Last tour book day...

I started this blog with lasts and here I am at lasts again...sad. Saturday was our last planned tour book day and unsuccessful! OH MY did we turn around a lot! Thankfully we've seen so much already that it was just another funny day spent in the car together. We decided to start the day with lunch at Charlie's Tacos - always yummy!
After lunch we headed further south on the 329...a road we had not yet explored (I know, there are some!) We were going to find the Banyan Tree tunnel and then head farther south for some castle ruins and end the day at the glass factory before heading north...WELL...ummm....yea

We turned around here...
Passed this several times driving in circles
Turned around here
Asked for some directions before finally stopping here in hopes of finding it...no luck, but Thomas made A REALLY BAD NOISE and we were SURE we were going to have to bury him...


...here...thankfully the noise stopped and our car started up again. We never did find the tunnel though...we laughed so hard we cried, it would have been fitting for Thomas to kick the bucket on our last tour day! We were a little nervous that no one would ever find us to come rescue us though! Thankfully it was ok and we continued south to find the castle ruins...
This view was on the way...rough I know
You can barely see the motorized parachutes - but it looked pretty exciting! Anyway - we followed the signs to find the castle, no luck and did I mention that the air conditioning in Thomas is no longer working and the heat and humidity is back?
Anyway, no luck so we continued onward to the glass factory - I realized that on the way we would be passing a cave site of where part of the Battle of Okinawa took place - it was an underground hospital and also where the students/nurses took their lives after some false propaganda was issued near the end of the Battle. It was an extremely graphic museum - the retellings were heart wrenching and most of the girls were high school and college age - the things they had to see and do were horrific.

This is the top of the cave outside the museum
After the museum we went to our beloved glass factory - Adrienne found a lamp that was calling her name and it was even on sale :) Everyone will have to come visit and see our collection...if I ever win the lottery (might need to start playing) I'm coming back for more glass!

The whole outside is covered with different colors of glass pieces - it's own work of art!