Not so much shock, I guess, but Butch's love of flight and awe of all things airplane is no secret. So yesterday, he was in his glory during our visit to the National Naval Air Museum in Pensacola. First of all, it's free and the staff and volunteers are helpful and knowledgeable. I was unable to capture the look on his face when he saw these four Blue Angels planes hanging in the atrium. Also in this area was a T-34 like the one he took instrument training in years ago.
The most amazing plane to me was the NC-4, the first plane to fly across the Atlantic. This was in 1919 and not non-stop or solo like Lindbergh's later flight. But it is huge and very Rube Goldberg looking. It is hard to imagine it flying 10 feet let alone across an ocean.
But Butch was in his element. He got to play being president on Marine One and fly along with the Blue Angels via video. We sat through a simulated launch on an aircraft carrier guided by a volunteer from Monticello, Iowa. We may incorporate some of the hand signals those guys use next time we park the trailer. We walked through a WWII era main street and checked out the inside of a Ford Tri-Motor. We marveled at the tiny size of a Mercury capsule. And we had a great lunch in the Cubi Cafe, a replica of an officers' club in the Philippines.
This museum is just a short distance across the bay from our campground but since we didn't bring our canoe with us, it was almost an hour each way by truck. On the way back, we decided to extend our stay here until Tuesday, but found out our site is already reserved for Monday night. So today will be a housekeeping day. We will need to move to another site, do some laundry, and find a grocery store. Ah, the trials of retirees.
This museum is just a short distance across the bay from our campground but since we didn't bring our canoe with us, it was almost an hour each way by truck. On the way back, we decided to extend our stay here until Tuesday, but found out our site is already reserved for Monday night. So today will be a housekeeping day. We will need to move to another site, do some laundry, and find a grocery store. Ah, the trials of retirees.
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