We got up and went to Bojangles for breakfast. Dean and Kimberlee used to go to Bojangles for chicken biscuits some mornings. They both say, "Aaawww, we are having a memory!" every time they pass by a Bojangles during family trips. Dean decided we would go to the Bojangles by our hotel and have a memory. We ordered breakfast sandwiches and sat down. After a few bites, he said, "Maybe it was better to keep it a memory!" After we left, Dean called Kimberlee to share. We headed to Starbucks next for coffee and tea.
Heading back to U.S. Space & Rocket Center, we headed to the Teacher Resource Center. Kimberlee informed Robin on the phone that she was no longer a teacher and didn't need to go to the Resource Center. Robin informed her she might not have a classroom anymore, but would always be a teacher. We went inside and Robin was able to get 3 space resource notebooks, although she wanted about 20.
We dropped the resource books back in the car and took some pictures of some of the outside exhibits. One was an A-12, a precursor of the SR-71 Blackbird. This type of jet was retired from service in 1968.
Another area we visited was Huntsville's space shuttle. It is the only completely stacked (orbiter, external fuel tank, 2 rocket boosters) space shuttle on display in the country. It was hard to find just the right spot to take a good picture.
We also took pictures of additional displays or interactive activities: rocket garden, replica of Hubble, T-38 jet, and Free Fall Ride (children's version as well).
As we walked towards the U.S. Space & Rocket Center entrance, we spied 2 grave markers. Upon investigation, they marked the graves of Miss Baker (monkeynaut) and her husband, Big George.
As we walked back to the car, Robin took pictures of one of her favorite exhibits. The first sign closest to the door was the Sun with information about it. The next sign was Mercury which was a scaled distance away from the Sun. The next sign was Venus, then Earth, and then Mars, all at a scaled distance from the Sun. Down the sidewalk at tremendous scaled distances were the signs for Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, and Venus. They included Pluto as a dwarf planet and its sign was all the way out to the farthest part of the parking lot. This was a variation of an activity Robin loved to do with her students.
We took a look from the parking lot of Space Camp. The habitat where the campers sleep was really neat, except Huntsville's is functional unlike Kennedy's.
We left the U.S. Space & Rocket Center and headed west on Interstate 565, also known as Alan B. Shepard Memorial Highway. We tried to get a picture of the sign, but were unsuccessful on 2 U-turn attempts. It was positioned right at the entrance ramp of traffic trying to get on Interstate 565. We went south on Interstate 65 to go the 1.5 hours to Birmingham, AL, a distance of 103 miles. We crossed over the Tennessee River on the way.
Our Courtyard Marriott was located in Homewood, a suburb of Birmingham. We checked in and rested for a little while.
We met our good friend, Linda Sanders, for dinner at Firebirds. Linda was Assistant Manager at JC Penneys when Robin worked there for a few years. Linda and Dean became very close buddies who picked on each other all of the time. We became good friends and wanted to get together while we were there. However, the problem was that we had SUCH a great time, we forgot to take any pictures of us together. We laughed and laughed about so many things. None of us were ready to leave, but we finally closed the restaurant down. Linda is now a Store Manager for 1 of the Belks in Birmingham. We enjoyed our visit so much, but Linda had to go to work the next day. Sadly, we left and went back to the hotel.
We had to settle down a little bit because we were so wound up from laughing. Robin did work a little more on photos and blog, but it wasn't too long before we went to bed. We had a great day and enjoyed renewing friendships.
