Checking Back In

You may, quite rightly, wonder where I've gone.

After the first leg of the trip we ran into bandwidth issues. Then *I* ran into bandwidth issues, metaphorically speaking. After eight hours of driving, constant Instagram and Twitter updates, plus just enjoying the trip, I ran out of energy and something had to give. So the nightly updates became...well, "infrequent".

I have hundreds of shots to review, and some notes to go over to remind me what we actually did, but we had a helluva (exhausting) time. There were many highlights - the Utah midlands; the Missouri lunch overlooking the Missouri River; the Gateway Arch; visiting with family in Annapolis, Asheville and Atlanta. (Do all members of my family live in places that start with A?)

New Orleans, as always, was wonderful. I really, really love that town. My last visit was six months after the devastation of Katrina, so it was a thrill to see the heart of the city back and beating strong.

And there were a couple of lowlights, not the least of which were the nonfunctioning elevators at Carlsbad Caverns. This prevented us from visiting the caverns themselves, a big disappointment.

The food, in most places, was fantastic. Coppins Restaurant at the Hotel Covington in Kentucky was a special surprise, as the our dinner at the Trinity Hotel in Carlsbad, New Mexico. There was a bowl of terrific seafood chowder at Flounder's Chowder in Pensacola. And, again, New Orleans was the highlight of our culinary adventures. Yes, there were martinis.

But more on all that once I've gotten my head back on straight and can stand to stay seated for more than a half hour at a time (sitting for eight hours a day is tiring, dammit!).

So here are some highlights to keep you entertained...

The Naval Academy and Annapolis from across the Severn River

New Orleans' famed French Quarter

Coffee and bagels in Vail, Colorado

The spectacular central Utah vistas

Swamp airboat tour in the Louisiana bayous

The St Louis Gateway Arch

San Antonio's Riverwalk

A sign on the window in Waynesville, NC

The white sand beaches of Pensacola

Familiar drive to many: the desert to Las Vegas

Harpers Ferry, West Virginia

Lunchtime deck overlooking the Missouri River

Delicious food at the Hotel Covington

And drinks there, too!