Thursday, August 2

Friendship Cemetery - Beginning of Memorial Day

Mississippi University for Women

Sunset - Columbus Marina - Columbus, Mississippi

Have we mentioned how much we dislike the Tenn-Tom Waterway? First of all it is not very scenic. (But then, we have been spoiled up to now.) The cruise through these waters is hot, boring and slow - due to the strict enforcement of no-waking. To top it all off, we have had horrible timing at several locks, with waits up to two hours. It appears to us that some of the lock tenders intentionally hold off for the commercial tows, when in fact they have plenty of time to lock us through .......VERY ANNOYING! (Is it obvious that the blogress is overheated and overwrought? She was informed that while there were likely very few gators in this part of the world, there might be snakes hiding in the murky waters. No swimming for her!) Our afternoon went better ........ at the Aberdeen Lock, our 4th and final lock of the day, the gates were opened and we were able to pull right in, now that's more like it! We have now entered the River Section of the Tenn-Tom Waterway.  Our stopover was at the Columbus Marina in Columbus, Miss. Incorporated in 1821, the town of 30,000 people is filled with many lovely historic homes and buildings. It was not a military target during the Civil War, but served as a major hospital because of its location on the railroad line. Shortly after the war ended, a group of Columbus women placed bouquets of fresh flowers on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers buried in Friendship Cemetery. This event, called Decoration Day, was the original Memorial Day. Other attractions included - The Tennessee Williams Welcome Center, the first home of the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright. Mississippi University for Women, the first public college for women in America, established in 1884. The campus has 24 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places and today is a coed university. "Catfish Alley" - It gets a Blues Trail marker for its reputation as the epicenter of blues, jazz and soul music in North Mississippi.  Unlike Delta Blues, music from this area is known as Hill Country Blues. We had a great evening at Huck's - their specialty, catfish with crawfish sauce was delicious & the bar featured an acoustic guitarist. With a cocktail in hand, our attitude about the day improved immensely.

Huck's - Columbus, Mississippi