Howdy to all of you. Day three we spent at New Orleans and Fort Pickens just off of Pensacola, Florida. We spent a little time driving and walking around the French Quarter of New Orleans. At the left is the statue of the Joan of Arc, the maid of Orleans. Orleans is a city in France that is spelled the same as Orleans in New Orleans, but the pronunciation is different. Joan is famous for defeating the English and lifting the siege of Orleans. In front of the St. Louis Cathedral here in New Orleans (please don't ask why St. Louis Cathedral is in New Orleans) there is a statue of Andrew Jackson who is famous for defeating the English at the Battle of New Orleans. The Joan of Arc statue is clearly here to show equal rights for women in defeating the English. I'm wishing now that we had stopped in Orleans last New Years Eve to see if they have a statue of Andy Jackson there. Anyway, moving on, the second picture is of the Hurricane Katrina Sculpture located just outside of the French Quarter. The sculpture is made of recycled material. We also stopped by an above ground cemetery just for the feel. Then we headed across the Gulf Coast to Pensacola, passing through Mississippi and Alabama to Florida. At Pensacola, we went to Fort Pickens, a hodge podge of coastline fortification from about 1820 to 1942.
Fort Pickens is a brick fortification at the end of a long coastal island leading into Pensacola Bay. One of its claims to fame is as the point of imprisonment for Geronimo. The beaches around the fort are just amazing. I'm wondering if it was considered a country club prison in those days and if Geronimo regretted it when they released him to send him to Oklahoma. We took off out shoes and socks and walked in the soft white sand. It was super nice. People were fishing for Sheepheads and Red Snappers. After dark we drove on to Dothan, Georgia, the peanut capital of the world.
Until later, ERH
4 comments:
Thanks for this history lesson. Keep blogging. I love your sense of humor.
Thanks so much for commenting Judy. See, I told you that your name should be included in the dictionary under the definition for friend!
As you may remember, I served seven months of my mission in Orleans, France. There's a heroic statue of Joan of Arc in the center of the city, surrounded by one of those famous French roundabouts. We went past it almost daily. In May, they hold a Joan of Arc festival with a parade and re-enactment. I was fortunate to be there for it. Good times! Enjoy the rest of your trip!!
I enjoyed viewing your blog. You really are going on a "great road trip."
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