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.

Wings and Horns

No, not talking about Angels or Devils.....but Birds and Bulls

On Wednesday, we visited the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. Here the endangered Whooping Crane, North America's tallest birds, have an winter stronghold. Pelicans, herons, egrets, spoonbills and geese feed in the brackish waters and salt marshes.

The visitor center was very informative, and we set off to find the elusive cranes. We did see 3 sand-hill cranes, but they took off before the camera was ready. From the 40 foot observation deck, in the windy sunshine, I took photos with Bernie's zoom lens, but the birds were still far away. And it turns out, these were snowy egrets, smaller and slimmer than cranes. But I also saw a golden eagle!

Snowy egret

In Flight

Golden Eagle, turned out of sunlight just as the shutter opened

On Friday we drove to the King Ranch. At 825,000 acres of protected habitat, it's one of the largest privately owned ranches, recorded in the National Register as "The Birthplace of American Ranching". Richard King acquired his first 15,500 acres @ $.02 per acre in 1853, and seeing it's potential for ranching, went to Mexico to buy longhorn cattle and find families who were provided with homes, schools, churches and all necessities in exchange for hard work and dedication. 

Cowboys needed good horses and American wanted better beef cattle, so breeding programs were begun in the early 1900's under the Kleburg brother's, son-in-laws to Mr. King. The American Quarter Horse and the Santa Gertrudis cattle lines were the result. The descendants of the King's now own citrus ranches in FL, hunting and conservation areas, agricultural ventures in Australia and even a John Deere dealership.

Quarter Horses

Historic Longhorn

Sunny Day in Corpus Christi

About 30 miles South of our campground is the deep water port of Corpus Christi, the popular seacoast playground. The 2.5 Seawall, with steps to the water of Corpus Christi Bay, with it's T-shaped docks heads,  is popular for walkers, bikers and boaters. Over 100 miles of beach including nearby Padre and Mustang Islands, make the area popular for sun seekers year round. 

USS Lexington and Texas State Aquarium

Heritage Park, 12 restored Victorian homes

Replicas of Colombus' Pinta & Santa Maria

We went hoping to board one of the harbor cruises, but they aren't in operation till March or April. So we visited other sights and drove along the Shoreline Boulevard on the south shore, awestruck by the beauty of the expansive homes, to the campus of Texas A&M University. At the end of the boulevard is the Navy's advanced air training school and Army helicopter repair facilities.

Last evening we enjoyed a potluck fish fry at the rec hall with new friends and neighbors, and Thursday there's a Valentine Dance! I've read 2 books and have a massage scheduled.....ah, this is good!

Enjoying the Rockport Retired Life

Blue Lagoons RV Resort

We seem to have found our "place" on this adventure. Rockport is favored by many retirees, and we know why now. The weather is temperate, often sunny and warm, sometimes cool and cloudy. The availability of shopping, restaurants, entertainment and the friendliness of the community, especially here at the RV Park, makes us feel comfortably "at home". We've already discovered our favorite bakery, restaurants, beaches and a daily happy hour right here in the RV community. So, we've decided to stay 2 full weeks....we gypsies who normally move on after 2-3 days!!

The Big Tree

1,000 years old!

One of our day trips was to Goose Island State Park, on the tip of the Lamar peninsula, along the Copano Bay. This park features, among camping sights and fishing piers, Live Oak trees that are believed to be 1,000 years old. These are very different from the oaks found in the Northeast, but they do drop acorns. Their knurled boughs make one want to climb and climb, though the top isn't high.

The small town of Lamar planned a small Marde Gras parade and festival, but the rain and wind put a serious damper on the events. So we drove to Victoria to shop at the Mall instead, and I "inherited" Bernie's iPhone!

At the urging of our friends Max & Liz, another day we went to Port Aransas to Mustang Beach to put our feet in the Gulf of Mexico. It was COLD! And windy enough to see surfers. Can you see one behind Bernie, near the pier?

To get to the beach, we crossed on the ferry from Aransas Pass to the beach resort town of Port Aransas. Our GPS lead us to the Pink Octopus and the Shark Entry as "Odd & Unusual Things to See"!

What Fun!

Actually the front door of a Beachwear Shop!