Corpus Christi, Texas, Jan. 26 — Texans take an inordinate amount of pride in the shape of their state. It’s everywhere. (See, for example, the shield in the previous Texas post.) Today, that spirit manifested itself in the Texas-shaped waffles at the hotel breakfast.
I saw a pamphlet advertising an IMAX movie about the Alamo with 3 hours of validated parking. The movie was 45 minutes. It was entertaining, but I probably could have done without it, especially given a 15-minute History Channel version I saw later that did the same thing. I think it ends up a wash on parking though, and didn’t cost me any real time.
Since I was coming into the Alamo from the mall side, I completely missed the iconic structure at the beginning. Oops. Instead I started in the courtyard and wandered more or less in the reverse I should have. The interior is part shrine, part archaeological project, part museum. Incidentally, once you get past the arch that defines the front (that wasn’t there in 1836), the roof is a regular rounded concrete one.
Inside: Memorial to the Alamo fighters and views of the architecture
The parking garage’s pay setup gave me an hour more at $3, so I spent it wandering part of the Riverwalk. I ate pizza (Yeah, yeah, I know. But it was a place on the Riverwalk. That counts for something right?) and listened to a mariachi band playing for other customers.
Then it was out for a quick photo of the Alamodome, a detour back up to photograph the north end of I-37, then back south. Since it was early afternoon it was a good time to do the I-410 loop.
The south part of the loop was surprisingly empty and only four lanes. It got up there on the north side though, along with some fantastic interchanges. This is the first x10 that I’ve clinched. Not bad, considering that four years ago I-10 itself was my least traveled 2di.
While between I-35 and I-10 on the west side, I heard that the Texas Transportation Commission had just approved raising the speed limit to 75 on multiple interstates, including I-35 between SA and Laredo, practically all of I-37, I-10 northwest of SA, and I-10 between SA and Houston. I would soon find out why.
There’s not really much to see on I-37, even with my short detour to Wilson County. Parts of the asphalt rival I-80 in Dallas County as the “loudest” pavement I’ve been on. On the other hand, none of the roads in Texas have the pops and seams associated with freeze-and-bake cycles in the North.
I was surprised that I-37 only had “picnic areas” as opposed to full-fledged rest areas along the route. I did NOT see any state-name I-37 shields the entire time, a shame given that only Texas can lay claim to this number.
I approached Corpus Christi in the 5:00 hour, perfect for driving east. Saw the newly installed I-69 signs and downtown traffic wasn’t bad at all. Since I would be coming back this way, I thought I would take the road past the curve to become US 181 and see where it led me. I ended up on Shoreline Boulevard against the seawall. Although there are four intersections, the street’s name is “Interstate Highway 37” to the end.
A stoplight on an interstate? Not really, but doesn’t this look weird?
I took US 181 across Corpus Christi Bay, my first time on that route, and got a Days Inn in Portland. Temperatures were in the 70s, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and it was a perfect end to a fruitful day.