Well, it turns out the decision to park in the enclosed garage was not a good one. It was very noisy during the night and when we woke up we decided to move to another area at Harrahs. When leaving we ran across one of those hanging bars that tell the height restrictions and it went underneath our antenna and cracked it. Pretty loud bang also. Scary for a minute. But the antenna was the old analog that did not work anymore so it was no real loss, except for the loss of face.
Found another lot, actually that was much better. prettier, quieter and closer to the casino. Who knew? Spent most of the day gambling (Pat) and watching an Atlanta Braves spring training game (Don). Had lunch at Paula Dean's. Good atmosphere and I got to eat a buffet that had collard greens and fried chicken. Doesn't get much better than that.
Late afternoon we set out to look at Cherokee. Beautiful town and very nice people. Most attractions closed at 5 so we decided to go to a water fall. Absolutely beautiful. Went back to the casino where we gambled a little more (I won $71.50!!). I also got to eat at Paula Deans again while Pat gambled. Another buffet with fried chicken, collard greens and steak.
Stayed at the parking lot in Harrahs that we moved to.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Day 7 - 3/2/11
Day 7 already? Wow.
Early in the morning we looked at the maps and decided to head up to Hickory, NC to look at MORE furniture and then travel on to Cherokee, NC and stay at the Harrahs casino there. The decision to go to Hickory was due to recommendations from people and readings that Pat had done.This route would also enable us to go to the Smokey Mountains, Gatlinburgh and Pigeon Forge.
Hickory turned out to be a good move. It was not as depressing as High Point (there were so many people that had lost their jobs due to the recession and the fact that almost all the factories in the area had closed because the furniture is not being made in China and imported here. Hard to believe that you can cut the wood here, ship it to China, construct the furniture there and ship it back cheaper than you can make it here. But obviously that is the case.
We first went to the Visitors Center where this lovely lady directed us to 2 furniture malls and a stretch of road 12 miles long, (actually called 20 mile furniture row but since Thomasville and a few others had closed in this area it is now 12 miles long.), that had numerous "factory outlets. Although how they could be factory outlets when the furniture is made in China was beyond me.
We decided to skip the malls and head to furniture row. Pat had wanted to see one manufacturers line again, Kincaid, that we both liked. It is simple and is one of the VERY few that is made with solid wood.
Kincaid was one of the first places we saw and when we went in there we found a set that we liked and bought. Our contactors agreed to receve it so it looks like we will have furniture when we get back to NY. Yeah.
We the traveled on to Cherokee. We passed The Biltmore but decided not to stop. The road to Cherokee is very windy and narrow. It is easy to see why tractor trailers have been banned from using it. Made it to Harrahs and the security person recommended that we stay in the enclosed parking garage lower level.
Pat and I gambled for a few hours than went back. Pat won a small amount but I lost.
Early in the morning we looked at the maps and decided to head up to Hickory, NC to look at MORE furniture and then travel on to Cherokee, NC and stay at the Harrahs casino there. The decision to go to Hickory was due to recommendations from people and readings that Pat had done.This route would also enable us to go to the Smokey Mountains, Gatlinburgh and Pigeon Forge.
Hickory turned out to be a good move. It was not as depressing as High Point (there were so many people that had lost their jobs due to the recession and the fact that almost all the factories in the area had closed because the furniture is not being made in China and imported here. Hard to believe that you can cut the wood here, ship it to China, construct the furniture there and ship it back cheaper than you can make it here. But obviously that is the case.
We first went to the Visitors Center where this lovely lady directed us to 2 furniture malls and a stretch of road 12 miles long, (actually called 20 mile furniture row but since Thomasville and a few others had closed in this area it is now 12 miles long.), that had numerous "factory outlets. Although how they could be factory outlets when the furniture is made in China was beyond me.
We decided to skip the malls and head to furniture row. Pat had wanted to see one manufacturers line again, Kincaid, that we both liked. It is simple and is one of the VERY few that is made with solid wood.
Kincaid was one of the first places we saw and when we went in there we found a set that we liked and bought. Our contactors agreed to receve it so it looks like we will have furniture when we get back to NY. Yeah.
We the traveled on to Cherokee. We passed The Biltmore but decided not to stop. The road to Cherokee is very windy and narrow. It is easy to see why tractor trailers have been banned from using it. Made it to Harrahs and the security person recommended that we stay in the enclosed parking garage lower level.
Pat and I gambled for a few hours than went back. Pat won a small amount but I lost.
Day 6 - 3/1/11
So..... we started out on yet another day of furniture shopping. We left the campground intending to go to the big mall, Furnitureland South, again to continue our shopping there but on the way decided to swing by the ice cream factory where Gene Dumas worked as invited. The people there, and of course Gene, were extremely nice. We wound up going on a 2-3 hour tour that we both enjoyed immensely. We saw ice cream sandwiched being made, got to eat ice cream right off the production line, saw Dairy Queen Blizzard mixes, sour cream milk and more.
Excellent tour.
At the factory the receptionist there recommended that we look at a place that has dented and returned furniture. WE decided to go there instead on the big mall and were it was a good decision although we did not buy anything. By the end of or day there Pat was very confused as to what she wants. She started out wanting individual pieces and not a set. After looking at hundreds of pieces and sets she is no longer sure.
Good news is that I found an armoire that I like and we put a 24 hour hold on it. Very unusual piece that Pat is not too crazy about.
After looking at furniture at another location for the dented company we headed out on the road with no definitive itinerary other than leaving High Point. Tried to stop at a Travel Center in Charlotte but we did not like he feel of it so we traveled on. We finally found another Camp Walmart and decided to stay there. It was in a very large shopping center that had many stores and a good feel Pretty uneventful night.
Excellent tour.
At the factory the receptionist there recommended that we look at a place that has dented and returned furniture. WE decided to go there instead on the big mall and were it was a good decision although we did not buy anything. By the end of or day there Pat was very confused as to what she wants. She started out wanting individual pieces and not a set. After looking at hundreds of pieces and sets she is no longer sure.
Good news is that I found an armoire that I like and we put a 24 hour hold on it. Very unusual piece that Pat is not too crazy about.
After looking at furniture at another location for the dented company we headed out on the road with no definitive itinerary other than leaving High Point. Tried to stop at a Travel Center in Charlotte but we did not like he feel of it so we traveled on. We finally found another Camp Walmart and decided to stay there. It was in a very large shopping center that had many stores and a good feel Pretty uneventful night.
Day 5 - 2/28/11
Spent all day looking at furniture in High Point and Jamestown. Went to a local store, High Point Furniture Sales (?), and spent a few hours there. Good people and they offered to ship any furniture that we found to us if we call and give them the essentials. I found an armoire that I liked.
Then we went to the HUGE mall, Furnitureland South in late afterrnoon and got through a small portion of the mall before getting tired and overwhelmed. It all started to look the same. Pat wants to stay another day here so we decided to do that.
Stayed at the Oak Hollow Campground. Beautiful setting and nice people. No issues were encountered and we loved having unlimited hot water.
Then we went to the HUGE mall, Furnitureland South in late afterrnoon and got through a small portion of the mall before getting tired and overwhelmed. It all started to look the same. Pat wants to stay another day here so we decided to do that.
Stayed at the Oak Hollow Campground. Beautiful setting and nice people. No issues were encountered and we loved having unlimited hot water.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Day 4 - 2/27/11
Moseyed around and left early afternoon. Got to High Point and found 90% of furniture stores closed and we had no idea where the outlets were. So...... we stopped at a large Barnes and Noble to get some books outlining which stores had the best selections and prices.
We stayed in the store about an hour or so eating, reading and drinking coffee and then decided to go to a movie. In the way to the movie Magic, our >16 years old Westie, got sick. It turned out that he got too hot even though it was not very hot (according to Don's thinking!) (maybe mid 80's?) in the RV. The outside temp was mid 70's and we had the windows open, automatic temp control fan on, etc but he has had a few issues with heat in the past year or so and it seems as if he has almost no tolerance for heat. It was very scary and depressing.
It now seems as if we will have to avoid traveling to areas that reach high 70's and above during the day. After tomorrow the weather is breaking and turning colder all over the south so we can continue to Miss and Al to see family but it looks like Florida might be out of the question.
Ate dinner at a Panera Bread in High Point and as we were leaving the parking lot a couple, Donna and Gene, saw our motor home as they were driving by on their way to the grocery store and pulled in behind us to inquire. We invited them in and had a blast talking. Turns out that they had lived for a few years where I grew up in Miss. Small world.
They recommended we stay at Camp Walmart (what RVers call Walmarts) and since it was past the closing time for the campground we were going to we decided to stay there. Nice lot but more noisy than normal places we stay since it was open 24 hours.
We stayed in the store about an hour or so eating, reading and drinking coffee and then decided to go to a movie. In the way to the movie Magic, our >16 years old Westie, got sick. It turned out that he got too hot even though it was not very hot (according to Don's thinking!) (maybe mid 80's?) in the RV. The outside temp was mid 70's and we had the windows open, automatic temp control fan on, etc but he has had a few issues with heat in the past year or so and it seems as if he has almost no tolerance for heat. It was very scary and depressing.
It now seems as if we will have to avoid traveling to areas that reach high 70's and above during the day. After tomorrow the weather is breaking and turning colder all over the south so we can continue to Miss and Al to see family but it looks like Florida might be out of the question.
Ate dinner at a Panera Bread in High Point and as we were leaving the parking lot a couple, Donna and Gene, saw our motor home as they were driving by on their way to the grocery store and pulled in behind us to inquire. We invited them in and had a blast talking. Turns out that they had lived for a few years where I grew up in Miss. Small world.
They recommended we stay at Camp Walmart (what RVers call Walmarts) and since it was past the closing time for the campground we were going to we decided to stay there. Nice lot but more noisy than normal places we stay since it was open 24 hours.
Day 3 - 2/26/11
Drove until around 9 PM. Pat and I ate at a Cracker Barrel, which was big for her since she is not fond of them. Me, I love them. At Cracker Barrel we met a very nice gentleman who also owns a motorhome (40' Holiday Rambler). We have found other RV people to be extremely friendly and down to earth. Does that mean that we have to change and be that way also? Anyway. he suggested a very nice truck stop (they are called travel centers we found out) ~40 miles down the road for the night. Pulled in there (Flying J it was called) and it turned out to be very nice. Extremely well done and convenient. We may have found our favorite type place to stay. When you pull in you do not have to do any hookups, when you get up in the morning the coffee is already on and ready in the store, any supplies that you may need are right there and restaurants are there.
Spent a few hours in the morning relaxing and doing paperwork.
Plan to drive to High Point and look at furniture.
Spent a few hours in the morning relaxing and doing paperwork.
Plan to drive to High Point and look at furniture.
Day 2 - 2/25/11
Traveled to Va Beach. Decided mid day to change the route due to recommendation of lady in Delaware Visitors Center. The altered route took us through Ocean City, MD and down the De, Md and Va shore line. Saw lots of seashore towns. Very pretty.
The winds were gusting up to 70 mph and they seemed to always be blowing at a 90 degree angle to us. Sure did blow us all over.
The campground (Holiday something) we stayed at in Va Beach was beautiful. The sites were very well maintained and it had lots of activities although the activities were closed for the season. The shower area was beautiful. It had a stone wall and rain type shower nozzle in the ceiling. The site where we were was right across from the dog park so they got to spend lots of time playing there.
This was our first stay ever in a park with hookups in this RV. We went through a steep, but good, learning curve. Found out that the water supply hose leaked and that we needed either a longer hose or a longer sewer hose. Also, the hot water heater did not work. We did not know that when the dealer winterized it they not only drained the lines but they drained the hot water heater, isolated it and left the plug out. AND they did not leave the plug anywhere to be found in the RV (and when called could not remember if it was in the RV or back in Long Island on their bench).
So, we went to Lowes, bought a plug and associated tools and then filled the hot water heater. Problem solved.
Traveling toward High Point, NC today. We hope to make it to a campground there.
The winds were gusting up to 70 mph and they seemed to always be blowing at a 90 degree angle to us. Sure did blow us all over.
The campground (Holiday something) we stayed at in Va Beach was beautiful. The sites were very well maintained and it had lots of activities although the activities were closed for the season. The shower area was beautiful. It had a stone wall and rain type shower nozzle in the ceiling. The site where we were was right across from the dog park so they got to spend lots of time playing there.
This was our first stay ever in a park with hookups in this RV. We went through a steep, but good, learning curve. Found out that the water supply hose leaked and that we needed either a longer hose or a longer sewer hose. Also, the hot water heater did not work. We did not know that when the dealer winterized it they not only drained the lines but they drained the hot water heater, isolated it and left the plug out. AND they did not leave the plug anywhere to be found in the RV (and when called could not remember if it was in the RV or back in Long Island on their bench).
So, we went to Lowes, bought a plug and associated tools and then filled the hot water heater. Problem solved.
Traveling toward High Point, NC today. We hope to make it to a campground there.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Day 1 - 2/23/11
We have decided to create this blog due to requests and so that we can have a record from our first long trip in our new (to us) motor home. This is a trip that we have talked about doing for years but for various reasons have never done. We especially wanted to do this trip while our older dog, Magic a West Highland Terrier, who is now over 16 years old can still make it and hopefully enjoy it. He does have dementia, yes dogs get dementia also, and takes 14-15 pills per day for his many, many various ailments so we are somewhat concerned that he may not adjust very well to new surroundings, but this is something that we wanted to do for him and for us. So, we bought a used motor home a few months back and have taken several weekend trips to get used to it. With the exception of one pretty bad night in Pa all weekend trips so far have been pretty good. Our other dog, Pepper, loves to travel and to spend time with us. We love the sense of freedom and traveling together with the dogs.
We decided that we would not plan an itinerary for this trip but plan each day as we went along. We do think that we would like to visit family down south, see Florida and see the southwest. Whether it is possible to do all this in one trip remains to be seen but we do not want to have to adhere to a rigid schedule so we will "wing it" every day.
Departure Date
Spent all day making final preparations for contractors, packing RV for trip and making final arrangements for being away.
We, in all our infinite wisdom, decided to have our bedroom and bathroom redone, replace all bedroom furniture and replace bathroom vanity and medicine cabinet while we are away. This meant that prior to leaving on the trip we had to remove all clothes from our closets, remove all clothes from our furniture (which we gave away a few days before we left), remove all toiletries from the medicine cabinet, pick out new flooring, medicine cabinets, lighting, vanity, paint colors, etc. Then we had to go through the boxes and stacks of clothes and toiletries to find those that we wanted to take on our trip.
Completed packing and final preparations and got on the road early afternoon. We decided that our first night would be spent at the Harrah's Casino in Chester, Pa. We made the trip fairly well despite rains and NYC and Philadelphia traffic. The dogs traveled very well, better than expected. The casino was nice. Since I, Don, had not gambled in over a year they treated me as a new gambler and I got a ticket for a free buffet, promises to reimburse me for losses gambling up to $100, free nights at Harrah's in both Las Vegas and Atlantic City. We ate a nice dinner, at the buffet which Pat graciously agreed to eat at since she despises buffets, and did our obligatory 1-2 hours gambling and wouldn't you know it, the one time the casino promised to reimburse us for our losses we both won. Not much of course, but still...... Casino was nice. Pat liked the interior even better than Harrah's in Atlantic City. The parking area for RV's was okay but certainly nothing to write home about. We were the only RV in the lot and hey did not have shuttle service.
We decided that we would not plan an itinerary for this trip but plan each day as we went along. We do think that we would like to visit family down south, see Florida and see the southwest. Whether it is possible to do all this in one trip remains to be seen but we do not want to have to adhere to a rigid schedule so we will "wing it" every day.
Departure Date
Spent all day making final preparations for contractors, packing RV for trip and making final arrangements for being away.
We, in all our infinite wisdom, decided to have our bedroom and bathroom redone, replace all bedroom furniture and replace bathroom vanity and medicine cabinet while we are away. This meant that prior to leaving on the trip we had to remove all clothes from our closets, remove all clothes from our furniture (which we gave away a few days before we left), remove all toiletries from the medicine cabinet, pick out new flooring, medicine cabinets, lighting, vanity, paint colors, etc. Then we had to go through the boxes and stacks of clothes and toiletries to find those that we wanted to take on our trip.
Completed packing and final preparations and got on the road early afternoon. We decided that our first night would be spent at the Harrah's Casino in Chester, Pa. We made the trip fairly well despite rains and NYC and Philadelphia traffic. The dogs traveled very well, better than expected. The casino was nice. Since I, Don, had not gambled in over a year they treated me as a new gambler and I got a ticket for a free buffet, promises to reimburse me for losses gambling up to $100, free nights at Harrah's in both Las Vegas and Atlantic City. We ate a nice dinner, at the buffet which Pat graciously agreed to eat at since she despises buffets, and did our obligatory 1-2 hours gambling and wouldn't you know it, the one time the casino promised to reimburse us for our losses we both won. Not much of course, but still...... Casino was nice. Pat liked the interior even better than Harrah's in Atlantic City. The parking area for RV's was okay but certainly nothing to write home about. We were the only RV in the lot and hey did not have shuttle service.
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