Let's talk about the "where" first. Mobile is situated on the west coast of Mobile Bay, which empties into the Gulf of Mexico. It's in the little neck of Alabama that sticks out between Mississippi and the Florida Panhandle, part of what's affectionately known as the "Redneck Riviera". It's an oil-rich area with drilling platforms scattered around the Gulf south of the bay. In fact, the "Deepwater Horizon" disaster of 2010 occurred just south of here and oil washed up on the coastal beaches for months afterwards.
Mobile itself is an interesting place. Founded by the French as the capital of Louisiana in the early 18th century it became British territory after the Seven Years War then Spanish during the American Revolution and finally American early in the 19th century. It's where Mardi Gras was first celebrated in the U.S. and much of what New Orleans is now known for began here.
To the south are the fertile saltwater bayous where oysters, shrimp and crawfish abound. Fresh seafood is all around us although we have yet to eat any of it. More on that a bit later. To the north are cotton fields, a reminder that the economy was wholly dependent upon farm labour, provided by slaves. When the federal government started moving to outlaw slavery in the 1850's it threatened the profitability of all southern landowners and led to the Civil War.
End of history lesson.
One of the first things that hits you when you arrive is how you interpret the word "mobile". For example, a sign that reads "Mobile Veterinarian" anywhere else would advertise a vet that makes house calls. Here, it just tells you where they're located. And, it's "Mobeel", not "Mobyle". I guess having a car here makes you mobile in Mobile... in an automobile 😉.
The city itself is an amalgam of French, Spanish, new, old, slums and old money neo-classic architecture. Where we are living, in the heart of the "old" city near the waterfront, is a few blocks from an area replete with boarded up shacks and tenements ready for urban renewal. Two blocks in the opposite direction reveals antebellum manor houses. Across the street is a noteworthy cemetery where Civil War dead are buried. To the west is the "new" Mobile, full of housing developments and big box stores. Oh, the incongruity of it all.
Our house, for the next three weeks, is a pokey little two-bedroom place around a hundred years old. It's undergone a few badly executed renovations over the years, which I try to ignore, but it's homey and warm. It's a corner lot so the backyard is small but it's shaded and comfortable and they have a Blackstone grill, which makes it all okay. Fun fact: one of the owners is in the Coast Guard and hangs from helicopters during rescues. For the first 65 years of my life I didn't meet anyone who hung from helicopters to rescue people and I've now met two in the past two months (see Jim in the "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" episode). Life is funny.
With unpacking and some basic grocery shopping completed we headed out to check out the beaches this weekend. Our first stop, on the way to Gulf Shores on Saturday, was a British Car Show put on by the South Alabama British Car Club. We're suckers for these things so off we went to Fairhope, AL with Willie along for the ride. No pictures to show but there was a gorgeous 1954 Jaguar XK120 I'd be happy to have in the driveway. Willie liked it too and would have climbed in had Penny not had a good hold on his leash. I'm sure the owners would not have been pleased.
One of the ubiquitous things you see along roadsides in the southern states are billboards advertising gun shows.
I'm determined to go to one. I'm curious to see what it's all about and find out if it's as easy to buy firearms as the media makes it out to be. Maybe I'll buy some camo at Costco so I can blend in. Also, don't wear the maple leaf hat.
We continued down to the Shore where we were confined to walking the concrete fronting the sand as Willie wasn't allowed on it. I mean, he's pretty well-mannered and I'm sure he wouldn't do anything wrong, but rules is rules.
But wait. There are two beach areas here. Gulf Shores is the touristy barrier island stretching across the eastern opening to Mobile Bay. To the west is Dauphin Island and research revealed the area to be the home of fishing fleets where one can buy the catch of the day as it comes off the boat. Having not yet sampled any of the local seafood it became Sunday's destination. With our dog-unfriendly beach experience fresh in our minds we left Willie at home. With a doggie door and lots of water we knew he'd be fine without us for a few hours.
DI, as it's known by the locals, is at the end of a long causeway/bridge affair that spans the rivers and bayous that make up the Mobile Bay estuary. It's a peaceful, scenic area with lots of waterfront vacation homes on stilts, safely above potential floodwaters during hurricane season.
The island itself has two characters. The western half is a narrow sandbar strewn with beach houses competing for water and beach views to the south and jetties for their boats along the marshy north. The eastern half is mostly treed with nice beaches and is where the permanent residents live. After driving the length of the island we stopped at the easternmost beach to walk the sand and dip our toes in the Gulf waters. Of course, Penny took this opportunity to search for stones and shells to add to her collection.
While lying on the sand staring at the gentle waves rolling in and counting the drilling rigs in the distance I noticed people were walking the beach with their dogs. It seems we got it backwards; we should have brought Willie with us here and left him at home when visiting Gulf Shores. We'll be back.
Now then, I did mention this seafood thing. Before we drove down to DI I looked up the best shop to buy fresh seafood. Our plan was to hit it on our way home as it was open until 5 pm. Well, no. We drove over at 3:30 and they were closed. Maybe they had sold everything. Maybe it was Sunday and it was time for NFL football. Who knows? Anyway, no seafood at DI.
I did have a Plan B. The map revealed we were only twenty minutes from Bayou La Batre. Yes, Forrest Gump strikes again. The same Bayou La Batre where Bubba grew up. The place where Forrest would go when he wanted to become a shrimpin' boat captain. They must have shrimp there so off we went.
Did I mention it was Sunday? Did I mention it was late afternoon? No shrimp anywhere. We tried. We really did. Back home we went, shrimpless. We'll be back, but not on a Sunday and not in the late afternoon. Oh, and we didn't see Lt. Dan either.
This week we'll start exploring the city itself, head back to DI, with Willie this time, check out the local seafood and maybe a golf course. The weather forecast is calling for a week of sunny, 30C days so it sounds like a good plan. Later.
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Well going to be lots to see when we get there. Weather sounds pretty good. Maybe we can have a quick info mtg this week? Will email…..
ReplyDeleteSandra et al
Sounds like a cool area - love your description !! Makes me want to visit !
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