Saturday, October 24, 2009

Vicksburg National Military Park

I keep calling it the battlefield, which it it, but above is the official name. It is the main reason I extended my business trip and came out this way. I don't know what I expected but I am pretty sure what I found wasn't what I had in mind.
At the entrance of the park - like all National Parks - there is a welcome center with information on the site, a gift shop and a movie. The movie helped. Unlike others in my family I am not well versed on the battles of the war. The movie explained how Grant and Sherman moved in, the reasoning to their tactics, the decisions made by the Confederacy and how some of it is still studied today by the military.
And then off I went for a 16 mile drive or so. I need to do some research on how the park came about. To state that there are multiple monuments throughout the park would be an understatement. I am curious as to how they all came about.
The path of the park takes you first along Union lines. There are markers and points of interest along the way. Then you meander back along Confederate lines. To think of the time spent and the lives lost makes it all very sobering.
It made for an interesting day.

Next time - I am staying for a cooking class for sure!

Driving Tour

Besides picking Shannon's brain I also requested some info from the Vicksburg CVB. The booklet and map they sent ahead of time was helpful. It gave me a good idea of what else was there and the lay of the land. A big piece that seemed to be highlighted was a driving tour of the city. There were 2 routes. Originally I thought - driving around the city is surely a waste of time. But when the day turned out gray and blustery I decided to give it a try. It was worth it. A lot of the streets are steeped in history but don't necessarily require walking all around.
So I left Cedar Grove and meandered one way on the blue trail (also in search of gas) then headed back on the red trail towards the battlefield.
Overlooking the Mississippi was probably the most impressive.
Various historical markers along random streets marking battle was also unqiue. Helps you realise why it is so hard to forget for the people who live there day in and day out.
The only stop I made on the drive was the Old Court House. There were all sorts of pieces on display from all eras. I avoided the clothing room - it so gives me the heebie jeebies. But the room with all the china was neat. Some of the silver was beautiful. I can only imagine what it looked like all polished and on display in the homes.
Upstairs was the court room. The 24 foot ceilings - WOW!
And the fact I learned in that leg - Jefferson Davis I'd from Vicksburg. And here I always thought he was from SC - don't know why.

Cedar Grove

To start my day of site-seeing I headed over to Cedar Grove Mansion. It is a B+B so I hoped I could get some breakfast. Shannon has been telling me about this for years... There is still damage to the house from the Civil War.
So I found my way there. It was a chilly cloudy day that unfortunately accentuated the gloom and not the beauty of the old buildings (and city). I walked around back past this quaint pool and through the back door. This part of the house was definitely modernized for travelers. After discussion of the cost of breakfast (since I wasn't staying at the home) I was seated in a dinner room that looked like it could have been a porch at some point. And breakfast was wonderful - blueberry pancakes with whipped cream, bacon, eggs, coffee. Truth be told it kept me going all day.
After breakfast I tool a self guided walking tour of the home. The gaping hole in the front door and palor floor from Union cannonballs definitely makes you think. And they had a bunch of other original pieces in the house as well. The story goes Grant stayed in the house after the seige of Vicksburg so it wasn't destroyed. I walked around the gardens as well. Oh to have such a yard - gardens, fountains, fish ponds, statues (huh-kinda sounds like my parents yard - theirs had a more Jersey feel to it however).
I am glad I made my way over there.

Thursday, October 22, 2009

casino night

Those of you who follow along know casinos aren't my thing. We have casino nights for work and I don't participate. Somewhere in my planning I decided I would go to Vicksburg. Its a parental civil war thing. In making my reservations I decided I would stay at a casino. Because you know I would never step into one off the street for the heck of it. And the hotel rate was WAY reasonable. Let's just say it is like an out of body experience. For $40 a night the room is actually quite nice. The casino - which technically is on the water - is sensory overload.
For $2 I have had 2 beers. I am sitting at the bar watching the crowd. It is loud. It is flashy (literally). The Tarheels are the tele. And there are some people. I don't know what I expected. I think this was close.
This is a part of Americana. Something you don't really get to experience elsewhere. I won't gamble - I spent all day discussing the importance of saving money. It goes against my grain. But I watch it all in awe.
Similar to amusement parks I can understand how this could be another reason why other countries hate us. What an incredible waste of time and space.
And I will sit through my second beer and continue to take it all in.

olive garden

The next night I had a quick dinner at the olive garden. Did not get the same response.
Who woulds thunk that - lol

birthday

The actual day was spent traveling to Mississippi. Truth be told - I don't know how or why we decided that would be a good time for me to go. But off I went. I was excited as I knew I could grab dinner at Giadinas for my birthday. Wasn't sure if I would have company but new I would enjoy myself none the less. That is probably an understatement.
I envisioned myself sitting at the bar having some dinner doing some people watching. On a Tuesday night I suspected the people watching would be limited. I was wrong. A dinner party had reserved the dining room for the evening. And the people for dinner were quite entertaining.
I spoke for some time to a couple from MI. They were nice and interesting people. We discussed what brought us to MS. Their story was more interesting than mine. They were there on a mystery tour me work. When they went on for dinner I sat by myself for a while.
Ahhh and this sounds vane but... When in a small town that employees mostly men for 2 large manufacturing companies - single blonde girl (I suppose at 40 I can't be considered girl) doesn't go unnoticed for very long. I ended up having a very random course of conversations with one of the locals. Well he was a transplant but more local than me. I have to say it was rather fun - we talked work, sports, kids (his obviously) and how Yankees find themselves in the Delta. I liked the fact there was no pressure to promote my turning 40. I liked the annonymity. I liked that I knew I would wake up the next day and spend it with some of the nicest people around.
So it may have been mostly strangers and stuff but I enjoyed it.
Next time I will stay longer.

catching up

Well the party was 2 weekends ago and there is lots I could post about that. And I need to. But right now I am more about right now.