Eyes wide open, bedroom fully
illuminated, hazy three-drink hangover…something’s wrong. A check of the time
shows what it is. It’s 0730 and we had planned to leave for South Padre Island
(SPI) at 0600. We had overslept and now bolted out of bed in an effort to drive
to SPI to check into our condo before the rental agency closes for the evening.
Jane’s amazing at dressing and loading the mini-van.
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| Lighting the tree! |
Capt. Larry’s dragging
(maybe that was 4 or 5 drinks last night). It’s 0800 and we are loaded up, on
our way, and driving faster than we ever drive to make up the time. We call the
rental agency and find that they are open until 1800. We will be cutting it
closely. We are driving like we are possessed, but by 1700 it’s obvious we
aren’t going to make it in time. Another call to arrange for after-hours
check-in and we start to back off and relax. We’re covered. A list of some
grocery items we will need to fix our own meals (we’re going to miss cruising!)
is generated and we stop to at a grocery to get what we need.
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| Ooommmpa pa! |
We get to the
rental agency to pick up our condo keys only to find that they are still open
and waiting for us (guilt sets in for the grocery shopping). Arriving at the
condo we unpack the car and crash for the night.
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| Tuba caroling |
The next morning we arise for our
morning walk to reestablish ourselves with the island. We had spent two months
here back in 2013, so it didn’t take long to recall the island’s highlights. We
picked up copies of the island’s local advertisement newspapers and discovered
that there was going to be a Christmas boat parade that evening. Most of the
afternoon was spent watching the Army-Navy football game while waiting for dark
and the lighted boat parade.
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| Santa arrives |
Arriving at a popular local restaurant/bar,
Louie’s Backyard, that was the endpoint for the parade, we grabbed a couple of
drinks and settled in to see the boats. The boat floats were respectable, but
we’ve seen more impressive displays on our little Tickfaw River.
With the
parade finished, we headed back to the condo and turned in. The next morning we
headed over to Donna, TX, to go to a really large flea/farmer’s market that is
a highlight for most of the Winter Texans staying in the Rio Grande Valley.
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| That's some carrots! |
We
had attended this market during our last visit to SPI and had a great time. One
can find just about anything at this market and we were able to use our time
efficiently as the junk was pretty much in the same places. After Jane had
managed to go through the displays at least twice, we decided to get some
fabulous Texas barbecue for lunch. It was delicious and we got to hear a local
band play in the dining area. After we finished eating, we headed to the fruit
and vegetable stands to pick up some locally grown produce.
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| Jane and friend at birding center |
This is Capt. Larry’s,
being the wishful gardener that he is, favorite part of the market. The valley
produce is always gigantic, fresh, and exceptionally tasty. We purchased some
marvelous citrus (the Rio Ruby Red grapefruit is the best), and green onions with
bulbs as big as ping pong balls and cauliflower the size of soccer balls.
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| Birding center resident |
We
contemplated a 15 lb. bag of carrots, but figured that was a bit too much. We
left the market just as the wind was picking up and rain threatened.
The next couple of days were spent
hanging around the condo and exploring local sights. We spent one afternoon at
the South Padre Island Birding Center where we saw lots of coastal wildlife. It
was a fun afternoon, and again, something we had done on our previous visit.
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| A reptilian resident |
We
watched a short video about the migratory and resident birds that inhabit SPI,
and then took a leisurely walk through the center’s backshore habitat to see
what species we could find. Today it was mostly shorebirds and reptiles. The
following day we decided to head over to Mexico.
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| Another center inhabitant |
Crossing the border at
Progreso allows us to park the car for $2/day and walk across the Rio Grande
River right into central business district of Progreso. The street vendors
descended upon us like flies to cow dung, but prior experience helped us to
fend them off. We picked up some prescription medications at one of the
pharmacies, and Jane found a store that had a nice selection of gift
merchandise that she purchased, knowing that she could pay less on the street,
but certainly with much more hassle. We found a restaurant that we had lunch at
on our prior visit, and it was just as delicious and entertaining.
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| Ready for the parade |
After lunch
we spent a little more time shopping before heading back, clearing customs, and
heading back to SPI. On the way home we discussed coming back to have our teeth
cleaned. Progreso has 136 dentists for a population of just over 5,000
residents, and they cater to U.S. citizens coming over for less expensive
dental care than can be had in the states. We decided that that was something
we should do.
A couple more days of hanging
around the condo and we find ourselves at “Thirsty Thursdays,” a happy hour
hosted by other “Winter Texans” at our condo. Then it’s off to the SPI
Christmas Tree Lighting and Tuba Concert. The tuba concert was awesome with 82
tuba players playing Christmas carols. Capt. Larry, a former first-chair tuba
player, was delighted.
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| Parading the dogs |
At the very end of the parade, Santa came riding in on a
fire truck dressed in a “Summer Santa” uniform replete with red shorts and flip
flops (thongs for you Aussies!). SPI is so like a small town. Two nights after
the tuba concert, we returned to SPI’s city hall to watch the Christmas parade.
The parade featured the usual assortment of small town politicians, marching
bands from neighboring communities, and various businesses.
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| Here comes Santa! |
Always up for a
parade, Jane positioned herself near the middle of the road to make certain
that she would not be overlooked in receiving her share of the candies that the
parade participants were throwing. It was a great parade and another
outstanding SPI community event.
We spent the weekend doing our
normal activities and watching football again, but early in the week we headed
back to Mexico for our dental work.
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| Crossing the Rio Grande |
Crossing the border we headed to a dental
office that we had seen billboard ads for stateside, but upon entering the
office we found a backlog of patients and posters announcing that checks and
credit or debit cards were not accepted. Since we didn’t have a lot of cash, we
went about 3 doors down to the next office that accepted credit cards. We
signed in and were told that teeth cleanings were $25. Jane was called back
first, Capt. Larry to follow. And we were both absolutely pleased with the
service that we received.
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| Our restaurant view of the Red Panty Bar |
The cleanings were probably the best we had ever
received, and you can’t argue with the price. We had lunch at a different
restaurant with a balcony that allowed us to eat and people watch on Progreso’s
main thoroughfare. We did some last minute shopping and crossed back over and
headed home.
We finished out our last week at
SPI doing local stuff, with one more “Thirsty Thursday” and packing the van to
head back to Louisiana. We will be spending some time in the Florida Keys in
January, but are already considering returning as a Winter Texan next year,
unless theKkeys persuade us otherwise.
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| Pinatas for Christmas |
It was a great segment of our “Winter
Escape” and we look forward to the next segment- a 12-day eastern Caribbean
cruise to destinations we have not yet been to. Sounds like fun!
