Fla. Panhandle, January 2017, A lovely Finale


On our last day we went to the City Pier in Panama City Beach. The weather was absolutely beautiful, everything we could have asked for.

Do we look happy, or what?

The pier goes a very long way out. You might not see them, but there were a number of anglers at the end of the pier.

Looking back to shore:

Looking to the shore on both sides:

Please don't curse, the birds are sleeping....

There is an outdoor shopping center across the road, and it had, of all things, a German brewery restaurant, the Hofbrau Beer Garden!

We couldn't refuse, of course, so PROST!

The next day we drove back to Jacksonville, a long and rather boring drive. The hotel couldn't find our (paid) reservation, but fortunately, the woman at the desk took the trouble to call Expedia and get it. She said that Expedia frequently does that -- doesn't notify the hotels of the reservation -- so I will never use them again.

The next day (yes, I know I started two consecutive paragraphs with the same three words, shame on me) we went to the airport, returned the car, checked in, and got all the way to sitting in the airplane. And sitting and sitting and sitting. One windshield piece was broken, they thought they could replace it. Eventually one of the attendants came to us to say that due to the delay, we were in danger of missing our next flight so if we wanted to leave, we could do so and they would re-book us. Of course, we did so. 

we were supposed to fly Jacksonville - New York - Amsterdam - Düsseldorf, and the changed us to Jacksonville-Atlanta-Düsseldorf, which was of course better.

After that, all worked out fine and we made it home safe and sound.

Fla. Panhandle, January 2017, PCB: nice weather!

The stormy Sunday ended with a beautiful sunset as the storms finally left the area.

And Monday greeted us with an equally beautiful sunrise.

Monday turned into a long and wonderful day. We drove two hours west to Pensacola and my high school friend Sudee Sweeney Campbell drove three hours east, from Slidell, LA., and we met for lunch!

You don't see someone for 45 years and then you see them every few months. Love it! And by the way, we have already booked flights to New Orleans in December to go visit her again!

On the way home we stopped at the factory outlet center in Destin, then headed home.

Tuesday was a gorgeous day, and another long walk (or two) on the beach was on the agenda. This is the building we stayed in. It turned out fine, but we really do not like staying in this kind of place.

We were not entirely alone on the beach.

And the Gulf was significantly friendlier than the days before.

And now just some various photos:

And we topped it off with dinner at Arby's. Love those roast beef sandwiches!

Fla. Panhandle, January 2017, PCM Stormy Weekend

Saturday morning, Jan. 21, we went out early for a few errands. The grocery store cheered us with the sight of Easter candy and Peeps.

Other than that it was most definitely an indoor day! Wind, heavy rain, wild surf, thunder.....

It let up for brief spells but never stopped entirely. It was fascinating to see the Gulf so wild, would not have supposed it could do so.

We did, of course, sneak out for a walk.....

The wind was so strong the water was slopping over the side of the pool.

Sunday morning we were awokén at 3:20 by a thunderstorm, and many more came. I have never seen such a dark gray sky. It wa hard to see the horizon as the Gulf and sky were the same colour. Judging by the thunder and lightening, the storm must have been right over us!

However, it was not enough to keep us from getting out for a walk in a dryer moment.

That did not last though and we did not leave the apartment again that day. The next storm brough even heavier wind and rain, with the electricity blinking. There were general tornado warnings for the area all day, and in the middle of the afternoon we were put on alert for tornado said to be sighted in the Panamy City Beach. We took what precautions we could, but fortunately nothing happened. We did hear later that a tornado was actually in the area.

Fla. Panhandle, January 2017, Panama City Beach part 1

Thursday, Jan. 19-Friday, Jan. 20

We checked into our apartment. It is in a highrise building, The Summit, which we generally dislike. This one was nice and quiet, it being waaaay off-season here. We were on the third floor, very near the staircase so we often used those instead of the elevator.

Not such a bad view from the balcony.

Friday we enjoyed the sunrise and then went out for an early morning beach walk.

Too true, sadly....

And Friday evening we got a foretaste of what was approaching....

Fla. Panhandle, January 2017, St. George Island S.P.

Still Thursday, January 19.

We drove west, along the Gulf, and fortunately the fog eventually cleared up. In fact, it turned into an absolutely beautiful day.

Near Apalachicola (yes, I had to look it up to get the spelling right), we turned south and crossed a long bridge to the barrier island of St. George. AT the western tip is the St. George Island State Park, and I think we had it all to ourselves.

The softest white sand imaginable!

Absolutely heavenly!

It's not a beach if you don't stick your toes in the water:

We still had enough food left over from yesterday's picnic that we were able to have another one, with a great view of the beach.

We were well behaved and didn't share with this sea gull, although he was eager to join in!

I later learned that this beach and island are known for a lot of sand dollars. Does this mean I found fifty cents worth?