Separate vacations

Though Grandpa has had a few opportunities to travel on his own, I had never had a vacation alone, just to do whatever I wanted. And I had been missing my dear friends Kate and Peggy, who both retired to Florida ahead of me. So, thanks to his generous birthday gift of airline tickets, I flew from Houston to Tampa to spend time with both wonderful ladies.

So I have been with Kate all week in her home in Largo, FL. We've enjoyed doing so many things together including Line Dancing and Swing Dancing classes and dances, open market shopping, movies, wine and beach walking.

Meanwhile, Grandpa is exploring the Gulf Coast Region, including Cajun food, Zydeco music and a stop in New Orleans.

I'm sure he'll have many more photos to share when we meet up again in a week or so.

Galveston, oh Gavelston

Our last full day in Texas was spent in Galveston. First we explored the 29 mile Seawall with it's lovely beaches.

After the devastating Hurricane of  the late 1800's that killed 60,000 and destroyed the majority of Galveston, the idea of a seawall was developed and completed in the early 1900's. This area is recreational, for swimmers, shelling, fishing, kiting and general enjoyment. There are piers with bars, with fishing huts, and even a large amusement park. A magnificent waterfront!

After Hurricane Ike, when again devastation of the area occurred, much restoring and rebuilding has been needed. Over 1,000 large trees were killed when flooded. But chain saw sculptures grew in popularity, as a way of preserving the history of those trees. This is especially true in the historic east side district. Touring the area to see these carved trees has become a tourist destination, so we drove up and down the streets to see them. My favorite was this one depicting Grandma reading to the grandchildren. One family on the Galveston Island donated the cost of the sculpture of a beloved tree in the local playground in Grandmother's honor.

In addition to lovely tree sculptures, this area also features many lovingly restored Victorian homes, alongside a few yet to be restored after Hurricane Ike.

Grandpa and I loved the area, appreciated the love and energy required to preserve these lovely homes, and realize our time to do just that has passed. We've moved onto another phase of our lives with the motorhome living.

Don't Rain on My Parade

Rodeo Houston officially began with the Parade on Saturday. The weather forecast wasn't promising, but it turned into a beautiful morning.

We went into the city early enough to find a spot on the curb near the finish line of the 10K and 5K races, and got to cheer them on! Over 2,000 runners & walkers in each race.

My childhood recollection of parades was the Firemen's Festival, but this was a PARADE! Marching bands, floats, horses and the Trail Riders in their wagons.

And what Parade would be complete without the Clowns?

But this parade had one special element I'd never seen in a parade before...

Street sweepers, a definite necessity following all those horses!

Downtown Houston is a magnificent concrete, steel and glass vision.

If we come to Houston again, we'll plan ahead and get Rodeo tickets, including a concert or two. This year's lineup included Toby Keith and

 Mary J Blige, among a dozen other big names.

Blast Off!

This morning we toured the Houston Johnson Space Center. The Johnson Center is the heartbeat of the space program because it houses Mission Control. While no rockets are launched nor landed here, all else is controlled here, computer systems, communications, astronaut training and even space food production.

We toured the exhibits, watched an Imax movie about the space station....

...and admired the enormity of the Saturn rockets that have lifted our astronauts for decades.

Then we boarded the Tram Tour to Mission Contol where we sat in the audience area of the earliest missions. Here we learned the combined computer memory there in the 1960's was less than a flip phone today!

Astronauts train in Mockup Vehicles here too. In this area we saw a mockup of the International Space Station and items being tested for future missions to the moon and Mars.

We learned so much and came away wondering why Space Travel is not given the PR now that it had in the 1960s. Americans need to know how important all this stuff is to the progress of scientific pursuits, including such things as healthcare, agriculture and communications!

Grey in Galveston

Ever wonder what it's like on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico? We've seen quite a few through our binoculars, but today we got to "board" one.

The Ocean Star Offshore Drilling Rig Museum is a state-of-the-art facility that demonstrates and teaches about drilling procedures, production, marine transportation and environmental protection. We learned a lot about why and how oil and gas are produced offshore.

The downtown area known as the Strand, once called the Wall Street of the Southwest, is a now restored and re-adapted collection of iron-front commercial buildings featuring shops, restaurants and pubs, noted on the National Historic Landmark District registry. 

We missed Mardi Gras in Galveston by a week, but there were remnants of the grand celebration that this seaside town is noted for.

Mardi Gras Parade Grandstand on right

Discarded beads on an alley gate

After a sweet treat and a latte, we found the Grand 1894 Opera House entrance (but the fat lady didn't sing).

Facebook and Fate!

It seems my youngest brother accepted a new job in San Antonio, and he and wife Marion are relocating from Chicago. They were due to arrive in San Antonio the day I'm scheduled to leave Houston, so we figured it would next year till we saw each other.

Well, we had a flat tire near the Space Center in Houston, and I posted that on Facebook. Up pops Marion to say they had to have a new Alternator put on their car and they were currently AT the Space Center! What a happy surprise! So we spent the next day and a half with them, exploring Houston and sharing meals!

Doug, Marion and I went off to the Downtown Aquarium (small but nicely done, including the white tigers), and the Museum of Health & Medical Science (featuring larger than life walk through human anatomy) across from the Roses in the Houston Garden Center.

Meanwhile, Bernie went in search of the Cowboys and Wagon trains coming into town for the Annual Rodeo, but only found where they'll be this weekend.

But he also enjoyed some other downtown sights, including Sam Houston Park and the excellent rapid transit system here.


After another shared dinner,we bid our family "so long, till next year" and headed down the road closer to Galveston.

Now, to Houston....

Our last day in Rockport started out sunny, so we went to the Gulf of Mexico beach in Port Aransas. While talking to friends and family back home, we watched wind surfers ride up and down the surf, propelled by theirs "kites". But we also watched beach-side kite flyers, and a lady who joyfully fed the gulls!

After bidding farewell to neighbors this AM, we took to the road, headed for Houston/Galveston. And what does one see on the road to Houston? Well, a wagon train, of course!

Clouds abound, and Texans on this route were getting plenty of wind and much needed rain. But as we settled in a parking lot for the night, we got this glimpse of promise for tomorrow.