National Pacific War Museum

I'm finally getting around to posting about the museum in Fredericksburg, TX. We visited on Wednesday, April 7. We still think about it every now and then. The museum was amazing. If you get a chance to see it, do it. The ticket is for 2 days. And, you should use both days. We only had the one day. The admission clerk said that it could take us 3 - 4 hours if we read everything. It took us 3 - 4 hours and we DIDN'T read everything. Just couldn't believe all of the information housed inside this building. Trying to decide what pictures to show is the most difficult. Here's a couple:




Until going through this museum we weren't aware of all the islands and places the war was fought in the Pacific. Since this museum is housed in Texas, there were also stories from Texans who fought and stayed at home. Their memories. The people recorded their memories and as you walked through the museum there were areas where you could sit and listen about specific places and times at a push of a button.

This was above one of the doors to a room that housed memories and letters.


There were several vets from WWII going through the museum at the same time we were. It was interesting talking with them. We smiled at one gentleman as he was being wheeled through the museum. Everytime, they came upon army info, he'd say: "That's just army stuff, let's move on."

There was also information about what was happening elsewhere in the war at the same time as the fighting in the Pacific. All in all very knowledgeable.

One room had a mini sub. While standing reading and looking at the sub, the lights would go dim and you could hear planes. Look closely and it looked like a torpedo was going by under your feet.

Pictures from the room with the bomb. Guess I thought it would be bigger.


We took a break for lunch and then came back to walk the grounds. First was Plaza of the Presidents.


Then came the Memorial Courtyard and Walkway. There was a stone monument for each President who served during WWII.



The Japanese established a peace garden at this museum. A couple of pictures.


We then took a drive to the Old Tunnel Wildlife Refuge. This is an area well known for the bats. There are more than a million (that's right - 1,000,000) bats that fly out of the tunnel at specific times of the year. They were present when we were there but we didn't wait around to see them fly out. Just a few more pics. It was a very scenic drive.



Well, got to go to work. Will post another one later.

Catching Up

It's been awhile since I last posted. I promise, I'll get around to doing a blog on the Pacific War Museum and the Strawberry Festival.

We definitely left San Antonio on the right day. Right after we left, it started raining. We understand it may not be raining today but who knows. We've kept in touch with Linda in SA. She says there are large puddles everywhere and they are very tired of the rain.

We had a good trip north. Our timing was good going from San Antonio through Austin and Fort Worth. Sharon hates driving in a lot of traffic so I did most of the driving. Our first stop was at an RV park across the border in OK. First mishap of the trip. Maybe not such a big one but still. . . . We turned right instead of left. The campground is only 1/2 mile from the interstate if you go in the correct direction. We ended up on this narrow road - very glad we didn't meet any traffic. There was no way to turn around. Figured we could go around the "block". Nope. The road didn't have any other roads going off of it. We decided to turn around on this curve since there was also a farm lane right there. Felt it would be easy. Yeah, right. Remember, I was driving. As Sharon was getting out to do the backing up, a farmer came around the curve. Very nice man. Told us to keep following the road. Eventually, it would circle back around and get us back on the highway. The highway was just past the railroad tracks. Of course, he didn't mention that the stop sign for the highway was at the bottom of this steep incline following the railroad tracks. The distance from the tracks to the stop sign was just slightly more than the length of the truck. Good thing no one was coming.

We followed the highway and arrived at the campground safely. I should mention that the back road did provide us with some very nice scenery including several horse farms. We were excited. The campground appeared to be in a nice country setting. Well, it was a country setting right next to the interstate and train tracks. We slept well after getting used to the traffic and trains. Sharon said she heard at least 3 trains coming through.

Up the next day and we're off. Next stop, Topeka Kansas. I really like traveling the KS Turnpike. The traffic is usually not bad and not that many entrances and exits. Makes for an easy drive north with the camper. We know it costs but we prefer the peaceful drive.

I should also mention that we handled the fueling just fine. No mishaps there. We have a book entitled Next Exit. It lets us know which gas stations have diesel and are RV friendly. Came in very handy this trip.

We had a nice leisurely morning in Topeka. Didn't want to hit KC traffic during rush hour. We left the campground around 9:00 and arrived here in Adel around 2:00. We had to make a couple of pit stops along the way. In SA we purchased a garden seat/bench for storage in the back of the truck. The lid decided to fly up periodically during this trip. We stopped at a rest area and wired the lid shut. We CAN climb into the back of the truck from the side. IMAGINE!

We're set up here and looks like it will be a very interesting summer. The owners have said that we can learn at our speed. They don't expect to get very busy until sometime in May. Feel kind of odd not paying for a site and not doing much of anything. We asked if we could take care of some of the flowers, shrubs and rose bushes. No problem. We can also have a vegetable garden. They said, determine the best place in our yard and we'll dig it up. Can't beat that can you.

Yesterday, Sharon replaced her camera that was stolen. She's learning that. She'll take a few pictures and I'll get them posted so you can see what this looks like. It's been nice waking up to song birds instead of grackles. The gold finches are just amazing. Her tulips look wonderful.

Well, my sister, Marcia invited us for lunch today so need to take off. Hope everyone is having a very nice relaxing day, also.

Friday, April 9th

It's been a good week. The weather was a little HOT, though. We finally got some relief yesterday. We can have the windows open. It does get a little stuffy when you need to run the AC all the time.

It's fantastic down here at this time of year. The leaves are out and all of the spring flowers are in bloom. We've even seen tomato plants blooming. This is what we see from our camper.




We've been getting ready to head up north. On Tuesday, we flushed the water heater and washed the truck. Felt proud of ourselves for that. On Wednesday, we went to Fredericksburg. I'll do a separate post for that final outing. Yesterday, was a down day. I know we accomplished something but not exactly sure what.

Today, finished the laundry. Tomorrow, Sharon's going to a strawberry festival. Surprise, surprise, I'm not going. Hopefully, I'll get the windows cleaned on the inside. Sharon would like to wash the camper before we leave. Then, I'll do the outside of the windows.

It seems strange to be leaving. We've been here for 6 months. Can't believe it's been 6 months, either. Our friends, Sue & Gary, are heading up towards Iowa on Monday. We heard from some other friends yesterday and they were heading towards NM. Believe they're planning on heading towards Iowa at the end of the month. Linda's not sure when she'll be leaving. Should be next month. Herb hasn't heard where the next job is.

We're looking forward to going back to Iowa. Well, it's almost time for supper. This will be the last time here at the campground. Think it's taco salad night. Hope it's good.

Final Game

Just sitting around waiting for the game to start. Hope it won't be a run away. Not looking forward to another Duke win but don't see how Butler can stop them.

Had a very nice Easter. There's a rally here this week (107 rvs). They held a church service here and invited everyone in the campground. The campground also had an Easter Brunch from 11 - 1. We went down a little after noon. Linda joined us. Herb had to work all day. The brunch was great. Will have a leftover luncheon tomorrow at noon. I didn't take any pictures. Didn't think about taking the camera - just enjoying the time spent with friends.

We're starting to get ready to head north. We leave a week from tomorrow. It's hard to believe that we've been here almost 6 months. There's one last thing we really want to do before we leave. We're going back to Fredericksburg on Wednesday to the Pacific War Museum (Admiral Nimitz home town). Then hopefully we're going to a wildflower seed place and who knows what else we'll see along the way. It's about 1 1/2 hours from here so another early start.

Last week we went back to the LBJ ranch to take the Texas White House tour. It was great. Couldn't take any pictures inside the house, though. We stopped in Johnson City at the Silver K Cafe for lunch. Closer to mid afternoon but lunch never the less. Cute place.



Heading out of town, we saw a sign for Pedernales Falls and State Park. So, decided to take a detour. So glad we did. The falls were cascading falls over limestone. A small hike down but well worth it. Trying to decide which pictures to put on here is the hardest. Hope you enjoy.





I can't believe how hot it's been the past few days. The temps have been in the 80's with humidity in the 90's. If summer here in Texas is anything like the last few days, so glad we're not here in the summer. Looking forward to going back to Iowa. Going back to the KOA in Adel feels like going home.

I'm rooting for Butler but not holding out much hope. This year only had 2 teams in the Elite Eight and of course, none in the final four. Oh well. There's always next year.