So we managed to get just to the Louisiana/Mississip border last night at a place called Natchez, MI.
More by happenstance, as leaving New Orleans we just followed the river.
Natchez has a significant place in America’s slavery history and the civil rights movements of the 60s. Being a pioneer in cotton agriculture, there was, as that business grew, an increased need for slaves which in turn morphed into the largest slave market in the state, and it is estimated that more than 1 Million slaves passed through those markets.
In the 60s, during the civil rights era, it was the centre of Klu Klux Klan activity with America’s largest Klan chapter having offices there.
As you can imagine that leant itself to lots of tension and a less than auspicious history.
I learned much of this by visiting the very informative Museum of African American History there. Staffed by an informative and talkative volunteer, it is an eclectic collection of books and artefacts, well worth the visit if in town, but probably not worth going out of your way for.
The schizophrenic nature of America was on offer in the very next building, the Convention Centre, where the annual gun show was being held.
Of course I had to check it out.
Table after table of handguns, shotguns, rifles, automatics, “ladies” defense items such as tasers, AK-47s, M$ scouts, knives were on display to a mixed crowd of families, good ole boys, kids, grandparents. You name it they were there, happily browsing away, exactly as they might at a farmers market, with kids under 10 running rampant. And the place came complete with it’s own “Support Trump” support booth.
A more bizarre juxtaposition of different parts of a culture I have not experienced, certainly not where they are in buildings so close to each other.
It’s hard to gauge what the town is really like as the Gun Festival brought people from all around. They made a weekend of it too – bands, cook offs and a hotted up car amongst the delights on show.
So after a day of being in the republican and 2nd amendment heartland it was time to move on.
I’m heading towards Memphis and Nashville, so north it was. It’s opening weekend of College baseball, so with some researching I worked out I could make it up to Mississippi State in time for Sunday’s afternoon game.
We drove through the capital of Jackson, pretty enough but on Sunday morning much like a ghost town, before missing a turn off on the freeway, digressed to back trails for a while before hitting the last stretch. Garmin’s nav system is incomplete – it wouldn’t find the baseball field name “Dudley Noble”, but accepted the address, 145 Lakeview Drive, Starkville.
Instead of the stadium it took me to a dead end road the other side of town. And I had just downloaded the latest map update!
Relying on my phone instead, I managed to get to the stadium, albeit a little late, paid my 5 bucks and got a spot behind home plate.
The game was already underway – I saw the last out of the bottom of the third, by which point MSU were up 11-5 over South Dakota State.
The game continued for another 3 1/2 innings before being called on the mercy rule (10 runs ahead) when SD failed to score in the 7th.
The stadium is state of the art, but the atmosphere was a little lacking. I’ll have to find another game with more on the line, and a bigger crowd than this to rate the experience.
So that’s where we are up to.
More in the net couple of days – I suspect the drive North will be a little boring but once Tennessee comes around there should be more excitement to write home about.
