Branson, Missouri Continued...

One of the best attractions on our discovery journey through Branson was the Titanic Museum.  The building is a replica of the huge ship (cut in half).  Inside are many of the stories of some of the passengers and the crew.  It is a very solemn historical account of the tragedy that happened in the North Atlantic when "unsinkable" meets gigantic iceberg!

One story I particularly liked to browse, was the story of "Molly Brown."  I remember the movie, "Unsinkable Molly Brown" and now know that parts of it were actually true, while many parts of it were embellishments for a good story.  The movie "Titanic" also gives a glimpse into the tragedy and tells another embellished story.

It doesn't matter how much of the stories are truth or how many are fiction...the tragedy did happen, and many lives were lost in the cold, cold north Atlantic that night.

Probably the best show in Branson is "Shoji!"  He is a Japanese/American who has a story to tell about how and why he came to America.  And how much he loves this country.  But the amazing violin renditions of some of our favorite pieces were phenomenal.  His daughter joins the show early.  She has a fantastic voice.  We were truly entertained that evening.

Like all of the other shows in Branson, Shoji ends his with an amazing patriotic review.  We had a lovely time that evening.

I'm going to diverge just a little bit, and talk about the taxi rides we had throughout the town.  For the most part the drivers were courteous and fair.  But we managed to get one driver who must have had a really bad chip on his shoulder.  He was rude, he over-charged, and he argued with Dean over the fare.  Or was it Dean arguing with him over the high charges?  Doesn't matter...it was an insult.  We hoped that was the last ride with that driver--ever!  Well, it wasn't.  On our last night in Branson, we had walked and walked and walked...literally for miles...to the theater for a great show.  After it was over, we called a cab.  Well, guess who?  Billy was very polite to the cab driver and told him Dean would be right there.  I don't know what took Dean so long, but the cab driver told Billy he wasn't going to wait because "your dad is a rude man and doesn't know how to add.  He needs to go back to school."  And he drove away, leaving us stranded.  Needless to say, we reported him to the cab company.  There is no excuse for anyone to be that rude.  Fortunately for us, there was a very nice couple at the theater who offered to drive us to our timeshare.  It was out of the way for them, but they didn't mind.  After all was said and done, we were so glad we didn't have to ride in any more cabs...until our trip to the airport!

I think one of our favorite shows was the Russian Ballet portrayal of the story of Marco Polo.  The whole company danced on stage with an amazing digital screen behind them that portrayed the amazing scenes that Marco Polo traveled through.  We were mesmerized with the beauty of this ballet.

Afterward, we got to meet the Company in the lobby.  None of them spoke English, but bowed their heads in greeting and smiled.  The dancer that portrayed Marco Polo was from the very north country of  Russia.  He did speak a little English and we loved to talk to him about the brilliant production and the beautiful talents displayed on stage.

One of the most fun attractions in Branson is the adventure of getting to "Ride the Ducks!"  We had heard so much about it, that we had to experience it for ourselves.  This company has transformed old WWII Amphibious vehicles into carriers for people.  The adventure starts out like a bus ride through town, except they pass out these "duck whistles" that we blow every time we pass another Ride the Ducks vehicle.  It was great fun, and the kids especially liked their duck whistles.

Our trip took us to the lake, behind the Branson Belle, where we entered the water and became a water vessel.  What a great adventure!  We "drove" all around the lake, and then up another ramp to be on land again.  Our next trip was up a hillside, where we could view a graveyard of old WWII vehicles and a few funny houses at the top.

One of the great things about the whole experience, was learning that each and every vehicle is piloted and narrated by Vets, from various theaters throughout the world.  They had many interesting stories to tell and our particular driver had a great sense of humor...making us feel at ease and entertaining us, as well.

On our last day in Branson (the day we did a lot of walking), we played a little game of Miniature Golf, ate lunch at an Italian Restaurant (that tried to poison Billy and I...thought for another story), and saw an amazing last show...the Chinese Acrobats.  They were so amazing.  Like the Ballet Company from Russia, these troopers didn't speak any English.  We were thoroughly entertained.

The above pictures were taken on our last dull day in Branson, as we walked through the "Strip!"  A lot of fun memories there.

Our check-out day at the Timeshare.  We finally got to see some color.  Top:  Billy and Dean with the amazing Tenor who entertained us on the first day.  Middle:  The trees are finally beginning to look like fall.  Bottom:  A view from the drive to the airport of the beautiful river and countryside near Branson.

Safely tucked inside the quaint, mid-western airport, Billy, Dean and I shared a last few moments together, as we prepared to fly out on two different flights to Portland.  Pretty stupid, but it is just how it worked out.  We had a wonderful time here and made some lasting memories.  That is what I like about traveling the most...the making of memories.  These are the sights and sounds and feelings that will last a lifetime.  We live in a beautiful world and are so blessed to still have a great country to be able to live in freedom.

Thank you, Branson, for reminding us of all of these things.  God bless you, until we return one day.