To Corpus Christi and Beyond

To Corpus Christi and Beyond

We'd come to know Sam, our Peregrine Resort Manager on Galveston Island, as a real Southern Gentleman ... soft spoken, helpful, and polite. His advice to us when he learned that we were off to Corpus Christi: 

"Take some of our beautiful back roads. But beware!  Real estate out there is pretty cheap....so you might see some strange things."

That we did. Sure, there were lizards 

and orchids, 

and even people "talking to the animals", 

But inmates wishing to become globetrotters? 

Look closely:  "Lude Dancing" suddenly became "Dude Dancing"

Or a bad strip joint morphing into a Chippendales,...a little too on-the-cheap?  

Too much!

Moving on......

Close to “Corpus”, we made a stop at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge - winter home of the very endangered Whooping Crane, after migrating thousands of miles south from the Northwest Territories. 

Although we weren't able to get close enough for  great pictures of this 5 foot tall white marvel, 

we did see lots of these,

and these.

Oh, what a day!

There was one big "Oops!" though. Only as we reached Corpus' city limits, did we realize:  

"It's 5 o'clock and the Friday convergence of the Valentine's/Presidents' Day week-end..  Everyone wants out of Dodge!"

Hiccups came and went and we managed to make our way to our Best Western safe and sound. As a reward, we headed over to Rudy's,
the neighbouring restaurant,  for some real Texas Barbecue food.

   It was delicious and ample!  And as an added
bonus, we learned a little Spanish too: 
  Otra cerveza por favor!(which translated means  either: "Let us pray." or "Another beer, Joe.")

Downtown Corpus Christi

Saturday was the perfect day to discover this coastal city of 300,000.  Sunny and warm.

And everyone had left, so we had the city to ourselves. 

Quite quickly, some special things about Corpus quickly became evident:  

Corpus wraps around an enormously beautiful bay with 113 miles of Gulf Coast beaches!!!! 

Alone on the two main islands that make up part of the city, Padre and Mustang Islands, there are 70 miles of beach front.

Corpus Christi has the 5th largest port in the U.S. and while the military is very important, the petrochemical industry and tourism form the other two sides to its economic triangle.

Who is this subtropical
women in a cowgirl hat?

With its humid subtropical climate, Corpus has short, mild winters but long, hot summers (Saints be praised, we're here now.) .

How hot, you ask? The city's record high of 109°F (43°C) came one fateful September 5, 2000.

When I asked one nice local how bad it really was that September day, his response was:

"So hot, I saw a dog chasin' a cat and they were both walkin'.

The Trip to San Antonio, Texas

Sheer emptiness on both sides of the highway was the highlight of our 150 mile trip from Corpus to San Antonio.

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How this state with a population of 26 million, 2^nd largest in the U.S., can have so much empty space is bewildering. Interesting to note is that Texas (26 million) and Canada (35 million) are both growing at a rate of 1.2% a year.

The City of San Antonio

Once voted "America's most beautiful city", this cheery and sunny city has 300 days of sunshine a year and, with an average temperature of 70 degrees, it also happens to be the most affordable city in the country both for tourists and the local population.

One of San Antonio's most famous features is “The Riverwalk”.

Ever growing, this urban phenomena is both unique and mystical.

Its uniqueness lies in the fact that this river feature is really a full network of walkways and archways, all entirely lined by shops, night spots and restaurants, along the banks of the San Antonio River, but a full story below the level of the streets of the city.

Its mystical nature stems from the fact that once on the River Walkway, you live the tempo of the San Antonio River and not that of the rest of San Antonio, a subtropical city, with a population of 1.3 million inhabitants 
(America's 7^th biggest).

These are just a few of the pictures taken as we strolled these waterways on our first day here, ...in total disbelief and merry bewilderment.

Enjoy!

More on San Antonio to come.

Until next time.