Houses (mansions?) and hurricanes...loving the Gulf Coast!

Where have I been, you might ask?  No posts since Sunday night...and here it is Wednesday morning!

Well...the sun came out, the temps warmed up and we took a day to drive east through Ocean Springs on Monday, and then west through Long Beach, Pass Christian, Bay St. Louis and a bit north yesterday. Combined with stops here and there at our favorite casinos, the days just flew by and we plopped into bed by nightfall--no time to post!

Friends Cloyd and Nancy wanted to see the Friendship Oak, which is just down the road from us. legend has it that those who walk together underneath its branches will remain friends forever. 

Here we are!

Another view of this 500-year old Live Oak gives a bit of perspective...but you really have to see it in person to get the full effect. A word about Live Oaks--they are so called because they have evergreen characteristics.  Leaves (and acorns) are much smaller than our oak trees up north and they stay green and on the trees year-round except for a short time in the spring when they drop their leaves and grow new ones right away. They give a wonderful ante-bellum feel to the whole area.

I have seen this area of the Gulf Coast referred to as the Garden District--perhaps a new term for them, but it certainly applies. One especially lovely stretch in Long Beach (a mile or two down the beach) has wonderfully restored historic homes.

Palms line the walkway...hence Les Palmiers!



Some are two-story beauties!



Some have second-level galleries overlooking Mississippi Sound

The porches are designed for outdoor living.

It's very interesting listening to residents talk about Hurricanes Camille (1969) and Katrina (2005). Camille came at night, so people could hear the destruction, but didn't get to see the extent of the damage until the next morning.  Katrina came by day, so people got to see Mother Nature in action. The subject of hurricanes is a common element of conversation--clearly these storms are a huge part of the local culture.

Route 10 is the main east-west highway, and is set quite a ways in from the coast--5 miles in most places. We saw this marker for Katrina's high-water mark at an interchange in Bay St. Louis. Our GPS set the level at about 23 ' above sea level!