Louisiana

We set off this morning anxious to make it to New Orleans in good time. We knew that it would take at least 7 or 8 hours, but things can happen and ... they did! We left at 10 am and are now, at 6:20 pm., in our third traffic jam since we arrived in Baton Rouge ... sigh. We have another hour and a half to drive. As we watch the cars around us, it's easy to imagine how these accidents are happening!
However, stuff happens. Our GPS, Suzie, has taken us on a scenic tour of Baton Rouge, off the highway to get around one accident and we ended up stuck in another!! We finally got back out on the highway and ... you guessed it ... are stuck in another traffic jam. Now she is suggesting "another" route which would save us 7 min., and Karl got tired of her nagging, and pulled her plug!! Karl is vowing never to come to Baton Rouge again!!
Oh well, at least it's sunny and warm ... could be worse?
We calculated (once we figured out the actual date - you loose track on holidays.) that we were in Texas for 15 days and really enjoyed the time. For me, the 5 things I will most remember are; palm trees/cactus, warm sand between my toes on the beach, meeting up with old friends & making new ones, playing gypsy with my honey, and of course the incessant wind.
Karl's list would be meeting up with Helga and Dave in Dallas, hanging out with his honey,  Whataburger, the old guys in the morning coffee clatch at Tip of Texas Resort, and touring NASA.
On the drive from Houston to the border of Louisiana, we saw more oil storage tanks, pipes, and tanker ships than we thought possible. If anyone tells you there is a shortage of oil in the world, it all seems to be in Texas!
Louisiana, so far, is lush green with miles and miles of swamps and bayous. We stopped at a rest area and went for a quick walk on a trail over a Bayou - lotsa signs warning folks not to swim, and to watch their pets because of alligators and snakes!! Trust me, we really looked, but no alligators (woulda liked to see one ....) I think Max may have smelled something, but we thought better of letting him check it out - even if he is a mooch, we don't want him to be lunch for a gator!
Well, while we were talking just now, the traffic cleared up and we are rolling again. Since this was poor Karl's turn driving, he is now smiling and has plugged Suzie back in (although he turned off her speech, I think)
Well, after spending an hour and a half stuck in traffic, we stopped and had a quick supper in the parking lot of a service centre,  before setting out again to find our RV park.  This is definitely one of the perks of having our little camper ... meals anytime, anywhere, without the restaurant waiting and prices.  We both felt better after a supper of potato salad and sausage. Maxie never complains, but he also made short work of his supper and a fair bit of Karl's sausage!!