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Friday, December 18, 2015

Palmdale - Part II

It has been over a month since I last posted. The truth is that since we began traveling the same route we took last year through Texas it doesn’t seem like there is a lot to write about. We stayed at the same campgrounds in Beaumont and Livingston. We then varied the trip to Palmdale and went through San Antonio instead of Victoria and Corpus Christie. I’ve taken few pictures.

Remember the Alamo
We stayed at Traveler’s World RV Park in San Antonio. It was a little more expensive than we are used to but was worth is because of the location in the city and the amenities. We took the bus down to the Alamo and River Walk. It was a chilly damp day though we enjoyed a river cruise with a comedian for a driver. We took advantage of being in a big city and picked up some things at Costco and Trader Joe’s before we left. We had planned a second stop near Corpus Christie but it was rainy and cold so we drove all the way to Palmdale from San Antonio and arrived here on November 30.
Peter and Peggy's Table
For those of you who aren’t familiar with Palmdale, it is where we stayed last year and much of the description I gave last year remains unchanged. It is under new ownership since September and we are all more hopeful that the promised road improvements will actually take place. This year we are in lot # 55, which is where our Wisconsin friends Peter and Peggy stayed last year. They are unfortunately not back this year though we did inherit the yellow picnic table which they painted.  We had hoped to get to know them better this year.Lee and Max also not here and we are missing them and their little dog. Other than that we are seeing a lot of familiar faces. I have resumed the walking aerobics class and line dancing. My yoga studio moved and dropped their weekday morning schedule. I haven’t found an alternative yet. We have new Activity Directors, Joe and Joyce. They post pictures on the Palmdale FB page and if readers are interested they can check out that page.
The Parade
What is remarkable about this year is how normal being a Winter Texan now seems to me. I remember being astonished to see the Flea Market and crossing the border into Mexico with all the street vendors accosting us. It all seems normal now. Seeing the local population which is largely young Mexican people with gray-haired Midwesterners and Canadians roaming around the stores now seems normal to me. Again this year we went to the McAllen Christmas Parade only this year there was no rain and it was a nice balmy evening.

The Winter Texan
Like most of the rest of the country, we have been enjoying warmer than normal temperatures. We have had several days when the temperatures have been close to or in the 80s. Don has taken up fishing in the Gulf and golfing again. We had one meal of fish so far.  We are slipping quite comfortably back into the soft easy life of the Winter Texan, though occasionally the insanity of the Republican primaries intrudes on our lives. If they weren’t trying to select a world leader we could just enjoy the comedy of it.

Today we finally finished getting set up here when we put the covers over the tires and I cleaned the place up a bit. We are set for the winter and for Christmas since we got our shopping done on-line and our Christmas cards went out last week. I am making my flight plans for going to Minnesota in January. 

3 comments:

  1. Hey Judy & Don — Having been mentioned I figured I better comment. We are a couple days away from arriving in Ocala FL for the winter. We would have been here earlier but a 1 month allotment in Milwaukee for medical visits turned into 3+ months with a short hospital stay while I got some cardiology issues sorted out.
    We have never wintered in FL and we wanted to give it a try. That was after our gig in New Mexico at Bosque del Apache fell apart because of the medical delays.

    I have been wondering how the roads are there? Have they been worked on since we left?
    And are Carolynne and Michael still managing the place?

    Just curious. Not sure what the rest of the Winter will have in store for us — or whether we might try AZ in ’16 — we’ll see.

    We will be camp hosting all summer in WI at Spring Valley (Highland Ridge Campground) — May to September.

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  2. Peter - Thanks for commenting. No the roads have not been improved except for a little caliche in some of the holes. The Park is under new ownership--- take a look at the web site. Michael and Carolynne are gone. Nora is now the manager. New owner lives near Dallas and we have met him. He promises that improving the roads is a high priority. I think you might be in a better place weather wise. After near record high temperatures at Christmas it is now chilly and rainy for the foreseeable future. We will probably come through Wisconsin.... if we get anywhere near you we will stop. Hope you have a healthy and warm winter in Florida.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the reply. Cant say as I’m sorry to hear about Michael and Carolynne; and I bet Laura does a great job as manager! Good for her.
      We liked S. Tex but wanted to at least TRY one winter in FL and one in AZ before we settle into any kind of a routine.
      Please do stop if you get into the area near Spring Valley (1/2 way between Menomonee and Hudson just south of I-94. There are sites as long as 75’ and during the middle of the week the park is pretty empty. Weekends get full, but you CAN reserve online @ recreation.gov is you know in advance.
      Would love to see you two again. Peg sends her love too.

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