Getting out of your car you can smell jet fuel and see a crowd gathered near the back of the building. Suddenly, with a thunderous roar, four jets zoom overhead painted in the famous blue and yellow livery of The Blue Angels!
Pensacola, FL and Pensacola Naval Air Station are the home of the Navy’s flight demonstration squadron. Standing there you are not at an air show, you are at the Museum of Naval Aviation and you have stumbled onto a Blue Angels practice day.
The museum started in the late 1960’s to preserve the history of Naval Aviation and stand as a tribute to the men and women the Fly Navy. On display in the museum are planes and artifacts tracing the history of naval aviation from the first take off from the cruiser Birmingham to the Navy pilots that have flown in space or are on the Space Station today.
Several of the aircraft on display are the only remaining example left of its kind. The one that stood out the most to me is an SBD Dauntless Dive Bomber. The museum rescued the aircraft from the bottom of Lake Michigan. What makes this plane so special is that it survived the battle of Midway in June of 1942. This plane flying from one of three U.S. aircraft carriers turned the tide of the World War II in the Pacific.
Further into the museum is a display featuring a Marine VH-3 helicopter. This aircraft served as Marine One for Presidents Nixon and Ford in the 1970’s. this exhibit give you a look into the unique mission HMX-1, the Marine Corps Squadron task with flying the President of the United States. Another Presidential aircraft on display is the S3 Viking that President Bush flew to U.S.S Abraham Lincoln at the end of major combat operation in Iraq in 2003.
Along with these famous planes, you will see everything from Lockheed Electra like the 
one flown by Amelia Earhart to generations of combat aircraft and an Apollo Command Module. The Naval Aviation Museum may be the best done of any of the military museums I have toured.
If you are a fan of the Navy, airplanes or history this really must be a stop when you are in North Florida. The museum is open to the public and entrance is free. They do charge to see the Imax movies. One, thing to know is, they do search any bags you are bringing into the building.
beach is wide and a flat gentle slope of sugar sand that transitions to the deep blues and turquoise greens of the Atlantic Ocean. South Beach’s beach is a free public beach, beginning at Ocean Drive and 5th Street and stretching up to 21st Street and Collins. I September the water was still warm and even though school had started there was plenty of people on the beach for the life guards to look after. The beach part of South Beach completely lived up to my expectations. It is beautiful with palm trees in the background, the blue of the water and the gentle sounds of the ocean.
th Streets. When you see South Beach in the movies or on TV, the scenes with folks roller blading, biking and walking are in this area. This park fills the area between the beach and Ocean Drive. Again this is a great space for walking and people watching. This park is the best place to view the art deco architecture that South Beach and Ocean Drive are so famous for. Just strolling up the street it is easy to imagine yourself back in the 1920’s or 30’s headed out for an even on the town. The art deco district really comes alive after dark
when the neon can shine. I say to view the buildings from the park, because if you cross Ocean drive and try to walk next to the buildings for an up close look you really cannot see anything. This was one reason I said I was disappointed. The second reason is walking down the side of the street with the buildings you are constantly bombarded with offers of “two for one beer”, or “the best food on Ocean Drive”. So much so it just is not enjoyable.
Our group finally bit on one of the “two for the price of one beer” offers, and that really turned out to be a stupid decision. We found out that the beer was 32oz and the price of one was $30.00. The 
high-fidelity shuttle replica Independence mounted on top. You can tour this international landmark at your own pace. They suggest allowing about an hour and a half to explore this exhibit celebrating the Space Shuttle Program.
At the Stennis Space Center, you can take a bus tour of the test complex from the 
in the not so far future. The other must do is the Astronaut Memorial, the 42½-foot-high-by-50-foot-wide black granite monument is emblazoned with the names of each of the 24 astronauts who made the ultimate sacrifice, including the crews of Apollo 1, STS-51L/Challenger and STS-107/Columbia, as well as seven other astronauts who died in jet and commercial plane crashes. Their names are reflected by the shining granite as if to be projected into the heavens.
his one in the Atlanta, Ga area. I am starting at 
Loin has been serving up Chattanooga delicious barbecue since 1989. They serve smoked beef brisket, pork shoulder, chicken breasts, and barbecued ribs from their pit. All of that can be served and piled high on their famous stuffed barbecue potatoes.
