Southern Hospitality...

I wrote of how it had proven a little tough at times to find someone willing to help out when I was looking for a camp spot close to the city of Memphis. I had heard many rumors and tales of how amazing and overflowing the hospitality of the south was, but in my first few days there it seemed to have escaped me. Boy have things turned around now!!

I must admit, I did come into the south expecting too much maybe, and after being told numerous times, "no you can not camp there" or "hey you better keep moving on from here" I thought maybe that the rumors I had heard were slightly exaggerated. I was soon to find out that the rumors were not only true, but the people far exeeded them in their hospitality to strangers and their passion and love of life!

It started two days ago when I wandered into the Tunica Museum. I wrote about meeting a great guy by the name of Dick, who is the director of the museum. I asked him if I could put up my tent there for the night. A long story short, Dick invited me back to his house for the night where I met his lovely wife, Brooks, who by sheer chance, is well connected to the Mississippi Press Association, she was actually the president at one stage. Seeing that I was planning on hitchhiking to New Orleans from Tunica, Dick and Brooks thought of a plan that could help me along the way. They started a process of calling and e-mailing the other newspapers throughout Mississippi and Louisiana to try to get as many people involved to help me arrive at my destination. Through this I expected maybe to get a few hundred kilometers, max, towards New Orleans. The next two days following this were to blow me away and show me just how special and great the people of the south really are.

After Dick and I had returned from breakfast the next day the plan was thrown into action. I am going to shoot through this as to write about all the great individuals I have been blessed to meet over the last few days in depth, would take me some time. So here goes... Brooks drove me to the town of Cleveland where she was to introduce me to a top bloke by the name of Mark Williams. After eating too much Christmas party food, Mark took me further on to the town of Leland (home of Kermet the Frog) to the lovely Stephanie who was to wisk me away to the town of Rolling Fork and into the capable hands of town legend and character, Ray Mosby. This is where I was to spend the night, and not camped and in my sleeping bag by the way. A great guy and friend of Ray, a man by the name of Nick, was kind enough to put me up in the towns only, and beautiful, bed and breakfast, and also was to buy me dinner from his own pizza restaurant. I could not beleive my luck, and this was only day one of the great people!

Day two started by me being picked up at 10 am by local lady, Melissa, and mind you, I had no idea where I was going or who I was going to as I was being handed from person to person, town to town, like a baton in a relay race. All I knew was that I was enjoying myself and was closing in on New Orleans. Well Melissa gave me a great little tour of the town and then we headed off towards the town of Vicksburg, where a good change over of the baton (the baton being me of course) took place and was recieved by another top fella by the name of Jimmy. While Jimmy took of to a meeting I was introduced to Shaun, who was good enough to take me out for lunch and entertain me while I waited for Jimmy. We ate at one of the nicest reataurants in town and then I was again passed back to the Jimmy for the next leg of the mission. Jimmy got me as far as Natches where he put me into the capable hands of Sam. From there Sam and I sped off towards our next marker of Woodville where I was to meet an incredibly nice guy by the name of Gary. Gary informed me of the next part of the plan that was we were to be going out for dinner with the president of the Lousiana Press Assosiation, Pam, who had been a big help in organizing all of this. So after a big dinner which included Alligator, a heap of laughs and my first beer in two and a half months, we set off again as I was to be spending the night at the house of Gary in Baton Rouge. Getting back to Gary's 9pm around, we stayed up for another hour or so over a glass of wine with his mate Ralph before I dragged myslef off to sleep exhausted, and trust me, I slept like the dead!

Today we were up at 7am and were meeting Pam again for Breakfast and I was also meeting my next mate for the next leg of the journey. Here I met Mike, and after breakfast we jumped into the car and were on our way again... all the way to New Orleans! Mike gave me a whirlwind (but a very good one at that) tour of New Orleans and then took me to the doorstep of a friend of mine who lives in New Orleans that I worked with in 2009. I had arrived...

I have to tell you, everyone of these people went out of their way to help me, a complete stranger to them. My efforts to pay for food, accomodation, anything, were met with an almost offended looks or a joke that I did not have the correct money, as they only accepted money made from their towns. I was handed from town to town like a baton in a relay into the hands of some of the kindest, warmest people I have met on this trip. The feelings of gratitude and appreciation I have is very hard to describe in a blog post, but after the hard slog I have just put behind me, being around these people and seeing what they did for me honestly blew me away and left me very humbled. I am sure they would say it was nothing and tell me not to mention it, but what a way to end the trip for me this time around...

I now will be enjoying the city of New Orleans until the 21st of Dec, which is when my flight for Colombia is. To all the people I mentioned above, I thank you with all my heart for the last few days, it has been a special experience, and I thank God for always putting such good souls in my path.

As I mentioned in my last post, I have not finished the trek yet. I need to leave the USA due to my visa expiring, but I will be returning to complete the rest of the trek (from Tunica to New Orleans) when I am able in 2012. I will be putting one more post in here before I leave for Colombia on the 21st of Dec. For all the people that have written me emails, I am sorry that I have not replied as yet, but I do have some time now over the next few days to be able to reply to you all and I will do this as soon as I can.

Tomorrow I am going to buy clothes, normal clothes, comfy clothes, clothes not made for the bush and hiking, clothes that make me look as normal as I can look... and also I will be buying deoderant (that is disgusting I know, sorry mum), tomorrow is going to be a good day...