Welcome back to the University Campus & Presidential Library portion of the trip;-)

Bryan/College Station is quite a nice area – and home to the VERY LARGE and sprawling Texas A&M campus, which includes the George H. W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.  We were struck by how much property was dedicated to the campus – 5,500 acres or 8.5 sq miles – which allows the university to expand within its own grounds without merging into the populated city areas.  This is quite different than what we see in the AZ school ‘sprawl’;-(  All this space made the university grounds really beautiful and impressive.

Before exploring the grounds, we managed a round of golf on the Texas A&M course- –

 

A new day – a new Presidential Library with friends Louise and Bill.  As is true of such a museum, the core exhibit space here tells the story of the life and times of Bush, 41.  Unlike the LBJ library, which highlighted the 60’s, this Bush library highlights international relations, such as the Gulf War and the fall of the Berlin Wall.  There are great replicas of President Bush’s Camp David Office, Gulf War briefings in the Situation Room (interactive) and the Oval Office.

 

There are also many historical artifacts included in the museum.  Especially this 1944 TBM Avenger, which is the same type of plane Bush was flying when he was shot down during WWII, and the Studebaker they drove from the East Coast to Midland, TX when they relocated – –

 

 

The section of the Berlin Wall included in the Museum is quite interesting.  The side pictured below is covered with graffiti, while the opposing side is blank gray stone.   As one might guess – the blank gray stone was the side facing the Russian side where the laws and behavior monitoring were quite stringent and oppressive.

 

 

A very moving component to this Library/Museum is the burial area for President Bush, Barbara and their daughter, Robin, who died at the age of 3.  As we visited, the one year anniversary of the death of Barbara had just occurred – thus the flowers on her grave remaining from the observance.  And, one can notice that the burial of President Bush is so recent that the grass over his portion of the gravesite has not yet blended in.  All very poignant, since the lives of these individuals – and their deaths – are a very real part of our lives.

 

The entire grounds surrounding the Library, Museum and Gravesites are beautiful, tranquil and well thought out.  Between the Library and the graves is a wonderful walkway, pond (where one can catch and release fish as President Bush loved to do) and the Barbara Bush garden.  A very serene setting – –

 

Time to power up and check out the grounds of the main campus.  As mentioned before, they are quite sprawling, so you would never know there were almost 70,000 students – –

 

A HUGE tradition for Aggies for almost a century was the gathering around a woodpile once a year in November to watch a blaze that symbolized their burning desire to beat the University of Texas in football.  Through the years, a modest woodpile grew into a five-story complex wood stack.  On November 18, 1999, at 2:42 AM, the wood for the bonfire collapsed during construction, claiming 12 lives and injuring 27 others.

The Aggie Bonfire Memorial has been created to celebrate the lives of the 12 young Aggies lost during the 1999 tragedy.  An incredible amount of thought went into the creation of this memorial with much symbolism – 27 granite blocks, representing those injured, connect the 12 portals, representing those who perished, to form a Spirit Ring, which symbolizes the perimeter fence erected around the Bonfire.  Each of the 12 portals is oriented around the Ring in the direction of the hometown from which each hailed.  At the Ring’s center, a black granite marker engraved with the date and time of the collapse marks the exact location of the last Bonfire Centerpole, and is notched with the direction of each of the portals.  There is much more – but that will do for now.  Very moving – –

 

The last of the noted landmarks observed was the Century Tree, one of the first oak trees planted on the campus.  It has grown so large that many of the limbs now have metal braces to hold them up and some have almost grown into the ground.  There are many ‘thoughts’ about this old tree – including any marriage proposal that takes place under the tree will ensure a marriage that will last forever!  We celebrated our 25 anniversary under this tree – what might that mean?!?!

 

 

Campus and Library explorations completed, eating was on the mind.  Several very good options for dinner in the area include Christopher’s and The Republic Steakhouse – both excellent in terms of food, service and atmosphere;-)  BUT, if you want the old world traditional, one must at least try the Dixie Chicken – –

 

The environment here is quite comfortable – but there is much more to see and do on this trip.  So – perhaps the storm clouds gathering are our cue that it is time to move on-

 

Bryan/College Station has been informative, moving, delicious and fun to reconnect with Louise and Bill;-)

E & G – thankful for such wonderful things to explore across our country!