Winter Trip 2010 #13

Well our two weeks in Harlingen, TX went by so fast we can hardly believe it is over. We had such a great time. The weather was perfect and our friends couldn't have done more to keep us entertained. I was telling Jim, it seemed everywhere we went there was music and seniors were dancing, laughing and having a grand time. It was so good to see people enjoying themselves. Harlingen does such a wonderful job of making "Winter Texans" feel welcome. There are welcome signs everywhere. One of our fun times was going to Pepe's on the river. They had wonderful entertainment and a huge dance floor and the place was jammed packed in the middle of the afternoon. We went over to Progresso, Mexico about 3 times. It was only after we left Texas that we heard about how bad Mexico is getting and it turns out Progresso is one of the only cities left that is heavily protected to ensure tourists are safe. After Harlingen we went to a Thousand Trails campground in Columbia, TX about halfway between Austin and Houston. We are still checking off diners from our book of Funky Diners, Drive-in and Cafes in the U.S. One of the Cafes in our book was located in Austin, called the Magnolia Cafe on S. Congress St. so we decided to go and check it out. The restaurant was wonderful and food excellent. It was extremely crowded but once you got seated the service was outstanding. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit. I noticed a lot of the customers looked like performers because of the way they dressed and the strange hairdo's. I started reading some of the pictures on the walls and realized Austin is known as the Music Capital of the U.S. (I always thought Nashville was). Later we rode through town and we realized that a music festival was going on so we parked and enjoyed the music for the afternoon. A lady sitting next to us told us it was a music festival with performers coming from all over the world to perform. Most of the concerts were free and there were concerts going on all up and down Congress St. We really had a great time. The next day we were hooking the truck up to the motorhome. I was in the truck and Jim was standing behind the motorhome and in front of the truck. The motorhome was running. All of a sudden I saw the backup lights come on the motorhome and I pointed to Jim to look up. Jim went around to check inside the motorhome and our dog Charlie had put the motorhome in reverse. Thank God the air brake was on, and the motorhome didn't move. So now we know we can't leave Charlie in the motorhome with the motor running. Jim says no telling what the little black s__t will do next. Nothing like a little excitement. The next night we spent at a WalMart in Lafayette, LA. We went to a Cajun restaurant called PreJeans recommended by Jim's brother Mason. The food was really good and they had a Cajun band playing music. We met a couple at the next table and spent the evening talking with them. It was a great time. We are now in Ocean Springs, MS spending the weekend with a classmate of Jim's from West Virginia, Dave and Nan Kuhl. We started off our weekend visit with a trip over to Biloxi, MS for dinner and gambling. I was pretty lucky and won $47.00, so needless to say we are looking forward to a nice weekend visit.