Time for some summer fun!!
We drove less than an hour away to nearby Galveston to try out the "world's best waterpark": Schlitterbahn.
Two words: super fun!! And to think that we were only able to try the Ninna-friendly rides! Mama so wanted to try out the huge twisty (for big kids) slides but, aside from the fact that she doesn't want to do it alone, the lines were sooooo loooong!! The park opens at 10am, but we arrived at around 1130am and the place was already packed with people.
Tips: get there early when the lines aren't so long yet and the pools aren't so full of wet wiggly bodies. On the other hand, since the park closes at 8, you can also opt to enter at 3pm (tickets are discounted by then!). You can bring outside food and a cooler with drinks (no beer!) inside, tipid! But there are Papa John's Pizza stands, hotdog stands, and other food stands inside, too, if you don't want the hassle of bringing too much stuff. There are also lockers for rent to store all your important personal belongings. If you can, bring watersocks as the pavements can be so hot if you're walking from one attraction to another. Most of all, get one of those disposable waterproof cameras to capture the special moments! We did! :D
Here I am and very very very ready to do some splashing!
But before that, merienda first! I love Shipley's glazed donuts!
And then, a little pic with kuya NJ.
We went with the Elgarico family, by the way. Our friends from Dallas had a blast, too! We only saw each other to eat. The rest of the day, it was every swimmer to herself, hehe!
My family. Maputi now, maitim later.
Finally, with my lifejacket on, I am definitely ready to tackle the waves!
The rest of the pictures were taken with our disposable waterproof camera so we apologize for the picture quality. It's better than nothing, right?
I love the Wave Lagoon!!!
I love riding down the slides with Mama!
Weeeee #1!
Weeee #2!
Weeeeee #3 and #4! And I love riding down the slides all by myself!
My ultimate favorite, though, is the River! The Wavy River!
We started from the Wave Lagoon and then lazily rounded the whole park. But, just as we were nearing our Lagoon stop, we got mashed with all the other people who rode the huge waves on the river. Yes, you read that right, huge waves on the river! It was fun!!
At first, I tried squeezing in with Papa and Mama on their double floatie. It was fun but three's a crowd! See? All arms, legs, and smiles!
And then I got my own floatie!! And no more life jacket! I am soo brave!
Waves, here we come!
And finally back to the Lagoon for me!
My totally harassed and sunburnt Papa and Mama.
And then suddenly, just like that our Shlitterbahn-ning day was over. At least for now. Because aside from this waterpark in Galveston, there are two other Schlitterbahns: one in New Braunfels (the really big one!), and another at South Padre. I can't wait!!!
Our parting shot.
But our day is not over yet! Since we've very near the coastline, we decided to explore Galveston Island ("Where the Texas Coast begins") a little bit more.
Right beside Schiltterbahn is the Lone Star Flight Museum and the pretty Moody Garden (which we didn't have time for to visit as it was getting dark :( but we do promise to visit there next time).
Next we went to a Galveston Island Beach Pocket. (And now back to our regular camera.)
Heaven is a beach that is less than one hour away from home.
My Mama is fishing for compliments at the pier.
And Papa is bummed about the rocky beach.
While searching for a place to eat (yummy seafood), we came across some very interesting architecture. Papa was so "nanghihinayang" because we left his powerful camera at home. Yey, even more reason to come back, right?
The Texas Heroes' Monument at Broadway and Rosenberg Avenue. Erected in 1900 this 74 foot monument with a 22-foot bronze Victory was sculpted by Louis Amateis. Henry Rosenberg paid for the Monument and this was just recently restored in 1991.
Where did we end up for dinner? Our new favorite seafood restaurant: Fish Tales.
Mama ordered their Avocado and Crab Dip (yummy!) for starters. And then she had a Shrimp Po'Boy (which she thought would be small because she wasn't that hungry, but was wrong. the sandwich was actually huge, and she was actually hungry!). I shared Papa's food with him, he had the Fisherman's Choice, which had fried battered shrimps (my favorite) and catfish (or oysters, your choice). Service was great, the view of the beach was great, and no charge for fountain drinks. Loved it!
Busog family.
Going home, happy!
And so, that was how our weekend went. Next on the agenda? 4th of July! We'll see what comes up.