Me? In Branson? Day 1 & 2

For years I have heard about Branson, Missouri.  Anyone who talks about going there says how awesome it is.  So when my sister Norma invited me to go with her, along with sixteen other members of their Texas Peacemakers RV Camping Group, I thought "why not", I'll see what all the Branson "hoopla" is all about for myself.

Monday, April 21- Day One

Tom drove me to my Mom's home in Tyler (on Sunday) where I met up with Norma.  We spent the night with Mom and awoke early the next morning to begin the eight+ hour drive to Branson.  We travel eastward toward Little Rock, Arkansas then pick up Hwy. 65 north to Branson.  It is cloudy/overcast with intermittent rain but as we travel along through the wooded hills/mountains we are reminded how beautiful it is in northern Arkansas.

  Just north of Little Rock on Hwy. 65 we come upon a group of horse-drawn wagons.

 

 

                           A little reminder of life from a bygone era.

We were soon crossing the state line into Missouri, as the rain was creating drops on the windshield!

I was not prepared to see what a large sprawling city that Branson has become with many theatres, restaurants, varied entertainment attractions, and shopping, shopping, and more shopping venues!  We soon arrived at the Radisson, our home for the next five nights.

Our scheduled dinner for our first evening in Branson was at Montana Mike's Steakhouse where I chose the delicious catfish meal followed by scrumptious apple cobbler dessert.  (I felt like I needed to walk a couple of miles after that!)  Instead we went back to our hotel to crash early, since today had been a long travel day.

To our surprise, around 10:15 p.m., the Radisson's fire alarms/emergency announcements began blaring, ordering us to evacuate immediately thru the stairwells.  Since I had already been fast asleep, I jumped up out of bed and with Norma and some of the rest of our group we headed downstairs and outside, wondering why we did not smell any smoke or see any flames.  The fire trucks soon arrived with sirens going and lights flashing, and firemen poured out with their gear and entered the hotel.  We looked around outside and it sure didn't seem like there was very many hotel guests.  Did some choose to stay inside??  I am standing there on the sidewalk, in my tee shirt/sleeping shorts, with nothing else at all;  no wallet, no purse, no money, no credit cards, no phone, no laptop, no extra clothes, nothing.  All those things are still up in our hotel room!  What was I thinking?  Leaving our room with nothing!  In my sleeping clothes!  Trust me, if this ever should happen again, now I know what to grab on my way out the door!

   After a half hour or so we were given the "all clear" by the hotel staff and the firemen to go back inside.  Apparently it was a false alarm, smoke from a dryer vent, someone thought it was a fire.  Nothing like a little excitement on our very first night in Brandon.

Day 2 - Tuesday April 22

Each morning of the week we were at the Radisson, we were served a wonderful full breakfast in their dining room.  We didn't have anything scheduled for the first day, so several of us decided to go "downtown" to the original old downtown Branson to catch a ride on the Branson Scenic Railway.

Even though the station is in Branson's "old downtown", the newer Branson has sprung up all around it.  The Convention Center is one side of the Station...

...and on the other side between the train station and the river is the new Town Square at Branson Landing which includes the sprawling Hilton complex...

 

 

I'm telling you, there is something for everyone here, no matter what is your taste!

               BooBoo is quite happy to just go for a train ride!

Wow!  How do they keep that train engine polished and shining? 

Bill and Joyce with their niece Sherry waiting at the train station; Joyce is our trip scheduler for this trip to Branson.  Thank you Joyce!

                                    All Aboard!!!

 Norma and I chose one of the domed cars for some good views as we headed south from Branson--ten miles in Missouri and then on into Arkansas for about ten more miles of scenic beauty thru the Ozarks.

 BooBoo is wondering where my backpack is and why she is relegated to this small denim bag.

 We cross over this river lined with small pretty places, each with their own dock.

 Our train's route follows this clear flowing creek for quite a while.

 There are two other domed cars ahead of the one we are in.  we plan to explore the other train cars on the return trip. 

 There are hundreds of dogwood trees blooming in the woods beside the train.

 Even though it is the end of April, Spring has not yet arrived to the mountaintops. Except for the evergreens, most of the trees are still bare.

 We are about to enter one of the tunnels that were carved thru these mountains of rock many years ago.

 We emerge from the darkness of the tunnel into brilliant sunshine.

                      Beautiful farmland abounds in this area.

 All the cars of this train have been rescued from places far and near and lovingly restored to their original charm as much as possible for use by the Branson Scenic Railway.

Each car is different, having its own color and style of seating.

 BooBoo's favorite is the plush blue easy chairs in this domed car.

                    ...and yet another tunnel...

 There are train attendants who are very knowledgeable and courteous in most of the cars.

 Since we are on the first train of the day (8:30 a.m.), and on a Tuesday, and it's the week after Easter, and school is still in session, there are very few guests on the train this morning, which is sort of nice.

 There are sitting areas outside each of the train's restrooms.

 

 

Norma is my "Vanna White" as I take photographs. 

                              ...the car with the red "easy chairs"....

                            ...and the train's snack/concession car.... 

                          
This brown car seemed a little dark to me...

                   ...but one car had this nice mural at the end.

Following our train ride, we decided to pay a visit to Dick's 5-10 cent Store, a relic from the past, in downtown Branson.

 Wait!  Dick's 5-10 is just as "busy" inside as it is outside!

 

It did not take me long to get in and out of that store!  Oh my goodness, it was way too crowded for me!

We attended the afternoon matinee at the Mickey Gilley Theatre, a performance by SIX.  Six brothers, no instruments, only their voices, a cappella. What an awesome show they performed!  I loved it so much I purchased a SIX DVD for Tom.

Our scheduled dinner was at the Paradise Grill, where we enjoyed a sumptuous buffet in a relaxed and cozy setting.

 

 

I am fast learning that all these places in Branson are "over the top" as they compete with one another for the tourist business, even with their restrooms.

The citizens of Branson really do a lot to honor Veterans.  Every show performance pays tribute to Veterans and in town there is a very well maintained garden honoring Veterans. 

 

 Our scheduled evening show was at the Hughes Brothers Theatre to see "IT", where over 50 singers, dancers, and musicians combine their astonishing scope of talent to create Branson's Ultimate Entertaining Experience.  Little Word-Big Show!

 This was all one family, five brothers along with their wives and all their kids.  Even the little tykes were up on that stage with a mike in their hand just singing like a pro.  Too cute!

 

Well.  Today has also been a full day-- sightseeing and shows and train rides.   And eating!

 

Let's hope there will be no fire alarms tonight and I'll get a good night's sleep so I'll be ready for another big day tomorrow.