Day 50 New Orleans via Houston Space Centre

Mon 16 July –  6793 steps 13 flights
Songs: Major Tom by David Bowie; Me and Bobby McGee by Janis Joplin, House of the Rising Sun by the Animals; Fortune Queen by Cher and too many others to list.

We had about 400miles to go to get to New Orleans, but we decided we had to make a brief stop at the Houston Space Centre. We did a tour and were taken to the mission control room where the moon landing was controlled from. It is like it is in the movies. We climbed 87 steps to get there. There is a lift, but it was only for physically challenged and that’s not me. By now I can do 87 steps in one go, could not have done 88!
We also went to rocket park, where we saw one of the remaining rockets originally intended for the Apollo missions but never used. It is massive. As we know David takes his time in museums, but this one pushed me to my limits. I was more interested in the (very) longhorn cattle outside. Actually the visit was very worth while and the displays in the museum are fascinating. I touched a piece of Mars rock.
You could easily spend a day there.

We drove through edges of Houston and on through Baton Rouge to New Orleans taking the motorway most of the way. At the risk of being boring, the roadways in USA are phenomenal.

We made a detour in Breaux Bridge, renown for its old steel bridge adorned with crawfish. The village itself was more interesting and picturesque than the bridge.

Driving over the bridge spanning the Atchafalaya Basin is amazing. The Basin is the largest wetland and swamp in the USA.  There are 2 parallel bridges, about 18 miles long, At times, they rise to allow barges to go underneath, but basically you drive along a double lane highway through tree tops.
In the drier areas, there is a huge variety of houses, big or small, with lawn or hidden amongst trees. Many have broken down vehicles or other junk around. All along the way, in each settlement we went past, there were churches. More churches than houses, a bit like Swaziland. Sadly, although I am sure it is not intended, one such church headquarters reminded me that the Klu Klux Klan once reeked havoc in Louisiana.

We finally arrived at Jude Travel park and were greeted by the hosts, a very nice couple with lots of cats.
What I learnt: In a state that supposedly celebrates and certainly benefits from the tourism generated by the diversity and the musical heritage of New Orleans, it is sad to read that the KKK still exists.
Observation: Before we left, I sliced up some chicken thighs I had previously grilled for padkos. There is so much meat on them and you only get 1 bone, the size of one of our drumsticks. When you buy chicken thighs in USA, you can feed 4 people with 4 thighs.