Today we were up at 0630 hrs to meet our car rental rep at 0800 so as to have mobility for our final day in Houston. At the rental office we picked up our Toyata Corolla for our day at NASA, where we arrived at about 1000. Our hotel is a ways north of the city of Houston and NASA is about half way to Galveston to the south east. Because the area is so well endowed with modern freeways, we made pretty good time getting there, in spite of the fact that Houston is the 4th largest city in the US.
What can be said about The Lynden B. Johnson Space Center? For anyone even remotely interested in the space program, this is the must-see place to visit. An information desk is located just inside the door where friendly staff orient you to the facility and suggest an itinerary for you depending on the amount of time you have for your visit.
We were directed first to the tram which drives around the complex pointing out the various buildings and what goes on in them. It makes stops at the mission control center, the astronaut training facility and the Saturn V facility where a complete Saturn V rocket lies. It is huge, much longer than the Statue of Liberty is tall. A very knowledgeable volunteer gives an interesting lecture about the rocket and its history.
At Mission Control, we saw the actual control center that was used for the lunar landing in 1967. While there, the ground controller (GC), Bill Foster came into the room, explained what he does and took some questions. One vistor asked what the difference is between an astronaut and a cosmonaut. Bill explained that there is no difference other than nationality. Both recieve similar training and perform the same jobs. It was very interesting.
We also stopped at the astronaut training center where there is a full sized mock-up of the International Space Station (ISS). There were no atronauts training there that day, but it was interesting to see.
Most of our time was spent at the Official Vistors’ Center which has many movies, including an IMAX presentation, as well as various displays and interactive displays, all designed to educate about the space program in a highly entertaining way. It was a truly fascinating day and we stayed until about 5 o’clock in the afternoon. Since there is too much to even attempt to describe here, I will rely on the old adage about one picture being worth a thousand words, and let the photos do the talking.
During our pause for lunch, a tremendous thunder and lightning storm broke out. The rain came down in torrents. thank goodness we were inside. The thunder was louder than any we had ever heard before. It even caused a power disruption for a few minutes in the Zero G Diner where we were eating.
If you turn east on the NASA Rd. on leaving the Johnson Space Center and drive toward Galveston Bay, you will come across Kemah Boardwalk. Here is a large amusement park with many rides including a wooden roller coaster, a large marina and a boardwalk where you will find the Kemah Boardwalk Hotel along with many interesting tourist shops, galleries and restaurants. It was quite cool when we arrived in the late afternoon so there weren’t many other people walking about. We were told that on weekends, especially when it is warmer, the place is packed. We found a restaurant called Aquarium where we stopped for supper. It was a beautiful place where as the name implies, there are huge aquariums with hundreds if not thousands of exotic salt water fish on display. Diane & I enjoyed a beautiful seafood dinner and I took some photos of the live fish. I can heartily recommend this restaurant to anyone visiting the area, not cheap, but well worth the price.
Later, we explored some to the shops along the boardwalk, including an interesting gallery of work by one of our favourite artists, Thomas Kinkade. There were many beautiful works on display and for sale, including paintings of Yankee Stadium and Fenway Park. It was a perfect ending to an enjoyable day.
It took about an hour to drive back to our hotel, including getting a little bit lost, but we eventually made it and enjoyed a relaxing drink before bed. Tomorrow we fly back home to Surrey.
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