Our weekend in the Big Easy -- May 19-21-- COMPLETED!!! 6/3 About This Page:

[KrisLuvsDisney]

Great report Sarah and wonderful pics of NO.

[statelady01]

Glad you enjoyed another great show and concert bear was too cute.

[DrDolphin]

Great update!! Glad to hear you had a good time at the concert - CB is such a cute idea!!! I am a bit concerned about your lead in for the next installment.... don't tell me Ginger is hurt again!

[DopeyGirl]

Up and at ‘em . . . the USS Alabama . . . and “What do you mean Ginger’s ripped again!?”



<font color="purple">Well, since I had stayed out relatively late the night before, and we didn’t have to be checked out until 11am, Mike and Emilie let me sleep a bit later. They got up and munched on some PopTarts and watched some cartoons until I finally joined the land of the living around 9am. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img][img]/ubb/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img][img]/ubb/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] I got up, took a shower, dressed and got everything together . . . then we headed down to check out. The same girls were working the desk when I checked out, and as soon as I saw them I looked at Mike and said “Now, is check OUT going to be as confusing and difficult as check IN?” (luckily, it was not! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img] )

We walked down the block to where the car was parked, loaded the stuff in and headed out . . . we stopped for gas in Slidell, once we had gone over the huge, long bridge from NOLA. Once that was done, we were on our way . . . it was a completely uneventful drive, which is a good thing! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] Along the way, we stopped at a McDonald’s for lunch. I can’t tell you where it was, because I didn’t even notice where we were . . . but I am pretty sure it was somewhere in Mississippi. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img] Well, wherever we were, that is where we got “Concert Bear’s cousin”, which I talked about in the last update! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img]

I also mentioned that Concert Bear has his own myspace page . . . he has a blog of his concerts so far (except for one he went to on June 1st, which is coming soon [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] ) . . .
http://www.myspace.com/thatbearcanrock [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] He only accepts friends and people he has met before! He's kind of a snob like that! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img][img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img][img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img]

So . . . we got our lunch and drove on, got to Mobile and Mike said “Hey, while we are here, let’s go see the USS Alabama.” and got off of the highway. OK . . . so we’re going to the USS Alabama Battleship park! A little detour, but that’s OK . . . it was mid-afternoon on a Sunday and we had nothing else planned! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

We pulled in, parked and headed into the visitor’s center . . . here’s where we got a good deal . . .

Kids 5 and under . . . FREE
Active Duty military . . . FREE
Everyone else . . . $9

We only had to pay for me . . . which I thought to be a bargain! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] So, we paid, got our reciept (which served as our tickets) and the tour guide, which was actually written out directions for the three different tour routes you could take. For every ladder, hatch and deck, there was a color coded arrow with a number on it telling you where to go next . . . you followed the numbers on the list. There was a lot of paying attention involved, I can tell you that much!!! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img]

So, we headed up the gangplank and on to the ship . . . followed the arrows to the “Tour Start” point and decided we would follow the yellow arrows, which would take us up the ship. (I believe there was also a green route and a red route . . . one took you down into the ship --- the berthings, sick bay, galley, etc --- and the other was both yellow and the other’s routes combined as a whole ship tour). It was hot . . . and looking back on it now, we probably should have done the route that took us down instead since it was hot, but not too terrible, but I was wearing flip-flops, which are just NOT good for climbing up and down ladders!!! Oh well! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img]

We made our way through the top decks of the ship and Emilie “shot” the big deck guns and what not . . . it was pretty interesting! I kept joking with Mike that even though this was a WWII era ship and a lot smaller, he’d better get used to what a ship looks like!!! He will be going to a land based aviation squadron in Virginia when we move, but when they go on deployment, he’ll be on an aircraft carrier (much like the USS Midway that Chez and Mark just saw in my beloved hometown of San Diego! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] ) for 6 months at a time!!! I don’t think he likes it when I joke about ships . . . [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img]

Here are some pics from onboard the USS Alabama . . . </font>



That’s a big bullet!!!


“Shooting” one of many deck guns


Mobile, Alabama


Emilie and a very LARGE signal light!!!


Coming down one of MANY ladders from the upper decks of the ship


Taken from the bow of the ship




Looking back at the ship from the ground! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

CONTINUED IN NEXT POST!!!!

[DopeyGirl]

[b]<font color="purple">. . . once we had toured the Alabama, we headed into the visitor’s center so I could buy a magnet for the fridge, since I collect one from everywhere I go [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] , then headed over to tour the submarine USS Drum. I got a tiny bit claustrophobic in there! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/crazy.gif[/img] Tiny hatches and not a lot of room to move around in there . . . and there were only the three of us and 4 other people in there at the time! Makes me wonder how a whole sub crew could stand being in there! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/crazy.gif[/img]</font>


Mike and Emilie compete to see who can “shoot” the guns better . . . [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img]


Torpedo launch tubes . . . and YES, the “guy” in there scared the bejeebers out of me when I first turned around and looked in there! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img]


Emilie “driving” the USS Drum

<font color="purple">We headed for the car once we had seen all of the sub, and continued our drive east to Pensacola. We did have to make yet ANOTHER stop at the Build-A-Bear Workshop in Spanish Fort before we could go any further though. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/smirk.gif[/img] Emilie announced that her silly monkey Ginger had a broken stitch in the center of his back (right where they stitch them up once you stuff them). It looked like the stitch just broke, but even so . . . [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img] I am glad she caught it BEFORE we hit Spanish Fort, because I am not sure Mike would have turned around to go back. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/smirk.gif[/img] It was REALLY busy that day, but we were in and out of there with a good-as-new Ginger the monkey in no time! And 40 minutes later, we were home! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

When we got home, I had an e-mail asking me to be part of a “project” for the band. The final show of their first headlining tour was June 1st and they were having a “Black Tie and Blood” ball theme for the final show (people attending were supposed to dress up in black tie or formal dress with fake blood dumped all over them --- think the one scene in Carrie. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] ) Anyways, there were a lot of people that were not going to be able to make it to L.A. for the show, so we were going to take part in a Black Tie and Blood video/photo project. I had a really fun time taking pictures OF MYSELF for it in my dining room, I tell you what! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img] It made the “post concert depression” seem not so bad. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] All but 2 of them were taken by me OF me using the camera timer! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img] I am not going to post my pictures here, since they are supposed to stay secret from the guys until the project is complete . . . and there is “blood” involved (although mine was chocolate syrup and red food coloring and there wasn't much of it, since I was paranoid about getting on my dress [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] ), but if you would like to see them and ARE ON MY MYSPACE FRIENDS LIST . . . here is the link: http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseac...62-9c88683468da

If you would like to see them and you aren’t on myspace, PM me and I will show them to you! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

So . . . all in all, it was a great weekend!!! I finally got to see New Orleans, although some parts were just too sad to see! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img] I got to spend time with friends I don’t see very often and some that I have only ever talked to online and FINALLY got to meet in person. We got a quick break from normal everyday life at home!

Next up for me . . . I need to finish my darn trip report from my March WDW trip!!!! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/foreheadslap.gif[/img] And that’s about it (until we move in October [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] )</font>

[img]/ubb/images/graemlins/zwavin.gif[/img][img]/ubb/images/graemlins/zwavin.gif[/img][img]/ubb/images/graemlins/zwavin.gif[/img]

[LizardCop]

[b]Great TR Sarah!!!

One day we plan to make it to the Alabama and Drum. While in Hawaii we visited the U.S.S. Missouri and the U.S.S. Bowfin while at Pearl... Very educational [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[chezp]

Great ending to your report Sarah - Mark would've loved the stop you made, especially the submarine. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[lauren-roxy]

Great report Sarah!! Thanks so much for sharing it with us!! Sounds like you guys had an awesome weekend!! I would love to see your pictures that you took of you with the fake blood.

[DawnDenise]

Great trip report Sarah as always!!! I loved all the pictures!!

Also loved the pics for 30 Seconds to Mars!! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[GoofyMom]

Sounds like a pretty fun weekend!

I checked out your MySpace pictures. Good job on your "bloody" makeup, but my ultimate favourite picture of you is that first candid one with your head tilted to the left!

[DyanKJ130]

Sounds like you had a great weekend!! Loved Concert Bear (&amp; his cousin)! Too much!! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img]

[katspjs]

Sounds like you had a fun weekend in NO. Great pictures.

[DrDolphin]

Great report my friend!!!

[KrisLuvsDisney]

Great TR Sarah! Sounds like you all had a good weekend.

[Colexis Mom]

Great finish Sarah [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/zwavin.gif[/img] Loved all your pics [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]