Neil Diamond Concert Trip

I left home Sat. Oct. 25th headed to Silver City to meet up with Theresa for the first leg of our trip to Orlando , Fl for my much anticipated Neil Diamond concert. I have wanted to see him preform in a live concert for years and back in May for my birthday( Oct. 27th) present to myself I purchased tickets, center stage, 8th row seats 1 & 2, couldn't have been any better for me. But first let me tell a little about our trip there.

We headed down to Jackson to get on I-20 to Meridan. We stopped next door to the Harley dealership and ate lunch before heading out on Hwy 80 to Demopolis. Just north of Demopolis is the town of Forkland and if you are a motorcycle rider I'm sure you have heard of the Bama Bike Fest held there. This was my first time there and it was a real eye-opener for me. Now that's all I'm saying about the rally. We left around 4:00 headed to Montgomery to stay at Linda McIntyre's for the night. The trip there took about 2 hours. After resting a little she treated us by taking us out for supper.

The next morning( Sunday) after loading the bikes and saying our goodbyes we east on hwy 82 towards Tifton, Ga. This was my first trip this far east on 82 and was pleasantly surprised at the Old Towns we went through with all of their beautiful old homes and building either restored or being worked on. We drove through Union Springs, with their Red Door Theater, which use to be the Trinty Episcopal Church ( hence the name of the theater from the color of the Church doors). We traveled on to Eufaula, crossing the Chattahoochee River into Georgetown, Ga., and stopped in Cuthbert for early lunch.

After reaching Tifton, we turned south on I-75 to make a quick run down to Ocala, Fl for the night. The next morning, Monday, we went to Ocklawaha. I wanted to find Ma Barkers Hideway. I didn't know anything about the place, just that I liked the name. We arrive around 10:00am. They are a biker friendly bar with a burnout pit out front, large BBQ grill and cover aera for partying. Inside we find 3 older men and a lady drinking beer at the bar. Theresa and I ask them about a little history on this place. One of the guys at the end of the bar was more than willing to give us the lowdown. Turns out this is the oldest bar in town. Was a watering hole for the Ma Barker Gang while laying low in Jan. 1935 when a gun battle erupted, killing a couple of the gang. He said they wouldn't have been found if it weren't for one of them shooting an alligator in Lake Weir, which was a few feet from the front of the house they were staying in, with a Thompson Machine Gun. He told me where the house is and I took some pictures of it.

We continued our trip with a stop at the Kickstands Saloon in Eustis. Now this guy has it figured out. The front part of the building is a bar with a long plate glass window looking into a full service motorcycle shop in the back. We reach Orlando that evening and check into our motel. We ride around town to check out the sites before eating supper and calling it a night.

Since I had picked our tickets up Monday evening at the will call, Tuesday morning we head to Universal to see the sites. We came back around 4 to get ready for the concert.

We catch a cab to the Marriot which is across the street from Amway Arena for a bite to eat. We enter the arena and were escorted to our seats, which like I said earlier, couldn't have been any better. Neil came out on stage about 8:15 and performed for 2 hours. He sang the songs I grew up on, taking me back to the fond memories linked to those songs I have of those days, and he sang a couple of his new ones from his new cd. You couldn't have ask for a better performance. He had an eleven piece band and three girl backup singers. The platforms on stage would move from side to side and back and forth giving not only us but the audience on each side a remarkable show.

Wednesday we head out on hwy 50 to Weeki Wachee where we travel hwy 19 to Perry. Hwy 98 takes us to Medart for the night. We check in and ask for a place to eat seafood. They recommend Poseys down the road a few miles. Had some pretty good food. Met some guy who lived in Itta Bena for awhile when he was a kid.

Next morning (Thursday) we travel 98 along the coast, going through Mexico Beach which has some pretty scenery along their white beach, on to Panama City, Fort Walton Beach, Orange Beach, Pensacola and stopping in Foley, Al for the night. That night we went to the Ya Ya which is a biker friendly bar with a deli which we had seen on our way to our motel. That night people were coming for the pool tournament. We stayed for a little while before calling it a night.

Friday morning the temp is a little warmer as we head out for home. I stop at the Harley dealer to get an oil filter & oil, need to change before heading to California next week. We get to Hattiesburg at dinner time so we eat at the Farmers Market. They had good smoked brisket and ribs. I stopped before I ate too much.

We made good time coming home, arrived around 4:00. Betty Jane and Mary Rose were mowing the grass when I pulled in. Went over to see Mama and visit a little. Got everything unpacked and started washing machine. Will rest up and get things organized before embarking on my next adventure with Joe and hopefully Mike Y.will go with us.

Well till later