Laredo, Texas
When I was a little girl, every night our Dad would sing us songs and play his harmonica. He had a beautiful tenor voice and we loved it when his 3 brothers visited because they also had wonderful voices and would sing many of those same songs in harmony. One of the songs was "Streets of Laredo", a very sad song about a young cowboy. For as long as I've heard that song, I've wanted to walk down the "streets of Laredo" (and see the Rio Grande river), so south I went to Laredo.
There's a saying that expectations never match reality, and that was certainly the case here. Laredo has some clean up work to do to. However, I saw the "streets of Laredo" and then went to see the Rio Grande.
"Streets of Laredo"
Laredo is a "border" town with 2 bridges to Mexico over the Rio Grande. I found a picnic area near the bridges, but couldn't get down to the river, so I parked in an empty lot under one of the bridges and walked to the river to stick my toe in--just so I could say I was in the Rio Grande. As I was putting my foot in the river, I had a sudden thought that the border patrol might not like to see someone about to walk in the river. My next quick thought was that the problem is not people going from the USA to Mexico, but in the other direction, so my foot in the river shouldn't be an issue. Just as I finished that thought, I heard a very irritated deep male voice say, "What in the world do you think you're doing?" I turned around to find a border patrol policeman who was not smiling! He was not amused at my desire to stick my toe in the river. He told me that the river was very dirty and that there were dangerous aliens down by the river. I was just about to answer that the aliens were in Roswell, New Mexico, when I realized he was talking about illegal, not extra-terrestrial aliens. He watched to make sure I got in my Jeep and drove away--at least I didn't get arrested!
Rio Grande/Mexico My toe in river!
So, as they say in the old west shows, "I got out of Dodge" and headed north. The east Texas landscape is very different from the west of the state. There are many, huge farms with trees that look more like the northeast (except for the expansiveness and flatness) than the southwest. 
East Texas farm
I headed north on Ret. 359 to Rte. 2295 to Rte. 141 and spent the night in Kingsville, Texas. I originally was going to go to Galveston to the beach, but decided to explore Padre Island, so took Rte. 77 to 43 to 358. When I saw the signs to "Mustang Island", I decided I definitely wanted to go there. I found a stable on Mustang Island where I could ride on the beach, which is something I've always wanted to do. It was one of the most incredible experiences of my trip! Then I spent the afternoon reading on the beach and met my gull friend who kept lifting his leg, pretending to be hurt so I would give him some of my sandwhich. Of course it worked!
Mustand Island
Con artist gull
I left Mustand Island and headed north on Rte. 77 to Houston. Along the way, I had some "first-time" experiences. I saw a buzzard and a Texas "long horn" for the first time. I reminded myself as I almost missed the beautiful Texas wild flowers going 75 mph (the speed limit in much of Texas), how easy it is to get caught up in the business and speed of daily living that we don't take the time to notice and appreciate the beauty of life around us.
Question 3: Can you identify any of the wildflowers below?
Texas wildflowers
After witnessing a high-speed police chase on I-10 in Houston, I was glad to be going to the damp quiet of the bayous in Louisiana.
ON THE ROAD UPDATE
Heading towards Texas, I continued on Rte. 285 to Fort Stockton, Texas, where I picked up I-10. As I drove along, the scenery was similar to that of New Mexico. Then, all of a sudden, I noticed these ugly, huge silver windmills on top of flat rock formations--everywhere! Since my trip has been very much about getting in touch with the environment, I felt angry that the pristine, unspoiled nature of the scenery was compromised. Then, I reminded myself that I had been travelling through areas that were dotted with oil wells spoiling the natural look of the landscape, even though they were not as tall and noticeable as the windmills. Getting America off its dependence on foreign oil for energy is important for us as a nation, so I decided that living with the windmills was a small price to pay for the alternative source of energy. 
Texas windmills
Oh! John Wesley Powell was the man who ran the rapids of the Colorado River with his men in 1969. (Daniel Majetrick was the other man to do it successfully in 1984)
The reason humans are not allowed to touch the cave formations is that the oil from our skin get deposited on the rock and prohibits new deposits from adhering to the formations, inhibiting natural growth of the formations.
I think it's possible that alien life forms have visited us--I've seen the evidence at the museum!
First Stop in Texas
My next stop was to visit friends of mine from graduate school at Penn State. Since I had my GPS, I wasn't too concerned about finding the house. Then, just when I needed directions the most, the voice from the GPS said, "Lost satellite contact"! So much for not getting lost because I had a GPS! I did manage to find my way and the next day, Sam, Sally and I went on a tour of the "Mission Trail" and the "River Walk". The mission pictured below is one of five missions on this trail. The typical dress of the time looked "romantic" but very hot!We saw this gecko on a very old ladder in the mission. Below, I'm standing outside of the most famous mission on the trail.
Question 1: What major city am I visiting?
Question 2: What is the name of the famous mission I'm standing beside and what historical event took place there? 
Mission Espada Gecko
Famous Texas mission
Dress in the 1800's
After completing the mission trail, we went to the River Walk and had lunch by the river. Penny decided she wanted to drive the boat by herself, but I found a boat captain, Anna, to help her.
Penny, Anna, Sam and Sally at the River Walk
We ended the day at a plaza honoring a former mayor of this city, Maverick. Penny and I took a rest at the fountain.
After a wonderful visit, I got in my Jeep and headed south to Laredo, Texas on I-35.
