We also took a swing through Orlando to attend our first RV "rally" (200+ RVs). It was hosted by the Florida State Winnie Gators -- the state-wide Winnebago Itasca Travelers club. No surprise that we were probably some of the youngest attendees, but it offered a cool collection of seminars, vendors, and social events. Of special note is that we won both a door prize and charity fundraiser "baskets". The latter is pictured below with us. Needless to say we had to find a different home for the wrought iron Eiffel Tower wine bottle rack, but we kept the wine and colorful microfiber cloths (Maren's favorite).
However, the biggest win for us was Jeffrey attending the "RV suspension" seminar and learning that our shocks are the likely cause of our rough ride when we hit even minor bumps. We took a chance and had them replaced right there at the rally and enjoyed a much better ride after that. Now I won't feel compelled to rubber-band the silverware together when we expect a few bumps along the way :-)
Excited to try out the new shocks on a longer trip, we waved goodbye to Jeffrey's parents and made the journey north via Jacksonville (visits with Richard/Cathie and Gator friends Liz/Butch) and on to Raleigh to spend the next 6 weeks. Yellow pollen had already been coating the car and coach for a few weeks and it appears we are going to follow it north so we get a double dose. Surprisingly, Jeffrey's allergies don't seem to be triggered by this thick yellow stuff (pine and/or oak?), so aside from the inconvenience of extra dusting and the vehicles looking silly, we can live with it! Here is a picture of Max at a rest area with a line of other RVs heading north too!
Lastly, we also managed to figure out our travel plan for the year. Once we leave Raleigh, we will make our first trek across "real" mountains and head NW to spend a month touring Michigan, including it's "upper peninsula" (or U.P. as we've heard it called). From there we'll wind our way down to Rochester to visit with Martin-side relatives/cousins, attend a week-long organized tour of the Twin Cities (Minneapolis + St. Paul), and then attend the huge Winnebago Grand National Rally (1500+ RVs). Conveniently for us, this rally is right next to the Winnebago factory and service center so we can get those 2 pesky items fixed right. That leaves us 3 weeks to do an as-yet-unplanned path south back to Austin by mid-August.
Hopefully we'll get out of the pollen clouds somewhere along the way!
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