50 Authors from 50 States: Beginning the New Year with an Awesome Repost from Years Gone By with Allison Knight

We were so tired of snow and ice, a move south was desired. We began to investigate the southern states. We were boaters and access to a recreational lake had to be the determiner. Low and behold that meant considering Alabama. But Alabama? Surely not. Even our children and friends raised eyebrows. Still, we decided to take a look at this southern state.

All of our preconceived ideas about Alabama were smashed when we crossed over the state line. There with its nose cone pointing toward a blue sky was a mock up of a Saturn rocket. Huntsville, Alabama was home to NASA. In fact we were told that the city of Huntsville had more PhD's that any other city of its size in the US. The facility housed part of the training areas for our astronauts. And this is where it all began. It seems that Von Braun, who built our first rockets, wanted a place much like his home in Germany and he thought that corner of Alabama fit the bill.

To the east you'll find "Little River Canyon". I've visited the Grand Canyon, flew over the Canyon in Kauai, and gazed at the Royal Gorge, but I never expected to see an awesome canyon in Alabama. Yet there it was, it's deep cliffs making me happy I didn't have a bunch of youngens' to watch. The whole area is also full of spectacular water falls that feed the Canyon.

Further to the south you'll find one of auto racing's major tracks. The famous Talladega raceway is in Alabama. On race day roads all over the state lead to the track and are bumper to bumper with racing fans heading toward the big race.

The south west a corner of Alabama meets the Gulf. The beaches are white crystalline sand and high rise buildings dot the landscape. November through March the condos are filled with senior citizens, referred to here as snow birds, because they come to escape the snow. In the summer vacationers with children arrive to enjoy our beaches and the warm Gulf waters.

Did you know that Mobile was the site of the first Mardi Gras parades? One of these days I'll include Mobile in a historical romance with one of those parades as part of the story.

Of course, there's football. Here is Alabama we have two seasons, football season and the rest of the year. If you don't follow college football, you wouldn't know that Auburn was last's year's champion, while Alabama held the title before that.

Alabama is also where the longest yard sale begins and the state is loaded with wonderful places to shop.

There's so much about the state, I could write a book, the seafood, the restaurants, the little towns, the wonderful southern biscuits. So, come on down, y'all. Three of our children moved and now call this state home. Alabama's not what you think.