Lazydays Tampa, FL

We're in Seffner, FL at Lazydays RV (Tampa area)
April 30, 2014

For the last several months we've talked about "upgrading" our 2006 Tiffin Phaeton home on wheels to a newer model.  In March, we stopped by Lazydays RV in Tampa, FL and started looking at new motorhomes.  (New to us but still pre-owned.) Geez, so many to consider.  We tried to keep in mind that we really don't know how much longer we'll be traveling in our rolling home and to not go overboard on what we buy.  Well, nothing on the lot in March, but we've kept in touch with salesman extraordinaire Glen..."let us know when our perfect match shows up as a trade-in".  While we were in Charleston, we called Glen and he thought he found what we wanted.  So, we started our travels back to Florida to check out our potential iRV2.  Arrived on Wednesday, April 23, and found what we wanted plus some! (That means, yes, we will be spending more $$ than we planned to spend. And, um, what's new with that?)  The original 2010 Tiffin Phaeton RV that we came to see just wasn't exactly what we wanted, but the 2011 Tiffin Allegro Bus is!!!  So, yes, we have purchased a new motorhome and by the end of the week we'll be on our way.  So, check out the new rig!

Think Key West when you see this, baby?

Just kidding, that's not ours but the picture below is...not kidding this time.

Loaded up with all the necessities of home...oh, wait, this is home! Everything looks up to our standards....well, accept the size of the TV in the "living room"...never big enough as Charlie sees it.  So, we'll be looking into a larger one in the near future.  Maybe watching one of the other 3 TV's will keep him entertained until the change can be made. Yes, we're a little spoiled on the TV side of things here at Tour de RV.

While we're waiting for the service tech's to complete the PDI (I think it stands for Personal Delivery Inspection) we're continuing to explore the Tampa area.  Yesterday was a trip to the Big Cat Rescue site.  How many Big Cats can you rescue and support with donations? This group has done an exceptional job of keeping exotic big cats alive.  Big Cat Rescue is the largest accredited sanctuary in the world dedicated entirely to abused and abandoned big cats. Tigers, Lions, Leopards, Cougars, Bobcats, Lynx, Servals, Ocelots, Caracals, Jungle Cats, Leopard Cats and a Geoffroy Cat all live at this wonderful cat heaven.  And, I was in Cat Heaven as Charlie took a bunch of pictures of cats.

Next to Lance, our own cat, Tigers are my favorite! 

Looks like it will be a few more days hanging around Lazydays as the techs complete the punch list...change the oil, repair broken bits and pieces, replace the mattress...a king size bed! and give new iRV2 a good cleaning! Initial reports were that they would be finished on Friday, but when we told them we had to be at Talledaga Superspeedway on Friday; they understood the importance of completing the job by Thursday.  NASCAR speaks to people in the South!  We'll let you know when we make it to the race.

Next stop: Talledaga Superspeedway!

Pinehurst, NC

Next stop,  Pinehurst, NC

This was our first experience with "membership" camping.  Hey, they offered us 3 free nights if we went to the presentation.  Since it was the closest campground to Pinehurst that I could find...we were in for the freebie (especially since I knew golf at Pinehurst would hit the bank account hard).  We checked in on Friday, took the tour/sales pitch on a rainy Saturday and played golf on Sunday. On checkin -- they handed me a bag of smores goodies (graham crackers, marshmallow and hershey bars), lead us to our campsite and gave us firewood! Nice so far.

We decided not to buy the membership.  Maybe we'll look into this in the future, but not what we need right now.  It was an interesting experience.

Breakfast at the campsite...I think he's chowing on a pinecone.  There were "black bandit" squirrels on the golf course that I didn't get a picture of.  Black and white, somewhat a mix between raccoon and panda in coloring.  Guess we'll have to return!

On the practice tee at Pinehurst!  Golf Heaven Here!  Well, not actually on the practice area as they're preparing for the US Open in June and the range as it's set up now is really hitting off a sidewalk into a net 20 feet away.  The range has been turned into tent city for all the corporate sponsors.  When the pros arrive, they'll be hitting practice balls on two of the other courses.

 That's Charlie taking a walk by the lake along 17. Wonder what he's looking for?

And, Charlie hitting while members Tom and Mike wait their turn on the tee.  Tom and Mike were great to play with as they knew the course and the area.  This was Pinehurst #4 and a great course.  We chose it over Pinehurst #2 where the Open will be played and saved SEVERAL hundred dollars a piece.  With the greens fees at $420 on #2, we chose the more reasonable twilight rate on #4 at $110 and enjoyed ourselves on most shots...there were a few in the water that we have already forgotten.  Pinehurst has 8 courses now and will be adding a 9th course soon.  #1-#7 are all in the same area and #8, and soon #9, are a few miles down the road.  Geez, we wouldn't get tired of being members here!

And, then off to Atlanta to visit Bill (as in our favorite Georgia son).  

Most likely you can guess that this isn't Atlanta in April.  While Bill, Charlie and I visited, we totally forgot to take pictures. So, I found one from a family trip to Florida of all three of Charlie's kids, Dave, Julie and Bill on the dock after his birthday celebration in August a few years ago.

It was nice to see Bill in Atlanta if only for a few hours!

I did remember to take a pic of the RV at our Victoria Campground at Lake Allatoona.  What a great place. If you have a boat, take it to Lake Allatoona.  Managed by BLM and camping  sites are nice.

Next stop, Lazydays in Tampa, FL

Savannah, GA and Charleston, SC

Mary found us a very nice RV park about halfway between Savannah and Hilton Head, Lake Jasper RV Park. Actually we are in South Carolina.

Spent some time just relaxing and watching the Masters on TV.
Spent day in Savannah on the Old Savannah Tour bus. The city has done a great job of preserving its history. Savannah is one of the earliest of the American colonies, founded by James Oglethorpe in the early 1700's.
Numerous movies made in the city. We now want to watch Midnight in the Garden of Evil if we can find it.

Had lunch in one of the oldest places in Savannah, The Pirate House. Place has quite a history from hijacked sailors to ghosts. Ships needed sailors so captains sometimes dragged drunks at the pub through a tunnel to their ships. They might have ended up in China. One fellow needed two years to get back to Georgia. This house is where Robert Louis Stevenson wrote Treasure Island.

Visited Tybee Island. A small town at the tip of an island south of Savannah.
Played golf at a course near Bluffton, SC. Course not in great condition (can you tell we didn't play well?).
Next stop: Charleston, SC

We visited Ft. Sumpter...the beginning of the Civil War.  Most of it had been destroyed through the bombings from surrounding Forts, but excavation efforts are on going.

After touring Ft. Sumpter, we boarded the Yorktown Aircraft Carrier.  This is the second Yorktown as the first one was sunk at Midway (we think).  The tour is self-guided but access to most of the ship is available.  It was interesting to meet volunteers who were there to answer questions about the ship...as most of them had actually worked on the ship when it was in operation.

Did you know that Charleston has the only tea garden in the US?  There's acres of tea growing and if you drink tea from the American Tea Company, it was grown in Charleston.  Bigelow purchased Charleston Tea, but growing and packaging still continue in Charleston and they continue to plant additional acres of tea.  Mary found a tea-drinker to hang out with.

 Ok, so this is a really big, old tree.  300-400 years old...it's a Live Oak. The city of Charleston is providing funding to keep the tree growing...maybe until it's 1,200 years old...geez.  The entire park is fenced, and if you think you're going to stay after 5:00 pm when it closes...it's not going to happen. Those city workers wanted to leave at 5:00 and they made sure everyone else did, too.

 That's Charlie packing up right before leaving Charleston.

 And, look who we found?! Charleston native (well, now she is), former A-B co-worker...Sharon Moeckel!!  It was nice to visit with her as she showed us some nice waterfront, seafood restaurants.  Oh, and yes, there was beer involved...Yuengling, America's Oldest Brewery.  We still like our A-B products, but that Yuengling has become a favorite while in the South!

Next stop: Pinehurst, NC.

St. Augustine Florida

World Golf Hall of Fame a very interesting place. I was not surprised that Bob Hope was included but was surprised at how much space was devoted to him. Then Mary pointed out that his foundation funded much of the Hall of Fame. But it was interesting and humorous and a great part of the place.
Lots of great photos and videos. Memorabilia of all the great tournaments and players.



Caddy shack lounge.

Hole in one challenge. Nothing good to report!

Played golf at the King & Bear course. Fun course to play, great condition; we enjoyed it (that means we both played well).

Visited with Mary's high school friend Stannye. Unfortunately husband Dave was out of town working so we had to eat and drink without him. So obviously we were over-served.

Played golf at Timuquana Country Club, which is right on the St. John's river with a beautiful view of the Jacksonville skyline. Thanks Stannye for a great dinner, golf, and visit.

Next stop: Savannah, GA.

Titusville Florida

Next stop was Great Outdoors RV Resort at Titusville, FL. Primary goal was to visit the Kennedy Space Center.
RV park included among all the niceties, friendly neighbors, and quite large alligators.

Spent couple days looking at a wide range of exhibits at the Kennedy Space Center. Managed to get on the last close up tour of the shuttle launch site. SpaceX, a private enterprise planning to take tourists to space, now has taken control of it and it is off limits. The whole space center experience was fabulous. We met and talked to astronaut Jerry Ross, who had been in space several times. He shared some great stories and pictures. He is being inducted into the astronaut Hall of Fame this month.

It was fun re-living a lot of history that we had seen first hand, or at least some of us old timers had seen. I still remember being in the New Orleans airport, on a business trip, watching Neil Armstrong's first walk on the moon. Everyone in the airport was huddled around TV's to watch.

Visited Cocoa Beach where Mary met a friend at the pier.

Next stop: St. Augustine, FL.