We left home this morning at 7:15 by taxi and went to the Wedgewood apartments to meet the tour bus for our trip to Branson, MO. We were scheduled to leave there at 8:05 a.m., but two of the passengers hadn’t shown up and didn’t answer calls to their cell phones, so the bus driver waited nearly 45 minutes before leaving without them. Then he found out that they had gone to New Braunfels, TX to meet the bus there (without calling and telling him).
We eventually made up the lost time. We stopped for lunch at the Collins Street Bakery in Waco, TX. We each had a large chicken salad sandwich and a bowl of fire-roasted vegetable soup.
We arrived at the Choctaw Casino Resort and Hotel around 4:30 p.m. We don’t gamble, so we ate supper at the Blue Moon Café and then went to our rooms for the night. We had catfish, baked potato and cole slaw with coffee. It was delicious.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
We had breakfast at the Blue Moon Café. That was included in our tour package. We started out again on our bus trip about 8:45 a.m.
We had lunch at Queen Wilhelmina State Park in Arkansas. It was a buffet lunch, also included.
Our tour bus
Thomas Martinez, our tour bus driver
Sis in front of the bus
Me in front of the bus
Queen Wilhelmina Lodge and State Park where we ate lunch on Tuesday, Sep 28th, 2010
Sis outside the Queen Wilhelmina Lodge
Me outside the Queen Wilhelmina Lodge
Then back on the bus and on to Eureka Springs, Arkansas, where we checked into the Motel 62. That wasn’t such a great experience. It isn’t nearly as nice as the other places we stayed on our trip. The water wouldn’t turn off in the bathtub and right away we had to call the office for help. They got it nearly stopped, but it trickled constantly.
We had dinner at the Forest Hill Restaurant (included). That was nice. Then we attended the world famous Passion Play from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. That was good.
Then back to our rooms where we did get a good night’s sleep.
We were sitting at the top of the stadium and looking down at the stage of the Passion Play.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
We had a “continental” breakfast at the motel of coffee, yogurt and donuts.
We picked up a local tour guide there. His name was Joe. He got on the bus with us and took us on a brief tour of Eureka Springs.
Our tour guide, Joe and one of the others in our group, Maggie
We went to a glass chapel in the woods called Thorncrown. It was very beautiful. The architect designed it to blend in with the surrounding wooded area. A woman there gave us the story of it and gave her own personal testimony which was very moving. We bought a CD of her singing.
After that we stopped to see the “Christ of the Ozarks” statue.
This is part of the park by the Passion Play and is near the statue of Christ of the Ozarks.
Our guide went on to Branson with us and stayed with us until Friday morning. We had lunch and entertainment on the Branson Belle Showboat. It was a delicious lunch of beef and chicken, potatoes, vegetables, rolls, and a frozen cheesecake dessert. There was entertainment on stage while we ate. It was a variety type show of singing and dancing. The boat cruised while we ate.
Me on the deck of the Branson Belle
Sis on the deck
Both of us on the Branson Belle Showboat
The Savannah House Hotel
At 3:00 p.m. we arrived at the Savannah House Hotel and had a little time to relax. Then at 5:30 we went to the Uptown Café for dinner. I had jumbo shrimp, slaw and baked potato. For dessert we had small sundaes. A husband and wife sang while we ate. The woman had worked for Charley Pride for some years before settling in Branson when he moved on.
From 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. we attended “The Clay Cooper Music Express.” We enjoyed it very much.
When we got back to the hotel, complimentary desserts and refreshments were available in the hospitality room. We each had coffee and blackberry cobbler with ice cream. Our rooms were very nice. We stayed there until Friday morning.
Thursday, Sept 30, 2010
We had breakfast in the hospitality room at the hotel. They had a wide variety of breakfast foods.
From 9:30 a.m. until 12:15 p.m. we attended the Hughes Brothers Show.
Then we went to Grand Village Shops (a small mall) for lunch on our own and some shopping. We ate at Mel’s Hard Luck Café. Pricy but good. Phoebe had a footlong hot dog and a bowl of cheesy potato soup. I had a cup of the soup and I don't remember what else. Some of the waiters walked around through the dining area with microphones and sang for the diners as they ate. We were told that they have to audition before they get jobs there.
We wandered around the mall and had our pictures taken sitting in a huge rocking chair.
Sis and me
Me sitting at an outdoor table in the mall
From 2:45 until 5:15 p.m. we attended the Jim Stafford Show.
Then we had dinner at McFarlain’s Restaurant. That was an interesting experience. The people at the table next to us were laughing and as we watched, their table got higher and higher. Finally a waiter came along with a booster seat and asked if any of them needed it. It was a trick table.
From 7:15 to 9:30 p.m. we attended the “Shoji Tabuchi Show”. That was very good and they go all out with the music and special effects. The bathrooms are world famous. They have gold fixtures and are very fancy.
Then we went back to the hotel where complimentary desserts were again available. We couldn’t resist having more blackberry cobbler with ice cream and coffee, but by now we were so tired that we took it to our room.
Friday, Oct 1, 2010
After having breakfast at the Savannah Hotel this morning, we went to the Brett Family Show. The audience was much smaller than at most of the shows we’ve attended, but it was a very good performance.
Brett family mother and daughter
Brett family father and the guitar player
One of the Brett family greeting us at the bus. I think this was the son.
Joe, our travel guide, left us at this point.
When we left there, we went to Springfield, Missouri where we had lunch at Lambert’s Family Restaurant. The meal was very good and they really do throw the rolls at you. I had chicken salad, cottage cheese and a roll. The coffee cups and cold drink cups were huge.
Then we drove to the Precious Moments Chapel and gift shop near Carthage, Missouri. A docent was explaining all the pictures on the walls and ceiling of the chapel when we got there. It is beautiful and it is hard to imagine how the artist laid on his back on scaffolding for hours at a time to paint the angels on the ceiling. The walk from the gift shop to the chapel is beautiful too.
Me, walking back from the chapel
Sis on the walkway between the chapel and the gift shop
The Precious Moments Gift Shop
Around 7 p.m. we got to our hotel near Tulsa, Oklahoma. The rooms were very nice and as we were so tired, we didn’t go down to dinner but relaxed in our room and went to bed early.
Saturday, Oct 2, 2010
We had breakfast at the Wild Potato Buffet at our hotel this morning, then left around 9 a.m.
Leaving the hotel near Tulsa where we had stayed Friday night.
We traveled on to Oklahoma City where we had a short stop at the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial Park. It was a very moving experience.
Both of us at the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial
Both of us in front of the tour bus.
From there we went to Norman, Oklahoma, where we had lunch at Jason’s Deli. They have a wonderful salad bar and we really enjoyed it.
Then back on the bus and heading toward Texas. I slept through part of this, but we stopped a couple of times for rest breaks. One woman in our group had got off in Oklahoma City. Another got off at Georgetown, Texas and three or four more at New Braunfels, Texas. Then we went on to San Antonio, where we got off with several others at the apartment complex where we had started our trip last Monday.
A couple from church who were also on the trip took several of us home in their van. It was about a quarter till ten when we got home.
Our cat, Calvin met us at the door and was very glad to see us home. He had been well cared for by a friend from church while we were gone, but I’m sure he was lonely without even the dog around for six days. Precious stayed at the kennel while we were gone and we had to leave her there until Monday as they are closed on Sundays.
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