Wa Wa

Day 10 found us leaving Huntsville and traveling across the Northern part of Alabama and into Mississippi.We took our time leaving in the morning and then drove around Huntsville but didn't see too much exciting. By that time it was 11:30 so breakfast was out of the question. A lady we had talked to in a wine shop the night before said we should have lunch in Decatur at Gibson's BBQ. So we decided to make our way over to Decatur. We stopped at a travel info place to see what else we could find to do on our way. 

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Another lady in the center asked where a good place for lunch was and the lady said, "Gibson's BBQ" so we figured we had better check it out. She said to just go down the road and look for the sign with the big pig on it.
Although is was noon, we were lucky enough to get seated right away.

We each ordered ice tea. Lindy got a sweet tea. 

We ordered and Lindy got the BBQ pork and I got the pork ribs. The BBQ came without sauce but they had three home-made kinds so you could add your own. As you can see, we forgot to take a picture right away.

Of course, we had to have some of their homemade coconut cream pie. It was dee-lish! It was so fresh, the crust was still crispy and the meringue was so light and fluffy. We drove through downtown Decatur and proceeded on to the Shoals.

The Shoals are actually four cities that run into each other, Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, Tuscumbia, and Florence, which is on the other side of the Tennessee River. We drove through Muscle Shoals and Sheffield and crossed over the Tennessee River into Florence. 

Our first stop was the home of W. C. Handy who is known as the father of the blues. There was a museum in the home of his birthplace. 

There was a sculpture of some musicians and Lindy made me go be part of the picture. 

Not far from here was the Rosenbaum home, which is the only structure in Alabama that was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. It was built in 1939 and remained occupied by the original owners until 1999.

Now it was time for the real purpose of coming to the Shoals.

Yes, we were at Ivy Green, the childhood home of Helen Keller.

It was very nicely laid out and has been maintained well. Around the back of the house was the famous pump where she said her first word: Wa wa.

I know Helen Keller jokes are running through all of our heads, but she really was an amazing person who did a lot to advance the cause for blind and deaf people and others with disabilities. There were many flowers and brick walkways around the grounds and this statue of her surrounded by fountains.

I also took a close-up of a magnolia tree showing the carpels after they are done blooming. They are truly magnificent trees.

We made our way through Tuscumbia and came across a beautiful white courthouse. We had to stop and investigate.

Sure enough, there was a statue of a soldier.

Guess who it was in memory of?

This one had stuff all around it.

Even a beautiful wreath.
The erection date was 1911. The one in Fayetteville was I believe in 1909, so something must have been going on at this time to spur the construction of these monuments. Maybe 50 years since the war. I must make a correction about the assumption of the flag, though. They are actually the state flags. This one was white with a red X. There are a lot of Civil War battlefield sites in this area, but I suppose it is because the Tennessee River runs across here and many battles were conducted in this area. 
It was nice to get off the freeways and be able to drive and stop as we wanted to. There is a lot of agricultural land in this area. We went by fields of corn, soybeans, and cotton. 

Eventually, we made our way to our destination: Tupelo. As you can see, Tupelo was the first city to have electricity powered by the hydro-electric dams of the Tennessee River.

We found our way to our hotel, a Holiday Inn Express. We had opted for the suite and it was very nice.

We took a few moments to look through the literature to find someplace to eat. Lindy spotted Shipley's donuts, but they closed at 7:00 and here it was after 6:00 so we plugged the address in the GPS and took off. By the time we got there, they had all of the donuts off the shelves and on a big cart. We decided to get a half dozen but the lady said, "Everything's half price, you might as well get a dozen!" So we did.

We had decided to try an Italian restaurant, Vanellis, for dinner. We ordered and got our food. I had spaghetti and Greek meatballs. After I poured a half cup of water off the bottom of my plate, I realized there wasn't much sauce so I asked for more.

It still was kinda bland. But I did manage to spill sauce on my white shirt so Lindy had to take a silly picture out in the front. A couple people were walking by as we were doing this and I don't think they quite understood.
So I know we are in Tupelo and I didn't mention "The King". I guess you'll have to stay tuned for tomorrow!