Day 20, 9/25/11)

Today was a day I have been looking forward to for the entire trip. Not that I am anxious for it to be nearing the end, but because I have been looking forward to visiting the Naval Air Museum at Pensacola. I never got down here when David was stationed here and I have heard so much about it. Because I had driven some extra miles yesterday, it was a short 100 or so miles over to the base. I was able to spend the afternoon admiring aircraft of every era and all in immaculate condition. The museum deserves far more time that I had to totally see it all, but I watched two IMAX movies, one about the Blue Angels and one about the fighter pilot traning that goes on in Nellis AirForce Base in Nevada where I had been a few short days before. This used to be called the "Top Gun" program. Needless to say, I got my fix of the need for speed and some hard flying. The IMAX photography is amazing and you feel like you are in the fighter doing the maneuvers. Totally awsome! I hope to be able to come back here some day and spend more time, but Linda Cole had called her sister and arranged for me to stay at their home in Pensacola tonight. Tom and Carolyn are great folks and dinner was an amazing shrimp dish over pasta. I have not had home cooking in over two weeks and it really felt good to be siting at a table and eating a great home cooked meal with other people. As it turns out, Tom and I have so many common interests that it was hard to stop sharing stories. Tom had been a helicopter pilot in Vietnam and I really enjoyed hearing some of his exploits. I did not serve in the armed forces, but I am faciniated with the Vietnam era and especially the exploits of the helicopters and their crews. Tom has also been an aircraft controller for the FAA and now teaches school. He has taught Aerospace which I have as well, and he is an avid SCUBA diver with experience in deep diving and mixed gases. We had so much in the way of common interests that we could have talked for hours. What a blessing to get to spend the evening with he and Carolyn and their grandaughter Lauren. Like I have said before, it is not about the miles I have covered or the states I have seen, it is about the interesting people I have met along the way. I sure hope Tom and Carolyn get up to visit Linda and Harvey and we can get to talk some more. The time flew by so quickly, that I need to scramble to get my blog done and get some sleep. Tomorrow is a work day for them and I need to be getting on my way for a big 650 mile day. Pensacola is a beautiful area and even more so than I had expected. Now I see why many Navy folks elect it as their retirement home after they are done serving. I have only included a few pictures of planes, but remember, these are full size real planes, not models. The museum is chocked full of them as well as interactive exhibits and fully articulated simulators for those with a strong stomach. I took a picture of a young father with his son sitting in a Blue Angel cockpit. They were elated. Who knows, this is where the seeds of the next generation of pilots is being born. You could just see the gleam in that young boys eyes when he settled into the cramped cockpit. I remember the first time I sat in a real plane and I vowed that someday I would be a pilot and soon after we were married I got my liscese. Flying is something that gets in your blood and I still miss it today. I used their camera to take the picture, so I am sorry I can not show the look on that boys face here. Well, tomorrow it is off to the interstate highways and Charlotte. UGH! I hate interstates, but I need to cover ground fast. I hope the weather stays nice. It is much more humid that I like, but I can't complain, as I have been very lucky weather wise, except for the second and third days.