We
continue our journey. Saturday dawned bright and beautiful with sunshine and 38
degrees. By the time we finished our preparations for travel the temps had
risen to 50 degrees, with a light breeze. It was so lovely, with the trees
continuing to turn color and softly drifting down to cover the ground. The
fragrance of wood smoke and leaves wafted up to meet us…ah, the smell
of autumn is in the air.
Our 257 mile trip from Buchanan, Michigan to Springfield, Ohio was uneventful; roads were generally good with no wind to speak of. We arrived to Tomorrow’s Stars RV Resort about 3:30 Saturday afternoon, and were surprised to find the park nearly full, and with trick or treaters literally everywhere! Apparently, this is an annual and favorite event here in the park, even though Halloween isn’t for another few weeks. Go figure…
Our site had a concrete patio with grassy area around it, and a large grassy area on the off-door side. The camper pad itself was pretty soft and muddy with not much gravel.
The park has full amenities, although the Wi-Fi is pretty sketchy. There’s an outdoor pool, clubhouse with both indoor and covered outdoor areas, shuffleboard, volleyball court, miniature golf, a small fish pond, amphitheater, laundry and showers.
We had just gotten settled when we received a phone call from Dick’s brother Bob; dinner was to be with brother Bob and sis-in-law Bonnie at a local restaurant, The Meadows at 6:30. Three of us enjoyed prime rib, while Dick dined on grilled shrimp. YUM-YUM!
Sunday was a day of errands, and using the internet at the local McDonalds. Then, a big family dinner at Bob and Bonnie’s, with their daughter Stephanie, daughter Staci and her husband Justin and 20-month old Jaden, Justin’s parents, niece Jessie and her mom TR. Bonnie served a lovely pork roast, baked potatoes, salad, green beans; Jessie had made a vegetarian corn chowder, which was wonderful. Dessert was apple pie ala mode, and banana bars with cream cheese frosting. Need I say, YUM???
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Bob and Bonnie, their grandson Jaden, Jaden with his mom Staci and dad Justin, Bonnie with me and her older daughter Stephanie, Oscar and Bogey |
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| Grandpa Bob with Jaden, Rufus and Bogey |
Their mission:“The National Museum of the United States Air Force collects, researches, conserves, interprets and presents the Air Force's history, heritage and traditions, as well as today's mission to fly, fight and win ... in Air, Space and Cyberspace to a global audience through engaging exhibits, educational outreach, special programs, and the stewardship of the national historic collection. These statutory duties delegated by the Secretary of the Air Force are accomplished on behalf of the American people. We are the keepers of their stories.”
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| Panoramic of the grounds, map of facility, entrance and gift shop |
One of the exhibits, that we didn’t see due to time constraints, was President Kennedy’s Air Force One, on display in the museum’s Presidential Gallery, located a short distance from the rest of the exhibits. He flew aboard the “Special Air Mission, tail number 26000,” or SAM 26000, to Dallas, where he was assassinated. It was on this airplane that Lyndon Johnson was sworn in as the new president. SAM 26000 then carried Kennedy’s body and Johnson back to Washington, DC.
Of the
almost 400 photos Dick took, these are just a few:
The Early Years - WWI:
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Early Years entrance, 1909 Wright Military Flyer, 1916 Wright wind tunnel, Standard J-1 Jenny Trainer, British Avro 504K, French Nieuport 28, British Sophwith F-1 Camel |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: German Halberstadt CLIV, German Spad XIII C.1, Kettering Aerial Torpedo "bug", DeHavilland CH-4 Air Service Workhorse |
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| Top to Bottom, L to R: Italian Caproni CA-36 bomber, Martin MB-2 Bomber, Ford Model-T Ambulance, French Observation Balloon |
Interwar Years:
WWII:
Notice the violin in the above Holocaust exhibit. In 1938, a terrified 15-year-old was forced to play his violin for the "entertainment" of the Nazis while his family's belongings were burned and his father was beaten by Nazi thugs, then taken away to a concentration camp. The boy managed to escape Germany, eventually reaching America. After the war, he wrote to the janitor of his apartment building, describing where he had hidden his violin in the attic. This is the actual instrument which the janitor found and returned to the now grown Robert Kahn.
Cold War:
* We noticed the name on the North American F-28B Twin Mustang: the Betty Jo. Because Dick's dad worked at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base at the time this plane was developed, and Dick's mom's name was Betty Jo, we're sticking with the idea that this plane was named after her.
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Curtis P-6E Hawk, Boeing P-12E, Kellett K-2/K3 Autogiro, Boeing P-26A Peashooter |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Martin B-10, Northrop A-17A AttachAircraft, North American NA-64 BT-14 |
WWII:
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| Top to bottom, L to R: British Hurricane, Holocaust Exhibit, Douglas B-18A BOLO |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Japanese Mitsubishi A6M2 Zero, Curtiss P-40E Warhawk North American B-25D Bomber, Douglas A-24 Dive Bomber, Beech A-10 W\ichitaTrainer, Bell P-63E King Cobra, Curtiss-Wright AT-9 Trainer |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Vultee BT-13 Valiant, British Bristol Beaufighter Mk,Lc, Consolidated B-24D Liberator, British Supermarine Spitfire Mk,Vc, British DeHavilland DH98 Mosquito, North Amercian A-35A Apache, Lockheed P-38L, Republic P-470 Thunderbolt |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Douglas C-47-D, Skytrain, Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress, North American P-51D Mustang, German Messerschmitt Me 163 Rocket, Douglas A-20G Havoc, Consolidated OA-10 Catalina, Boeing Boxcar B-29 Superfortress Sikorsky R-6A Hoverfly II, Northrop P-61C Black Widow |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Cold War sign, Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit, Boeing B-18 Lancer, Russian Mikoyan-Gurevich Mig-20A Fulcrum, Sikorsky MH-53M Pave Low IV, Fairchild Republic A-10A Thunderbolt II, General Atomics RQ-1 Predator, General Dynamics EF-111A Raven, British Panavia Tornado GR-1 |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Lockheed AC-130A Spectre, McDonell Douglas RF-4C Phantom II, McDonell Douglas F-15A Eagle, McDonell F-1018 Voodoo, Cnvair F-106A Delta Dart, Lockheed SR-71A Blackbird |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Boeing X-45A, Convair F-102A Delta Dagger, North American F-82B Twin Mustang*, North Amerian RF-86F Haymaker Sabre, Northrop SM-62 Snark |
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| Panoramic of Cold War hangar |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Apollo 15 Command Module Endeavour, Columbia Space Shuttle model, Space Shuttle (full size model), Space Shuttle guide, Mark Hodson (thanks, Mark, for the detailed explanations of all we saw!) |
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| This Orange County Chopper was on display in the gift shop area--pretty cool! The Memorial Park covers acres adjacent to the museum, and honors Air Force-associated units and people for their courageous service and sacrifice in the cause of freedom. The museum dedicated the first memorial in 1972, with a commemorative tree and plaque recognizing Americans held as Prisoners of War by the North Vietnamese and those missing in action during the Southeast Asia Conflict. Memorial Park has grown since that first dedication, with more than 500 memorials, including statuary memorials, plaques, trees and benches. |
Another rainy and dreary day welcomed us Wednesday. That morning I made dessert for that night’s dinner at Bob and Bonnie's: taco pie (at their request) and ladyfinger lemon torte. YUM-YUM! We headed over in the mid-afternoon to take advantage of their Wi-Fi.
Thursday promised to be a reasonably decent day, so we ventured into Columbus, Ohio to the Columbus Zoo & Aquarium, where we spent about 5½ hours wandering the park. Spectacular! This, of course, is the home of Jack Hanna, so it’s a really neat place. (Now Director Emeritus, Jack was the director of the zoo from 1978 to 1993; he’s largely responsible for its quality and reputation, as being one of the foremost zoos in the country, if not the world.) The zoo is so well laid out, with areas dedicated to Australia, Africa, Asia, North America, and there’s an aquarium with beautiful tropical fish and manatees.
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Zoo entrance sign, flamingos, Roti Island Snake-necked Turtle, and a Chinese Crocodile Lizard |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Dumeril's Grouned Boa, Gila Monster, Grand Cayman Iguana, Southern Pacific Rattlesnake, Burmese Python, Aligator Snapping Turtle |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Indian Star Tortoises, Humboldt Penguins, Grand Carousel and sign, Red Kangaroos |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Lorikeets, Komodo Dragon, Sacred Ibis, Abdim;s Stork, West African Crowned Crane |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Blue Bellied Roller, Black and White Colobus, Leopard, Mandrill, and Western Low-land Gorillas |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Reticulated Python, Large Flying Fox Bat, Silvered Langur, Black Rhinoceros, Markhor, Bald Eagle |
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| Top to bottom, L to R: Dromedary Camel, Cheetah, Zebras and Ostrich, Vervet Monkey, Giraffes |
That
evening we met friends Tom and Les at The Florentine Italian restaurant in Columbus for
dinner. We used to vacation with them in Florida, where we always had a
wonderful time. This evening was no different. We spent 2½ hours with them
talking and eating and laughing. We miss them, and are hoping to entice them to
visit us in Texas…(or go on the road with us...).
Friday was a beautiful day in Springfield. The sun was shining and the temperatures hit a whopping 68°! We stayed around the camper early in the day, and headed to Bob and Bonnie’s around 3 p.m. for our last visit and dinner (pot roast and all the fixin's--YUM!). Stephanie joined us. Then, while Bonnie and I stayed home and visited, Dick, Bob and Stephanie went to their alma mater high school football game: Shawnee Braves vs. Tecumseh Arrows. The Braves won 27:20. Woot-woot! We’re not used to being up so late; didn’t get home and to bed ‘til nearly midnight… (yawn)
We packed up Saturday morning, departed Springfield around noon, and drove on to Terre Haute, Indiana for an evening with Cracker Barrel in their parking lot. The drive through Indiana was uneventful, except for the on-again-off-again rain and heavy construction over some very rough roads. Since Cracker Barrel doesn’t have Wi-Fi, we walked across the street to Sunset Family Restaurant for dinner and to use their Wi-Fi connection. What a wonderful dinner! Dick had lasagna; I had BBQ ribs. SO GOOD! We highly recommend this place, if you’re ever going through Terre Haute. Because of the location of Cracker Barrel (very near I-70, it sounded like we were sleeping—or trying to sleep—right on the freeway…)
The next day we had breakfast at Sunset Family Restaurant, and again used their Wi-Fi before getting on the road again, heading to Carterville, Illinois, where we’ll be spending a few days with friends Marv and Shirl in their Kamper’s Supply “RV parking lot.” Their sons will go over our RV to attack the electrical problem we’re having in the living room area of our camper.
We arrived in Carterville about 12:20 p.m., where Marv and Shirl welcomed us with open arms. After getting set up, we took a little road trip with them to Famm’s Orchard where we thoroughly enjoyed a tasty treat of fresh apple dumplings with vanilla ice cream. YUM-YUM! Shirl was wanting some Jonagold apples (no longer available at that orchard) so we headed to another where we both were able to get some.
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| Don't they look good??? The crust had cinnamon in it, too. YUM-YUM! |
Of course
after our sightseeing, we had to have dinner, so we drove into Marion, Illinois
for dinner at O’Charlie’s, where we dined on their famous homemade curly chips,
chicken salads, cheesy potato soup, tomato basil soup and a club sandwich. So
good!
Well, that’s about it for this week. Thanks for continuing to join us on our travels. We love having you along, but would really love to have us join us on the road. There's so much to see!
Hugs and
blessings,
RJ and Gail
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