Walkin' the Malls -- Thurs., Feb. 28

42 degrees outside, cloudy, with a cold wind blowing in our faces and we decided to do a 10K (6.2 mile) walk? What were Peri and I thinking? We met at 10:30 a.m. at the San Marcos Tanger Outlet Mall Visitor Center where the walk box is located. After signing in, we headed out the door and basically walked the outer perimeter of two strip malls: Tanger and Premium Outlets.

Peri prepared for the cold way better than I did. I had on a fleece sweater with a T-shirt under it. She loaned me an extra pair of gloves she had in the truck. I was so thankful because the wind had a very cold bite to it, it went right through the fleece. 

Nike.

Nice architecture on the Premium Outlets side.

These signs reminded me of Europe.

The view from outside the arches.

And the view from inside the arches.

But no Golden Arches here. The restaurants included Cracker Barrel, Outback Steakhouse, Subway (two locations), Johnny Rockets, River Grille, Wendy's, Taco Bell and a food court. About an hour into our walk, we stopped in the food court for lunch. Peri had a foot long turkey sandwich and I went to the Italian place and had a side of mac 'n' cheese with marinara sauce added to it. My lunch wasn't very big. Because Subway is having their "Februany" $5 foot long special, Peri bought the foot long because it was the same price as a 6" sandwich. She couldn't eat all of hers and offered half to me. Thank you, Peri. Your sandwich choice was very good. 

All in all it was a fun walk because we got to window shop along the way...check out all the colorful spring fashions. The following shoes are for your self protection, ladies. All you need is a bruiser dog collar and some big spiky bracelets. If your "dogs are barkin'," these are the shoes for you. LOL.

Who let the dogs out??

1960s revisited?

Neiman Marcus. See how pretty the day turned out?

I was intrigued by the 24-hour clock on Neiman Marcus. On the outside ring are Roman numerals up to 24; the inside ring has signs of the zodiac.

We had a choice on our 10k of walking two 5Ks (basically walking the mall twice) or walking the mall once, then walking three miles round trip on a sidewalk along a busy street. We chose to walk the mall twice. That way if we got really cold we could go into a store or restaurant and warm up. Plus we had the windbreak protection of the mall stores. I'm very happy we didn't walk on the main street. We would have been blasted by the wind coming from cars and trucks.

We could hardly believe how soon our walk was over. I guess Peri and I could say we Volksmarched into March.

Peri invited us to go with them to the Austin Kite Festival this coming Sunday. We will drive up to San Marcos and ride with them the rest of the way to Austin. Maybe we'll get in another Volksmarch in Austin. We'll play it by ear and see if it fits into our day.

Here are our watchcats. They keep an eye on the RV park for us, sort of, when they're not sleeping.

Bowie and Sunnie

Bob enjoyed his basketball last night. He went to the Spurs game with a co-worker. Then he came back to the 5er and watched the Portland Trailblazers. Unfortunately both teams lost at the end, but the games were exciting. As he watched the Blazer game, Bowie claimed his usual spot on the footrest lodged between Bob's legs.

Bowie bonding with "dad."

That's all folks.

Travel Bug out.

Baginbun, County Wexford

'Baginbun – where Ireland was both lost and won'

In a little departure from our usual historical sites, this tranquil looking beach is Baginbun, the scene of epic high drama in 1170 AD. While the first Anglo-Norman invasion landed at Bannow Bay in 1169, the second wave landed here at Baginbun just south of the Hook Head Peninsula in Co. Wexford in early May 1170. The invasion consisted of just around 80 men, but they were led by Raymond le Gros, a man with great military skill and cunning. Raymond had chosen Baginbun as he knew that there was an ancient Irish promontory fort that could serve well as a temporary defensive camp before he moved on to attack nearby Waterford.

Raymond knew that Waterford would be well defended and he also needed supplies for the invasion, so he decided to coax the Waterford men out to fight on his terms. He had his men raid the surrounding countryside for cattle, they drove the massive herd back to the ancient promontory fort where the Normans had established their camp. This enraged the Waterford men, and they quickly gathered their forces to attack.

It is estimated that between 1000–3000 Waterford men marched to Baginbun to kick these cheeky invaders back into the sea, and when they saw the tiny size of the Norman force they must have felt confident of victory. However they reckoned without the cunning of Raymond le Gros, he ordered his small force to attack the large army of Waterford, and then he ordered them to quickly retreat, feigning panic. The Waterford men were jubilant at the site of the fleeing Normans and charged after them along the narrow promontory. When they were committed to the narrow pass Raymond had the massive herd of cattle stampede into the ranks of the onrushing Waterford men, scattering them and causing panic and devastation to their ranks. His men followed hot on the hooves on the cattle, cutting down the now panicked Waterford force in droves. They captured a large number of men, Raymond had hoped to use them as bargaining chips to gain ransoms from Irish chieftains but he was to be disappointed. It was recorded by the Norman Chronicler Gerald of Wales, that a fearsome female Welsh warrior, Alice of Abergavenny, was enraged by her husbands death on the battlefield, she took an axe and beheaded seventy of the Waterford men in revenge for her husband, and threw their bodies off a cliff.

The bloody scene was set for the Norman assault on Waterford. It just goes to show that even a tranquil a spot as Baginbun can often have a dark story to tell.

Baginbun is located at the very southern tip of the Hook Head peninsula. It is about 2kms south of Fethard on Sea on the R734. The promontory has restricted access but the beach is open to the public. If you are in the area, why not visit the Bishops Palace in Fethard on Sea. This is located on the outskirts of the village, and dates to the fourteenth century. There is an earlier motte (a type of Anglo Norman fortification) located behind the palace.

Snowbird Tax Article -- From Woodall's 2/13/2013

Cuckoo! Cuckoo!

I just had to share this article. If you've already seen it, just ignore it; but if you haven't, I think this is the stupidest idea I've seen in a long time. It's just plain bird-brained.

Are You Ready for a Snowbird Tax?

The state of Florida has it right. If Minnesota enacts this tax, Florida would make a mighty good home for the snowbirds to migrate to...and STAY. Then if they wanted to, they could visit Minnesota for a week or two at a time.

Who  has time to think up these ridiculous taxes? Politicians, that's who.

As Bob would say, "Susan, why don't you tell us what you really think?"

Well, I think that's pretty clear in this instance.

Travel Bug out.

One Day They're Bare, the Next Day... -- Wed., Feb. 27

they're all leafed out. I love spring. (Even though it's not REALLY spring yet by the calendar, the plants in this part of Texas think otherwise!) The newly green leaves on the trees look so vibrant and alive waving in the breeze. As reported on Sunday, the bluebonnets and firewheels are starting to bloom. If we were in the Northwest (our home for over 30 years), the crocus and daffodils would be coming up, but we'd be in rain, cold and gray, murky days. Here in San Antonio, it is sunny and 63 degrees at 2:30 p.m. Very pleasant.

Tonight Bob is going with one of his co-workers to the Spurs game. He will have a blast! I get to go once in a while too.

Tomorrow, Peri and I will do a Volkswalk around the outlet malls (Premium Outlets and Tanger Outlets) in San Marcos, Texas. I bet that walk will take a lot longer than usual what with all the window shopping! There are also restaurants at the malls and surely we will need to eat. Can you believe we will do 6.2 miles around an outlet mall? Believe me when I say that place is huge.

Our new next-door neighbors moved in at the RV park. I haven't met them yet, but they have a gorgeous seal-point Siamese cat who sits and suns in the front window.

Welcome to our new followers, Sam and Donna of 5th Wheel Vagabonds. Sam spent 4 years in a Navy Rescue Helicopter Squadron as a rescue aircrewman, then 30 years in Law Enforcement retiring with the rank of sergeant, unretired, and spent seven years as the chief of a small community, retired again, and drove a motorcoach for Trailways as a retirement job. Donna worked in the trucking industry and as an accountant. I bet they have a lot of interesting stories to tell. Thanks for joining us on our journey.

So that's it for today, short and sweet. I'm off to Petco for Sunnie's canned food.

Catnappers.

Enjoy the rest of your Wednesday.

Travel Bug out and about.

When Bloggers Meet... Tues., Feb. 26

...friendship blooms. Or, in the case of Karen, friendship looms. You see Karen is a very crafty person, a fiber artist. She makes beautiful weavings on her loom. She has an Etsy website (currently on vacation) on which she sells sea shells, oops, I mean hats, socks, and rugs. If you want to learn more about fiber arts, she has a Loom-a-tic Workshop with instructional DVDs.

I have been following her blog for a while. When Colleen of Traveling with the Long Dogs told me Karen was going to be in our RV park, both of us were delighted and wanted to meet her. Wouldn't you know, Karen and Steve are in the site next to us. When they were parked and situated, they came over and we talked for a while. Colleen arrived from Schertz, Texas, a half-hour later.

Karen and Steve

Steve and Karen wanted to see Riverwalk and The Alamo. We started out by going to lunch around 1:30 p.m., but that took longer than we thought it would.

Karen & Steve at Taqueria Guadalajara.

Colleen, Susan, Karen & Steve

Next we went to Mission San Jose where we caught a 45-minute, ranger-led tour through the mission grounds. People were asking about the round "balls" in the trees. She explained that they are called ball moss and are epiphytes. Epiphytes do not cause damage to the trees and live in harmony with the tree. Mistletoe, also in the mesquite trees, is a parasite and competes with the tree for nutrients and water.

Ball moss in the mesquite tree.

Our ranger talks about ball moss.

The ranger also pointed out the following golden-fronted woodpeckers.

Golden-fronted woodpecker.

I had to use a strong zoom on this so the bird is hard to see.

Steve and Karen in front of the mission church door.

Inside the church sanctuary.

Detail of the cement work over the church door.

The altar area.

Pretty flower on the mission grounds. Identification anyone?

Spanish Dagger blooming (Yucca agavaceae)

Steve checking out the Mission San Jose Bastion.

When the tour was over we finished looking around inside the mission. Before we knew it, it was 4:15 p.m. and The Alamo closed at 5:00 p.m. Whoa, Nellie! We would be hard pressed to make it downtown, find parking and tour The Alamo in that amount of time.

We decided to finish at Mission San Jose by watching the movie, briefly scanning the museum and looking in the gift shop. From the mission we headed back to the RV park, passing by the old drive-in theater which is being refurbished. Here is what the newly painted facade looks like. At night, the painting is outlined in white neon which looks very retro and beautiful.

Once back at the RV park, we sat in Steve and Karen's MH shooting the breeze. Then it was time for Colleen and I to say our good-byes for the night. Karen told us to wait a minute because she had something for us. She then handed us each a pair of socks she made! What a sweetheart. The socks are nice and thick and will be toasty on cold nights. Thank you, Karen! We are happy ladies.

Colleen, Karen, Susan, Duke

Then Karen and Steve were off to explore the Riverwalk and have dinner. You'll have to check out her blog for the rest of their evening out.

We want to welcome new subscribers JWB (no name or website given), and Karen and Steve of RVing: The USA is Our Big Backyard. Karen and Steve set out full-time RVing and after five months bought another sticks-and-bricks house which they have been making their own. Now they have the best of both worlds, a stationary place to call home and a home on wheels. 

Time to call it a night. It's "a night!"
'Til tomorrow, sleep tight.

Blowin' in the Wind -- Mon., Feb. 25

Our strong winds at the RV park Olympics yesterday afternoon were just the tip of the iceberg. (Oh wait...that's a mixed metaphor.) Today, the winds whipped up into a frenzy. This morning I woke up to the sound of something hitting the top of the RV and making a racket up there. It sounded like it hit, then scraped across and fell off because the noise was quickly gone. I don't think it did any damage, probably a small branch off the tree.

The RV was rockin'. Winds gusted up to 50 mph in San Antonio; outlying areas had gusts to 62 mph. On the news tonight were reports of metal roofs coming off a few buildings, trees uprooted and fires here and there. When the winds were going strong, you could hear the roar.

Amarillo, Texas, up in the panhandle, had a blizzard today that broke records from 50 years ago. They had snow and 75 mph winds. I'm glad that stayed to the north. Hopefully no RVers got caught in that storm.

Speaking of RVers...While sitting in the 5th wheel, I watched as groups of RVers piled into the park today, six at one time, three at another, two more sitting out in front of the building. RV park workers knew they were coming and were out front directing people which lane to go down so they could get everyone in off the main street. I can't imagine being out traveling in an RV in this wind. I bet they were happy to come (in from the storm) to our little enclave.

If anything lightweight was left outside today it probably ended up along a fence or at someone else's campsite. I found a pot holder on our patio. Underneath our neighbor's 5er is a small, rectangular red reflector light cover. It's not from our or our neighbor's rig, doesn't match. I saw outdoor rugs blown into heaps.

I ventured out to the post office and Walmart this afternoon. A few smaller branches were on the side streets, no big trees like the ones we saw on the news. Flags were standing straight out and my hair was blowin' in the wind!

When I went to the laundry room, I had to make sure to have a tight grip on all the laundry in the basket so it didn't fly across the RV park. For once there was no one else in the laundry room this Monday afternoon. Usually I'm fighting for machines on a Monday. Why is it that people do their laundry on a Monday? I know my Mom always did. Is Monday designated laundry chore day? I've tried to vary the days that I do laundry, but today we needed clean clothes, so Monday it was.

San Antonio art along the Museum Reach of the Riverwalk was damaged in the wind. Underneath one of the freeway overpasses hangs an art display of fish. A number of the fish broke due to the wind. We've seen them during the day. However, I've always wanted to see them at night when they light up. Here are pictures from a previous blog of the fish I'm talking about...

The photo below is of a plaque along the Riverwalk showing what the fish look like at night when they're illuminated. I hope they can repair the fish because I'd really like to see them at night.

The winds are supposed to die down tonight. Tomorrow should be a much calmer day. I plan to relax because it seems like all we've been doing for the last week is go, go, go.

On another note, The Mamas and Papas sang these lyrics, "Monday, Monday, can't trust that day. Monday, Monday, sometimes it just turns out that way. Oh, Monday mornin' you gave me no warning of what was to be..." (oh wait, there was a warning with a branch on the roof); scratch that.

I leave you with Bob Dylan's lyrics to "Blowin' in the Wind." Such a great song and it certainly came to mind today.

How many roads most a man walk down
Before you call him a man ?
How many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand ?
Yes, how many times must the cannon balls fly
Before they're forever banned ?
The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

Yes, how many years can a mountain exist
Before it's washed to the sea ?
Yes, how many years can some people exist
Before they're allowed to be free ?
Yes, how many times can a man turn his head
Pretending he just doesn't see ?
The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

Yes, how many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky ?
Yes, how many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry ?
Yes, how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died ?
The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

Travel Bug has not been blown away. Have a good Tuesday everyone.

Glienicke Castle

Glienicke Castle which is situated at the soout-west of Berlin just at the border to Potsdam was once  the Summer residence of  Prince Carl of Prussia, the third son of King Friedrich Wilhelm III.

Ther first building on this site was a Manor  (which was described as Castle in documents from that time) which was build in 1753 for Johann Jakob von Mirow a Docotor from Berlin. After he came in finacial trouble he had to sell the Estate in 1764. It changed the woners a few times in the following until it was bought by Count Carl Heinrich August of Linedeau.He changed the look of the Estate and also gave the Manor a new meaning. After Prussia's defeat by Napoleon's army at Jena and Auerstedt in 1806 Count Lindenau fell into financial difficultiesand sought to sell the Estate but without succcess. In 1811 and 1812 it was rented by the prussian Cancellor Count Karl August of hardenbergwho bought it in 1814. In addition to remodeling of the interior and exterior of the Manor , Fürst Hardenberg remodeld from the autumn of 1816 the immediate vicinity of the cottage garden artistically. After he died in 1822 his heirs sought for an buyer which the finally found in 1824 in the person of Prince Carl of Prussia. the thiord son of King Friedrich Wilhelm III. Like hios older brother, the future King Friedrich Wilhelm IV., Prince Carl also showed great interest in the ancient culture. This "passion for antiques and other antiquities" awakened and fostered in childhood educators of Prince, Count Heinrich von Minutoli Menu. All the more impressive for Prince Carl was the first trip to Italy in 1822, which inspired him to the harmony between landscape, architecture and antiquity. Returned with these impressions, the decision was for him to realize this "dream of Italy 'in his native Berlin. With sketches of the design of individual buildings supported Carl's artistically gifted  brother Friedrich Wilhelm the project. Some details of these proposals, the architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel and his pupil and colleague Ludwig Persius took over for their own designs. In close collaboration with the landscape architect Peter Joseph Lenne, a unique, southern ambience architecture and garden area grow  which Prince Carl decorated with antiques from its rich collection.
With the death of Prince Carl  1883 the heyday of Glienicke ended. . In his will, he decreed that his son and main heir Prince Friedrich Karl  had to spend at least 30,000 marks annually for the maintenance of the Glienicke buildings and parks. But as prince Prince Friedrich Karl died already in 1885 this came to end and the property was inherited by Prince Friedrich Karl's son Friedrich Leopold who showed little Interest in Glienicke.  By structural neglect began the decay of the building, and through the sale of ancient and medieval collectibles already in the 1920s, much of what Prince Carl had collected over decades, scattered around the world.
After the First World War and the end of the monarchyin 1918  Prince Friedrich Leopold moved his residence to Lugano, where he took numerous art objects and furniture. The property Glienicke including the building was first seized by the new government. In light of the failed Prince expropriation but it was after the ratification of the law on property dispute between the Prussian state and the members of the former ruling Prussian royal house on 26 October 1926  transferred back to Friedrich Leopold. Just two years later, the Prince tried to sell parts of the Glienicker area to a real estate company. This failed initially to an injunction of 17 July 1929 on the part of the Prussian state, who wanted to preserve the land as a park. Under the agreements in the balance the state was under discussion in this proceeding. After Prince Friedrich leopold died in 1931 the property was inherited by his grandson, Prince Freidrich Karl who sold the Estate in 1939 to the city Berlin. From 1950 it served as a Hotel a and since 1987  the Castle is used as a Castle Mueseum and open to the public. 

More pics: 

Fore Abbey, County Westmeath

As last Monday was such a beautiful clear day we took a trip out to see Fore Abbey. Located in the small village of Fore in rural Westmeath, Fore Abbey is one of the true wonders of Hidden Ireland, a site that should be on every must-see list for those interested in Irish history and archaeology.

Interior of the 10/11th Century St. Féichín's Church

The site was founded by St. Féichín in around AD 630, and the small monastic site quickly grew in size and importance, and received many mentions in the Annals of Ireland. Although there are no visible remains of this initial seventh century monastery (indeed the exact location of the earliest foundation has still not been conclusively proven) there is still a fine 10–11th Century church located on the slopes directly above the main part of Fore Abbey. This is St. Féichín's Church, the main part probably dates to the 10th Century, with a later chancel added in the 13th Century to extend the church. In the background of the photo above you can make out the huge lintel above the doorway, said to be one of the Seven Wonders of Fore (see below).

Most of structures forming the main part of Fore Abbey date to the period following the Norman invasion of Ireland. Hugh De Lacey ruled the Lordship of Meath (roughly speaking it incorporated today's Meath and Westmeath) from his fortress at Trim Castle. De Lacey would have appreciated the value of the monastery and the population growing around it. He had a priory established in around 1180 and gave the site to the Benedictine Order.

The Benedictine movement was extremely popular across the Continent, but there were not many Benedictine monasteries established in Ireland, and I can't think of another example as well preserved as Fore. It was constructed around a central cloister (a beautiful courtyard), with a church to the north, the dormitory for the monks to the east, the refectory to the south with its adjacent kitchen to the south-west.  

The cloister area

By the fifteenth century Fore Abbey had become vulnerable to attack by the Gaelic chieftains as it was located outside of the area of The Pale. It was attacked in 1423 and 1428, and remained vulnerable enough that there were gates and walls built to surround the monastic settlement. I didn't see any remains of the walls, but two stone gates can still be seen near the site.

Despite these raids Fore Abbey was still a wealthy place and new towers and a revamped cloister area was added in the fifteenth century.








Fore is also known for the Seven Wonders of Fore. These are:
The Anchorite in a stone
The water that will not boil
The monastery built on a bog
The mill without a millstream
The water that flows uphill
The tree which will not burn
The stone lintel raised by the saints prayers

Fore Abbey is a wonderful place, the area is steeped in history and stunning ruins that you can easily spend an afternoon wandering around, especially if you are lucky enough to be there on a fine day too. The site is well signposted (see our map for its exact location) and provisioned with a large carpark, I highly recommend a visit!

I really hope that you enjoy our blog, if you like any of our images you might be interested to learn that you can now purchase prints from http://www.12greengiraffes.com/, take a look around the site to see what we have available and to see some sensational images of Connemara by the talented photographer Muireann Ní Cheallacháin, if there is an image from our blog that you'd like as a print please let me know by leaving a comment.

Is there a historical or cultural site in your area that you'd like us to cover? Or perhaps you might like to contribute a site to our blog? I'd love to hear from you, please send me a message at info@abartaaudioguides.com

12K Walk and RV Park Olympics -- Sun., Feb. 24

Our day started out at 9:47 a.m. when we hit the Riverwalk in front of the RV park for a 12K (7.44 mile) walk from Mission San Jose to Mission Conception and back. We've done it before, but it's so convenient to where we're staying we'll probably do it again.

Part of the walk was along Mission Road.

We got a big kick out of St. PJ's Counseling Center. We're picturing saints in their PJ's. However, upon closer inspection, St. PJ's is short for St. Peter and St. Joseph.

The entrance gate to the Home of St. Peter's and St. Joseph's.

Lantana on the corner of a yard.

The public golf course was busy this morning!

Nice, wide sidewalk along Mission Rd.--next to golf course.

We saw the usual birds on (or next to) the river: cormorants, great white egrets, Northern shovelers and coot. There were also two turtles sunning on a rock in the river. But the nicest surprise today were the early signs of spring in south Texas. We saw our first bluebonnets, the yellow fuzz-ball blooms of the Huisache (sweet acacia) tree, Indian Blanket (firewheel), and pink evening primrose. I was so thrilled to see the first bluebonnets next to the trail. I hope they're still blooming at the end of March when my mom and sister visit from Oregon.

Texas state flower: bluebonnets

The next flowers are called Indian Blanket or firewheel. Quite a few of these plants were blooming along the Riverwalk. Pretty good for February.

Firewheel or Indian Blanket

Pink evening primrose.

Following are the prolific blooms on the Huisache tree, also known as the sweet acacia. The common name, Huisache, is derived from Nahuatl and means many thorns. In southern Europe this species is planted extensively for its flowers which are used in making perfume.

Huisache blooms.

Five main missions lined the San Antonio River during the 1700s: Mission San Antonio de Valero (The Alamo), Mission Nuestra Senora de la Purisima Concepcion, Mission San Jose, Mission San Juan and Mission Espada. We saw a history marker on our walk today which told of another mission in 1722: Mission San Francisco Xavier de Najera. It was in the general area of the golf course, just south of Mission Concepcion. Being a smaller mission, its Indian neophytes passed into the care of the missionaries at The Alamo in 1726, and the land was granted to Mission Concepcion in 1731.

Great signage along the Riverwalk.

We completed our 7.44 miles in two hours and 15 minutes, returned to the 5er, showered and got ready for the RV park Olympics. We didn't take time to eat lunch. (That was an error in judgment on our part.)

The Olympics were supposed to start at 1:00 p.m., but it was pretty disorganized. There were seven teams of 10 people. Five events required two people from each team to compete to earn points:

• backward basketball shoot, 
• ladder (bolo) golf, 
• washer toss, 
• Frisbee golf and 
• towel/bean bog toss.

Wow! The above events took forever to complete. Only one competition went on at a time, so there was a lot of standing around and waiting.

Once all the preliminary events were completed, we moved on to team relay events. Each team of ten raced through five events from start to finish. Once they finished the next team went, etc., until all seven teams had completed their relay events. The relay consisted of each team completing the following events in this order:

1. Blindfold wheelchair race: One person sat in the wheelchair and a second team member was blindfolded who had to steer the wheelchair through a course of orange cones. The seated person was not blindfolded and had to give directions to the "driver." This event was funny to watch. Good communication and sense of direction (left/right) were key.
2. Nerf football hockey: Hit a nerf football from the goal line on one side to a bucket on the other side using a hockey stick. Then your other team member takes the nerf football back to the goal bucket on the original side.
3. Straw Tissue Pass: All ten team members used straws to pass a piece of tissue paper using suction only from person to person. Points were deducted for touching the paper or dropping the tissue. This was made more difficult because of the wind.
4. Clothing exchange: Four team members competed in this part of the relay. Two people were at each goal line across from each other. One person had to put on huge pants, suspenders and a shirt with help from another team member. Clips on the suspenders, three buttons on the shirt, clasps and zipper on the pants all had to be done. Once the person was dressed, they ran to the other side where two teammates helped undress that person. Then a different team member (one of the helpers) had to get dressed and race back to the start line.
5. Hula hoop pass: All ten team members participated in this last event. A hula hoop was on the ground. The first person in line stood in the hula hoop, picked it up and passed it over their head to the next person in line. The second person stepped over a line, then dropped the hula hoop. This continued until all people on the team had been through the hula hoop.

By this time, everyone was cold and hungry. As soon as the awards ceremony was over we all headed into the event hall for hot dogs, the fixin's, chili, chips, and brownies--all provided by the RV park. By the time we returned to the RV it was almost 6:00 p.m.!

We watched 60 Minutes and The Amazing Race. Then we watched our Netflix selection, "A Dangerous Method," starring Viggo Mortensen as Sigmund Freud, Michael Fassbender as Carl Jung and Kiera Knightly as Sabina Spielrein. The movie was okay and had some interesting moments when the psychology of Freud and Jung, who were friends, was debated by the two.

What a busy weekend! Whew.

Travel Bug out.