*Birds we’ve seen on our 2011 trip so far: mountain bluebird, golden eagle, Indigo bunting, Lazuli bunting, Say’s Phoebe, yellow-rumped warbler, Western Tanager, bald eagle, blue heron, American white pelican, trumpeter swan, osprey, magpie, mountain bluebird, Clark’s Nutcracker
*National Parks/Monuments visited on 2011 trip so far: 9
*State Parks visited on 2011 trip so far: 1
On our way to see John and Nancy in Union, we made a brief stop at Vicksburg National Military Park (http://www.nps.gov/vick/vick). Inside the Visitor’s Center we watched an orientation film that gave an overview of the battle, checked out the many exhibits (incl
uding an 1868 sculpture titled “The Council of War”), and viewed the fiber-optic map aided by an audio narration that chronicles the movements and battles of the Union and Confederate armies. It covers 110 days of history in about 6 minutes helping one better understand what occurred. Unfortunately we didn’t have time to tour the grounds but vowed we’d return another day as it reminds us so much of Gettysburg, another historical location 
we enjoy visiting.
Union, MS, a small town of a little over 2,000, and the hometown of Nancy and John (aka Bubba). Both were born and raised there so were the best tour guides a body could ask for. Only a couple blocks from their house is the city park where the doctor who owned it installed about 10 campsites, 4
with full hookups, all for only $15/night (payable at City Hall where I even got to meet the mayor!) It’s not a big park but a nice little oasis in the middle of town complete with a baseball field and community center. Once we got settled into our spot, Mikey and Abby were so happy to see their friends Oogie and Lacey and had a little rompfest before we put them back in the RV and then walked back to Bubba and Nancy’s house (told you it was only a couple of blocks!)
It was time to begin our tour of the area, and the first stop was Bolers Inn which was built in 1835. Legend is that when Gen. Sherman spent the night there during the Civil War, he didn’t burn the town because of its name…Union. The Inn wasn’t open when we were there but evidently tours are available.
They drove us through various neighborhoods, pointing out all the points of interest, regaling us with stories (and Bubba can tell some stories!), and headed towards
the fairgrounds. Neshoba County Fair (est. in 1889) is home to the state’s only licensed horse track and the nation’s largest campground fair known as “Mississippi’s Giant Houseparty”. As quoted in a local magazine, “It’s Mardi Gras meets county fair meets Kentucky Derby meets carnival meets cooking contest.” About 600 colorfully decorated cabins line the “streets” in the fairgrounds, and these cabins are prized possessions, passed down from generation to generation. 
They range in size from single story to three-story structures but most appeared to be two-story. Nancy and Bubba’s place overlooks the race track (a prime location) and is filled with quite an eclectic array of items as are all the cabins evidently. Upstairs bunk beds are crammed together that can sleep roughly 30 people (don’t know why I didn’t get a photo of that), and they felt they needed to install a "fire escape" (photo at rig
ht)...looks safe to me!
From here it was on to the nearby town of Philadelphia, MS, home to Williams Brothers Store, a true old-fashioned general store that was founded in 1907 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Talk about one stop shopping! People come from miles around to buy everything from groceries to cloth
ing to seed to horse collars and so much more. As you walk in the front door, there’s a man busily slicing fresh bacon and another cutting wedges of cheese, all to your specifications of thickness. The place is broken up into various rooms, and towards the back you’ll find a slew of football jerseys sporting Eli or Peyton Manning’s numbers and a wall full of photos of them and their father, Archie, because the owners of the store are none other than the Manning brothers’ grandparents. The boys even worked there in their younger days!
We made a quick stop at one of the local Indian casinos, and then it was back to their place for supper and to watch some of the World Series (which the Cardinals won a few days later!) Our visit with John and Nancy was all too short, but we thank them for being such excellent hosts and look forward to another visit one of these days and some more of that small town southern hospitality.Bright and early the next morning we hit the road because we needed to be in Orlando the following day. Once there we spent the next three days at our annual doctor appointments and emptying our storage unit. We were tired of paying the $90/month so went through every box deciding what to donate, throw out, or keep. The RV and car were now literally packed with everything we own. Our plan is to eBay some of our Department 56 collection this winter and figure out what to do with the re
st of the stuff while hanging out in MD.Our 2011 trip was now complete as we finally arrived at Greenbelt Park (www.nps.gov/gree/) on Oct. 31 ready to start our 4 month stint as Campground Hosts the next day.
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