Road Trip Diary: 5

Next day, we left the hotel at 10 and went to Haulover Beach. Just wanted to enjoy some more views of the beautiful beaches of Miami before leaving. Spent quite a while there, and from there we went to Bayside Marketplace. It was as lively as ever, a local band was playing and some people were dancing too. And what to say about food, it was the perfect place and we had a scrumptious meal.

       Haulover Beach, Miami

Around 3, it was time to leave for home. The journey began right there and we set out towards our destination. At 7, we stopped at MIMS on the way, for refreshments. And by 9:45, we were in Georgia.

We decided to drive all the way in one go. And around 3:11 am, we entered North Carolina and by 7:30 in the morning, we were in Virginia. At 11, we crossed Washington D.C. and took a small breakfast stop for half an hour.

By 1:30, we were home, home sweet home. It was a long haul and we did it in 22 hours at a stretch. So, we covered almost 11 states - New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, D.C., Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida; went all the way to the southern most tip of United States  and around 3500 miles (5632 kms), when it comes to numbers.

It was a memorable trip and we had the most amazing time. And Road Trips are always great, especially this one as it was just according to the way we wanted it to be. Seeing it on a map makes it even more awesome, the route we took, the places we visited, the distance we covered - its an unbelievable feeling to finish a mega road trip in time.

Road Trip Diary: 4

The following day was a long one too, as we planned to be in Seaquarium early and exactly at 9:30, we were there. Bought the tickets and went first to Sea Lion Feeding, where we actually got to feed raw fish to the sea lions. It was quite amazing to throw the fishes at them and see the way they were gulping those down at such a quick pace.

Later we went for the 10:30 Dolphin show, which was great. The dolphins were so well trained and the trainers also did a fabulous job. After that, it was time for the Sea Lion show, which is always so good. Next, we left to see the famous Flipper Dolphin and it was fantastic, the whole troupe was so synchronised. Thereafter, at 12:30, the Killer Whale performance was just about to start, when we got our seats. It got over in 20 mins and we were so happy to have seen all these incredible shows back to back.

Miami Seaquarium visit was superb and we got to check out the Reef Aquarium, stingrays, manatees and sharks. Thereon, at 3 we drove to South Beach Miami for a relaxing evening. We loved the atmosphere, clear blue waters of Atlantic, good food and the bright sunshine, which was a big relief from the chilling winters of New York.

Spent 3 to 4 hours on the beach and went back at 6. And decided to go to Lincoln Rd Mall at 7. The place is known for sidewalk cafes and restaurants. We had a great time there, the crowds were amazing and the food was delicious. Went back to hotel at 10.

Road Trip Diary: 3

En route to Savannah, at 6 in the evening we stopped in Macon for refreshments. And arrived at the destination around 9. Checked into a hotel and ended the day sooner than before. Next day, we woke up early and left at 10 in the morning to see the historic waterfront.

Though it was raining heavily, we had a good time on the waterfront with french colonial architecture, cobbled streets and the dark alleys, it reminded me of the old movies. It was so real and we were so happy to have visited this place. We had a fabulous time, enjoyed cup of hot coffee and brownies along with the good weather and clicked some amazing pictures. Before leaving from there, we also had a hearty lunch.

Around 3, we left Savannah and were on I-95 Southbound, to Miami. At 4:30, we entered State of Florida and stopped at Jacksonville for almost an hour. At 5:30, we started again and took a small detour in Palm Springs for gas station. And arrived in Miami at 1:30, after a long-long drive and checked into a hotel.

At Miami - our final destination, the following day was all about relaxing. Around 11, we left from hotel to have breakfast and moved on to North Miami, to visit Haulover Beach. At 1:30, we were there to enjoy the sunshine, white sands and the water. The view was breathtaking, with large stretch of white sand along the clear blue water of the ocean.

                                                                     Driving to Haulover Park

We spent quite some time on the beach and went back to hotel at 4:00. In the evening, we decided to go to Bayside Marketplace, and we were there around 5:30. Enjoyed a live show by a local band, had amazing seafood and overall, had a fantastic time. Wrapped up the day and came back to hotel at 10:00.

Next day, we planned to go to Everglades National Park, which is spread across 1.5 acres and is the perfect place to explore the wilderness. At 11:30, we arrived at the Alligator Park to enjoy the famous airboat ride. Got the 12:25 tickets for the ride and went directly to see the 12:00 Alligator feedind session. The guy told many interesting facts about their diet and resting time, and then fed the hungry alligators with dead rats.

And then it was time for the airboat ride, we got in the line and luckily we got the front seats on the boat. We sat happily and the driver told us that the people sitting in the front row will be the first ones getting soaked in the dirty water, when the boat takes sudden turns. And then the driver asked my name, told everyone that I'll be the one who'll be saving others by throwing out alligators and snakes who land up on the boat and everyone started yelling out - 'thankyou', 'you are a rockstar'; it was super funny.

The ride got over in 20 mins and we had an awesome time and yes, we really got soaked when the boat took crazy turns. Had an amazing half an hour of high speed boat ride amid alligators along with the front row excitement. Then we got so hungry, that we went off to have lunch from there. Later, we clicked some pictures and went towards the National Park entry. We entered the park at 3 and moved on to see Royal Palms, where we took the Gumbo - Limbo Trail, which was like walking through a dense forest, it was a thrilling experience.

From there, we drove all the way to Flamingo, the southern most tip of florida. The drive was through well-preserved wildlife terrain, which was just amazing. Arrived there at 4:30 and enjoyed great views of the key west islands. Clicked pictures and had some refreshments. And left from there and came back to hotel at 7:15. After that, we came out to have dinner at 9 and the amazing day came to an end.

Road Trip Diary : 2

We were in Jamestown at 2:30 in the afternoon, and enjoyed a trip around the place which was the first permanent english settlement in the US. It sure was historic with the Jamestown Church Tower and the statue of John Smith; a wonderful trip, through the history.

The next destination was Charlotte and we were on John Tyler Highway at 3:30. Picked up coffee and some refreshments on the way, and took Highway 156 south. At 9:30, we were in Charlotte, and it was time for dinner. We had a scrumptious meal and spent some time there. The city was beautifully lit and it definitely must be a great place to live.

Began our journey at 10:35 towards the next pitstop, which was Atlanta. Drove by Spartanburg on Highway 85 South-bound and entered South Carolina @ 11. The weather was pretty good up till now, but by 11:40, it became so foggy. It almost seemed like we were driving into nothing,  the visibility was very-very low and I really have no idea how my husband managed to drive through that thick smoke. It was the craziest and scariest ride of the whole trip.

We entered Georgia, at 12:57 in the night. And by 1:30, we hit the first 1000 miles of our road trip, driving through nine states. We checked into a hotel at 2:30 after a long day.

                                                                         En route to Atlanta

The following day, we spent quite some time in Atlanta. Right after breakfast, we left for Pemberton Place at 11:30. Parked the car and went to World of Coca-Cola to get our tickets. And went in, it was a very different experience. First of all, we were ushered into a hall where there was memorabilia of Coca-Cola from the 18th century and also a presentation was going on. After that, we got in the line to enter 'The Vault', and it took us almost 20 minutes to get inside, where the various theories of the origin of Coca-Cola were shown.

                                                                           World of Coca-Cola

Tasted coca-cola flavours from around the world and bought souveneirs as well. Around 2:30, we went out to have lunch at Pemberton Cafe, closeby. Then we drove around the city, saw Pietmont Park and got some great views of Atlanta skyline as well.

Left from there at 3:30, for our next destination - Savannah.

                                                           Tickets to the world of Coca-Cola

Road Trip Dairy : 1

My first blog of this year 2012. Looking back at last year, it was a great one in many ways; we visited so many places, attented my brother's wedding, enjoyed movies, shopping and of-course time together. It was an awesome year and we also had a perfect new year's eve.

A 10-day road trip, all the way to Miami - which was fabulous. The trip was totally unplanned and we left on 24th december @ 6 in the evening, just five hours after my husband came up with the idea.

                                                        Our route from Bayonne to Miami, on map !!

Had dinner on the way, and by 10 in the night, we were bypassing Baltimore, Maryland. And around 10:30, we bypassed Washington D.C., Goddard Space Centre and Nasa Office. And drove through six states - New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, D.C. to Virginia. It was definitely a smooth drive all the way to Richmond, where we arrived around 12 in the night.

The following day, we planned to see the city. We left the hotel at 10:15 in the morning, for Monument Avenue Historic District, known for the statue of Robert E. Lee and many others and its beautiful architecture. From there, we went around the city and also saw the place where my husband stayed for sometime few years back. Around 1:30, we had amazing mediterranean lunch and left for Jamestown.

                                                                       Statue of Robert E. Lee