The deep south: day 4 (8/16)
BILOXI - Today shaped up to be a long-haul drive from Little Rock to the Gulf Coast, so we started early - an accomplishment in itself, given Chad - and we arrived in the college town of Oxford before noon.
The home of Ole Miss, Oxford also played home to one America's foremost writers, William Faulkner, whose fictionalized equivalent of his birthplace (Yoknapatawpha County) served as the site of several of his novels. So of course I had to buy a Faulkner biography at the local independent bookstore, Square Books, with three branches all conveniently located on the courthouse square.
Elsewhere on the square, Chad found us the restaurant favored by Ole Miss grads Archie and Eli Manning: the Ajax Diner. (Peyton didn't volunteer his favorite Oxford haunt.)
With all the driving we did today, I should introduce the third member of our party: a white Nissan Versa from Arizona. It has a small gas tank (~9 gallons), but with all the highway driving, 35 mpg per tank has not been out of reach. And with gas prices down south maxing out at about $2.30, it has been an added benefit.
Once in Biloxi, we headed directly to the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino so Chad could belatedly redeem his free birthday-month meal coupon - which I unknowingly ruined by just getting an appetizer. Chad resolved the situation by ordering a second burger to go.
Once again, we arrived fashionably late to the game, mostly due to walking through the endless parking garage, crossing the skybridge over Ocean Blvd, and walking another block to the will-call window. By then, Biloxi was already up 3-0 after 2. The offense didn't rest, however. The Shuckers - clam-shucking? anyone? - added three more home runs, including back-to-back shots in the 3rd, to extend their franchise-record winning to streak to ten with an 8-4 win over Mobile.
What did I like most about the park? I'll go with the overhead AC unit at the entrance to the gift shop.
The home of Ole Miss, Oxford also played home to one America's foremost writers, William Faulkner, whose fictionalized equivalent of his birthplace (Yoknapatawpha County) served as the site of several of his novels. So of course I had to buy a Faulkner biography at the local independent bookstore, Square Books, with three branches all conveniently located on the courthouse square.
Elsewhere on the square, Chad found us the restaurant favored by Ole Miss grads Archie and Eli Manning: the Ajax Diner. (Peyton didn't volunteer his favorite Oxford haunt.)
With all the driving we did today, I should introduce the third member of our party: a white Nissan Versa from Arizona. It has a small gas tank (~9 gallons), but with all the highway driving, 35 mpg per tank has not been out of reach. And with gas prices down south maxing out at about $2.30, it has been an added benefit.
Once in Biloxi, we headed directly to the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino so Chad could belatedly redeem his free birthday-month meal coupon - which I unknowingly ruined by just getting an appetizer. Chad resolved the situation by ordering a second burger to go.
Once again, we arrived fashionably late to the game, mostly due to walking through the endless parking garage, crossing the skybridge over Ocean Blvd, and walking another block to the will-call window. By then, Biloxi was already up 3-0 after 2. The offense didn't rest, however. The Shuckers - clam-shucking? anyone? - added three more home runs, including back-to-back shots in the 3rd, to extend their franchise-record winning to streak to ten with an 8-4 win over Mobile.
What did I like most about the park? I'll go with the overhead AC unit at the entrance to the gift shop.