Drive to Missouri

Before I begin this post, HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Any who, yesterday we went to Missouri. It was the 30th of October, a day before Halloween. We were going to Missouri to go to Mark Twain's childhood home, and we were going to break the drive into two parts; one drive, to Marshal, Missouri; the next, to Hannibal, or very close to there. Today we will drive the following part.

I blogged a lot, and also read a little bit of my book and also talked to some friends (over the phone and on the computer). It was a very good day. We watched an online sermon (it was a Sunday) and I also read the Bible and read Nahum and other books.

We parked at a little gravel road R.V. Park, and rested and read and did other things. It was a good day.

I had a weird dream today,

Andrew.

Lonnie's BBQ (part two to the Drive to Kansas day)

We walked in, and saw a lot of cool features. On one wall, was a guitar and a guys hands and arms. On another was Kansas The band) in cool letters, with John Brown the Abolitionist on it. It was all really cool, and at the other side of the restaurant was a place where they handed you the food. A lot of chairs and tables were all around, and a wall came onto a walkway that came into where they served you. It was altogether a cool place.

We got into the line, and a stout medium height man with a kind of bald hair that had strands of hair sticking up walked out with a pan of something. He put it down, and said it was "cheese taters." He took our orders, and we all got BBQ and baked beans and the cheese taters, anxious to try them. He gave me a sample of his turkey, and oh was it good! We then started to sit down, but before I did a young guy with black hair, tall, and a striped winter hat on started a conversation with me, asking me if I liked to read and it was good I was reading about Roosevelt.(I had that book in my hand.) He said we needed more kids like that in the world. It was an interesting comment. I shook hands with the nice guy, and found out his name was Alec. He had a friend and co-worker named Jeff. He was nice too.

We sat down, and it was some of the greatest food I've tasted, and the best BBQ. It was fresh and good, with a great flavor. The cheese taters were wonderful, cheesy, and mouth watering. I liked the baked beans, and the turkey was really good too, with a good sauce. Then Lonnie(the stout guy) asked where the best BBQ we had was. Earlier, he had asked it too, and Dad had said some place by the airport in Atlanta. Now Dad (and I) answered here! It was that good! And I'm not just saying that!

Lonnie let us try his breathtaking ribs, and it was really good. After that, we got to talking to Lonnie, and found out he had another shop for 10 years, before buying this one. He talked about how he had painted some of the stuff in the restaurant, and how he had gotten cool guitars and such from a rock star. It was really cool. He had bought it from the guy who owned the R.V. Park, and had done all the designs and stuff. He went away from the ten year one because he wanted something to call his own. He had a cool personality, and was funny too.

Lonnie was a great and fun guy, and we had a good time listening and talking to him... and eating his food! It really was the best BBQ meal I've EVER had. No joke.

The end did come, and we got get to go's after a perfect meal. We left, and got his address and phone number. I believe we are giving him the blog address.

We, being full, went to sleep very well, after seeing a football game. It was a great ending to a great day.

I'll get you my pretty! And you're little dog too!,

Andrew.

Drive to Kansas, seeing the state line, going into a cool old house, parking at the R.V. Park, having the best BBQ meal, being full, going to bed.

Yesterday, on the 29th of October, we drove from Nebraska to the boring and corn filled Kansas, but, as you will see in this blog post, we did NOT have a boring time.

Kansas is right above Oklahoma and below Nebraska. Before leaving, we talked to the guy beside our R.V. in another R.V. and his name was Serbal. He was very nice. We drove a long the highway, and instead of eastern forests we got central corn and flat land. It was a little boring, but I read a little of the Roosevelt book and did math and history. I didn't blog because I had already finished the blog about the day before in the morning while we were stationary, and I don't like to blog as it's happening, I like to do it the day after, and, as you probably know, yesterday is a common word for me. Anyway, it was about a four hour drive, 3 hours driving and the rest for the stops. Why did we stop for an hour? Well, I'm getting to that.

At the Nebraska/Kansas line, we decided to take a picture of Kansas ('cause we take a picture of every state sign) AND Nebraska, because the other time we took it, the picture wasn't the best. We were gonna stop right where we were, but we couldn't because we didn't know it was coming up, and by the time we had slowed down, it was far away. After getting on jackets and getting the camera, we got out of the RV and started walking. All around us was high grass that was light brown and filled with trash, and it made a crunchy sound when you stepped on it. We had stopped on the right side of the road, but as we were walking now away from the motor home going backwards facing the end of it, we saw the highway on our right. Sometimes cars and trucks would go by and make a whizz as the wind broke. We walked(as Mom thinks) half a mile, which was torture as the wind came onto our bodies, pushing us back. We came with the dogs, because we wanted to walk them and make them go to the restroom, and their fur was funky looking, being pushed back like that. We kept walking and walking, and then saw a white little baptist church, which was to our right a little ways away. We kept walking until we saw the Kansas sign, and at this point the R.V. was barely a speck. The Kansas sign was little and tall, with two rods holding it up, and two boards, one saying: Welcome to Kansas, and the other talking about the Governor and such. We took a picture with the dogs, and held them up. I think it might be funny to post that on Facebook and say something like: We're in Kansas, and here are Toto's children! I don't know, just a thought.

We then attempted to run across the highway and go over to the bigger Nebraska sign. We ran quickly across, and luckily there was only like one car. We took that one, but here's a little secret. We took off our jackets and didn't take it with the dogs, to put on the illusion that it was on a different day. Mom isn't gonna like me saying this, and she might delete it off this blog, but it isn't. Shhhh! Don't tell anybody! Maybe she won't notice! :)

A Little unsafe to pose next to...

We walked the long way back and got in the car. I finished history and enjoyed reading some of it, talking about the industrial revolution and Whitney and Edison and such. It was cool.

I looked outside, seeing the cool little towns and everything. What happened next was a little bit of a surprise. In one of these little towns, we saw an old house of a grayish kind with a big sculpture garden and many gates, one on one street and one on the street we were on. A few shed like buildings stood by. The R.V. screeched to a stop, but the generator still was running. "Come on Andrew, Rebecca!" Dad said as he put on his jacket. "Let's go to this museum." We put on our jacket and such in a confused spirit, ready for anything. Museum? But I thought we were driving today. Was he planning to do this? I was very bewildered. Mom was talking to her great and nice friend Brenda, and so she stayed with the vehicle, as it was still running. Since it was still running, Dad probably thought the place where we were going was going to be a short visit, but oh it wasn't!

We stepped onto a red brick side walk by the fence to that house. A sign said: Koester House Museum. Oh, so the house is the museum, I thought. We opened that white fence door that we had to go up stairs to get too, and walked into the yard. We went along a walkway and saw all these cool statues, and one I marked out as a lady hunter with a bow, quiver, and a dog. She was in the corner. I wondered who that could be. I thought as we walked, and then it came to me. Artemis! The Greek god myth that is the Greek god of hunting and such. How did I know that? Oh yeah, that kid series I read... Percy Jackson! I looked around and saw a girl with a torch, a man in a flying position with a hat with wings on it and a stick in his hand that had what looked like snakes going around it, and a pretty girl with leaves. We came up to the house and saw a sign saying please ring, and it had a doorbell right by it. As we did that, a sound echoed through the house, making that ever familiar tune. A man with a large head and glasses and a medium height appearance came through from the back, and opened the door, welcoming us as he did so. We came into the old house, and at the front door saw a staircase going upstairs and other rooms to our right and left. The man told us to go to the back, and we did and went through many interesting rooms. In an old living room with some chairs and a few mantle pieces and cabinets, he asked for $5 and he told us his name was Howard Eaton. He then proceeded with the history of the house, like the German people who lived there, and that the son of the man who came there first added onto the house. That builder-on guy was very political, and did a number of positions that the famous FDR put him into. It was very interesting to learn about the Koester's, and it was even cooler to see house.

We saw their very nice dining room, with all the cloth and linen, and then saw their den, with all the sofas and pictures of the politicians family, his two girls and one boy, and his wife. It was cool, and they had a grand fireplace. We then saw their bed rooms and bath room, and saw their premature toilets. I can't even imagine... well, never mind.

It was very interesting and fun, to see their old furniture and such. At one point in the music room we saw a music box, a little rectangular piece with a cylinder and needles that make the sound. It was so cool!

We saw their outdoor kitchen, and it was a little shed with a storage area downward, which was creepy and would be weird to cook in. We also saw an ice room, where they stored their ice. All in all, it was awesome to see that house, with all the tough furniture and German heritage visible in what they had, like their china and clocks. It was really awesome.

We then got back into the R.V., and Mom showed her jealousy as we described the house, wishing she had come. Oh well. The drive proceeded on without further incident.

We came into an R.V. park at dark, and I could barely see anything. We had made reservations, so all we had to do was park. We then hooked up and such, and then remembered the BBQ restaurant we saw outside the R.V. Park. We got in the jeep and drove out and into the parking lot of a small little restaurant. What we found in there was a little more than just regular BBQ.

TO BE CONTINUED...(for the next part of that day, please see the part two edition. )

SHOPPING!!!!!!!!(WE DID IT AGAIN)

I forgot to tell you that I finished the Auto Biography Of Mark Twain the day before yesterday, on the 27th of Oct. It was a good book, filled with all things M.T., and it, was written by him. I got the book at M.T.'s home in Hartford, Connecticut, and, incidentally, in a few days we will be going to his childhood home, in Missouri.

Speaking of where we are about to be, I will quickly explain our little game plan, and where we are going until Christmas. We think we are going to Kansas today, and then Missouri for the next few days. (Kansas I believe will be a one-nighter, not the coolest state.) After that we are going Midwest and east again, taking in Indiana and Kentucky and other states. Who knows, we might even go to Louisiana and Oklahoma and Mississippi before Christmas.

We only have one month and a few days left, and then in the first or second week of Dec, we are gonna come home to ole' GA. I am very excited, but I still want to enjoy the month that we have.

Thank you for staying with us and reading what we're doing. When we do come home (for Christmas), please still read, even though we will be busy, because you will get a first hand account of what we are doing. After Christmas and such we will leave and come west, doing Texas, and California, and all others. We also will go to Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, and other northwestern states we aren't doing now because it is snowing there. But, I will stop talking about this now, as it is a month away. I might not talk about this again though, so please remember (well, I probably will). Anyway, let me now go over the events that took place yesterday.

I woke up, and we all did the getting ready stuff, and I took a math test. We then went into the car, and I took my history textbook to read, and I read about early events of the 1800's (in Europe) and learned about wars and the Crimean War. The Grimm brothers and Edgar Allen Poe, romanticists, were talked about too. I also brought my new book about Theodore Roosevelt's time in the bad lands.

Then, we arrived at a big, pretty outdoor mall, with shops and stores of all kinds. Dad went into the apple store there to work out a problem with his iPad not working. Much to my reluctance, Rebecca, Mom and I went into a blamed Gap store (no offense to any Gapians) and sadly, I tried on jeans and hoodies. We spent like an hour there, but while I had the chance I read a little of The bad land book. It was very good, and had action packed parts like when Roosevelt kills his first buffalo, and when they get chased by a wolf. I'm enjoying it a lot.

We left (FINALLY) after a lot of shopping. I was the chained prisoner set free, and I was very glad. At a nice restaurant called Paradise, I got chili and a reuben sandwich. It was really good.

We went back to our car, then drove around for a while and finally came home. At a dog park, we chased and ran with the dogs, the wind on my face, the sweat down my neck, and the dogs by my side, I'm telling you that THAT was Paradise!

Well, we watched the World Series Game, and we saw the St. Louis Cardinals win. I didn't exactly care WHO won, but I'm glad they did because they are in Missouri, the home of a great author. (Can you guess who?)

Well, my night wasn't very sleep filled, as I was not tired and kept waking up, but eventually sleep overtook me.

"It's dogged that does it! I can't get that buffalo!"- Theodore Roosevelt,

Andrew.

Heritage Center

Yesterday morning we went out at ten and had a wonderful breakfast at a Crackle Barrel. It was very, very good. After that, we drove an hour, and arrived at a semi-big building, which was on the sight of a homesteaders house, and was there to tell the stories and explain what homesteading was. A young man with blackish hair named Blake Bell greeted us, and told us all about Lincoln (the president, not the town) signing a law saying that anyone could go out and homestead the west and there was two catches, he said: First, you had to build a house in a span of five years, Second, you had to make stuff (grain, corn, cattle, etc. etc.) on at least 10 acres of your 160 acres. They called this proving up the land. It was cool to listen, and I enjoyed talking to Blake. He was really cool. At the entrance, you saw a small gift shop on the right and a big desk for the employees. Also on the left was a big employee room and farther down was a room which had a movie they presented. In front was a cool twisty staircase and an exhibit that was really cool.

We saw a colossal movie, with quotes and interviews by the ancestors of homesteaders and actual homesteaders. We sadly learned about the Indians being pushed farther and farther west, and we learned how hard it was to work out there in the dry soil and bad weather. It was amazing that that many stuck it out, it just shows what Americans can do. We went down stairs and saw the beautiful exhibit, and it was really interesting to learn HOW they did the land and how they applied and... how they survived. We saw how owners of newspapers like Horace Greeley promoted going out, and how immigrants, freed slaves, and single woman wanted something to call their own. It was really cool.

We also went behind the National Park building and saw a homesteaders cabin, that was a wood one and very small. We saw a first floor of it, with a desk by the back by the ladder going up to the second floor, and in the left on the corner, was a table with fake food on it. On the other side was a little bed and cabinet. But this isn't the least. They lived on it for many years, and 12 people, 10 kids and two adults lived here! That would be quite tight!

It was really cool and interesting to come to the Heritage Center, and I learned a lot. It was also fun to meet Blake. Nice meeting you, man!

I'm hungry,

Andrew.

Corn Palace

We went to the Corn Palace in Mitchell, and saw cool corn images on the front, all made and twisted and designed with corn. It showed sports images, and American Pride things too. We went inside, expecting a really cool display and such, but only found a gift shop and a small exhibit with all the past years designs. That was it. It wasn't the best, but I'm glad I came. We then drove six hours, and I finished a math unit also. It was not fun. And that is not just because it was school. It was simply not fun. We came to Nebraska, in between Lincoln and Omaha. We came in at dark, and it was very scary to get in and park and such, but it had already been done at a more scary hilly campground in Vermont, so it was nothing new, but still scary. When we did park, we went to sleep without trouble.

"And I saw her face, now I'm a believer! There's not a trace, of doubt in my mind. I'm in love...ooh, and I couldn't leave her if I tried!"(I love that song, just thought I'd share it with you."),

Andrew.

Auto Show Part 2

Please read Auto Show Part 1 before you read this part. You will not understand anything I'm talking about if you do not read the first edition first. It is just common sense. Trust me, I have been there. Never read a sequel before the first novel. You only learn that once... or two times.

-A.B.

I walked into the motorcycle section, and on the radio close by heard Elvis songs. There was another Elvis statue there, and I looked around for a bike driven by a bat. I still didn't understand the significance to the saying. I looked around, seeing cool Indian motorcycles and Harley Davidson. I then saw a little skinny motorcycle thing, with cool designs and colors of yellow and black. Batman's trademark bat was on it. Driven by a bat! Of course! Bat man! I found the stickers and put them on. Then, after looking at all the bikes, I went out.

The day was windy and cold, and all the un doored big buildings didn't help. There weren't doors to enter the vast storage areas, with drapes and curtains only to protect from the cold. I found Mom, Rebecca, and Dad again, and then enjoyed the time with them, going down and seeing all the cars, and in one building, a stuffy, small hangar, we saw trackers, and all kind of old cars, of Ford's kind, in the early 1900's. It was a cool place, and I was really glad we we're doing it, like seeing old tracker parts and old fire trucks. We also saw failed inventions, like paddle cars and solar cars. They were funny and tacky and wacky, and I could see why they didn't catch on. We also went all along the right side, and then came up on the left side. Here were small buildings that had come from the local town, small and old. We saw a train car, and that was really cool, and behind that was also an old school house. We also saw an old general store. I looked down at the paper. The new clue was: You are running out of gas. Stop at the station to get refueled. I looked and looked for a gas station, then found a small shop with a big tall stand with a circle saying: WNAX Gasahol.I found a sticker there.

We saw an old fire station, and there I found a large bell that came down with a rope, and a big red building. My clue had said: LOOK OUT! Sparky has a fire! Ring the bell to alert the fire department. I rang the bell, and it made a good honest ring. Then I found the stickers and put them on.

We saw a jail and other things, and it was cool to see all the old shops in edition to the old cars. I was really impressed with the place, and I really liked it.

Clue #9: The sheriff has the next clue. You can find him in his office. I saw an old shop and the sign to it said it was the sheriffs office, and so I looked in and saw a manikin man with a badge saying sheriff on it. I looked around and saw the stickers, then looked back to the sheet. FINAL CLUE!: You're almost there! Now go to the bank to complete your map!

Rebecca ran to the bank and found the last sticker, and we were really excited. We had won! Now we got a really cool prize!

We went back to the entrance, by way of going through their restaurant and gift shop. David's son (David's shift was over, he went away) gave us our prize and told us to share it, us giddy as he pulled out... a Frisbee! He gave us a Frisbee. For all that hard work, for all the Sherlock Holmes deduction, we got a green plastic Frisbee. You could imagine how disappointed we were, but we tried not to show it. We "rejoiced" and said thank you a lot and a lot as if he had handed us a million dollars, and he said it was nothing. It was nothing.

But anyway, we ate at their restaurant and left. We saw awesome stuff, did a cool treasure hunt, and although the prize wasn't good, we still enjoyed it. Also, the food at the diner was satisfying. Then we left, and I was glad we came.

Then, we drove for like an hour,(due to our tiredness and loss of daylight) and then landed at an R.V. Park in Mitchell, SD. We had come to spend the night there because of the corn palace that was there, a building made of brick with panels depicting images made of corn. We went to a saloon and ate bad food there, and also looked at the corn palace, but couldn't see it that good in the dark. We then went to bed, I in the back. I slept a good night, but I was not disturbed by any dreams so... sorry to disappoint you.

Goodbye, for now.

I share my father's like in automobiles,

Andrew.

The General

The kids never saw The Dukes of Hazard...oh well!

All wood car - took 4 years to build

Elvis' motorcycle

Glad this isn't our camper

Auto Show Part 1

Dad insisted on going to The Pioneer Auto Show, a complex of 42 buildings dedicated to cars. He said it was what the town's draw was, and what made it a little booming community. We drove to it (in the jeep) and surprisingly it was right next to the campground, no literally, like a minute away. I was expecting a modernized museum, a government or state or society whatever. Boy was I wrong. We came up to a flat, pretty tall building, with boards with cars and cartoons and such like that. It was old, dirty, and weird. A basic old car building. But, I would enjoy it.

We walked in, and saw a gift shop on the left and another room on the right of the tiny threshold. A old man who was about the average height and having white hair back and yellow teeth said hello to us at his podium and cash register. We said hello also, and then paid with the coupon we got at our R.V. Park. We got 50% off! But anyway, the guy asked who was the oldest kid between us too, and I raised my hand. He gave me a piece of paper and said that clues were hidden all along the auto show, and I collected stickers if I found them by the next clue. He said if we collected all the stickers then we would get a really cool prize. I was excited. I was determined we would win. The guy led us into the door on the right, and we found ourselves in a wide room with a wide hallway down and a hallway horizontal going to the next room. It was concrete floor, and very stuffy. But that wasn't the weirdest thing about it.

To my right as I entered was a statue of Elvis, with his hand up and in a dancing position. The guy (by now we knew his name to be Dave) pressed a switch behind Elvis and a piano played itself and we could see the mechanics working around. It was really cool. Then, as I looked farther beyond the Elvis, their was a juke box and a puppet box. Down the hallway was many cool cars, like the Dukes of Hazard (I have no idea what it is; my dad says it is famous) car and a car driven by Richard Penny and such. We even saw a wooden car that was totally made out of wood and a small Volkswagen. It was a really cool room, but it was just the beginning.

I glanced down at my treasure hunt piece of paper, seeing the treasure hunt outlook, with the compass and all like that. By the places where the stickers were supposed to go, was a clue with a number. The clue was: Follow the path to the place where you can see yourself in three different ways. Hmmm. I tried to think about where you could do that. We went into a new room, with toy cars and Disney characters. It was really cool, seeing all the little matchbox cars and others. The place where you can see yourself in three different ways... I took some memories out of my head, and I looked through a few of them. One when I was 11 at Rapids Jam in NC stood out. There, I went into a monkey maze with all this allusion stuff. In there, I went through three mirrors, one as me tall, one fat, and one small. I just needed to find that. I went down the hallway, and saw it! Those same kind of mirrors! I saw a sheet full of stickers of a cartoon of what I was seeing and so I peeled it off and placed it on my sheet. One clue down!

The next clue said: Tyrannosaurus has 3 toes. Find them for your next clue.

"Look Andrew!" Rebecca cried. "Here's a clue!" I came over, and saw that she was pointing to stickers right by a statue of a small dwarf with a saw cutting wood. I glanced down at the sheet. Clue #3 was: Find the one who cuts the wood. So, Rebecca had found the third, but we still didn't have the 2nd. It was probably the only time I chance would come for the third, so we took it and placed it carefully on ours. I told her good job for finding it. We now needed to find the second.

That chance came when we were in a room full of precious metals and beautiful gems and rocks. It was really cool, and we found a little fake T. Rex on a fake volcano, with a sheet of stickers right by it. It was I who had found that one. We did the whole process, and then looked at the next clue. By this time we both we're excited about it. Clue #4: If you look afar you will find a hammer over a car!

I was enjoying the museum, it was really cool to see all the cars and such, and I loved doing the clues!

As I looked around for that clue, I left Rebecca looking at rocks and looked afar. I went through some cool car places, with 70's and 80's cars, and other stuff like that. I had to go through a few hangar like buildings, admiring the cars as I went. I found myself in the middle of a courtyard with buildings and a lot at that. There was another big hanger, and many little buildings back at the other side. I went into one hanger, and going to the very back, I found a huge fake hammer on top of a mustang, hardly even visible. By was a sheet of stickers. I was glad I finally found it.

I saw some cool cars, and in one hangar facing the motorcycle section was a sign saying muscle cars, and it was the last hangar on the one side. I went in, and saw all kinds of muscle cars, blue mustangs, red and white challengers and other cool stuff. I looked left, and saw a stop light with three bulbs, green, yellow, and red. By was a sheet of stickers. I prior had seen the next clue, saying: Next Find the lights that make you stop and go! That was this. I peeled it off, then looked at the next clue, number 6. If you find Elvis you are on the right track. Keep looking for a bike that is driven by a bat! Hmmmm... Elvis... well, I could go back to the statue at the entrance... But, if it was there I would of noticed it. Well, I'll just walk into the building opposite me, and see if I can find a bike in their... it is a motorcycle section. But what did it mean by it being driven by a bat? Only time would tell.

TO BE CONTINUED...!

(I'm gonna add another blog post that is the second part to this story. Please read the other part!)

Repair and Drive

We got out of the cool R.V. Park, yesterday, spent an hour fixing an R.V. problem, and then drove for a few hours before arriving at a small town, and we were to leave the next day. We then went to a small diner and ate dinner there. We then stayed up really late and I wrote, read, and watched T.V. Then, we went to bed, me sleeping in the back. I had a dream about a castle really cool and having a sewage system where they dump it into this rod and the rod incinerates it. It was very funny.

Castle Sewage,

Andrew.

Reptile Garden and Bear Country U.S.A

I must apologise for not writing for a few days, but we did a lot of fun, cool things and had little time for blogging. Also, I have been writing a story that I MIGHT post on this blog, it being pretty fun. But anyway, I'm writing now, so let me tell you about the events that happened two days ago. After making a game up and playing it with my friends Slade and Audrey (and Rebecca too), we sadly saw them leave in their R.V., back to their home in Colorado. We got their emails though.

We then went across the street into where Rebecca was very excited to go to, a reptile garden. It had a little parking lot in the front and a building behind that, and then a large domed building. I was a little uneasy, not liking reptiles and kind of scared. But, never the less, we got tickets and walked into the domed building. It had stairs at the entrance going upstairs, doors straight in front of us, and a walkway going all around the bottom floor. We went that way, and I didn't know what to expect. I was walking slowly, and saw a big animal with green scales inside of a big glass container in the water. We saw littler ones, browner ones, fatter ones, and all different kinds. This animal was called the crocodile, or the alligator. It was so scary to see one that close! Some even opened and closed their mouths! It was scary. We even saw one that was in an Indiana Jones Movie. It was very, very large.

Snakes came next. We saw little venomous devils, like garters and corn snakes. It made me shiver to look at the things, and I quickly went away. We also saw trarantralas, which were even more spine trembling. We saw different kind of bugs, and I was a little creeped out.

We then saw turtles, and sadly a few more venomous and un venomous little snakes. The turtles were huge and some were mixed with an alligator breed, making a freaky new species. I have to admit by this time I had adjusted more to all of it, but I didn't enjoy it much.

We went through those doors leading to the middle of the first floor, and saw a forest inside of it, with parrots flying around of different colors and shades of blue, green, red, and yellow. It was amazing, they looked like rainbows! We also saw a lot of new interesting fauna and flora, and we saw things like orange leafs and cool pricked plants. "Look at that Andrew!" Rebecca said, pointing to a large branch connected to a tree, with a bright green snake on it. I walked away from it.

We also saw lizards, of camelons and the sort. They would slither across the road, and I was so amazed. Now this I enjoyed! It was more fun, with seeing the frogs in the water, of poison dart and bull frog. There were many fat, huge frogs. It was like I was at the Amazon.

I came to see one bird that was like a pirates parrot. Well, I said hello, and after a few seconds it said back in a high, penetrating voice, "Hello!" It was so funny! I said other words, and he mimicked them. It was amazing that an animal could talk like a human.

We left that part, and then went upstairs. By now Dad was to freaked out to continue, so he waited outside. I was so excited, and I could overlook where I had just been on the first floor. We started off in a circle again, going all around the thing. Rebecca and Mom shared in the same amazement, and we said a lot of oo's and awws. Then we saw the unthinkable. The komodo dragon. A lizard of extreme size, with a stocky body and rough skin. It was so scary!

The snakes returned. We saw many new kinds, huge kinds, one even as wide as a car interior. It was so crazy, that white and yellow fat snake. It hissed a deadly hiss, and looked at me killingly. We also saw all kinds of black and big snakes, which we're huge and more deadly compared to their cousins downstairs. We saw a boa constrictor, and a snake which was used by the Harry Potter cast in making the movie. It was green and black and big, and it even silvered itself up to the glass and went all the way up. A sign said one of it's species was used as Voldermort's snake in the movies, and so I thought it was cool to mention it. It was cool to see, that's for sure.

By and by we finished seeing all those, huge, scary beasts, and got down the stairs and went back to the car after seeing the giftshop. Although scary at points, the reptile garden was very fun and I'm glad I did it. It was so amazing.

We then went to Bear Country U.S.A.,where we saw mountain goats and elk as we entered. They were just lingering about, free to go anywhere they wanted. It was so cool. We then saw buffalo, and also saw bears! Black and brown bears were just there, just going around. It was so cool to see all that wildlife, and even cooler to see real bears. There were like 30. At the end of seeing all these cool animals was a baby section, where we got to see baby animals, like skunks and badgers and raccoons and foxes. It was so awesome.

We then saw cute little baby bears, and see them go around in their little area. It was awesome.

We went home and ate lunch, then drove around for a while. We later came back, and I wrote more of my story. It's about a man who thinks his day will be normal, but it turns out to be the craziest day ever. The working title is A Day he Didn't Expect but please leave a comment on this post if you have a better title. I would appreciate that.

Goodbye, for now.

Bears!,

Andrew.