More on the Gulf Islands and Pensacola February 11-14

 The next few days on Santa Rosa Island were spent trying to keep warm.  The temperatures dipped to the mid 20's one night and the heaters were running continuously.  As I walked and biked  around the campground I couldn't help but feel sorry for all of those tent campers, but was I was also feeling a little smug that I had  a nice cozy warm coach to retreat to.

Friends, Carolyn and Pete ,joined us for a quick tour of Pensacola Beach on Santa Rosa Island.  We wandered around the stores which were pretty empty of people and merchandise.  The busy seasons starts with Spring Break in March, so merchants were stocking inventory, but not much else was going on. These stores were pricey and way out of my league.  It is obvious they don't cater to full time RVers! Too much glitz and glitter! We also stopped in at the local Elks Lodge and contributed to their bar.  The Margaritas were pretty good!LOL.

Monday we had some errands to take care of in Pensacola so we headed over there to check it out.  Pensacola is a very old town (established in the 1500's) and there is a nice historical area and Seville Village.   The village was closed on Mondays, but we were able to walk around and peer in windows. Many of the smaller cottage homes had been converted to small businesses housing attorneys, accountants, and boutiques.

The downtown area of Pensacola was also interesting. Some of the buildings were decorated for Mardi Gras:

 There were lots of eateries and small shops to explore, along with Pelican Sculptures.  The local newspaper sponsored a Pelican Sculpture contest, so there were lots of decorated pelicans in front of stores and on street corners.

These pelicans greeted us at the entrance to the down town area representing out military:

 This pelican was decorated with bumper stickers.

This large clock caught my eye. All four  clocks keep accurate time with a series of cogs, wheels, and weights.

This building house the museum.   I don't know the the history behind it, but the building was interesting.

On the way back to camp we stopped at Joe Patti's.  This is a fish market like not other, except maybe Pikes Market in Seattle.  There is fresh seafood from all over the world including Thailand, Vietnam, Ecuador, as well as very fresh local seafood. The place was busy..a good sign...and nothing smelled fishy.

Our time is up in this area and we started meandering west again on Valentines Day toward the Escapee Park in Summerdale, Alabama where we will stay for a day or so.