Ireland Dashcam

I don't know how I overlooked adding my Ireland dashcam videos to this blog.

If you want to know how I did this here is my blog on the camera itself.

Here's a sample. Don't worry. I've bleeped out the expletives.

Huntsville Space Center

We stopped by the Huntsville Space Center on our return leg from Chattanooga. My first impression was that there was a SR-71 Blackbird out front. It wasn't a Blackbird but an A-12 OXCART which was a predecessor to the Blackbird. Still pretty interesting.

There are 2 buildings open to the public. The first one has the gift shop and ticket counter. There is an IMAX that we didn't visit. Generally the first building seems somewhat rambling. The second building is the Saturn V Hall and is centered around a Saturn V on its side. To get from the first building to the second.you have to go through the first building and walk across the Rocket Park which includes a vertical Saturn V.. There are good photo ops in the Rocket Park as you walk.

You could spend hours in the Saturn V Hall. Everywhere there are interactive exhibits, videos and gadgets to see and play with.

We timed it so we could have lunch there. This facility is a working research center and there are a number of full time employees so they have a nice snack bar that even has a salad bar.

We spent about 2 hours including lunch but could have made an entire day of it.

Their web site is here and the TripAdvisor reviews are here.

Tennessee Valley Railroad

It was a cool weekend in Chattanooga so we were looking for warm activities. The depot is only 10 minutes from downtown.

The area surrounding the depot is full of engines and train cars.

When we arrived the steam engine was nearby and fired up giving off smoke and steam. What an exciting sight. I took our granddaughter to stand in front of it for a picture.

The depot is authentic and fun to just browse around in. There is a nice gift shop and a sandwich bar.

We took the 12:05 Missionary Ridge Local that lasted 55-60 minutes. We called ahead and they said we could buy sandwiches there and take them on the train.

However the 60 minute trip is really in 3 segments: an outbound trip for about 15 minutes, a turntable demonstration and shop tour for about 15 minutes and an inbound trip for another 15 minutes.

We didn't have time to eat before we arrived at the end station and were told to get off the train. In actuality you don't have to get off unless you want to see the turntable demonstration and the shop tour.

I would encourage taking the turntable demonstration and the shop tour and eat elsewhere.

Their web site is here and the TripAdvisor reviews are here.

Tennessee Aquarium

This is an incredible aquarium. I just want to share a tip or two to help others.

We visited with our daughter and her 2 children, 8 years old and 11 months old, so we were using a stroller. My wife and I took the 8 year old up the loooong escalator and my daughter and the 11 month old took the elevator.

The issue is that the route starts at the TOP of the aquarium and flows downward. This is fine but the elevator had stops at each level and didn't indicate to my daughter where to START.

So she got off on the 2nd level and was dumped into the middle of the route. She called me and we figured out what had happened to her. She opposed the traffic to rendezvous with us near the top.

While it appears that there is a zig-zag ramp from the top to the bottom the route actually diverts into galleries that wrap around the central core.

The whole aquarium is DARK and the intended route is poorly marked. The route markings aren't normally so important but were with our confusion.

Their web site is here and the TripAdvisor reviews are here.