Day 2 - Family Ties

Today was all about getting to Pensacola. On a trip that's predominantly about getting out and off the beaten path, spending an entire day to get to a landmark that is the antithesis of my trip seems a little odd. The truth is I was making good on a promise over 16 years old - that of visiting an old family friend that moved away to start a new life.

I can hear you saying it now - It took you 16 years to go visit someone? Yes. When Oscar first moved I was just a kid. Although Oscar was adopted family, he was my dad's friend so all ties to him went through my dad. By the time I was adult enough to consider the ties of family and friends my dad had died. Adages about absence and fonder hearts aside, out of sight truly is out of mind and with the only tie to Oscar having died, visiting him took a back seat to...well..everything. I think that only the strongest, most direct of bonds can survive time and distance like that.

However, once I started planning my trip I knew this was finally the chance to make good on that promise made years ago as the family was losing a close friend. As a result, I didn't have anything planned in the distance between camping outside of Oglethorpe and pulling into Pensacola. However, the road did bring a few cool sites like an old, abandoned roadside motel that looked like it was from the 50's or 60's. I also got chased by a dog as I was looking at an old house that was being restored and had lots of turn of the century farm equipment rusting in the back. It was only while running back out that I noticed the "No Tresspassing" and "Beware of Dog" signs. I'm sure the sight of a pasty, fat, white man running to his manly Hybrid Toyota Prius was entertaining to someone.

Getting into Pensacola I proceeded to aimlessly drive around, much to the protest of my GPS. I finally stopped and decided to walk around sections of the historic district. Pensacola is a town with a lot of history spanning a lot of time and having been governed by five different nations during it's long history (the area is referred to as the City of Five Flags). It's also known as America's First Settlement because - wait for it - it was the first settlement in what would become the United States (several areas of modern-day Mexico had already been settled so It's not North America's first settlement). Being that it was settled by Spanish explorers and conquistadors there is a heavy Spanish influence. As a result, Pensacola is littered with excellent street names like De Soto, Ponce de Leon, and of course Cervantes who is the author of Don Quixote and indirect inventor of one of my favorite words - quixotic. After meeting up with Oscar I was treated to a tour of the area, including the national seashore, a fish dinner, and several cups of coffee but most of it was an excuse to hang out and shoot the shit.

Of course, I've made the promise to visit again. Let's hope it doesn't take another 16 years.