Back in the Saddle Again

This trip started in Dallas, the fourth largest metro area in the US.

With half a day to explore before a 3 and-a-half hour drive to the Woodlands, I had to be somewhat purposeful in where I chose to go.

The aquarium did not open until 12, so I poked around the western part of Dallas, taking some shots of the tower, or microphone, or golf ball, as some Texans refer to it. This wasn't the only unique architectural item. Everywhere you look in Dallas, there seems to be some funky geography that deserves attention. You will walk beneath an underpass and as you look up, you see an incomplete arch, framing the sharp peak of a sky scraper, off in the distance. The shapes, the contrasts between old brick and new composites and way in which light played off of all of these items (even in the gray blah of this February day) made you wonder what a good photographer could do with it all!

It was finally time for the Dallas World Aquarium. One of the biggest attractions in Dallas, it not only housed a very impressive aquarium, but a South American collection too. They were very accommodating and gave me free access to shoot inside. In the midst of a swarm of excited school children, I curved my way through the museum.

They were very smart in how they used all available space inside. There are overhangs and canopies, windowed exhibits that hold curious South American biology. You look up to the sky above and the greenery reaches up there, but instead of focusing on the glass ceiling, your eye drops with the waterfall, splattering the water 30 feet below. Once again, your eyes study the curious shapes swimming quite actively in the water below. Yes, I see curious birds, but, what the heck are those? Giant carp? They are scaled and bigger than a man. Is that a manatee. No, no, it's that peculiar South American fish known as a Pirarucu. With its giant fish scales, fat tail fin and duck-like mouth, this fish swims quite actively in the big pool below. I can't wait to see what the look like from the aquarium windows.

Passing tiny monkeys, sqwaking colorful birds, fat bird-eating tarantualas, crocodiles, anacondas, bats and a pool of the most playful otters (the children loved them the best and the otters responded back in kind) I descended excitedly into the tunnels below.

First you see the smaller aquarium tanks that display aquatic life specific to such places as Indonesia and Japan, you pass into the observation room for the South America tank. In it you see the Pirarucu fish and a big ol manatee, focused on sucking on something on the bottom popping up to the service ever so often for a breather.

Then, it was to the tunnel beneath the shark tank. How cool, to be beneath the hovering hammerheads, saw, tigersharks and rays. With the light filtering in from above, the forms of the fish were silouetted very nicely.

After a goodbye to a playful loggerhead turtle and a pacing leopard, I was heading to the West End.

The West End, is a few blocks of restaurants and shops, that preserve a Texas charm. It is also one of the main stops for the Dallas light rail. It's the area that you'll find the Dallas book repository, the place from where JFK was supposedly shot. I tried to get in for some shots but there was quite a few steps to go through for that. I suppose I should have planned for that more in advance. I think the story is so 'myth-like' especially to generations that did not live through it, that the site becomes shrouded in doubt. What is for certain is what happened on the grassy knoll. I walked down to it. Though the February grass was brown and tan, it was still interesting. It is a an area that runs parrallel to the building and drops down beneath an overpass. It has these curious pale stone bunkers, that seem almost like communist monuments, on either side.

After a failed attempt at the Arboretum, I had to make my way south, to the Woodlands.

For food, I've had a great Cajun combo the first evening in Dallas. It had shrimp creole, in a spicey red sauce, gumbo, in a brown roux with crawdads, some wonderful baked beans with chunks of ham. The cajun spices make the top of your head sweat. The type of spicey, next to salt spicey of Asian cuisine, that I like best. This was all accompanied by sweet tea, of course!

In the West End I had a small meat plate for lunch, of brisquet, ham and pulled chicken with very sweet bbq sauce and green bean casserole.

In the fancy, rich Woodlands area, so-named because of the preservation of the coniferous forests, etc., I stopped at the Sweet Tomato. This was the perfect remedy for daily road food. It mainly serves salads, soups and bakery and is buffet-style.

My path down from the Woodlands to the Houston was congested at first. I'd have to say it was more aggressive driving than I found in Boston 5pm rush-hour during the World Series! All the lanes were packed with vehicles but, thankfully, moved along. Usually, when you switch lanes and people aren't giving you leway, you can just cross the lines and they are forced to make way or suffer damage to their car. But, I find that this did not always work in Houston. I crossed the line and cruised along with no change in my opponents path so had to give it another go, with no problems, on another fellow commuter.

Many of the freeways are flanked by frontage roads full of businesses. It makes things see more congested but also gives you quicker access and a line-of-sight knowledge of what is where.


After Houston, the roads opened up and flowed through the brown, desert lands. This wasn't desert but the low shrubs were bare, the grass yellow-brown, small rivers low and mucky and the gray hung over everything.

I stopped to take a few pictures of an old abandoned house and another dilapitated building. Humoursly enough, the signage read "Chamber of Commerce." Reflective of the times, eh?

My route brought me to even flatter lands. There were abandoned ranches, convenience stores and gas stations along the way. The oil pumps were not working and I saw the sight of a newer pickup truck on some of the properties as a hopeful sign of some vibrancy. The stretches of road were very long and very straight. A perfect path for droney music playing in the car and buzzards soaring in the hard winds.

Eventually I came to the cost of Rockport, after taking a little detour through the small town of Tivoli. The fierce wind was even more so here, coming directly off of the Gulf. I checked into my place and watched the waves beat at the waters edge, within a stone's throw of my low balcony. This was not very accommodating weather for a video shoot. Perhaps things would settle by the morning.

For dinner, a cajun boil. They cover the table with paper and pour your meal right out in front of you. Potatoes, shrimp and sausage!

That evening, I threw open the window to let the sea salty wind blow at the curtains. It was a relaxing sleep.

An evening storm washed the wind away and things were bright and sunny. This shoot went perfectly and things fell into place nicely. Afterwards I shot a little bit of Rockport - the Fulton mansion, the rocky ledge the town is named after and a few birds to pay respects to birding activities to prevalent here.

Next was Cape Aransas. A few miles above Corpus Christi, this stretch of sand dune was accessible through means of a short ferry ride. There were plenty of condominium, restaurants and surf shops. If you've never seen these shops, they are often immense square buildings with a large logo and often, have a model of a large sea creature incorporated into the fascade. Such as one on this island, with the big ol' gape of a shark's mouth as an entrance.

You can drive along the shore and feel secure in doing so, seeing how much traffic has gone before you and the sight of many little cars along the beach. The chop of the waves was strong and there were people flying kites and walking along the shoreline. The channel here was full of ships. I can't remember ever seeing so many large vessels in such close proximity of one another. Out further in the gulf you can make out standing structures in the middle of the ocean. These must be oil platforms?

In all, this region felt more like southern parts of Florida than my previous experiences with Texas. But this is 'snowbird' country after all, popular with folks from places like Minnesota, Wisconsin and Nebraska.

After some property shoots today, I had a 3.5 hour drive up to San Antonio. The winds had died down a bit and I was glad to be heading away from Margueritaville and towards places a little more Texas.

My current appointment is a very large hotel with a view of the San Antonio surrounding. And what perks for the people that stay here! A knock at the door and I'm handed a covered plate. Taking it off, what should be inside but some chocolates hiding in a parafin case in the shape of Texas! A thanks to the guests staying here. I'm appreciative of these little gestures, but with a gut sick of road food and little romance in my current mode it passes as more an experience than it does excitement. Chocolates anyone?

Onwards to exploring more Hill Country, some familiar places, some new. Soon on the horizon, the Alamo!