On the way to Rota

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

We are in Espana!  It is 1047 (0347 Houston time) and we are in Madrid.  We have finally arrived.  We have been planning this trip since April.  We are waiting for the flight to Sevilla, then a train to Jerez de la Frontera (one of the premier Sherry producing areas of the world), then a taxi to the Naval Station in Rota.  I think that is all we will be able to handle today.

This past week has been another adventure.  We boarded Amtrak in North Charleston, rode it to Jacksonville to pick up the car which we left at Naval Air Station Jax when we sailed out 3 weeks ago, then left for Columbia, SC the next morning.  We were picked up at the station by our friends Gina and Bruce which gave us time to catch up with them and the work they are accomplishing on their sailboat before leaving in November for the Caribbean.

When we pulled in to Columbia, Renne’s daughter Shannon, was admitted into the hospital for dehydration and unexplained abdominal pains.  She was there for two days.  By Friday we were headed out to “The Cliffs at Glassy Mountain”, an exclusive golf community in the mountains of Western South Carolina to stay overnight with our friends Buzz and Carol Buvinghausen.  Dinner was at the country club at Glassy Mountain.  Although excellent, it made us wish for an evening of gourmet dinners with Greg and Linda Heausler in Houston – Again.  We need to get back there soon.  We were introduced to Owen Waggoner and his wife Chips.  Now Owen is Lyle Waggoner’s brother.  Those of us old enough to remember “The Carol Burnett Show” on TV will remember Lyle as Carol’s straight guy and one of the 5 members of that cast for at least a decade.  Now Owen has the pony tail I am striving to grow.  I was great to meet he and his wife.  We also met a former US congressman from Oklahoma that evening, but for the life of me I just don’t remember his name!

Saturday afternoon, after a full day of golf, Renne’ and I headed west to Ashville to celebrate her son, Erik’s birthday.  Lindsay, Erik, and their daughter, Juniper were very gracious hosts and enjoyed both church and the birthday party with them on Sunday.  We had to leave by 5pm and got back to Columbia Sunday night.

Yesterday, Monday, we had to be in Charlotte, NC to catch the flight to New York’s La Guardia airport and a shuttle on over to New York’s JFK for the departure to Sevilla, Spain.

So here we are.  Thrilled to be here, always a bit apprehensive with new surroundings, new language, new customs, and well, new a lot of things.  We will be here a week, then off to Barcelona to meet our friends Doug and Barb Schindler on their boat, Plankton.  Who knows where we will end up, but we need to be back in Sevilla on the 6^th of September.  So off with our adventure!

We will try to keep you up to date as the weeks go.  We will also try to keep the Spot Messenger up and alive as we traverse this beautiful country.  Until we have sundowners on the dock again, Buenas Tarde!!

Jon and Renne’