Beth invited us to a bus trip with her Garden Club to the historic section of Houston known as The Heights. Early this morning, Peggy, Carolyn, Beth, Melba, and I met in the parking lot of the Y. It was a drizzly 40 degree morning. Peggy took the Westpark Tollway at Beth's suggestion to get us speedily to the meeting point. Traffic was not in our favor so we were almost the last ones to arrive.
We boarded a Harris County bus, provided free to residents of Harris County of which the majority of the Garden Club members are, and traveled to the Hickory Hollow Restaurant where we met our tour guide and were treated to some free coffee before going back out in the elements to board the bus.
Our guide, Dean Swanson, has been a resident of The Heights for over 26 years and the Chairman of the local historic and restoration group for a number of years. In fact, he showed us two homes steeped in local lore that he previously owned. One was one of the few homes in the area to have a still in the basement during Prohibition (also significant as only 6 homes in the area have basements). The other was set up as one of the first Bed and Breakfast establishments in the area. He currently lives across the street from the Harvard Elementary School.
As the weather was 'under the weather', we rarely ventured forth from the bus. A special stop was at the Houston Dairymaids Cheese & Specialty Foods store. The four partners have been in the business of promoting artisan Texas cheese makers for over four years. We sampled two types of cheese which only whet our appetites for the lunch we were to enjoy at Hickory Hollow.
After leaving HH, we viewed the Presidential busts that David Adickes sculpts in his warehouse studio. More can be learned about him and his sculptures by visiting this article,
The Legacy of David Adickes.
A quick trip back over White Oak Bayou and we were back in the Heights for a few more interesting stories and a stop at a local upscale establishment,
Bliss.
Dean left us where he joined us, at Hickory Hollow. The bus took us back to the church parking lot. Peggy decided not to take the Westpark Tollway on the way home which in retrospect was a wise decision. Just as we were entering the George H W Bush Park we saw a police car in the eastbound land proceeding towards us at a very slow rate. There was ice on the road and ice was accumulating on the windshield. Very carefully, Peggy maneuvered through the park and returned us all safe and sound back to the Y for our short jaunts home.
Please bear in mind that all the photos were taken from the bus either as it moved or was stopped as Dean narrated stories. The windows were wet and steamy. In fact the photograph of Dean's home was taken through ice on the window.
Enjoy the show.
