Branson, here we come

Randy R and Kris kindly asked us to visit them at their condo in Branson for a week. Sounds like a good idea!  We can usually get a good deal on Alligiant, but it comes with a different kind of price. They fly out of Orlando early...real early. We had to get up at 2 am to arrive 2 hours before our flight. That is way too early, but a week with Randy and Kris is worth it. 

When we got there, we settled our stuff into their guest bedroom and headed out for lunch. Billy Bob's was the place to go today. They serve a mean chili cheese dog, fries, and chocolate shake, and Randy's cheeseburger was just as good. 

We were understandably a bit tired so we weren't up for a lot today. Randy R drove us to the Shepherd of the Hills Fish Hatchery, which was just perfect. Inside the Visitor's Center, a docent told us a little about the place. When the powers that be built the Table Rock Dam, it created areas of deep cold water, which is perfect for trout. Here they raise Rainbow and Brown trout - 1.3 million a year, with about 700,000 of them ending up in Lake Taneycomo. That's a lot of trout! And they do it by hand-collecting sperm and eggs, which is just plain weird. Poor little fishies don't get to have any fun at all. 

These, on display in the Visitor's Center, are really pretty. And big. Really big. 

Outside we walked along the trout hatchery rows. When they start, the fish are fed every 20 minutes. As they get larger they are moved to other areas and fed a couple of times a day. That's a lot of fish to feed; we did our bit with 25 cents' worth of fish pellets. 

Next we went back to the condo for a nap. But I never nap, I just fall asleep. So two hours later Randy woke me up to make sure I was still alive. We all sat around and visited for awhile before heading out for dinner. We weren't in a hurry though; we made a quick stop at Walmart, then stopped at an amazing scenic point. The Ozarks are so lovely. 

When we could tear ourselves away from the view, we went to Mr. Gilberti's Place for dinner. We were going to start with a couple of salads before the waitress assured us that one salad would be enough for all four of us. And she was right! It was a great salad, too - I even had seconds. Our pizza was delicious, too, made all the more enjoyable by the relaxed Italian atmosphere. Lovely.

End of the day - time to get some more sleep!