Day 48, Galveston, TX

The folks visited Galveston, TX on Saturday.  It is 80 miles from our campground which was an hour and half drive each way due to traffic.  When they arrived, they were greeted by a downpour of rain.   The rain didn't last long though and it was nice and breezy along the beach.

The folks took a tour of the city aboard the Treasure Isle Tour Train. It is not really a train though.  The guide said it used to have a engine to it, but now a Jeep pulls it.  Mama enjoyed the tour.  They saw a lot of old homes.  Daddy said that seeing all the old homes got a little boring towards the end though.  They learned a lot about the history of Galveston and learned about the damage of Hurricane Ike in 2008 as well as other storms the city has endured.

Waiting on the train before the tour.

This is the pink "train" that they took on their tour.

Many people rent these to get around.

A crab on a restaurant.

Mama thinks this is the second oldest house in Galveston.

The alligator and Sponge Bob in the back are made from oak tree stumps. The trees died during Hurricane Ike.

A mansion in Galveston.

A beautiful home that can be toured.

Another look at this home.

Another victim of Hurricane Ike.  The tree is now carved.  See the birds on the end of the branches.

There are four fountains like this and they are for man and beast.

See the tower on the blue house.  That is a widows walk.  The women would go up there and wait for their men to come home from see.  They could see the ships from there.

Cute dog!  He is made from an oak tree.

A better view of the dog.  The tour guide said he was a greyhound because he is a grey dog.

The ferris wheel is part of Pleasure Pier. It just opened.  Mama things they could have named it something a little better.

Mama was very excited to eat at Bubba Gumps.  It is modeled after Forrest Gump, the movie.  They went at 2 p.m. and was told there was an hour and ten minute wait.  Finally, 3:10 came and their name was called.  They were told to go upstairs.  They then had to wait in another line while the host told the people in front of them all about Pleasure Pier.  After he finished his talk, he then called someone to find them a table.  Mama and Daddy were next and the same thing happened to them.  Mama was not happy because now the wait turned into an hour and a half.  Mama said if they ever go back, she would go directly upstairs and wait in that line and see if she got caught.  LOL  The restaurant was not full, so they must not have had enough workers.  After waiting an hour and a half in the heat, they were finally seated.  They had a waitress that sat down at their table to go over ALL the drinks with them.  Finally, they were able to order their food, but their waitress likes to ask trivia questions about Forrest Gump before she places food on the table. Grrrr!  I guess that is okay, but not when their food is getting cold as she is asking questions.  Mama noticed that nobody else had to go through the trivia questions.  While they were paying their bill, another waitress came and opened a pot and poured shrimp on a plate in front of Dad.  They didn't know what was going on, but soon they realized it was supposed to go to another table.  Mama said it took the waitress a while to find the correct table and those people didn't get to see the shrimp come out of the pot like they did. 

Bubba Gump is on Pleasure Pier

Frizzled Onion Strings - Appetizer

Mama's baby back ribs

Mama said the food was good.  She had a choice between ribs, a steak or a burger.  She can't eat shellfish.  Dad had a variety of shrimp.  She would have enjoyed the visit more if she had a different waitress.  They were seated outside which was nice, but Mama said being inside would have been nice because she could have looked at all the movie items.  They played a soundtrack from the movie which was fun.

This was their view while eating.

Mama enjoyed reading all the comments concerning our grey and black tanks. She really didn't think anyone would be very interested in it.  She is working on her own blog and it will give more information about camping and we can keep dumping information off of our blog. LOL  We only have to dump the black tank about every 10 days, so it's really not a big deal.  It takes about two minutes.  If we did not have full hooks up, we would have to dump the grey tanks every four days and that would be a pain because we would have to take the RV to a dump site or buy one of those portable water carriers. If you are camping long term, you really need to have full hook ups.

We are supposed to get a lot of rain over the next three days.  The temperatures are going to be cooler for us this week.  It's really hot at home.  Scout said she is glad she is here and not there.  LOL

Mama and I saw a snake on our walk this morning.  We think it is a Texas Rat Snake.  If it is, it is not poisonous.  He definitely blended in well with the black dirt along the lake.  He is the second snake we have seen here.  Mama is always looking at the ground when we walk.  She had to tell me again that snakes are why she doesn't appreciate us getting her up at 4:45 a.m. for our morning walk.

Texas Rat Snake?  It was black with brown.  She didn't want to get too close to it and took the photo with her phone.

Oh, I saw something unusual today.  It was a cat being walked on a leash.  His Dad walked him all around the campground.  They are from Arizona.  We have a lot of cats around here, but he is the first one I have seen on a leash.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Thinks It Is Strange To See A Cat Being Walked And Wonders If His Dad Carries Poop Bags