Galveston

This weekend, after a baby shower in Houston...Mom, Lois, Holly and I headed to Galveston Island. My family has been visiting Galveston before ANY of us were born, my Grandmother and GREAT Grandmother frequented that beach as well and passed down the love of the legacy....and the fun part is that there are several stores and restaurants that were there when they visited. Anyone that has been to the Gulf knows that the water is a brown color due to all the sand it passed through making it's way into the gulf, but the undertow is generally pretty light (NOTHING like the Pacific) and the water is much warmer than the other oceans surrounding the US (though this weekend it was freezing, note the towel I had to keep me warm!). Not only do I enjoy swimming at the Gulf (minus the abundance of sea life, which was out again this weekend thanks to a storm stirring up the jellyfish and bringing them all ashore), I just love the history of Galveston. In 1900 a hurricane almost wiped out the island (and so many people along with that), and in a push to keep the island so many loved the island was raised 17 feet and is surrounded by a seawall at the lowest points. There are a lot of great old houses to visit, pirate history, stores to shop at in a downtown area that was not destroyed by the hurricane, and a great Bay with some pretty fun boats to watch coming and going. They have recently added a cruise port which has really helped the restoration push. I think anyone who says they DON'T like Galveston hasn't been with someone who can show them all there is to LOVE about it!