Southern hospitality - Eastern Florida to New Orleans

One country many states

I know it is a cliché but since arriving in the US just over a week ago we have met some really amazing people and heard some incredible stories. Every time we have stepped away from the tourist hot spots we have found people who wanted to tell us a story and hear ours. Since entering Eastern Florida this has been steadily increasing with every gas station, restaurant and hotel. Whether it has been a bit of light banter about the length of the queue (sorry line) or a detailed description of the local attractions and where we can find some veggie food.

An ice-cream shop with a story to tell

After 2 hours exploring Mobile (Mo-beel if you ever want people to know where you are talking about), we stopped for a drink in a great looking ice-cream parlour. While making our shakes the girl behind the counter gave us the low down on life in Mobile, a sleepy Alabama town with loads of history and beautiful buildings. Then a local man comes in and joins the conversation telling us about his childhood feeding the squirrels in the park peanuts from the peanut shop (still there). He went on to tell us about his days in college, his four children and work with local charities before asking about what we do and our journey.

It is true that you can find a chain shop on most corners (but often not McDonalds or Starbucks) but the people you meet inside are always different.

Life seems just a bit slower in the South