Hello Friends, boy what a difference a week makes, huh? Last week at this time things were very different than they are now. While the coronavirus was definitely making news a week ago, over the course of this week whole countries have been shut down. American travel restrictions have gone into place and cities have started to shut down non-essential businesses. Grocery shelves are bare across the country and while panic hasn’t set in yet, at least here in Texas, some of the big cities on the coasts are on high alert. New phrases like “social distancing” and “self-quarantine” have entered our lexicons, and people are, and should be worried. To read about my plans and what life has been like this week and also to get an understanding of the importance of some of the public buildings I use on a regular basis, please be sure you read my post on the coronavirus HERE. I was also sad this week to see that the Trace Theater in Port Gibson, Mississippi, which I had photographed just a few weeks ago, had caught fire and burned out pretty badly. In addition, it was the 9 year anniversary of the tsunami which rocked Japan and started the Fukushima mess - another tragedy I lived through as I was teaching in rural southern Japan at the time. It’s been a tough week out here. I decided to finally finish watching Treme, the HBO show about the rebuilding of New Orleans after Katrina, something else I was a part of for two years, and it reminded me that this too shall pass and soon this will just be a memory.
Very soon after I hit “Publish” on last week’s This Week on the Road post, my friend Christian called to tell me the Houston Rodeo had been cancelled for the rest of its run over concerns regarding the coronavirus. I’ll admit I was pretty disappointed because I was looking forward to it, but it seems now like it was for the best. There will be other rodeos in the future, and better safe than sorry in a case like this.
When I found out about the rodeo, I decided to pack up and head out of town. I made my way south to Galveston Island on the Gulf Coast. I had spent some time in Galveston before, but many years ago. It’s a beautiful place with an old, historic city on the bay side and a decent beach on the gulf side. In other words, a lot of the things I like all in one place. I got into town in the afternoon, and took a little drive around before hopping out with my camera and spending the rest of the afternoon taking photos. It seemed that there were awesome buildings around every corner and I really enjoyed my time taking photos, despite the fog which covered the city.
Once the sun was down, I stopped in to Brewchachos on The Strand for a cold Lone Star beer and some live acoustic music. The guy singing was from somewhere in the north of England based on his accent, and he was pretty good. He even had a song about the coronavirus which was pretty funny and it was nice to have something in this whole mess to smile about. From there, I wandered around for a while enjoying the hustle and bustle of downtown. It was busy without being overcrowded and I enjoyed the liveliness. I ended up at the Old Quarter Acoustic Cafe in a tiny little out-of-the-way location on 20th St. The Old Quarter is a small, intimate listening room, and I really liked it there. It was open-mic night, but on a different level than most. All of the people who showed up to play were really good and I had a great time there. I’m sorry I wasn’t around to see a real show there on the weekend, but it’s definitely a place I would recommend.
It was amazing to wake up and hear the sound of seagulls around me and know the beach was right down the block. I spent Thursday catching up on some work as I haven’t spent much time behind my computer since arriving in The Lone Star State. Between trying to get my bearings in Texas, catching up with friends and all the virus hype it’s been pretty busy, so it was nice to settle in for a few hours and get some photos edited and catch up on some correspondence. I headed out from the library in mid-afternoon to take some more photos and enjoy the warm March evening on the Gulf Coast. As the light was fading I headed over to the beach side to take a couple of photos of the Pleasure Pier. I was somewhat disappointed to find out you needed to pay just to walk out on the pier (and at $10 I decided not to). I took some shots from the beach and then headed up to Flip Flops Beach Bar and Grill for a beer on the beach before calling it a night. It was nice to sip my beer with the cool breeze coming off the water and the sound of the waves in my ear.
Friday morning I headed back to the library for a few hours. I had posted my Beaumont, Texas photos to a Facebook group of people from the area the night before and wanted to respond to some of the wonderful comments the post was getting when I found it had been removed and I had been blocked from the group with no warning or explanation. This was really disheartening because while yes, all of my photos are for sale (believe me, all photos are for sale), my primary goal is just to have people see my photos and bring back some good memories for them. In a town that doesn’t get a ton of positive press, people were really enjoying my post and it had over 300 responses the last time I saw it before it was blocked. Some people really love flexing any ounce of power they are given I guess. I decided I needed a break from thinking about it, so I went and toured beautiful Moody Mansion, one of the spectacular old homes Galveston has to offer. Built in 1895, it is named after the Moody family who lived there from 1900-1986. Moody Mansion was built in the Romanesque style and has some exquisite interior design features. The audio tour is told through the voice of one of the original Moody daughters’ voice and experience and I really enjoyed it.
From there it was time to stock up on some supplies and get out of town. While the stores were busy, everyone was being very civil. I got what I needed at the grocery store, filled up on gas, propane and water and started heading down the coast. It was a beautiful drive as the wildflowers of Texas are starting to come into bloom and the roads got quieter and quieter the further south I went. I pulled in for some food and a beer at Beach Bums Bar and Grill soon after dark. They were busy cleaning and sanitizing their kitchen, so I had to settle for just a beer before I headed up the road to Lake Jackson for the night.
Saturday I headed further inland and then south through some beautiful ranch country. There were some Texas longhorn cattle along the route living up to their name with some incredible and impressively long horns. The road was lined with wildflowers and beautiful oak trees were scattered about the landscape and I crossed over some beautiful rivers as I went. I had the road almost entirely to myself and really enjoyed the drive. I pulled into the tiny coastal town of Palacios and it was so cute I ended up sticking around for a few hours. I took a nice walk around the small downtown area and talked to a few people on the street. I wandered down the coast and enjoyed the cool breeze coming off of the water and the warm sun on my skin.
As the afternoon waned, I decided to push on to Port Lavaca for the night. I really liked Port Lavaca as well and spent some time taking some photos in the evening light. It was also a pretty small town, but had a nice waterfront area, a really pleasant Historic Downtown and some great little Mexican restaurants. I went with enchiladas at Don Julio’s and then a quick beer at Omar’s Bar before calling it a night.
Sunday morning I spent some more time taking photos downtown and had an early lunch of some delicious brisket at LaVaca BBQ (their Jesus, Texas, Brisket sign brought me in). From there I headed northwest towards Goliad on the San Antonio River, one of the most important towns in early Texas colonial history. The Presidio La Bahia was one of the earliest Spanish forts in the area dating back to 1747 in its current location. We remember it most today as the site of the 1836 Goliad Massacre in which over 300 Tejano and American prisoners were slaughtered by the Mexican army, including Colonel James Fanning (you’ll see Fanning streets and landmarks all over the state). The site has been beautifully restored and has a wonderful museum attached. I spent a couple of hours there exploring and learning and taking some photos and really found it fascinating.
When I left La Bahia, I headed up the road to Mission Espiritu Santo, a beautiful old Spanish Mission Church now part of Goliad State Park. While the museum was closed, the church was open and it was nice to have a quick wander through it. Then I headed into downtown Goliad where I found one of the most beautiful county courthouses I’ve seen in the whole country. This 1894 Second Empire courthouse was designed by renowned architect Alfred Giles. Out front is their old “Hanging Tree” where sentences were carried out with unparalleled haste. The town square was awesome and definitely had an “old west” feel to it and I enjoyed wandering around and taking photos. The streets were deserted though, and felt more like a ghost town than anything. I loved the fact that some of the roads in town had been built around some of the old oak trees, some of which were still growing in the dead-center of the street. I drove around town a bit to take a few more photos and then made some tracks towards Corpus Cristi.
I arrived in Corpus just before dusk and parked on the downtown waterfront. I was really surprised at what it looked like, and it felt more like Australia than Texas to me. It was clean and beautiful and had a really good feel to it. I wandered down to the docks and out among the boats as the sun went down behind the city. After dark I strolled around downtown, enjoying some of the murals on the walls. I ended up stopping at the House of Rock for a pizza and some music and then called it an early night.
Monday I spent some time catching up on some work and some errands for most of the day. The weather was pretty gloomy and it seemed like a good day to be inside even though it was super warm out. I also spent a lot of time reading the news and making phone calls to check in on people. I got some work done at the library and had a pretty relaxed night.
Yesterday I spent the morning at the gym and the library and then went out for a few beers with my good friend Jorge’s cousin Debbie and her husband Travis and some of their friends at the Executive Surf Club downtown. We had a really good time chatting and laughing and had some good food and a few beers. It was nice to have some company and they are some really great people.
This morning I got hit by the first closure which will make this time challenging for me. The gym was closed so there went my convenient place to shower and shave and clean up. It had been really quiet for the last few days, but I felt safe there with everyone keeping their distance and doing their part to clean and sanitize everything. There’s a part of me that believes this is for the best, and another part of me that doesn’t. I got to the library right when they were opening up, and they are limiting their capacity to 50 people at a time. they have removed chairs and tables and created a more distanced environment. I’m glad they are still open today so I can get this finished and posted, but I think it will only be another day or two until it’s closed completely.
I’m going to wind this up for this week. Please take care of yourselves out there. Take this all seriously and err on the side of caution. Check in on your neighbors and your friends. Remember that being alone and scared can be really hard on some people so use this time to check in on old friends you haven’t talked to in a while. While plenty of people are looking forward to catching up on their favorite TV shows, you could also use this time to learn a new language, take an online course or take up an instrument or a new hobby. For these next few weeks I will change my tone and recommend you not go out and travel, but do get outside for a walk and some fresh air, especially as spring starts to bloom. I’m not sure what this next week will bring, but I hope to be back with you as soon as conditions allow. Be good to each other out there. Until next time.
-Mike