Not wanting to cut our visit to NASA short, we headed over to the Johnson Space Center early in the morning, at the same time the elementary school kids get there. That, in addition to the cool little stations set up inside, made us feel like little kids. We started off with the guided tram tour that took us to the old mission control center and the wing housed the rocket Saturn V. The old mission control was where all the big shots in NASA called the shots. The new one that is used today is in the same building but in a different wing. They made us turn off our cell phones because it might mess up the communication signals. The Space Center overall was very fun, with various activites and shows to keep us entertained. After that, it was off to Austin! Well, technically, it was off to Leander. We stayed with Melissa's relatives for a few nights. Tonight we walked around downtown Austin, stopping at classy latin cantina called Maria, Maria. The first thing that catches your eye, or technically your ear, is the live spanish band. People of all ages were gathered here, dancing and eating. The waiter accidentally delivered us the other tables' quesadilla, so we ended up having a huge feast of delicious food. Then we headed out to check the downtown nightlife which put Gainesville to shame. The place was hopping.
Day 4 5/08/10
Remember the Alamo! Today we visited the Alamo, but first we hit up Barton Creek which is a huge natural preserve with lots of parks and trails in the middle of Austin. It was beautiful. Anyways, on a simple trail that followed the river, we would be the ones to get lost. We ended up missing a few bridges to get back and wound up walking about 2 miles out of our way. We eventually crawled back to the car to drive to San Antonio. It took us a while to find the Alamo. The city is literally built around it. The building itself is tiny but filled with so much history! C'mon, this is where Davy Crockett fought and died. Then we went to Riverwalk. It was a bunch of restaurants, hotels, and shops along the river's edge full of local flavors and tastes.
Day 5 5/09/1oHappy Mother's Day!
Today we ventured to Hamilton's Preserve pool. The pool and waterfall were gorgeous, and the water was freezing! We got to swim in a waterfall, and it was pretty cool. Pun intended. Then we went back to hang with Melissa's relatives who cooked us a delicious spaghetti dinner complete with strawberry pie. Short day because tomorrow we are waking up at four!
Day 6 5/10/10
14 hour drive to Bisbee, Arizona. Fun stuff. Kept busy by watching episodes of 30 Rock and singing to Glee. Driving through the desert was neato. We also passed through several border patrol inspections! The first time the officer asked us if we were US citizens, where we were going and where we came from. The second time he just waved us through. The mountains were very pretty. Finally we arrived at Gillian's aunt's house that was basically in the middle of nowhere. Literally. The GPS kept saying we were in "unverified territory" and that it could not help us. Luckily we found it and then went into the little town of Bisbee for dinner. Bisbee is an old mining town turned artist community. After some delicious pizza we stared at the stars for almost an hour. Even saw a few shooting stars. Because there are so few people near the house we could see more stars then we have seen in our entire life.
Day 7 5/11/10Woke up and had breakfast in Tombstone! It is a classic old western town in Arizona, complete with saloons, carriages, and people dressed like cowboys. Including us. Thanks to Melissa's planning, we were all equipped with bandannas. After a hearty breakfast and many photo ops, we started another drive to Mission Viejo, California! Here, more of Melissa's relatives were kind enough to put us up.
Day 8 5/12/10
Zoo Day! Today we visited the famous San Diego Zoo. It put Lowry Park and Bush Gardens to shame. Our favorite animal- Pandas!!!! Well, it was only one panda but it was still pretty awesome. We spent all day there looking at lions, tigers, and bears- Oh my! Seriously, the zoo had all of those animals. For dinner we went to a well known sea food joint called Anthony's that was right on the Pacific Ocean. Yummers. Then we drove to LA and found a hotel in Pasadena to stay at for the next three days. Hollywood, here we come.
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