South Of The Border

When we were kids, my dad would get us all in a station wagon and drive us from Connecticut to Florida over the Christmas vacation or Spring Break some years and on the way, I think in Georgia, there was this totally weird store called "South of the Border" where they sold sticky pralines and other horrible food you do not want three girls with long hair in a station wagon to get all over themselves and the car.

The fun part was a serious of ridiculous billboards that began about 100 miles before you reached the place and counted down "100 miles to South of the Border" and then "Only 95 miles to South of the Border" and on and on until you reached it. I've got to go do a web dig to see if this place was real or I made it up. And I honestly can't remember what border (Georgia?) it was south of.

Of course, it used all these cliched Mexican guys in big sombreros and serapes as part of the logo that had absolutely ZERO to do with Georgia's pecans and pralines industry. My sisters and I loved the place. We'd make up goofy Mexican voices as we read the billboards. Of course we knew nothing about Mexico in those days. I would finally visit Mexico about 25 years after these weird car rides to Florida. In the old station wagon, I was so little and cars were so big then, I rode on the floor in front of my mom who sat on the couchy bench padded seat on the passenger side. Ugh, no seat belts for kids then, frightening to recall.