Our return to Lancaster was primarily to visit our favorite campground with this view from our seats by the campfire...

and to enjoy some of our favorite foods unique to the area i.e., wet-bottom shoofly pie from Dutch Haven; hot pretzels from Dutch Country Soft Pretzels; semi-sweet "buds" from Wilbur Chocolate in Litiz; a ham slice and apple-cured sweet bologna at the  Green Dragon Farmers Market in Ephrata, out-of-this-world homegrown pears from Kaufman's Market in Leola and the variety of nationality foods Central Market in downtown Lancaster. Of course, this is a result of years of research. :)

Our next stop was Williamsburg, VA, up to this point, one of our all-time favorite places to visit.

Although there have been many changes since our first visit in 1970, we never tire of visiting the restored area, sitting on a bench, and watching the world go by. This was our first fall visit. We were struck by how busy landscapers were. Pansies  were being planted and mulched all over the area, just like it was spring! Here is a sample in front of outdoor dining on November 1!

We added a new dimension to our stay when we began the sport of Geocaching. This is an outdoor treasure-hunting game in which the participants use a Global Positioning System receiver or other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers (called "geocaches" or "caches") anywhere in the world. A typical cache is a small waterproof container containing a logbook and "treasure", usually toys or trinkets of little monetary value. Not only do we enjoy the "hunt," but we discover places we never would have found otherwise. Check out the photo album for some of the places we discovered in Williamsburg.

Ten days in Williamsburg is the longest time we have ever spent there and with no other reservations or plans other than to head south, we got our first real taste of full-timing...."are we ready to hit the road or do you want to stay a few more days?"

We decided to stay so that we could explore Historic Jamestown where  Capt ain John Smith established the first permanent English settlement in North America. The drive to Jamestown takes you along the beautiful and peaceful Colonial Parkway.

Finally, the cold weather started moving in; and we decided to head south to try and get ahead of it. We headed for New Bern, NC. Anxious to see the North Carolina barrier islands, we spent a day traveling down the Crystal Coast consisting of narrow islands and miles and miles of beach houses, one more inviting than the next!

We stayed in an  out-of-the-way campground smack dab next to the Cherry  Point Marine Corps Air Station. The  whole motorhome shook when the  military jets flew over, but what a jolt of patriotism pulses through your veins! I am disappointed we did not get a picture.

In New Bern, we toured Tryon Palace, the first capitol of North Carolina and the home of the Royal Governor and his family, William Tryon. We were particularly delighted to see the vegetable gardens still producing on November 7!

We found out that the tomato plant is native to South America and probably came to Carolinas via the Caribbean where they were commonly grown. And here I thought they came from Italy!

Ready to hunt some warmer weather, we set out for Myrtle Beach. Soon after we left New Bern, we saw our first cotton field.

We're looking forward to exploring Myrtle Beach. What fun!