You can almost here us chanting: Roll Tide Roll!
Day Two of our Chevy SXSW Road Trip Challenge started in Knoxville (after four hours of school) and led us to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, a charming city known for Football (Roll Tide!)so we had to make stop at the University of Alabama.
We were excited to visit our second classroom of students, now temporarily housed in a magnet school housing three different schools. The classroom’s former school was flattened by a tornado last April
This school now houses three schools, one of which was flattened by a 2011 tornado.
27, 2011, here’s our own Kelly before we walked into the classroom.
Everyone we meet in Tuscaloosa was smilin’–I swear!–and welcoming as could be. One of our favorite finds was a sweet lady named Mrs. Mayfield. We asked her to give us a lil’ Tuscaloosa flavor and she glady obliged, with everything from football to race relations, all under a minute:
We headed into Ms. Thomas’ class with our U.S. maps, and shared our journey so far along with the miles that lay ahead, asking them to map out where they thought we’d be traveling. (We’ll have more on this visit in a bit from Kate Semp.)
After an awesome visit with the kids and leaving some treats behind for the classroom, we were famished and followed the advice of locals who said we ABSOLUTELY MUST dine at the world-famous (or at least in Alabama) Dreamland BBQ.
We had to snap this picture quickly, as it disappeared before our eyes. Thanks, Dreamland!
It did not disappoint. This was some of the most amazing, spicy on-the-bone barbeque we ever did have the pleasure of devouring, with sides of slaw and beans. Following were some interesting convos with fellow diners, all of whom sung praises about said BBQ, full bellies and smiles on their faces.
Then it was back on the road, an interview with Chris Dovi of Richmond Magazine sharing our adventures via our sweet OnStar Bluetooth and miles to go before we sleep. . .
We landed in Shreveport, Louisiana for a pit stop and met the sweetest man with whom we shared our mission and an act of kindness. It was one of the most touching conversations we had, and although our interaction was brief, his laughter and energy made a great impression on team RVAEpic Tales:
We crossed the Louisiana/Texas border around 11pm and kept on truckin’ until 1am, where we gladly donned our jammies and rested for a few hours before the last leg.
Thanks to Dominion Auto Group of Richmond for helping to sponsor our trip.
