Diary From the Back of a Bakkie: Saying Goodbye

So, a month from yesterday, I report for my staging in Philadelphia, and a month from today (as my dad pointed out), my plane with be on the runway, waiting for me to board. I still have a few more things to get before I leave, and I obviously have to find a way to fit in in my bags. I also have some orientation videos still to watch, but I'm at a point where I'm mostly ready to go. So now it's time to say goodbye. The first leg of my journey has taken me to Texas.
On Friday morning, I flew into Houston to spend the night with my mom's friend from when she served in Honduras. After a quick meal of gorditas (the real thing, not the Taco Bell version), we went to the Museum of Fine Arts to see their exhibit on Spanish portraits and look as some gold and pottery from Africa and pre-Colombian Latin America. We spent the rest of the night relaxing, chatting, watching news of the storm pounding the northeast (where my brother and the younger son of my mother's friend both attend college). For the record, the suffix "eaux" is pronounced "oh", in case you had any doubts.
The next morning got off to a slow start. In fact, I had forgotten how nice it feels to wake up without my alarm blasting. After a short walk around the lake they lived on, my mother's friend's husband cooked up some steaks and seared tuna with some sticky veggies mix (sort of like a gumbo). As good as the food was, the best part might've been the homemade hot sauces he put out. After lunch, we packed up and headed down to Galveston to experience what they consider Mardi Gras.
Now, if there's one thing I've realized in my short time in Galveston, it's that it's a lot like New Orleans. Only not quite, in every way. It's hard to put into words, almost a New Orleans lite, which is not to say it's worse or better. Oh, also, they have a beach. Which brings us back to our story. So, after quickly stopping in at Tommy's to drop off a case of Shiner beer and say hi to his cats, we got back in the car and headed over to the Seawall for the parade. The way Mardi Gras works in Galveston is a bit different from New Orleans. There are 2 celebrations. One is over the Strand, and it costs money. Having lived in New Orleans for 4 years, there was no way in hell I was going to pay to celebrate Mardi Gras, especially after having lived through the best Mardi Gras celebration north of Rio (from what I hear). So, we decided to enjoy the free celebration over at the Seawall. We'd gotten there a bit early, so (after finding a bathroom without too long a line), we explored a couple stores, grabbed a couple drinks, and sat around until the parade started. Like I said, Galveston is New Orleans lite, and the parade made this very clear. The floats were a little smaller, they were stingier with the throws, which were also a lot less exciting that the ones in the Big Easy. The marching bands were good, but like in New Orleans, they all played the same walk-beat, and half of them walk-beated past us. Still it was an enjoyable night.
After the parade, my mom's friends gave me a lift back to Tommy's, where I said goodbye to them and spent the rest of the night hanging with Tommy, his kitties, and Sarah, who had come down from Houston that night.
The next morning I began really exploring Galveston. After a walk around Tommy's neighborhood and a quick trip to Walgreens, I went over to the Strand. Since there was nothing going on for the Mardi Gras celebration that day, I was able to avoid paying. After checking out a couple stores I stopped into a bar called Brews Brothers to watch a band perform. It was typical Bourbon Street type music, though the bar itself was pretty fun and the beer was nice. After walking around some more (and getting a free pork taco), watching a couple other bands perform, some amazing fudge, and snapping a few photos, I made my way back to Tommy's to avoid the oncoming rain storm. The next day I went back to the Seawall. I figured it would be nice to see it on a day when it wasn't crowded. A nice walk, but the highlight was meeting an off-duty cop. I was wearing my Tulane hoodie and walking around with my camera. So he came up and started asking me about New Orleans and the Mardi Gras down there. After chatting a bit, we decided to wait out a rainstorm by grabbing a couple burgers and some rum at The Spot. And then, when the rain ended, some more walking around, and made my way back to the Strand.
Today is my last day in Galveston. Later today, I'll be taking a bus back to Houston overnight, and then catch another to New Orleans in the morning. I'm going to do some more exploring now, but I will leave you with a few photos.