Our RV just fit Chris and Chip's garage (well, it was slightly hanging off onto the footpath, but people could still easily walk across). When we'd driven in yesterday, Chris and Chip were in a bit of awe of how big it is, and how much storage it has. Chris kind of idealized traveling in this on one of their future trips, but that thought quickly dissipated when we discussed the reality of traveling in such a big vehicle, and oh yeah you have to dump your grey and black water tanks which isn't very glamorous! Michael had to back out so that Chris could get one of their cars out, and the RV ended up hitting the curb, with a piece of it falling by the back right hand bumper. So yes, it does reaffirm that it's not an easy drive!
After breakfast and getting a few errands done we left Paul and Sheila at home, piling into Chip's car (how luxurious it was for Michael to be a passenger, for once!), to check out a few places nearby. We headed to Sarasota, walking along the pretty streets filled with quaint restaurants, cafes, and stores. It was lunchtime, so there were a lot of people dining outside, enjoying the gorgeous weather while sipping wine, eating pizza or some other yummy-looking dish! There was a bit of a Mediterranean feel to the streets, particularly as many of the restaurants are Italian, or have that European cafe vibe.
We stopped in a store called Pepper Palace (Chris and Chip love their chili powders, sauces, and spicy foods in general!). The store lets you sample its various hot sauces (it's organized "from wild to mild!), so we decided to try a few while we were there. It's not all chili hot, however--Lisette and Chris also tried "Nasal Napalm", a hot wasabi paste that shoots straight up your nose with even just the tiniest teaspoon's worth. Lisette tried it and saw stars, so it was fortunate that Chris has tried this before and was there for Lisette to grab his arm and steady herself for a few seconds before the feeling dissipated! Michael's reaction afterwards was more disappointing, he didn't seem to feel the wasabi shooting feeling at all! The is a concoction in a tiny bottle that Pepper Palace sells called "The End: Purgatory Hot Sauce", which is apparently so hot that you need to sign a waiver before trying it. We all passed on that one!
As we were leaving Sarasota we noticed a shop selling baklava and lokum (Turkish delight) and tried some samples. The store, Ephesus Mediterranean Delights, was the same as the one we visited in Charleston, what a coincidence! Turkish sweets are delicious so we had to resist buying them.
A Lovely Late Lunch
We had a late lunch at Woody's River Roo Pub, Grill and Tiki Bar--a place that Chris and Chip have been to many times, but haven't been to in a while. There's ample space inside for seating, with a bar and stage for live music (there was a guy singing and playing his guitar when we arrived), which leads out onto outdoor seating where you're right on the water. We chose to sit outside (tables still had shade covering), and got to see all of the fun and festive decor, including a boat that was docked next to us with a couple of skeletons dressed in pirate garb (one of the skeletons was doing an impossible backbend and looking like he was having the time of his life).
We scoffed our seafood mains (fish and chips and the like), before heading back to Chris and Chip's place, checking on Sheila and Paul before we got back on the home cam. They'd spent a lot of time by the front door waiting patiently for our return, and seemed rather content to be in each other's company!
From Sightseeing to Repacking
The next day was spent doing the essential RV stuff: going through our items in the RV, seeing if there was anything we could get rid of/donate (don't need as many winter clothes now), cleaning up our e-bikes and Sheila's trailer so we could list them for sale, and clambering on the RV roof to check on our solar and clean off any dust or debris that may be affecting its performance.
And then... we were off! There's something rather poetic about being here a year ago on a different trip to see Chip, Chris and Paul, and that this is our last sightseeing stop before we drive west to Texas, and continue south all the way to Nicaragua, our last stop on this epic road trip. We hadn't planned on driving down through Mexico and Central America, but at the last minute we'd decided it would be the most convenient--we didn't have to worry about packing up all our stuff and then finding a buyer for the RV within a very tight window, and didn't have to worry about how Sheila would fare on an airplane.
We said our goodbyes to our friends--and we knew Sheila would miss Paul! She was definitely sad, but we were really happy that they met, played together, and got along so well. Based on Sheila's experience in our friend's homes on this trip, it will be great for her to also have a house to be in for a while, just like it'll be good for us to have a place to stop for a bit after almost 11 months of being on the road!
We did our last Trader Joe's shop (sob!), before going up to northwest Florida and stopping at a Cracker Barrel for the night (which would end up being our last Cracker Barrel stop on this road trip!). Tomorrow, we'll be driving as far west as we can towards Houston, where we'll be getting all of our final errands done before crossing into Mexico.