Waffle House, Biloxi

Poor old Biloxi was all but destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, and there is many a vacant lot along East Beach to show for it.

Perhaps the most notable of these is where a Waffle House once stood. I have crossed paths with this delicatessen of evil before, so I bore it little sympathy. As you can see, the sign still stands, like some dormant yet virulent root just waiting for the season to turn.

No, Waffle Houses are not built by men: they rise from beneath the surface of the earth, along with their servants, like the minions of Mordor.

Lucky Wash Coin Laundry, Biloxi, MS

Why would a laundromat choose to highlight luck as an essential part of its service?

Just imagine the customers of Lucky Wash: sitting in front of their washer/dryers, eyes closed, holding up a pair of crossed fingers, whispering some mantric gambler's prayer.

Perhaps the owners failed to make the distinction between the Biloxi laundry market and that of the casinos' down the road: "Come on guys, we're losing too much business to all that glitz and glam on the foreshore! We've got to put a bit of uncertainty back into the business - shake it up a little!"

For all I know, it's probably working.

Ben & Jerry's, Hard Rock Cafe, Biloxi MS

This one speaks for itself. Couldn't believe our luck.

Biloxi, Mississippi

First port of call on our Pan-American tour was Biloxi, Mississippi, home of sunshine, water towers, American flags, casinos, long roads, big car parks, and many a Mexican restaurant.

We had some delicious afternoon mojitos at Shady's on our first day there, followed by some outstanding fajitas somewhere else.

Helen was trying to take a photo of us in front of Shady's when a travelin' man with one shoe offered to take one of all of us, so we accepted. One-Shod Man could not have done a better job at lining up Dan's head with the mermaid's hair in the background. Well done One-Shod Man, wherever you may be.

Nb. One-Shod Man may have been just a normal man who was in the process of changing shoes when he saw us.