Macon, Georgia Roadtrip

Last Friday we went to Macon, Georgia where my husband was working. We took him to work & then checked in at our hotel, which was the Quality Inn on Chambers Road. It looks like the public areas have been updated & everything was very clean, but the room itself had seen better days. The furniture was worn & chipped, & the chair had a small rip in the fabric.

The room did have WiFi so I checked my messages on my laptop & then after I was done we went swimming in the pool. It was an extremely hot day with a heat index of 106 & it looked like bugs had come looking for a place to cool off as well. The pool apparently did not have a good filtration system & dead bugs floated on the surface of the water. Most of the bugs were from the beetle family, which I am not squeamish about, so we went in anyway & would push them away if they floated towards us. This has happened in several hotels that we have stayed at that have an outside pool, so I don't know if it is something that is easily cleaned.

After the pool we came back to the room, took our baths & then I talked to my mom & sister on Skype. If you have family far away you must get Skype. It is free to join & if you call other people who are also members & they are in your contacts, it is free to call anywhere in the world 24/7! In case you do not know, Skype allows you to call via video on your computer so you actually get to see the people you are talking to...it is awesome! Later that night I tried to get internet connection again but it would not let me get on. I also tried again Saturday morning before we checked out but it would still not give me access. So all in all I would not recommend this hotel because of the condition of the rooms, the WiFi, & the breakfast was not very good.

Saturday Noah & I went shopping to buy my husband a Father's Day gift & then we went to see the movie "Up". This was a really cute movie! There were some parts that were slow & a little boring for kids but most of the movie has action & a plot that will keep them entertained.

If you are ever in Macon you need to visit their Science Museum. We did not go on this trip because we have been there several times in the past, but it is a great place to take kids. We have enjoyed it each time we have gone. I wish that we would have had more time there to check out new places but we were only there one night & then back home....maybe next time!

More Opelika Photos

Some final shots of Opelika

View of First Baptist from the fountain area in front of the court house.

Historic courthouse

Beautiful details on the Historic Court House.

Downtown Opelika

Our hotel room at the Best

Western...Noah on the laptop. They do have free WiFi.

Best Western hotel lobby in Opelika.

Home from Opelika

Yesterday we checked out of the Best Western & N.... & I drove to Auburn which turned out to be only 3 miles. We went to see the movie "17 again" but had some time to kill before it started so we went to the mall which was right across the street. The mall was small & didn't take much time to see, but they did have a traveling dealer set up in the middle of the mall who sold vintage toys, comic books, coins, etc. N.... spotted the Star War items & headed for them.

If you don't have a 10 year old son you may not be aware....but Star Wars is big right now! Of course the original Star Wars came out when I was in college (yes I know that was in the 70's & I have a 10 year old now)....what can I say I started late! Anyway, they have a cartoon series now called Star Wars the Clone Wars...I think that's the name. So a lot of young boys are now becoming fans just like their parents & grandparents.

Noah collects Clone Troopers & anything Star Wars & he found a flying vehicle with the sounds & lights for $10.00! The guy gave him a good deal because the box was bent, it usually sells for $30.00 or more....if you can find it.

We then went to the movie, ate lunch at Zaxby's afterwards (if you haven't been lately they have a new chicken salad called Zensation that is awesome), & then went to a thrift store that was within walking distance. I found some books & then we left to pick up my husband from work. After packing up the studio we headed home to Georgia. We gained an hour coming back due to the time zone difference so we arrived home around 10:30pm.

Saturday in Opelika

My husband had to be at work by 9am this morning so we got up & took him to work then came back to the hotel. I tried to get a late checkout but they are busy with the Auburn graduation & could not grant us the extra time, so we will check out at noon.

I do not have to pick my husband up for work until 5pm so N.... & I are going to Auburn to see the movie "17 again", then we will eat lunch & hang out at the mall until 4:30 or so & then come back to Opelika. We will then pack up my husband's studio & drive back home tonight. We should be home around 9pm...yeah!

Oh I forgot to say that I think the Econolodge has cleared the debit from my account...will not be absolutely sure until Monday. The online banking is weird until things finally clear, because my Best Western debit is not showing up either & has not cleared yet so it is not in the pending section either...keeping my fingers crossed. I am hopeful that the Econolodge debit will not be put back on...praying!

Touring Opelika

After we got up & changed hotel rooms we went sight seeing in Historic downtown Opelika. We walked around the town square which has a fountain in the middle. There are a couple of streets to wander down that have shops, galleries & cafes.







The downtown has been renovated & there is still work being done & signs out for new businesses that will be arriving soon.

On the first street we went down there was a school resource store named "The Apple Tree" & they do sell to the public & homeschoolers. They do not sell curriculum's but they have everything else that you would need to complete your school room. Art supplies, curriculum supplements, charts, bulletin boards, etc., a wide selection.

We then went to The Museum of East Alabama & was greeted by Glenn, a very nice gentleman with a wealth of information. He told us that Opelika had a German POW camp there during WWII. That interested me because my father was a POW in Germany for 9 months during the war until he was liberated by the Russians. The museum is free but they do take donations.

In the 1800's visitors came to Opelika to drink from the downtown mineral wells...the water reportedly had healing powers. There was also a bustling cotton trade. This also interests me because my mom grew up in Alabama & they grew cotton. She has told me stories where they picked cotton, loaded it into horse drawn wagons & would take it to the gin. They would have to go either late at night or real early in the morning & the kids would climb up on the cotton in the back of the wagon & sleep as they waited in the long line of wagons for their turn to get it weighed in.

My grandparents were share croppers & would move from farm to farm each year. They lived in Opp, Alabama back then before moving to Florida to work in the juice industry. When my grandmother passed away we took her back to Alabama to bury her. The interesting thing about that is that the cemetery she is buried in is located on one of those cotton farms she worked. The cycle of life....

Wow, I got sidetracked there! Anyway, we did walk over to the old train depot which has been refurbished. It is not open to the public & is empty inside from what we could see. They are still doing some construction work at the site.

We then ate lunch ate Jim Bobs Chicken Fingers on 1st Ave. near downtown. They had a busy lunch crowd so we assumed it must be a local favorite. It is the type of restaurant where you go up to the counter to order your food & then they bring it to you. They did have burgers on the menu but as you can assume their specialty was chicken. Chicken fingers, chicken wings, chicken salad sandwiches, salads with grilled chicken, etc.

The food was good but not awesome. I can make killer chicken wings & both my husband & son like the ones I make at home better. My husband likes hot wings & their hottest ones still did not have the kick he likes. I had the chicken salad sandwich which came with chips. It was good but again not awesome. It was served on Texas toast style bread which was nice & soft with a good flavor. My son & I shared a small side salad which ran about $3.50.

All in all the food was in the average range. The locals seemed to like it & I found out that it is a small chain with a few in Georgia as well. One thing I can say about people in Opelika is that they are friendly & look you in the eye. Even in the restaurant when people walk by your table they will either look & nod their head or give you a small wave & smile. So a nice place to visit.

Hotel Frustrations

As I posted earlier we found another hotel & finally settled in on Wednesday at the Best Western. Yesterday was a smoother day...lunch out with my husband & then when he went to work we did a full day of school in the hotel room. Then I checked my bank account online last night & the Econolodge has not removed the charge from my debit card yet. It is still pending so it may never actually be taken out of my account, but the fact that it has not been credited yet disturbs me. Not only is the full amount on there for the three nights we would have stayed, but there is a second charge for $62.00 for who knows what? So I am patiently waiting to see what happens. I am hoping all the pending items clear tonight before the weekend otherwise that deduction will be on there until Monday. At least if it goes through I can go over there tomorrow & confront them...otherwise I will have to deal with them by phone. The bad thing is if they refuse to remove the charge I can dispute it with my bank but it is a lot of paper work, getting forms notarized & it takes weeks to be taken off...so I am hoping this clears itself up so I can quit worrying about it.

We had to change rooms at the Best Western this morning to a smoking room but at least the smell is not as bad as the Econolodge & it is just for one night. Unfortunately, all the smoking rooms are upstairs & there is NO elevator! How can you have a supposed 3 star hotel with no elevator? Up until now I have had no complaints about the hotel, but after dragging stuff up the stairs it has altered my view. Still a nice place to stay but make sure you ask for a first floor room if you ever stay here.

The smoke is still evident in the room so we stopped & bought some air freshener which helped. I am thinking though that I need to do it again because I am starting to smell the smoke again.

The hotel pool is not open yet because it is not summer officially, even though it hit 87 today. For an outdoor pool it is rather small. Most indoor pools in hotels are 5 ft. deep & not very big but most outdoor pools are usually a good size. Their outdoor pool is the size of an indoor pool & is 3 feet on each end & 5 feet in the middle! I have never seen a pool like that before, kind of odd. So if you are looking for a hotel with a great pool, this is not the place.

Wow, I think I am starting to sound negative...hotels can do that to you - HA! Just the stress of traveling can get to you sometimes. I am usually happy to be away from cooking & cleaning but some weeks I am ready for home, this is one of those weeks. I am just worried about that hotel bill....but I need to quit thinking about it. All in all I would give the Best Western 2 thumbs up. Nice hotel if you can get the first floor, good breakfast & great location. Small pool, no elevator & no exercise room are some of the minuses.

Opelika itself is a nice place to visit...so no complaints there.

History of Opelika, Alabama

While the exact date of Opelika's founding remains in question, the city was one of many that sprang up as a result of settlers coming into Creek Indian territory following the signing of the final treaty with the Creek Nation in 1832.
Opelika grew around the Railroad Avenue Historic District with city limits extending one mile in every direction around the Montgomery and West Point Railway station.

During the Civil War, Opelika obtained its own battle scars. With orders from General Sherman, General Lovell Rousseau left Decatur with 2,700 cavalry beginning his raid into East Central Alabama. That raid ended successfully in Opelika on July 19, 1864, after miles of track were destroyed along with other railroad equipment, two depots, and several warehouses brimming with supplies for the Confederate forces defending Atlanta. The regimen then turned Northeast to join Sherman's army advancing towards Atlanta.

During the 1860's & 70's, the structures along what is now South Railroad Avenue housed businesses such as saloons and brothels. In 1894, a franchise was granted to the Opelika and Auburn Electric Railway Company to run a train nearly every hour between the two communities.

Several well known personalities have come through on those trains. Buffalo Bill, Annie Oakley, & Chief Sitting Bull, as well as statesmen such as Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, & Woodrow Wilson. Other notables are Will Rogers, Duke Ellington, & Jefferson Davis. The last passenger train pulled out in 1970 but freight trains still come through today.

One of Opelika's prize possessions, yesterday & today, is its Northside Historic District. During the holiday season this district comes alive with twinkling lights and luminaries when the historic Victorian homes of Opelika are transformed into an Old World Christmas wonderland for their annual "Victorian Front Porch Christmas". More than 60 turn-of-the-century homes are adorned with life-size Santas, angels, toys, teddy bears, carousel horses, and other figures. Featured in "Southern Living" & "Better Homes & Gardens", Opelika artist Jan Jones spent years creating the impressive displays by loving hand. Voted one of the Southeast's top tourism events, this unique spectacle is now in its 16th year and sees more than 10,000 visitors annually. (All of the above information is from the Official Visitors Guide).

We live only about 2 hours from Opelika & this sounds like something fun to do at Christmas. If you are in the area during the holidays come check it out. Opelika is right on I-85 just about 30 minutes from the Georgia border.

Tomorrow our family will be visiting the Historic district, Railroad Avenue & The Museum of East Alabama (all in downtown Opelika). So check back to see what we discovered! I will not be able to post photos for these posts until I return home next week (forgot the cable that goes to the computer). So if you enjoy what you read come back & enjoy the photos.

Opelika, Alabama

We traveled today to Opelika, Alabama. My husband is taking photos at the First Baptist in the historic district downtown. I have not had the time to explore the town yet but I hope to do that on Friday for our activity day.

We dropped my husband off at the church & helped him unload his equipment & then ate lunch at Cracker Barrel. We then went to find our hotel. I had made reservations a few days ago & found out that there was graduation this weekend for Auburn University so everyplace that we would normally stay was filled. The Best Western did have rooms but their rate went up to $125.00 on the last night so I decided to look elsewhere.

We made reservations for the Econolodge. I am not a fan of Econolodge, but they advertised that they had a fridge/microwave in the room which is essential for us. Plus the rate was where we needed it to be at ($70.00 or less per night). So I booked online for a non-smoking room. When we got there however, they did not have a non-smoking room available & my son has problems with smoke so I wasn't real happy. The front desk employees were really nice & said we could check the room if we wanted, so we went up to look at it. Really bad smoke & honestly the hotel is just not kept up properly, so I would not recommend anyone stay there.

We went ahead & paid for the room just to make sure we had a place to stay but it was only about 1:00 their time & I knew we could cancel the reservation by 4pm & not be charged, so we drove to the Best Western. It was in a much nicer area of town & was a higher quality hotel, so I was hoping they would still have rooms available. After talking to the desk clerk he knocked $40.00 off the Internet rate for Friday night plus dropped $10.00 off the other nights so we will end up paying on average less than $69.00 a night (plus tax), & it is non-smoking...yeah!

So we went back to the other hotel, cancelled the reservation & finally settled in at the Best Western. N... is doing school work right now as I work on my blog. At 9:00 tonight I will go & pick up my husband from work, so it turned out to be a more hectic day than I had planned.

I will write more later after I research Opelika & get some first hand information on sites & eats along with some photos.

Stockyard Station

I already told you about our trip to Stockyard Station (read my earlier blog), but wanted to add information about it. It used to be the biggest & busiest livestock marketing center in the Southwest. They sold cattle, horses, mules, hogs and sheep. It is now a 125-acre Historic District, although the livestock auction is still operating there & they have an office in the historic livestock building. There are now restaurants, hotels on site, saloons, galleries, shopping & family entertainment.

I told you about our GPS self-guided tour, but you can also book a guided tour through the Visitors Center. It is a walking tour & includes a video about the history of Fort Worth. They have daily cattle drives, as well as several musuems. You can also take a ride on a restored 1896 steam-driven train. There are several gift shops & restaurants to choose from (see my blog to get info on the ones we chose). That's it...just a little more info to give you. Thanks for visiting my blog.

Travel to Texas

Never did get to finish my blog about Texas yesterday, so here goes. On our third day there we drove to Plano to visit the Heritage Farmstead Museum. It is the former home of sheep farmer Ammie Wilson. This Victorian homestead was built in 1891 & there are gardens, old barns & other out buildings along with farm animals. There are self-guided tours on Mondays, Tuesdays & Wednesdays from 10am-2pm. Docent-guided tours are Thurdays and Fridays at 10am, 11:30am & 1:30pm as well as Saturdays and Sundays at 1pm & 2:45pm. Admission is $5 for adults, $3.50 for students & seniors, and children 4 and under are free.

Front of Victorian homestead



One room schoolhouse Another home on property

Barn with old vehicles Indian camp



Some of the farm animals Smokehouse

Outbuilding with cellar View of side of house look

We went on Friday but was too late for the last guided tour at 1:30, so we called ahead of time to see if we could still do the self-guided tour. They said it was OK but when we got there we were not able to go into the Victorian home because it was locked. We were able to go into some of the outbuildings but another home on the property & the one room school house were also locked. So I suggest if you want to do the self-guided tour you need to go on the times stated above. Apparantely there is a country store with handmade crafts and gifts but we never saw that & none of the staff there ever approached us or spoke to us. Anyway, it was an inexpensive outing for the day & the kids liked running around & playing (even though they complained the whole way there "no more old stuff...nothing historical").

My friend, Flor, used to live in Dallas & her husband made her promise she would bring back some food from a local Chinese restuarant that they used to eat at. They would go there at least once a week, so it is a definite local favorite. Not sure of the exact "city" it is in, sort of North Dallas & I think it is Reynolds or Reynoldsville (starts with an R anyway). It is on the corner of 15th & Greenville & the name is First Chinese BBQ. BBQ??? Yes, & it is excellent!

When we walked in the door there were whole roasted ducks hanging by the neck in a display case (reminiscent of the Christmas Story), along with roasted chickens. Chinese woman were cleaning vegetables out in the dining room on one of the tables & the menu showed it was truly an authentic Chinese restuarant. There were items I would never dare to try, but a wide variety was available for those of us who liked safe choices. There were 8 of us & we ordered Orange Chicken, Roasted Chicken, BBQ Pork, noodles with seafood, mixed vegetables, Chinese brocolli with Oyster Sauce & several other dishes. The food is served family style in big bowls & the food is placed on a lazy susan in the middle of the table so you can easily try all of the different dishes. I was totally amazed at the speed that our food came out...I am honest when I say we had ALL of our food within 10 minutes (if not faster). It was not cooked ahead of time but was freshly prepared & it was the best Chinese I have ever had! All of the food came to around $58.00 which feed all of us plus we had plenty of leftovers to take home. So if you are ever in the Dallas area & want to find a great local Chinese, you must try this!!!

Oh, & there is a Chinese bakery next door with fresh items baked daily. We purchased big pastries filled with custards, coconut fillings, & onion & meat...all awesome! So try it out & let me know how you enjoyed it. Well, I need to go eat my breakfast...hubby is home today & he cooked sausage gravy & biscuits..yum.

The Stockyard Station in Ft. Worth, Texas

Wanted to add these extra photos for Stockyard Station. Read my blog about The Stockyards for more information.

The Stockyards in Ft. Worth, Texas

Good evening everyone! I finally get a chance to sit down & continue my blog about traveling to Texas. Like I wrote yesterday, we arrived there last Monday. Tuesday was a relax & unwind day after driving almost 900 miles out there.

Wednesday we drove to Ft. Worth & visited "The Stockyard". It is an historic part of the city where cattle was brought to be sold at auction & loaded on trains. There are a lot of shops & restaurants to choose from, so the first thing we did was go eat lunch at Risques' BBQ (not exactly sure if that was the name) but close. (If any of you know the name & need to correct me let me know.) They have all you can eat BBQ Ribs plus a variety of great options to choose from. They even have BBQ spareribs on the kids menu which I thought had a better flavor than the adult ribs. My son did not want the kids meal, so I ordered him the kids spareribs & ate them myself. My son ordered a combo appetizer which had cheese sticks, corn fritters, BBQ shrimp & stuffed jalepenos. He loves shrimp & spicy peppers so this was a great option for him. Surprisingly he liked the corn fritters which is rare because he does not like corn, but he liked these. I tried some & I have to say they were some of the best corn fritters I have ever had. What really made the ribs tasty was the BBQ sauce which has great flavor with a touch of sweetness. The restaurant also had great decor & ambience....so we recommend this for your next visit.

After eating lunch we headed to the mechanical bull where two of our group decided to give it a try. My son was one of them & half way through he looked in distress but never yelled out for them to stop. He was finally thrown off but apparantely he obtained a slight muscle pull & limped around with a stiff leg for about an hour, but not long after that time he was off and running again. The cost for riding the bull is $5.00 per person, so a little pricey seeing that you spend less than a minute on the ride, but for a kid to get to be a cowboy for a brief moment it is worth it.

We then went to the Visitors Center & purchased a self guided tour for our group. For $15.00 you receive a GPS system which guides you around the Stockyard & takes you off the main road. As you arrive at each location on your tour it tells you the history & even has videos & photos that appear on the GPS screen which brings to life things that happened in that very spot. Since it is self-guided we were able to go at our own pace & hit some of the museums & gift shops along the way. In the Livestock Exchange building there is a musuem that is free for kids & adults are asked to pay a $2.00 donation. In that musuem is a light bulb that has been burning, without ever being turned off, for over 100 years. They even have T-shirts about the lightbulb, which my son just had to have.

After hitting another gift shop, to buy the all important cowboy hat, we finished our tour. One of our last stops was Billy Bob's, the largest Honky Tonk in the world?, or at least the country. It is a kid friendly place with video games, pool tables, food, etc. The only problem is it is not smoke free, it is a honky tonk after all, so take that into consideration before taking your kids. Regardless, it was a nice place to sit & relax. There is a $1.00 cover charge to go in but it is free with the tour. One of the last parts of the walking tour was following the footsteps of Bill Cassidy & the Sundance Kid, so there was a lot of history we would have missed if we had not had the GPS system with us.

The tour took us several hours so by the time we were done it was time for dinner, so we decided to eat at Habenero's. This restuarant has only been open for a couple of months (it used to be Risky Rita's). The service was excellent & the food was great. It is really fresh, original Mexican which was a nice change from what we get in Georgia. So I would also recommend this if you are in the mood for Mexican.

Well, it is late. Tomorrow I will try & finish up with the trip to Texas & will be telling you about an authentic Chinese place you MUST go to if you are in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. So sign up to be a follower of my blog so you don't miss it.

Travel to Texas

Well, I broke down & went to Texas with my friend & her children last week. We left Georgia after church last Sunday afternoon & stopped in Vicksburg, Miss for the night. We stayed at the LaQuinta & were very happy with the hotel. We had stopped earlier at a rest area & picked up a hotel coupon book & was able to get the room for $69.00. I believe this hotel would have cost at least $90.00 without the coupon. You can pick up hotel coupon books at any rest area & sometimes Shoney restaurants & save on your hotel expenses when you are traveling. Last year I was able to get a Courtyard Marriot for $48.00 a night, so really worth the effort. The LaQuinta was brand new with interior corridors, granite in the bathroom, hugh flat screen TV, bistro style decor, quilted comforters plus the normal micro/fridge, free Wifi, etc. They also had a great breakfast with an expanded continental style but also had bacon & sausage, yogurt, eggs, belgian waffles, etc. So if you are ever traveling through Vicksburg & need a room make sure to give the LaQuinta a try...we highly recommend it!

The next morning we left Vicksburg & drove into Texas. We stopped at the Texas Visitors Center (rest area) & were impressed with what it had to offer. It has been voted the best rest area in Texas & deserves the vote. They have a great assortment of brochures & travel guides, a video viewing room & very nice restrooms. So if you are driving into Texas on I-20 make sure you stop & check it out.

We then continued on to Aubrey, Texas which is north of Dallas. My friend I was travel with has friends there & we went to stay with them. They both work for American Airlines, the husband is a pilot & the wife is a flight attendant. They have a beautiful home on 25 acres so it was very restful.

Well, it is late. I will write more tomorrow about our trip & the things we did while we were there. Good night!

Travel to Texas

Just a quick note to let you know that we were in Texas all last week & just arrived home today. I will be posting photos & information about our trip hopefully tomorrow night. We are doing a field trip tomorrow & will be gone most of the day, will also provide information about that. Thanks for visiting my blog.

Have any of you been to Texas lately or do you live there? Let me know!

Trip to Hartswell, Georgia

My husband is a traveling photographer & last week was working in Hartswell, Georgia. We arrived on Wednesday evening & checked in at the BestWestern. The next morning we went sightseeing in their downtown. We went to the Holland House (I need to check my info to make sure that is correct), but it is an historical home there that houses the Chamber of Commerce & the towns historical musuem. We learned that Hartswell is named after a Revolutionary War heroine by the name of Nancy Hart. She was a spy & captured Torries that tried to take over her home. She was 6 feet tall with red hair & a freckled face. The musuem is free so stop in if you get a chance & with only 3 rooms to view it is a quick stop if you are in a hurry.

We also love antiques so we walked around the square looking for an antique store but did not see one. They also have a road right off the square (Depot Dr.) that has some interesting stores & restuarants. It looks like it used to be the old main street of the town. There is also an old train depot there, thus the name. Sorry that I do not have more details or photos but I did not know at the time that I would be blogging about this since I just started my blog yesterday. In the future I will have photos & detailed info.

We then went to Fletcher's, a local restuarant that serves a lunch buffet. It was not a huge variety but the food was fresh & really good, so I recommend you go there to eat.

It had snowed 5 to 6 inches the Sunday before we arrived & there was still snow on the ground, so my son, Noah, & my husband had snowball fights & Noah got to jump around in ankle deep snow. We then drove to Lake Hartwell at the Hart State Park, which is only maybe 5 miles from downtown Hartwell. The water is still a little low but it is very pretty there. They have cottages & campsites available for those who would like to stay at the lake.

My husband then went to work & Noah & I started our homeschool day in the hotel. We are home this week & speaking of homeschool I need to go & get prepared for the day, so I will chat more later. Thanks for reading our post!