DAY FIVE: Monday, 2
April 2007
With a good breakfast in us, which
helped pass some of the time of the morning rush hour traffic, we headed north
on Interstate 35 to the city of Waco . The first target in mind was the Texas Ranger
Hall of Fame and Museum. We weren’t
really sure where it was, other than it was “off of the interstate” according
to the Visitor’s Center. It ended up
being rather hard to miss.
Most people know the Texas Rangers
either from that chap who yelled “Hi Ho Silver!” or more recently from Chuck
Norris. The complex was designed both to
show the history of them enforcing the law out on the range, to their actions
during Prohibition fighting gangsters, and more modern actions, as well as
noting the achievements of specific individuals. I really liked the exhibit on what was done
to bring in Bonnie & Clyde. It was
getting near lunch when we’d seen just about everything there, so it made sense
to locate some food before heading on our next target for the day.
You’re always going to some odd
people and ghouls show up no matter where you are. When we’d been at the Visitor’s Center, and
people who’d gone in right before us wanted to know where the Branch Davidian
compound was (or where it had been before the Feds burned it up). We could tell the lady at the Visitor’s
Center had to deal with this question many times, and she handled it well, even
though she looked exasperated when she mentioned that’s not a normal tourist destination
(and it’s private land to begin with).
Whenever you go some place which
isn’t your normal stomping ground, always ask the locals where’s a good place
to eat. Sure you’re going based on what
they define as good, but it’s a fun way to find something you may not normally
find. Our directions sent us some
out-of-the way location which had really good brisket sandwiches. With our bellies filled, we made out way to
the Dr. Pepper Museum.
This building housed the Dr. Pepper
manufacturing and bottling from it’s inception until it was acquired by the
Coca-Cola family. For me, this was a
holy pilgrimage, considering how much of the stuff I drank. The kids I played “Vampire: The Masquerade”
with back in Queensbury (NY) said if they cut open my veins, I’d bleed Dr.
Pepper because I drank so much of it.
The museum showed a lot of old
logos, truck which were used to deliver the stuff during the turn of the
(previous) century, and soda fountains where “soft drinks” were served. It was also interesting to see the old
television commercials back from the 1970s where people were dancing down the
street signing “I’m a pepper, you’re a pepper.”
I’m not sure what was funnier, the ads or the then-current fashions
people were wearing.
There were about four floors filled
with lots of different stuff, and since there was hardly any one there, we were
able to take our time going through looking at the exhibits. The fourth floor had a nice stained-glass
picture of Waco ,
with the logo for the Museum. At the
conclusion of the tour, we went to “soda fountain” where we could sample many
variations of Dr. Pepper. In addition to
the regular cane sugar recipe (the “Dublin Dr. Pepper”), we could get floats or
milkshakes made with DP, or even variations with “flavour shots” added to. There was so much to drink, I knew I couldn’t
do it all in one visit. I would have to
come back here at some time in the future to enjoy this further.
On the way back from Waco , we got off the
interstate in Round Rock, and took some time to show Mum & Dad why this
city is named what it is. In the middle
of what is known as Brushy Creek sits a squat, circular-shaped stone. It quite literally a “round rock.” It’s placement in the middle of the creek
served as a way to gauge the depth of the water, and if it was safe for the
wagons to cross.
You can also see the ruts of the
wagon wheels that make tracks in the creek bottom, some one-hundred years
earlier. I found it very interesting
that natural erosion hadn’t erased all traces of these. The settlement which grew up around this area
was initially called “Brushy Creek,” but it was changed a few years later to
“Round Rock,” probably because more people knew it by the latter.
Right near the “round rock” was a
small park with statues of steers and settlers who used this crossing
point. Of course I had to have some fun
with them. We walked a bridge which took
us over to a larger city park on the other side of the interstate, and then
came back “up river” to a small falls which fed the creek.
We then returned home for a nice
dinner and some more relaxing time, as Mum & Dad would have to catch a
plane for the next leg of their journey.
For Lee and I, it was back to work.
Short vacations like this sometimes do wonders to recharge the mental
batteries, especially when you spend the time with family.
More information on the places we visited can be found at:
Texas
Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum: www.texasranger.org
Dr. Pepper
Museum: drpeppermuseum.com
The
Crossing (Round Rock): www.roundrocktexas.gov/home/index.asp?page=1529
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