pictures, then back to the hotel. Got ready for bed and went on our computer tablets to connect with our friends and family. The Wi-Fi was real slow with a bad connection. After frustration trying to post messages, we shut them down and went to bed.
Next day we went on two tours. One was to Oak Alley, a plantation where many slaves had lived and worked. The other was a Swamp tour to see local birds and alligators. Once back in our hotel, we changed and went out for dinner in the French Quarter at the Huck Finn restaurant. Good seafood. A parade came by the street outside and I ran out for pictures and caught a handful of coloured beads tossed by the revelers. Back at our hotel room, we got comfortable after a long day and went on the tablets again. Still lousy Wi-Fi, so we closed down again. The next morning, we toured the cemeteries at the west end of town before continuing on our way.
Our next stop, late in the afternoon, was at our hotel in Panama City beach. Here we got dressed for a night on the town. It was New Year’s Eve, after all. We went to Pier Park for the 2016 Beach Ball Drop. At 8 p.m., local dignitaries released 10,000 inflated beach balls along Pier Park’s beachfront boardwalk. This awe-inspiring activity, heralded as the nation’s only family beach ball drop, was followed by some dazzling fireworks display. This gave us lots of time to get out of the huge car filled parking area before the midnight part of the evening and get back in time for the evenings highlights on TV in our room. Again, lousy connection to Wi-Fi.
The next day we headed on a long drive towards Wakulla Springs state park to take a boat tour to see manatees. We were not disappointed although rain forced us out of the tour early. We continued on to Lake City looking for gas, a good meal and lodging.
The next day we went into a mall for a seafood restaurant and found it to be closed for hours. In the parking lot, we spotted a Jo-Anne’s fabric store that my wife wanted to shop in. This is where it got very interesting.
At the checkout, my wife asked the clerk to take the discount coupons off our new phone which she turned on. Once on, it started to go crazy. The phone kept ringing (or pinging) to which my wife pushed the decline button repeatedly until the clerk got the coupons. We assumed it was my wife’s sister and turned off the phones again. We would chat with her later on Facebook.
Up the road we stopped in a seafood restaurant and decided to check for Wi-Fi and turned on her phone to see what the calls were about. What a surprise to find that many calls were from my wife’s brother. A text message said to call as soon as we got this message. She texted a reply that we would contact them at the next motel with Wi-Fi. He typed back “NO, CALL NOW!!!” so she did.
Apparently, since my wife and I have not been on Facebook for 4 days, and he, nor his sister and our other relatives had not gotten their normal phone calls wishing them a Happy New Year, like every year before, he got worried that something bad happened and contacted the police. They agreed with his concerns and immediately put out a nationwide BOLO (Be On the Look Out) in Canada and the USA. Police along our route from New Orleans to Panama City Beach were alerted and hospitals were called looking for us. Now that we have been “found” everything should have gone back to normal. Wonder what will happen at the border?
My wife kept smiling for the next few days and saying, “My brother really does love me!”
In the past, we have always done the following when we go on a long trip, especially out of the country.
My wife would email an itinerary to her brother and sister with the following information;
- Travel plans including motels and tours (if booked)
- Main travel routes detailing highways to be traveled
- Passport numbers
- Vehicle license plate number and detailed vehicle description
- Doctors’ names and phone numbers
- Relatives’ names and numbers with similar information
Don’t let your friends and relatives get worried for your safety. Make a plan, give them an itinerary and stay in contact somehow. Example: if the room Wi-Fi doesn’t work well, use the hotel lobby’s Wi-Fi and/or computer, which usually works.
If friends and relatives expect you to be in contact, do so. And have a great trip.
