Laredo, Texas Day 2 (GA238)

Mary is no longer available for RV traveling, but we remain good friends.
Because we have 5,000+ postings, I’ve invited her to continue posting entries on this blog.

I’m currently in my 23rd year of full-time RVing and my lifestyle is changing, For more info click Here

---

The motorhome is parked at Mary’s home in Murphys, California. I’m planning to depart tomorrow.

 

 

 

Since my RVing life is changing (see above), I’m starting to re-visit previously visited places. So rather than constantly re-blogging past entries, I’ve decided to do something different.

 

 

In 2011-2013, Mary and I did a 682 day, 12,679 miles in the motorhome and 8,000 miles in the Bronco, circumnavigation of the United States, which I called The Great Adventure. I called it so because other than my oldest granddaughter’s high school graduation in June in Connecticut, I didn’t know where we would be going or when we would be there!

 

 

So, unless I do something really different and unusual warranting a new blog entry, I’ll be posting entries from that trip.

 

 

 

This entry was posted December 16, 2012

 

 

 

 

Mary remains at home in California tending to medical and personal business issues. She has made her airline reservations to join me at Harlingen, Texas on January 3, 2013.

 

 

The motorhome is parked at Casa Blanca International State Park. I’ll be departing later this morning.

 

 

Yesterday I drove the Bronco the about five miles to Old Laredo. My goal was to visit two museums there.

 

 

Arriving in Zaragoza Street I parked directly across the street from American Legion Post #59. Originally I had thought about bringing the motorhome down to this area and park in the church parking lot. Glad I didn’t…streets are so narrow it’s no place for a wide-body motorhome. The Rio Grande River with Mexico on the other side is directly behind the American Legion building…

 

 

 

 

 

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

 

 

 

 

 

I walked up the street to the plaza…

 

 

 

 

 

The church was originally built in 1755…

 

 

 

 

 

Directly across the street is the Republic of the Rio Grande Museum. The building originally was the Garcia house and served as the capital building of the 283 day Republic over which seven flags have flown. You can read about the history of the Republic by clicking this Wikipedia informational link…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_the_Rio_Grande

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are some of the photos I took there…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next I walked up the street to the Border Heritage Museum…only it was not a museum as such. All they had on display was a number of photos taken by local photographers as entries for the Webb County Historical Society 2013 Calendar. So I got to see a lot of the city without having to walk all over the place. Here are some of my photos of those photos…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By time I finished there it was time for lunch so I asked the attendant where I could get some good Mexican food nearby. He sent me only one block away which I never would have found by myself since it has no outdoor signs and is known only to the locals…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here’s the dining area…

 

 

 

 

 

And finally the delicious chicken enchilada meal I enjoyed…

 

 

If you want to see the other 37 photos that I took yesterday…click this Picasa Web Album link…
https://picasaweb.google.com/110455945462646142273/LaredoTexas

 

 

Enjoying old historical cities is another joy of the full-time RVing lifestyle!

 

 

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of Texas. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

 

 

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

 

 

 

 

 

TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE! MARY WROTE A MANY GREAT BLOGS…SO WHENEVER SHE PUBLISHED A BLOG POSTING THE SAME DAY THAT I DID…YOU WILL BE ABLE TO READ HER BLOG BY CLICKING THE BELOW LINK! DO IT NOW!

Mary did not post this date.

 

 

 

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE PHOTOS.

 Forecast for today is sunny and 81 degrees.

Enjoying nice weather is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of California. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures with low humidity most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

My current travel rig is a 2006 Fleetwood 26′ Class A Motorhome and a towed 1986 Ford Bronco II, Eddie Bauer Model. This photo was taken in the desert at Slab City near Niland, California…

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

If you would like to see my YouTube videos, click this link… http://www.youtube.com/user/JimJ1579/videos

There are more than 700 photo albums in my Picasa Web Albums File. To gain access, you simply have to click this link… https://get.google.com/albumarchive/110455945462646142273?source=pwa

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

For more information about my books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

All original works copyrighted – Jim Jaillet -2018

Laredo, Texas Day 1 (GA237)

Mary is no longer available for RV traveling, but we remain good friends.
Because we have 5,000+ postings, I’ve invited her to continue posting entries on this blog.

I’m currently in my 23rd year of full-time RVing and my lifestyle is changing, For more info click Here

---

The motorhome is parked at Mary’s home in Murphys, California. I expect to depart here April 26th.

 

 

 

Since my RVing life is changing (see above), I’m starting to re-visit previously visited places. So rather than constantly re-blogging past entries, I’ve decided to do something different.

 

 

In 2011-2013, Mary and I did a 682 day, 12,679 miles in the motorhome and 8,000 miles in the Bronco, circumnavigation of the United States, which I called The Great Adventure. I called it so because other than my oldest granddaughter’s high school graduation in June in Connecticut, I didn’t know where we would be going or when we would be there!

 

 

So, unless I do something really different and unusual warranting a new blog entry, I’ll be posting entries from that trip.

 

 

 

This entry was posted December 15, 2012

 

 

 

Mary remains at home in California tending to medical and personal business issues. She has made her airline reservations to join me at Harlingen, Texas on January 3, 2013.

 

 

Yesterday I drove the motorhome the about 150 miles from San Antonio to Laredo, Texas at the Rio Grande River and across from Mexico. I’m parked at the Casa Blanca International State Park a few short miles from the river. I expect to visit the city today and depart tomorrow morning.

 

 

Yesterday’s drive was not particularly enjoyable. First, 98% of the drive was on Interstate Highway 35. I really dislike driving on Interstate Highways, but here in south Texas there are few choices of roads to choose from to get from one place to another. Secondly, the first half of the trip was under heavy gray skies with a light rain. When the rain finally stopped, I had to buck a strong headwind the remainder of the trip. Thirdly, since Laredo is the nation’s largest inland port, there were hundreds of 18 wheelers on the Interstate Highway where the speed limit is 75 MPH. I was passed by MANY 18 wheelers doing in excess of 80 MPH! Not a fun journey.

 

 

Laredo has a population of 236,091 with about another 400,00 across the river in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. The elevation is 438 feet. To read more about Laredo, click this Wikipedia Informational link…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laredo,_Texas

 

 

The first photo shows the Interstate Highway. I didn’t dare try to take a photo while surrounded by 18 wheelers.

 

 

 

 

 

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I always like to show the view out of the dinette window…

 

 

Enjoying beautiful state parks is another joy of the full-time RVing lifestyle!

 

 

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of Texas. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

 

 

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

 

 

 

 

 

TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE! MARY WROTE A MANY GREAT BLOGS…SO WHENEVER SHE PUBLISHED A BLOG POSTING THE SAME DAY THAT I DID…YOU WILL BE ABLE TO READ HER BLOG BY CLICKING THE BELOW LINK! DO IT NOW!

https://otrwjam.wordpress.com/2012/12/15/gun-law-reform-imperative/

 

 

 

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE PHOTOS.

 Forecast for today is sunny and 80 degrees.

Enjoying nice weather is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of California. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

 

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures with low humidity most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

My current travel rig is a 2006 Fleetwood 26′ Class A Motorhome and a towed 1986 Ford Bronco II, Eddie Bauer Model. This photo was taken in the desert at Slab City near Niland, California…

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

If you would like to see my YouTube videos, click this link… http://www.youtube.com/user/JimJ1579/videos

There are more than 700 photo albums in my Picasa Web Albums File. To gain access, you simply have to click this link… https://get.google.com/albumarchive/110455945462646142273?source=pwa

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

For more information about my books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

All original works copyrighted – Jim Jaillet -2018

Laredo, Texas

The motorhome is parked at Mary’s home in Murphys, California. She is busy with personal matters.

Last September during my eye exam at the Seattle, Washington VA Hospital I was told I have a large cataract in my right eye that should be attended to in the next year. My new doctor has made the necessary arrangements to have my eye problem corrected. I’m hoping to have my cataract surgery completed prior to Mary going to Turkey with her grandson on April 18th.

On March 24th, we drove the Bronco 104 miles (one way) to the VA Medical Center at Livermore, California for my eye exam which confirmed my cataract in my right eye. I was told I’m a candidate for surgery. I now await a phone call to establish an appointment for a consultation with an eye surgeon.

A more relaxed mode..

After our 682 day on-the-go 2011-2013 circumnavigation of the United States, we have decided to slip into a more relaxed mode. In the next few months we will be traveling through areas previously explored. Unless we do something unusual, this Blog will feature a photo album from the circumnavigation and will change daily.

To read about today’s photo album location, click this link… http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laredo,_Texas

CLICK ON THE BELOW PHOTO. ONCE YOU ARRIVE AT THE PHOTO ALBUM, SIMPLY CLICK “SLIDESHOW” AND ENJOY!

Laredo, Texas

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE PHOTOS.

Yesterday was a cloudy/showery day at 58 degrees. Forecast for today is a cloudy with afternoon showery day at 58 degrees.

Enjoying nice weather is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows our approximate location in the State of California. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures with low humidity most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

If you would like to see my YouTube videos, click this link… http://www.youtube.com/user/JimJ1579/videos

There are more than 500 photo albums in my Picasa Web Albums File. To gain access, you simply have to click this link… https://picasaweb.google.com/jimjrver

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

For more information about my books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2014

Roma, Texas – Day 1

Mary remains at home in California tending to medical and personal business issues. She has made her airline reservations to join me at Harlingen, Texas on January 3, 2013.

The motorhome is parked at VFW Post #9175 in Roma, Texas. I expect to depart from here tomorrow.

Yesterday I drove the motorhome the about 95 miles from Laredo to Roma, Texas. Driving south-southeast meant driving into the sun…not fun. Fortunately traffic was light…

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

But not too light to get a rock chip in the driver’s windshield from a passing pickup truck. Look closely at the top of the yellow line…

The motorhome is parked at the side of the VFW Post. This view looks at the side and back of the building…

As always, I like to show the view from the dinette window…

Here’s a view of the rock chip from the outside…

And a close-up…

Since I’m in such a small town, I’ll wait until my arrival in Harlingen on Thursday to get it repaired.

Enjoying driving the motorhome without getting rock chips in the windshield is another joy of the full-time RVing lifestyle!

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of Texas. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2012
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

Laredo, Texas – Day 2

Mary remains at home in California tending to medical and personal business issues. She has made her airline reservations to join me at Harlingen, Texas on January 3, 2013.

The motorhome is parked at Casa Blanca International State Park. I’ll be departing later this morning.

Yesterday I drove the Bronco the about five miles to Old Laredo. My goal was to visit two museums there.

Arriving in Zaragoza Street I parked directly across the street from American Legion Post #59. Originally I had thought about bringing the motorhome down to this area and park in the church parking lot. Glad I didn’t…streets are so narrow it’s no place for a wide-body motorhome. The Rio Grande River with Mexico on the other side is directly behind the American Legion building…

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

I walked up the street to the plaza…

The church was originally built in 1755…

Directly across the street is the Republic of the Rio Grande Museum. The building originally was the Garcia house and served as the capital building of the 283 day Republic over which seven flags have flown. You can read about the history of the Republic by clicking this Wikipedia informational link…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_the_Rio_Grande

Here are some of the photos I took there…

Next I walked up the street to the Border Heritage Museum…only it was not a museum as such. All they had on display was a number of photos taken by local photographers as entries for the Webb County Historical Society 2013 Calendar. So I got to see a lot of the city without having to walk all over the place. Here are some of my photos of those photos…

By time I finished there it was time for lunch so I asked the attendant where I could get some good Mexican food nearby. He sent me only one block away which I never would have found by myself since it has no outdoor signs and is known only to the locals…

Here’s the dining area…

And finally the delicious chicken enchilada meal I enjoyed…

If you want to see the other 37 photos that I took yesterday…click this Picasa Web Album link…
https://picasaweb.google.com/110455945462646142273/LaredoTexas

Enjoying old historical cities is another joy of the full-time RVing lifestyle!

The red dot on the below map shows my approximate location in the State of Texas. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2012
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

Yesterday Was A Good News Day…

in four different ways.

First…my new Sony Digital Camera…which replaces my factory defective camera sent to Sony for repair…arrived from Amazon in less than 24 hours after I placed the order…with no shipping charges to me. Amazing Amazon.com! I carefully inserted the memory card…took a couple of photos and it seems to be working fine.

Second…after five different phone calls to the Sony Repair Center in Laredo, Texas I finally got an Email with a Fedex tracking number. The un-repaired camera is scheduled to arrived by 4:30 PM today. Once it arrives…I’ll open the package to add the associated components and documents and then tomorrow ship the unit to Amazon…completing the replacement exchange.

Third…my friend/mechanic Mike in Monroe called last evening to tell me that he will have the time to do my Bronco transmission work for me. The transmission leaked some fluid last Friday after it got hot climbing Mt. Constitution on Orcas Island. While it’s not leaking at the moment….I’ve decided that because of the age and mileage on it…to replace all the associated seals. On Monday we will drive about 60 miles south to Monroe so Mike can do the job next week. I’d rather have him do it here…a person who I know and trust…rather than have it breakdown out on the open road and have to deal with an unknown transmission shop.

Fourth…last evening at dusk Mary and I took a walk to test the low-light capabilities of our new camera. Using the Anti-Blur setting…the one we will use in museums that do not allow flash photography…I took the below photos. After I ran them through Picasa…which I do with all my photos…they turned out just fine. If you left click them…they should be viewable in the larger size…

I would not have been able to take theses photos with my old Olympus camera without using a flash…which is a very harsh direct kind on light. The new camera…in this low-light setting…actually takes six shots…all at different exposures in one second…then combines then into one final photo. I’m most pleased with this first test of my new Sony DSC HX5V camera.

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2011
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://lulu.com/panamaorbust