The first leg of our trip was a long wait in LAX for American Airlines to get their combined act together, but the second leg, on Cape Air’s Cessna, made up for it with a thrilling, gorgeous flight over the Mississippi (when I dared to  look down). I sat right behind the pilot and had the perfect view.  We checked into our very nice room at the Ramada where we found out that the Water Treatment plant had been hit by lighting and the tap water was now the color of the muddy Mississippi. No worries, bottle water and a bit of bubble bath  took care of that issue (nothing like taking a bubble bath in brown water).

Hannibal became the home of Samuel Clemens at the age of four.  He was actually born in Florida, Missouri which is a half an hour from Hannibal. When Sam became Mark, he eventually wrote several books, including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn based on his childhood friends and experiences. Many of the original buildings have been preserved by the dedicated people of Hannibal, who are very proud to be “America’s Hometown.” My husband and I walked down Main Street and staked out the Mark Twain Museum, Tom Blankenship house, the Becky Thatcher house and Sam’s father’s law offices which we planned to see the next day.  We had dinner across the street in the Mark Twain Diner, where we enjoyed their hospitality and food, but didn’t get the root beer they are famous for because of the water issue. Darn!

Grant loved the ride!

After dinner we explored the small town further with a “Haunted Hannibal Tour.”  http://www.hauntedhannibal.com/ This is a ninety minute trolley tour of local 19th century homes, churches, businesses, and the  Old Baptist Cemetery where sightings of ghosts and other paranormal events have occurred. Along the way the tour guide shared stories about Hannibal’s’ haunts. The nineteenth century houses were terrifically spooky at twilight and the guide assured us that the cemetery was most certainly one that Samuel Clemens/Tom Sawyer would have explored. Unfortunately, we did not see any ghosts; maybe it was too early for them.  I think Tom and Huck would have agreed that midnight would have been the best time for a haunting. http://www.hauntedhannibal.com/

Civil War Graves at The Old Baptist Cemetery in Haunted Hannibal

Haunted Hannibal House