Monday, August 18, 2014 Wilson, NC Shortly after my son-in-law, Josh, got home from work, we had the car packed and were heading south towards Myrtle Beach. I have visited Myrtle Beach several times before. The first visit was with my daughter’s elementary school class to attend the Medieval Times show. Other visits were taken on my motorcycle to participate in Bike Week, which used to be a big deal, but the city made rules which messed things up so I stopped going. At any rate, once we got to Myrtle Beach and found the hotel, we had to spend another half hour looking for a parking place. It didn’t help much to be in this most popular resort destination on the busiest weekend of the year; the one just before school starts. The resort hotel, Sea Mist that we were staying at is an extensive collection of properties and we found a spot to park across the boulevard paralleling the beach. Loaded up with our bags we crossed the street and took the elevator up to the 15th floor where our room was located with its view of the shore. Wonderfully cool. After eating at a nearby pizza place we walked down to the beach as the sun set. My grandson immediately removed his shoes and dashed into the water, my daughter Marina close behind. The kids waded in the water until the sun finely set and then we headed back to our room to clean up and go to bed. In the morning we had breakfast and then went to the beach. Spreading out our towels near the lifeguard station we soon were laughing as we waded into the lite surf. I had fun playing with Jude and encouraging him to swim short distances to Marina. A while later as I lay on my beach towel soaking up the sun I felt rain drops. Looking up I saw dark clouds heading our way and heard the first rumbling of thunder which foretold more rain to come. Collecting up our towels we headed back to the room to shower and get ready for our trip to the aquarium. Parking near the aquarium in the Broadway at the Beach tourist complex, we walked a short distance and entered the aquarium. There were lots of hands on things to do such as handle horseshoe crabs, pet stingrays, and break open rocks to discover crystals imbedded within. We rode along moving walkways gaping avidly at tropical fish and large sharks swimming overhead and alongside of us. The most fun I had was dipping my hand into a tank full of Doctor Fish (garra rufa) which nibbled on my skin. It felt odd at first but soon it had me laughing as my entire hand seemed to become a banquet for scores of them. After the aquarium adventure we walked about looking into shops and then had supper. Following our meal Josh wanted to visit Wonder Works, another hands on experience. I opted out as I was feeling fatigued from all the walking and standing, so I sat outside on a bench indulging in one of my favorite past times; people watching. I have to admit that I felt sorry for the Muslim women walking about in the heat covered from head to foot in dark clothing. Earlier in the day I had seen one floating along in a water park lazy river all covered up and quipped to my daughter that the women might be entering a Wet Burka contest later that night. I realize that such thoughts are politically incorrect, but honestly, I don’t much care. While I’m normally fairly accepting of different cultures I fail to be so when the practice of cultural idiosyncrasies is hurtful to individuals. I doubt that I’ll have any significant impact on several hundred years of cultural repression of women with my derogatory musings however. After a full day it was wonderful to get back to the hotel and crash in bed. Morning came all too soon and Marina and Jude went for a final swim as Josh and I packed and loaded the car. Marina and Jude came back and cleaned up and soon we were off to have breakfast. After we finished we headed to a Miniature Golf course to play a round. It was great fun and even though we kept score it was of little consequence compared to the joy I felt just being with my family. Towards the end it was getting too hot out to be comfortable any longer so we decided to head to an ice-cream store. We found one with an extensive arcade attached to it which Josh and Jude enjoyed while Marina and I sat and talked. Some time later we found our way to Sticky Fingers for barbequed ribs and then drove the three plus hours north to Wilson. We were all tuckered out as we unloaded our stuff from the car and headed to bed. Just a couple more days and I’ll be heading south to Vero Beach and the boat. This is Captain John thanking you for joining me on this side trip.
Posted on: Mon, 18 Aug 2014 18:17:50 +0000
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