3,499 Miles
56 Hours and 11 minutes driving time
19 Restaurants
15 Bakeries
3 Ice cream shops
1 Whole Foods Market (total is now 72)
The November 2010 “Texas, Northwestern” post ended with:
“A return trip to Dallas will be required when the George W. Bush Presidential Library opens in Lewisville in 2013. And then there is [sic] the southern and western parts!”
That forecast was met on the last day of 2013. Only the George W. Bush Presidential Center was built on the Southern Methodist University campus in University Park, just north of Dallas.
My presidential library history began in 1996 with Ronald Reagan’s (Simi Valley, California) and Richard Nixon’s (Yorba Linda, California) and in the ensuing years those have been repeated and added are Dwight Eisenhower’s (Abilene, Kansas), George H.W. Bush’s (College Station, Texas) Gerald Ford’s (Grand Rapids, Michigan) and even to the dark side with Truman (Independence, Missouri) and FDR (Hyde Park, New York).
Seventh time in Texas and 4th trip dedicated to seeing the Lone Star state.
Tuesday, December 31st, 2013
From Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport headed direct to SMU.
It was quite emotional…
…and that was before the 9/11 exhibit.
What an indelible image. Imagine what the President was learning and how he had to hide his emotions in front of the schoolchildren.
This is the bullhorn from 9/14/01. “I can hear you. I can hear you. The rest of the world hears you! And the people…and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon!”
This is the jacket President Bush wore throwing out the first pitch of game 3 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium on 10/30/01.
The Center was heavy on information; focusing on Middle East tensions and domestic issues.
Other presidential libraries have Oval Office replicas, but only in this one can you walk around and sit in the furniture.
Including the historic Resolute desk. Well, a replica.
I know, I know, I look at home there. Just give it time.
It is much smaller than other Presidential libraries and doesn’t have the fancy exhibits, but it is well done and was very busy.
Recognize it?
Dallas ran from 1978 to 1991. They filmed exteriors for Southfork Ranch in Palmer about an hour NE of Dallas. Interiors were filmed in L.A.. I did watch it since I had a crush on Charlene Tilton. Yeah, go head, laugh. Also watched Knot's Landing for Nicollette Sheridan.
Today the site includes a small, overwhelmingly unexceptional museum.
And a tour of the grounds and house.
It’s taken a few trips to Fort Worth to cross off all the restaurants off the list. Angelo’s is on a dusty road among industrial companies north of downtown.
Rib plate with potato salad, baked beans and cole slaw.
Wednesday, January 1st, 2014
Third time in Abiline.
A beacon in the morning.
Drove SW through San Angelo.
AT Emily Donuts in isolated Christoval a nice elderly Texan struck up a conversation I could only follow half of with his heavy twang.
Continued west. (Notice the speed limit.) (Oh man I wish I had my car.)
And through historic Fort Stockton.
Turned north towards Pecos.
The pavement ended requiring carefully navigating 30 miles of dirt and gravel roads. (Good thing it wasn't in my car.)
West along the New Mexico border.
At this time of the year the salt flats had water.
El Paso, on a past trip I ambled downtown near the border crossing visiting every panaderia (bakery). That's Ciudad Jaurez, Mexico in the hills.
Pivoted southeast with Texas to the left and the Mexican border on the right (pictured).
Marfa, where the 1956 film Giant staring James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson was shot.
South and then east along the Mexican border.
Thursday, January 2nd, 2014
Penny’s Diner in Alpine. No, it’s not an authentic diner.
Though only a blip, Marathon has a boutique hotel and several appealing businesses.
Off the beaten path in Langtry, the Roy Bean Visitor's Center celebrates the old west with his original saloon/justice of the peace.
Sniff, sniff.. Give me a moment to pull myself back together after this beautiful moment.
Del Rio is the first of the border towns along the south Texas plains.
Remote Rocksprings.
Uvalde.
Eagle Pass has a border crossing and 50s feel downtown with Mexican influence.
Carrizo Springs.
Friday, January 3rd, 2014
Laredo is one of the larger border towns.
The dense downtown grid is packed with businesses and few signs are in English.
Headed south turning east to follow the undulating Rio Grande. It’s an interesting stretch of Hispanic oriented towns and a fair share of bakeries.
Rio Grande City.
At the termination of southeastern Texas is the barrier island of South Padre.
Don’t speak Spanish, but I speak menus so was able to order Bistec Tacos from a roadside stop.
Headed north inland concluding what totaled maybe a dozen immigration stops.
Corpus Christi lies where the Texas coast curves along the Gulf of Mexico.
The USS Lexington served from 1942 to 1991.
She is one of the most legendary aircraft carriers.
“The Blue Ghost” fought at Tarawa, Wake Island, Gilbert Islands, Kwajalein, Philipines, Leyte Gulf and Iwo Jima.
She has the usual naval ship maze of passageways and stairs.
After being updated in 1952 her adventures included the Taiwan strait crisis, missions in Asia and lastly became a training carrier in Pensacola, Florida.
These ship tours never fail to astound me thinking of their complexity, what they’ve gone through and their duration of service.
She has seen so many eras and been refitted for new technology multiple times.
This is where I’d look forward to.
Raw dinner at Water Street Oyster Bar with oysters and maguro (tuna).
Saturday, January 4th, 2014
Meandered NE to Houston, a city I’ve only spent a few hours in so always felt like I needed to know it more.
On the way from Port Aransas there were a few distractions along the coast....
Lankford Grocery lies in a quaint residential neighborhood on the fringes of downtown Houston.
Sam Houston Park is dedicated to preserving buildings of Houston’s past.
Twenty miles to the east is Independence Parkway starting with San Jacinto Monument commemorating the site of the final battle of the Texas revolution.
In a channel nearby, the Battleship Texas has many firsts.
She served from 1914 to 1946 and became the first ship museum in 1948.
She is the only surviving ship to be in both World War I and World War II.
The first vessel to have a detachment of marines, radar,
anti-aircraft guns and first to have planes landed on a ship.
After touring so many ships put into service in the 1940s and serving for 50ish years this was a fascinating one since it was frozen in 1946.
Made the 3 hour drive from Houston to San Antonio to meet Nigel and Holly for dinner. Had not seen them since…OK, it was only a month since India.
Have already canvassed San Antonio many moons ago, but The Alamo and River Walk are worth seeing again.
Dinner was at the multiple James Beard award Biga on the Banks. The meal was great for the company; intriguing conversation, laughs and camaraderie.
Pork Pot Stickers
Pan Seared Sea Bass
Sticky Toffee Pudding
The route back to the car was chose to see La Vallita and River Walk at night.
Sunday, January, 5th, 2014
Have always liked Austin, but always felt negligent in not exploring it more. To remedy this the morning’s run went through downtown and up to the capitol. The picture in front of it was needed since this tradition was initiated after the last visit.
Breakfast #1 included a signature Gingerbread Pancake at Magnolia Café.
My 72nd Wholes Foods is near the chain's first location.
Central Texas is called Hill Country. Don’t know why.
Remote Blanco for breakfast #3 at Blanco Bowling Club Café just off the town square. Took a table next to a motorcycle gang and enjoyed the community atmosphere.
Maybe Hill Country comes from an earlier settler named Josiah Hill.
Luckenbach is a town, but really a music venue.
The last time in German themed Fredericksburg was at night, so two daytime places remained to be crossed off the list.
Keeping with the Teutonic theme went with the German Sweet Pretzel at Fredericksburg Bakery.
The National Museum of the Pacific War has a fantastic series of galleries.
They start with detailing the events leading up to World War II.
And then the campaign of island hopping to beat the Japanese and invade their homeland.
Significant exhibits include a B-25 Bomber and Japanese VAL dive bomber.
And Admiral Nimitz’s barge and a float plane.
This is the shell for what would have been the 3rd atomic bomb dropped over Japan.
Leaving Hill Country….still can’t figure that out.
Llano.
Old ordering system and young carhops at Storm’s Drive-In in Lampasas for one of their locally famous burgers.
Epilogue
8PM direct flight back home to Milwaukee was canceled. Half hour to get flight rescheduled for next day. Hour wait for shuttle to hotel.
Monday, January 6th, 2014
Up at 3AM. Flight to Chicago arriived at 8AM. Flight from O’Hare to Milwaukee canceled. Rebooking line super long. American Airlines hold time “33 to 46 minutes”. Took the bus to Mitchell. Negative 16. Car under 6 inches of snow. Got home and found my heat out, house in the 20s and pipes frozen. Shoveled quickly. Got to work shortly after noon. By night the heat was back on, pipes thawed and none of them burst.
I need another trip.