Alabama

No, we didn’t actually visit Selma. But considering the 50 year anniversary of the Selma to Montgomery March, we wanted to teach our kids about this specific moment in history. We were planning to drive through Montgomery on our way North to Atlanta so we rented the movie Selma to watch with our oldest two the night before. (If you haven’t seen it go grab it from a Red Box. It’s a must watch).

In my mind, I pictured the bridge to Montgomery AT the entrance point to Montgomery so I told the kids we were going to be driving across THE bridge. It wasn’t until we were actually in Montgomery and I couldn’t find it on the map that I realized that the Bridge was an hour away at Selma and that they had marched across it at the beginning of the march not at the end. (By the way, this is a perfect example of the value of seeing history up close and personal. It just gets all wonky in our imaginations when we learn from books and movies! There’s nothing like seeing the “place”- ya know?)

We were really disappointed to realize that we were this close and we wouldn’t get to see the actual bridge. I did a quick search on my phone to see what kind of historical sites we could see in Montgomery. (Because, lets be honest, all the cities in the South are blurred together in this northern girl’s brain.)

Wouldn’t you know it, Montgomery is home to the Dexter King Memorial Church! Now, some of you are thinking, “Yeah, tell me something I don’t know.” But some of you might be me as clueless as me, so I’ll explain. This church is the church that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. pastored from 1954-1960. Much of Montgomery’s early civil right’s activities, including the 1956 Bus Boycott, were also directed by him from his office in this church.

It was Sunday, so we were not able to tour the inside or visit the museum that sits behind the church. But landing there on a Sunday had it’s advantage too. We were able to drive right up with our RV/minivan train and park along the curb to get a great view. The church also sits just one block in front of the state capital building which is where the court ruled in favor of the civil right’s marchers during this event. It is also the point where Dr. King gave his speech at the end of the march.

Even though we were disappointed about not seeing the bridge, seeing the church was very cool and we were so glad to see a little bit of this important history.

Thank you for a great Sunday drive Alabama!

The kids were a little on the cranky side after touring San Antonio and New Orleans in such rapid succession with long drives in between. I was a little annoyed at the level of complaining considering the fact that we’re “doing this all for them” (not exactly true mom) so there was some building tension in the RV to say the least. I have to admit, I didn’t properly consider the level of endurance they had considering all the walking and all the driving and all the “learning about history” involved. We were very much in need of some kid fun.

I’m proud to say that I TOTALLY REDEEMED MYSELF!!! I found a great campground right on the beach for our next stop. But I didn’t bother telling the kids we were going to the beach so that they would be surprised. I told them we were on our way to Alabama, but in reality, we landed just about a half mile across the Florida border at this amazing beach front area called the Perdido Key (Nick named “The Lost Key”). I even impressed myself, if I may say so. This beach was FANTASTIC!!! Glorious white sand, very few people, and bright blue water. The temperature was perfect, the shells were in plenty and the only bad part was when the sun started to set and we had to leave. We had a glorious time relaxing in the water and we all had a new-found love for traveling.

It’s been agreed on. We will find our way back to the Lost Key when we can spend ~~more than one day~~ a few months.