Houston is Big

Saturday April 28

Packed with my usual “efficiency”. Only took an hour this time. I brought way too much stuff. Groan...

Met Don while loading my bike. He was on a Gold Wing trike. I believe he said it was a 1989 Gold Wing with a 2012 trike conversion kit. He is an almost retired trucker from Texas that works on lawn mowers. He's been driving trucks for 50 years and has aspirations to retire to three days a week working on lawn mowers to support his Gold Wing travels.

Don

Had breakfast at IHOP and ordered an omelet that was too big. I only ate half of the omelet bit I did eat all the pancakes. It was good but next time, I'll just get some fruit from the grocery store. More nutritious and way cheaper.

Traversed Houston on I-10. What a behemoth Houston is. No one will ever accuse the city of being quaint, charming or anything of that nature (at least the parts I saw). I was glad to get past that obstacle. I can cross traversing a mega-slab on a motorcycle off my list of things to do.

Stopped for gas just outside of Houston on the western side. I was solicited for a small donation from a hard luck case. The poor fellow was stuck at this place with no ride, only one dollar and a great desire for a large can of beer. I was feeling magnanimous so I helped him with his purchase. While trying to leave, I couldn't avoid becoming acquainted with another of the fine patrons of this establishment and had a lengthy conversation with one of the local entrepreneurs. I didn't get his name, but apparently he is in the scrap metal business of the Fred Sanford genre. He seemed friendly enough and was most interested in my trek.

On the road again... West of Houston, the terrain can only be described as “less colorful” than the lushness that was the Bayou. It was mostly flat with intense crosswinds that made the navigation quite interesting. It took great concentration to not get blown off the road... very tiring.

After fighting the wind and less than perfect roads, I pulled off into a charming rest stop where I proceeded to unload my “stuff” onto a shady spot with a picnic table to stretch out and rest. Midway through my unpacking with a great deal of my “stuff' on the picnic table, a car pulled up beside me with two senior citizens who greatly needed a smoke break. They proceeded to park themselves on MY picnic table! Grrr!

Oh well. No need to get huffy. I introduced myself and learned their names: Doug and Mary Lane. From there we had a pleasant conversation from which I learned a bit of their family history. They were an "old married couple" from San Antonio and I learned that they had been to Houston to visit their son, no young sprout himself, who was to be married (his first marriage) to a Coptic Christian. Not knowing much about that sect, I soon learned enough to embarrass myself the next time the subject comes up.

One item of conversation that struck me as humorous was the elderly man's familial history. Apparently he only had one sibling, a sister who was ten years his elder of which he described as a motherly figure... to this day. I can only guess how old she must be.

Doug and Mary Lane

Time to load up and get on the road again. I learned from my new friends that this is Fiesta weekend in San Antonio. I'm looking forward to a little fun and relaxation.

Arrived in San Antonio about an hour later. Apparently Fiesta is quite the event because I can't seem to find a hotel anywhere in the city center near the attractions. After booking what appeared to be a suspiciously low rate at the Holiday Inn Express that was close, I proceeded to check in. Sure enough, when I got there, I was told they were full and that the “Hotels.com” booking was in error. Great. Now I'll have to get that fixed to get my money back. The folks at Holiday Inn were nice enough to call a hotel close by and hold a room for me. I checked in at a non-suspiciously high rate and proceeded to clean up before heading out on the town.

Fiesta weekend in San Antonio is indeed a big event. I couldn't get near the Alamo, my prime objective for the evening, due to the grandstands set up in front for the parade that I learned was not going to end any time soon. So, I opted for a stroll along the River Walk. I must say the River Walk is very nice and I wish it were a typical weekend such that I could enjoy it without the excessively large crowd.

While snapping a few photos of the parade, my smart phone died for no apparent reason. That's as good an excuse as any to eat and head back to the hotel. I had a quick high-dollar burger from one of the River Walk establishments and started the long walk back to my not as close as the Holiday Inn Express hotel.

May the Force Be With You

After returning and wrangling with my phone for a while, I discovered the secret key sequence to reanimate the thing. All's well again.