Day 13 - Biloxi to Gulf Shores

We woke up delighted to find that the storm had passed! We headed on our way with some detours to see the parts of town we hadn't been able to see last night through the driving rain.

Our first stop was just over the bridge to the charming town of Ocean Springs. Breakfast was at the Greenhouse on Porter which we've been eyeing up on instagram for about 6 months. It's a charming wee building with the whole back section being glass hence the greenhouse bit. The staff were lovely and I ordered one plain biscuit with honey butter and their sweet biscuit of the day which was a lemon poppyseed biscuit topped with sweet fluff and strawberries.  K just had two plain biscuits with honey butter and home made strawberry jam. The room was charming with an older man and woman sitting doing some art. Plants growing round the edges and fun home made left wing bunting that was anti trump and pro gay. The coffees and biscuits were great and I was sad to leave it behind.

Stop 2 was just round the corner at the Tato-Nut Shop which is donuts made with potato in the dough resulting in a super light donut. We picked up a couple for later though we did excitedly have a wee bite before setting off - delicious!

On the road and we were soon into Alabama and cruising along towards our next stop at Gator Alley Boardwalk in Daphne. This is literally just a wee boardwalk walk they have built next to the main road cos gators hang about there. We saw 3, one of which was massive - apparently it had eaten a turtle just before we got there!

Pushing on we were starting to get a wee bit peckish so we headed to the pier in Fairhope to eat our donuts. The pier is super long so walked about half way down and grabbed a bench. Just as we sat down a pelican glided past us about 2 feet away,  it was super exciting!  There were lots of other cool birds about too but the pelicans are the best. Fairhope is a lovely town with lots of beautiful big houses. It is where, film of the year, Get Out was filmed and you could totally imagine it being real there.

Finally, we were getting close to Gulf Shores but K spotted an outlet mall with an Old Navy so we had to go in. Just as we parked mental rain started, like mental rain. So we had to wait in the car for a bit then when we got in there K didn't even buy anything!

The rain had been stopped by the time we got out and we were finally able to get checked in to the hotel. It's a Hampton Inn and the room is huge!

After a wee chill we headed back out and headed slightly East to Orange Beach.

*** Kirsty here now - V is too tired to finish the blog! ***

So at Orange Beach we went to a bar/restaurant on the shore called The Gulf. The main building is made from shipping containers painted bright blue. All the tables are outdoors and there is a sandy area. At first we weren't sure if we should stay because it was a bit windy and the place was quite quiet. We decided just to go for it and were not disappointed! I had a burger and V had a fried chicken sandwich. She is telling me to inform you that it was fully delicious but a bit spicy. Mine was tasty also. As we ate there were pelicans and egrets hanging around the area.

After dinner we drove a short distance to get to a beach, where we had a walk and V had a paddle. She was quite delighted as she loves a holiday paddle! The beach was beautiful and there were lots of sanderlings running up and down the shore dodging the water as they tried to catch food from the sand. We walked the length of the beach then came back via a boardwalk. A couple stopped us to ask us to take their photo, except here they say "make a photo". They thanked us and the woman said "y'all have a blessed day"!

We headed back in the direction of the hotel and stopped along the way at an arcade/mini golf place. The arcade was fun - we played our usual skeeball and basketball, and V tried her hand at an American football game. We were excited to find a deal or no deal machine which is one of our favourites at home.

After the arcade we did the mini golf, and in true US road trip style, I won! I even got a hole in one! Victoria seems to always win in the UK though for some reason.

We cruised along the front some more to see a bit of the town, but it was getting dark by this point. Our next stop was an ice cream place where we got a wee tub of butter pecan fro-yo to share, then we went to Winn Dixie, a supermarket, to buy water and juice. I finally got orange cream soda which I have been searching for all holiday!

Our plan was to come back to the hotel and watch some TV, but V is now asleep as I write. Night y'all, til tomorrow!