We drove into historic downtown where they have an actual 5 & Dime and a historic scenic railroad train. Also in the area is Branson Landing which is a newer part of town that is basically an outdoor shopping area interspersed with restaurants. It is pretty because it is built right along the river. After walking around that area we drove over to the area called "The Strip". This area was very...interesting. It's kind of like an old, cheesy beach town without the beach. A lot of garish buildings and a few putt putt courses, go-kart tracks and interesting little "museums" like the Toy Museum. But the big draw is the variety shows. There are about 50 different shows to choose from. There are magic shows, comedian shows, family variety shows, tribute shows, murder mystery dinner shows and sometimes country acts will come through to perform. There is pretty much something for everyone.
Because it's us, the weather wasn't exactly cooperating and we tried to plan our time in Branson around the forecasted thunder storms. So the next day we decided to board the historic train and take the 2 hour scenic ride along the countryside. The train was definitely something to see since it still has the dining car, a car with a sleeping cabin and it piped in old songs like, "The Chatanooga Choo Choo". :) The scenery was pretty but it wasn't what we were expecting. Afterward, we went to the war memorial museum which was full of amazing memorabilia from every war we have been in from WWI to the recent conflicts in the Middle East. We have been fortunate to visit the national WWI and WWII museums and this little museum still moved and humbled me. After that we headed home to what we thought would be a relaxing evening. Remember when I said the weather wasn't cooperating? WELL, we got back to the rig and about 15 minutes later my phone sounded a shrilling emergency update. It said, "Tornado Warning in this area. Take shelter now." WHAT??? Of course Gary is outside roaming around and texts me, "Can you hear the sirens?" !!!!! He comes inside and we decide to go to the RV park office to see where we should go. They were ready for us and immediately showed us to the basement. We spent about an hour and a half exchanging stories with the other campers in the park, meeting all the doggies (my favorite part) of the campers and watching the clouds. YIKES After we determined it was safe, we again headed back to the rig. Of course the weather calmed down for the rest of the evening until we went to bed. The rest of the night we spent being startled out of our sleep every hour or so by the INTENSE thunder and lightning and rain. I miss insulation. ;)
Our last day we decided to go check out the amusement park that we missed the previous day due to riding the train. Again, things just weren't cooperating. :) The park was closed so we couldn't see up close what we missed. But, we did get to discover another part of Branson. It is built around the lake called, "Indian Point". The whole area kind of reminded me of the Jersey Shore. It is a place full of vacation rentals, boat slips and pools. I can see this area being completely full of families during the summers enjoying family and friends time. It made me happy. Luckily for us we hadn't planned to spend the day at the amusement park because we had tickets to one of the shows I told you about. Because we love Broadway musicals we chose, "The Best of Broadway". It was a show full of songs from at least 15 Broadway shows and they did a number that highlighted FIFTY shows. Parts were completely amazing. We were entertained.
All in all, we are glad we went to Branson. It is a place that is definitely God and Country. You can't go anywhere without people honoring our veterans and active military (which is how it should be). Their love of God is equally apparent and everyone is extremely friendly. We will come back one day. We want to have better weather (haha!) and get a chance to go to the amusement park, take in another show and experience the atmosphere of the lake.
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