We booked tickets early in the spring and planned to stay from Saturday 1 till Sunday 9 November. That also meant that we planned being there for the General Elections on 4 November. In sum: Wedding, vacation and election. What more could we ask for?
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| Pictures from Texas |
Wedding
Emily and Kim decided to tie a life-long bond about a year ago. They had been an item for about a year, since Kim did his compulsory period as a visiting scholar for his PhD at University of Texas, Austin. Who could imagine the spin off that research on wind mills (or something like that) could lead to.
Jan and I met Emily for the first time last Christmas, when she visited her future in-laws in Denmark. It was obvious that the betrothed couple were smitten by each other. They actually married each other legally back in August, but celebrated it together with friends and family the Friday evening in November.
The wedding was very American to Scandinavian eyes, although many elements were the same. Jan was to be one of the groomsmen, together with his other two brothers and Emily's younger brother. During the wedding the groomsmen stand at the side of the groom, while the bridesmaids stand at the side of the bride. So there was a lot of people in action during the ceremony. Emily's father presided at the wedding, her mother read a poem and Kim's mother and father read the Praise to Love from St. Paul's letter to the Corinthian Church. And her brother performed a song.
The wedding party was actually a full thanksgiving dinner, outside under the stars (or to be precise: dinner by candlelight). Dessert was the traditional wedding cake, shared by the newlyweds. And there was dancing, and both Jan and I had to give it a try.
The wedding was not only limited to the day itself, but there was also a program before and after the wedding day. The family convened on Tuesday for a Texan barbecue. I got to taste smoked brisket (meat cut from the breast of the animal) and a Texan bear called Shiner.
Before the wedding there was a wedding rehearsal, with a wedding rehearsal lunch at a Mexican restaurant (I got a cheese overdose!). And in the evening there was a Happy Hour at a local bar. The day after the wedding the guests came together for a brunch at a Mexican fast food restaurant, it was a nice end to a great wedding.
Vacation
Before the wedding we had planned (loosely) to drive to Dallas and to San Antonio for some sightseeing. When we arrived at the airport in Austin late Saturday evening, Emily and Kim was there to greet us. They were kind enough to drive us to our motel. The day after we picked up our rental car, and drove to a church which had a service at 11 AM. In the afternoon we headed for Dallas, but stopped along the way in Waco (a city famous for cults, Baylor University and Dr. Pepper). We visited the Dr. Pepper Museum, where we tasted the original Dr. Pepper from a soda fountain.
We arrived in Dallas before dark, and our hotel was in West End Historic District, not far from where President Kennedy was assassinated. The following day, Monday, we started by visiting the Nasher Sculpture Center in the Arts District. At the Dallas Museum of Art we saw an exhibition on King Tut. After this massive dose of art and ancient history we headed back to the West End District and the Sixth Museum. The museum features the story about John F. Kennedy and the assassination in Dallas. It was really interesting, and since we visited the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston it was a nice way of getting the whole story on Kennedy's life. In the evening we went by Trolley Car to Uptown, a really nice district north of Downtown.
On Tuesday we drove down to College Station to see the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum. It was not on our original itinerary, but the chance was not likely to come again in any nearby future, so we improvised. It was really interesting to see the years between 1988 and 1992 from the angle of his presidency.
On Wednesday we drove down to San Antonio. We saw the Alamo, the famous mission that was turned into a fortress during the Texan rebellion (while a part of Mexico). The city has even today a kind of Mexican feel to it. We recapitulated the story of the rebellion for an hour or two and then went for a walk around the city. The famous river walk was nice, but we also got to see a traditional Mexican marked. We finished off the visit to San Antonio with a trip to a shopping center (buying some shoes for the wedding).
We also went sightseeing in Austin. We concentrated on the Texas State Capitol and Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library and Museum.
I won't write about the election, we all know who won and who Texas voted for. It is history.
Opslag
2 kommentarer:
So close, you were to me! And yet so far. Soon I will see you both though, and I can't wait!
Wow, you guys really made the most of your time and went all over Texas. I was so pleased to see a shout out to Waco, home of my alma mater, Baylor U. (Go Bears! Or, uhm, at least don't lose everything so badly!) Glad to hear that you had a good time.
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