Duson, Lousiana

You're not going to believe this but we are  staying in an rv park called: 

It's great!  All the streets in here are like "Leap Frog", "Mystery Frog", and "Tadpole Lane".  We had to come here. 

 

Duson is a small place right next to Lafayette.  Tonight we went to a restaurant recommended by the office manager here--Randols. 

 

I had to come back and edit this.  We were both a little disappointed in our dinner.  Mike's fish was delicious.  I had some stuffed shrimp, which was really good, and a sampling of the shrimp etouffee, which was most disappointing.  It was very bland.  We had some in New Orleans a few years ago that was lip smacking good.  Then, we had some sweet potato pie which was very bland.  Our server took our order, brought our food and disappeared.  Another server saw we needed something to drink and took over.  A plus was that there was live zydeco music and lots of seniors dancing. 

One of the really great things about Louisiana is the food and music. 

There are lots of casinos here.  Actually there are a couple gas stations across the street with casinos in one end of them.  Weird!  But there are lots of cars there.

We are only here for one night and not sure where we will go tomorrow.  Tonight, we're just kicking back inside with a comedy movie since we have free cable here.  Sometimes we find an rv park with free cable hook up and free wi-fi and it's really nice. 

(Yawn)  I'm getting a little tired.

 

 

Moving to Houston

Yes, we have decided after weeks and weeks of discussion to relocate to Houston, Texas.  We have lived here in San Antonio long enough.  We are ready for greener pastures.  At least, when we move we don't have to hire a moving company BECAUSE WE JUST MOVE OUR HOUSE! 

Okay, I'm just kidding about weeks of discussion.  We decided last night where we're going.  We're gypsies. 

We had lunch at Benjamin's Kitchen.  This was recommended to us by our son-in-law, Jeffrey. 
He has to go to San Antonio quite a bit for business and he was right.  It was good.  The rice was the best I've had at a Mexican restaurant.  I'm not a rice person--Mike is.  This rice was brown rice and it had some veggies in it and had a great taste.  Thanks, Jeffrey, for the recommendation.

Yesterday, we pretty much stayed close to home base.  Once a week, we have to do that to take care of business like laundry or cleaning, you know, housework.  But we don't have yard work!  Yay!
(I loved mowing.  I downloaded audio books to my phone and mowed and listened.  I loved it.)

Well, gotta go.  We're having coffee and then on the road, again.

Catch you in Houston.

Remember the Alamo!

That's the Alamo behind us.  Mike wants to say that it has changed since 1972 when he was there to visit.   Back then, it was very small and the place was filled with hookers and druggies.  He was very disappointed.  Since then the Daughters of the Republic of Texas have made some great changes.  There was a model inside the museum that showed the original place when all the fighting was going on and it was huge.  It's a beautiful place to visit.  If ever in San Antonio, you must visit downtown and especially the Alamo. 

We got on a bus right outside our park and rode downtown.  We visited the Alamo, we walked the streets of San Antonio, we walked through a mall downtown and we took a river cruise.  It was a great day.  Then we got on a trolley and rode around town and walked the city again before getting back on a bus and going back to the park around 5:00 PM.  All in all, it was a great day. 

This tree was at the Alamo and it was huge.

I took this picture while on the river cruise.  These are this tree's roots coming up out of the ground.  I can not remember what type tree it was but they were plentiful.  In some places they had uprooted the sidewalk and the sidewalk had to be replaced, but in those instances, they built a bridge over the roots so they could continue to grow.  This river cruise was also in the middle of the mall we walked through.  Of course, it was outside but the river walk mall was awesome.  We had to cross the river over bridges to get to different parts of the mall.  This cruise was $10 a person but well worth the cost.

Across from the Alamo are many businesses with rides inside and maze of mirrors, Ridleys Believe it or Not, and different shops with souvenirs.  (In case you take your children with you.)  There are many restaurants around for whatever you have a desire for. 

We had a great time today.  We learned a lot, walked a lot and just had fun.  Even riding the bus was fun.  It cost us $2.75 a piece for an all day ticket.  We were able to get on any trolley or bus and go anywhere we wanted to all day for only $5.50.  The parking downtown was anywhere from $5.00 to $15.00 (that we saw).  The bus picked us up at the rv park and delivered us back.  How cool is that!

The River Walk cruise. 

Tomorrow, I believe we'll try a restaurant recommended by one of our sons-in-law. 

Right now, our feet are tired and we're putting them up. 

Jeremiah was a bullfrog. 

Mountains, mountains, mountains. . .

. . on the road to San Antonio, Texas.  

As we got closer, we discovered the top-knot was rocks.

Crazy, beautiful scenery!  I can't tell you how many times we both said "WOW!" at the same time coming up or going down a hill.  The scenery changes so fast sometimes.  We'll be riding along with this: 

Then, the scenery changes to lots of grass and trees.  It truly has been an eye opener experience driving west from home.  We've been through all the southern states now, so maybe in the summer, we can hit some of the northern states. 

It was quite a boring ride across Texas.  Do you realize how long it takes to drive across Texas?  We love Mary Beth, Jacob, and Christopher but I couldn't live here.  It's too hot! 

While we're driving across this boring desert, Mike is making up songs: (Sung to the tune of any country song)

"I got my new cell phone. I'm just as happy as can be.
You can't take it away 'cause I'm taking a new selfie.
Oh yeah, I'm gonna send you a text with a picture of me."

By 2:00, we were settled in San Antonio, Texas.  It is HOT here.  (Mike may not realize it but I think the heat is getting to him too.  Remember, the song?)

There are oil wells everywhere.  Why are we buying oil from other countries?
We drove through some towns that sound like they would be fun to visit and explore.  But this girl is ready to get out of Texas!  I can't breathe here.  I'm keeping a low grade headache.  My sinuses are blocked.  It's too hot to go walking.  (Sorry for the complaining.)  The state is beautiful and we have only seen parts of it and a lot of that was from I-40 or I-10. 

We will be here in San Antonio for the next three nights.  This is a huge city.  There is nothing you could ever need that couldn't be found here. 

I didn't take this picture.  I just like the looks of cities at night.
We are in an rv park on the east side of the city called River Walk RV Park.  It's a little more expensive than we usually pay.  But three nights are still cheaper than a hotel room.  This place is huge. 

We haven't gotten out to explore yet so there's no telling what we will find.  Of course, we will check out the Alamo but who knows what else. 

For now, I'm going to hang you up now (as Malorie used to say on the phone).

Chalk the Block

 

Saturday, we took the boys (Jacob and Chris) downtown El Paso for an event they call "Chalk the Block".  It was too neat.  They let anyone who cares to, draw on the sidewalks, roadway, walls of buildings, you name it.  And they do!  There were several squares taped off that were reserved for real local artists. 

      

Some of our favorites.  Hard to believe it's all chalk. 

 

      

 

Complete with a fire-breathing dragon. 

Jacob, Pa, and Chris.  Three handsome men.  Jacob graduated this past year and Chris is a sophomore in high school.  Chris is now 6 feet tall.  WOW!  We do have beautiful grandchildren!  We have enjoyed running around with these guys for a few days. 

Another view of the dragon

This was in the middle of the park.

That great wall between the United States and Mexico.  Yep, just a big fence.  Whoooo!

I realize this is not a good picture but it was night time and it's the best I could do.  All these lights are Mexico.  From the U.S. side, this is what Mexico looks like at night--millions and millions of lights.  It's amazing to see. 

Love you guys!

 

Pictures I haven't been showing.

Malorie said she wanted to see more pictures I've made. 

This is Mexico and the black fence is the wall that separates Mexico from the United States.

I took this picture today just before coming into Texas from New Mexico.  Thought it was pretty neat.  This thing was HUGE!

This has been our view for a few weeks.  This surrounds us on every side.

These wind turbines are so amazing to see.  This was the most we saw in one spot.  They are so gigantic.

A closer look at the wind turbines.  You can see how tall they are.

Look at all these cacti!  They are called saguaro cactus.  They grow a fruit in the very top that the Indians pick and make jellies out of. 

Mike while he's driving! 

View through the Texas Canyon.  The scenery looked like a giant had been playing with stacking rocks.  They were everywhere.

I love how they put the first letter of the town we're coming into on the side of a mountain in white rock.  "W" for Wilcox, Texas.

My work space on the road.  I have the Garmin GPS, atlas, and clipboard for taking notes.

Then at my side is my stash of water, cameras, and binoculars.

Entering Texas. 

Thank you, Malorie.  I took lots of pictures but it just seemed that I wasn't doing the scenery justice because it was just so much prettier than it looked in my pictures.  Of course, most of these are made through the windshield while riding down the highway.  So I apologize for any bug guts you may see and for the glare of the sun off the glass. 

Tonight we are in El Paso, Texas staying in the Mission RV Park.  We are pretty close to Mary Beth and we actually got to have dinner with Mary Beth and Christopher tonight.  Jacob was out with his girlfriend.  But we'll see him this weekend.  I'll take pictures of them.  You guys won't believe Christopher!  He's so tall and grown up.  Of course, he's a sophomore in high school.  He's such a handsome young man. 

 

 

Downtown Tucson

Today we drove downtown Tucson.  It's a college town and it has the neatest shops and restaurants.  There are a lot of "hippie" shops which are fun to browse around in (and wish we were that young again to wear those clothes). 

Of course, this is where we had lunch.  I mean after reading in name on a map two days ago, we couldn't leave without checking this out.  Frog and Firkin.  What a name for a restaurant.  It was great.  The food was great and the service was great.

This next picture is from the museum we visited yesterday.  It was AWESOME!  Mike was almost attacked by the bears!

 

 

Tonight will be our last night in Arizona.  Tomorrow, we drive across New Mexico and into El Paso, Texas.  We'll get to visit with our daughter Mary Beth and her sons Jacob and Chris.  Can't wait!

 

You better have a great day tomorrow, if you know what's good for ya'.