A Boozy MilkShake, a Porcupine and a Lesson

The Alabama Gulf Coast is warmed by sunshine, history, culture and unspoiled natural beauty. There are 32 miles of sugar-white sand beaches made almost entirely of fine, quartz grains washed down from the Appalachian Mountains thousands of years ago.

Once you visit the Gulf Coast area, you quickly realize these are some of the finest beaches in the world, and one of America’s hidden gem locations. You’ll yearn to return year after year to feel the sand between your toes, splash around in the turquoise water, smell the salty air and admire the jaw-dropping sunsets of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, Alabama.

Whether you’re in the mood for fun and adventure or lazy days on the beach, you can do it all in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. Gulf Shores and Orange Beach have spectacular accommodations and rentals, award-winning restaurants, and amazing events

I’m super excited to share with you today a recipe for a decadent beverage, a video of an adorable baby animal, and a comeback story that will give you hope for your future travels – all from the Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, Alabama.

The Boozy MilkShake Recipe

Let’s start with that drink recipe. This recipe comes from LuLu’s, a popular restaurant owned by Lucy Buffett, sister of musician Jimmy Buffett. I’ve never visited the LuLu’s location in Alabama but I’m a huge fan of her restaurant in Myrtle Beach!

Not only does she have a great food and drink menu, her restaurant staff is top-notch when it comes to guests with food allergies.

When we’re all-clear to travel again and you find your way to this Gulf Coast hotspot, start your meal with the smoked tuna dip … and ask for tortilla chips on the side instead of crackers.

If you’re truly in the mood for an adult milkshake, you must go for the Bushwacker. The drink originated on St. Thomas, and somehow it found its way to the Gulf Coast to become the unofficial cocktail of the Alabama beach scene. Nearly every restaurant has its own rendition of this boozy milkshake and you can get yourself into some trouble by trying to figure out exactly who serves the best version.

The Porcupine

The Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo is nicknamed “The Little Zoo That Could” because of the heroic efforts of its staff, which evacuated the entire animal population during major storms that have hit the area.

Recently the zoo celebrated the opening of its new home – on higher ground and triple the size – and then had to shut down because of COVID-19. The animals and their keepers are all there trying to keep busy just like us!

Porcupines know a thing or two about social distancing. Nobody wants to get too close to those quills, after all! So right now a baby African crested porcupine named Bruce Quillis, who joined the zoo community last August, is the star of the show. Bruce is very curious and smart, and his hobbies include playing hide-and-seek and eating snacks (his favorites are sweet potatoes and yellow squash).

His charming personality makes him the perfect fit for the zoo’s Programs Department, which means that when the zoo is once again able to welcome the public, Bruce will be an ambassador who’s out and about to greet visitors and ensure they understand the zoo’s purpose and mission.

For now, though, Bruce has been walking around with his keeper and visiting all the other animals – from a safe distance. His adventures are shared on the zoo’s Facebook page every Tuesday at 11 a.m. central time.

Here’s one of Bruce’s adventures to give you an idea of what happens at a zoo when the guests aren’t there.

The rest of the week, the zoo posts videos featuring other animals, training sessions with a pig named Kevin Bacon, and a “Guess That Diet” game in which you watch a zookeeper assemble a meal for an animal and try to guess who’s going to get the food.

The Lesson

Alabama and the rest of the Gulf Coast is coming up on the 10-year anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill that began on April 20, 2010. A decade ago, the world was watching the biggest manmade disaster in American history unfold on the nightly news.

Many people declared that the beauty and majesty of the region had been destroyed forever; there was no way the Gulf Coast could ever bounce back from something like this. Or could it?

Alabama’s coast is not just back, but it is, in fact, “better than back.” The scenes of a decade ago are in the rear-view mirror. The aquaculture and tourism industries rebounded in astounding ways. The destination has become a benchmark for ecotourism, using its funding from BP to enhance its already stellar state park, build one of the country’s greenest hotels in a unique partnership between a state park system and the Hilton brand, and add education and conservation components to nearly every tourism experience. 

Over the years, Gulf Shores and Orange Beach have been witness to more than their fair share of natural and manmade disasters of epic proportions, just as right now we’re all witness to a health crisis beyond anything we could have ever imagined.

The lesson here is that we will overcome this isolation disaster just as the Gulf Shores and Orange Beach overcame their disaster.

We all know from experience that a new day really can and will be here before we know it. Until then, stay safe and healthy. When it’s time to travel again, the Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, Alabama really should be on your travel bucket list – even if it’s just to meet Bruce Quillis and Kevin Bacon!