South Padre Island, Texas

 From Oklahoma City, we traveled to South Padre Island TX. We love beaches on the Gulf and the Ocean, and we have seen a fair amount in Florida, so we wanted to try a new area and that is how we ended up on South Padre Island in Texas. It did not disappoint. We loved our time there. We rented another Air BnB, nothing new there. right on the beach. It was a cute one-bedroom condo with a balcony overlooking the gulf. There were also two pools on the property which was an added bonus. Again, we were within walking distance of many bars, restaurants, and shops. I have been so lucky with my choices for rentals, I am praying that luck does not run out anytime soon.

We found that South Padre had a perfect mix of quiet Gulfside living for the times we wanted to just kick back and relax around the condo and a very lively nightlife that we could enjoy by taking a short walk to the other side of the Island. There were always bars with live music so close to one another that you could often hear the other bands/singers from surrounding bars. 

The beach was beautiful, and we could walk for miles in either direction. It was flat and wide and was walkable for all abilities. We were there in mid-April and the beaches were not super crowded nor were the businesses. There were so many souvenir shops that all had ocean sounding names and looked pretty similar on the outside. They are located every few blocks along the main drag. Once inside they all sell the same things so do not bother going in more than one or two because you will see all the same picture frames, shirts, towels, glasses, etc.in all of them.

We really enjoyed the South Padre Brewing Company for their tasty craft beers and food. We also really had fun at Clayton's Beach Bar which as its name implies is right on the beach. The specialty drinks were so good and the people watching is top notch. So many swimming suits on so many different sized people.\

We took a drive to the North End of the Island. There was so much sand blowing across the road. It reminded us of snow here in the North. We even saw a few cars that had parked along the road and were now stuck in sand! We also stopped at the County Park on the North End and took a beach walk to explore that area.We drove across the bridge and visited a lighthouse over there. It appeared that there was a cute area of shops and eateries there near the lighthouse, but we did not check them out.

The weather in April was absolutely perfect beach weather. 80's, sunny each day and just a touch of wind. Not sure if that's the norm or if we just lucked out.

One side note. The bathroom situation enroute to South Padre was not good. We found dirty bathrooms at the welcome area, gas stations that did not allow use of bathrooms, and broken or closed ones more often than not. Now I don't want to put down Texas bathrooms or say that this is a common thing, maybe we just hit an off time but since we said we would cover bathrooms in this blog, we felt it needed to be mentioned.

And they drive fast in Texas, average speed limit was 85!

We left beautiful South Padre Island and took the short drive to our next destination which was San Antonio. The drive to South Padre from Wisconsin is a long one but with our stops along the way it wasn't all that bad, and it would not prevent us from a return trip. South Padre appeals to all ages. We feel it is a great place for Seniors, maybe an alternative to Florida for snowbirds.'

See you in San Antonio on the famous River Walk!

Oklahoma City

 The reason that I wanted to visit Oklahoma City was to see the Alfred P. Murrah Memorial. I remember the day that the bombing occurred and hearing that all those little ones in the Childcare plus many adults had been hurt or died and the fact that it was a childcare hit close to home for me. Imagine being a teacher in that situation trying to keep all your little ones safe, imagine being a parent and dropping your child off and then never seeing them alive again. Such a tragedy. 

                                                                                          The memorial fence outside.

So, that's why we visited Oklahoma City. Our Air BnB was another perfect fit for us. Located within walking distance of the memorial and many restaurants and bars. The neighborhood had so many beautiful big old homes which were interesting to see on our walks. That night we had a few beers at a neighborhood bar where we met a self-proclaimed local food critic who told us about an art festival happening while we were there. We decided to take that in also.

The next day we walked to the Memorial. It was both amazing and humbling at the same time. On the grounds there are nine rows of chairs, some big for the adults and some small for the children who died in the bombing. There are nine rows because there were nine floors and the number of chairs in each row represents the number of people who died on that floor. The first two rows/floors have the child size chairs since that is where the child care was located. It was all very moving. 

                                                               The wall behind the "chairs" was a

                                                                 remnant of the original building.

Inside the museum there are so many exhibits explaining what happened on that fateful day. There is a statue of the firefighter who carried a little baby out of the building. The baby died in his arms, at least there was someone there to hold her as she died. There is also a room that is supposed to be like the courthouse across the street from the Murrah building. There is a tape playing that makes you feel like you are a person in that courtroom at fbe moment the bomb exploded. You hear the loud noise on the tape being played and it is so shocking.

 

                                                                                                         Actual rubble from the explosion.

The exact time of the bombing

There is also a fence outside of the Memorial that has all sorts of mementos on it given in honor of the victims. Such a somber place. The items are removed periodically to make room for more. They are then put in permanent storage. It's another thing you should add to your bucket list.'

Examples of memorials left on the fence.

After our time at the Alfred P. Murrah Memorial, we did check out the art festival that our new friend had told us about. It was in a park located a few blocks from the Memorial. We had street tacos and drinks and enjoyed live music and walking around the exhibits. It was 90 that day and we were so hot by the time we walked home. We relaxed and then went out for pizza and beer. There are many nice, clean restrooms available all around the area. The next day we were leaving for South Padre Island TX.

                                                          Come join us there in the next post!