W for Walks and Walking

 

Since we moved to the Hill Country, we have done a lot of walking. During the Covid time, when the reality was so depressing and life was on hold, we walked in the countryside every day. Luckily, in Texas, there was no ban on walking. To beat the heat on hot summer days, we started our walks about sunrise. 

 

 

We walked for 1,5 to 2 hours along country roads, where we met nobody but animals.

 

The pretty landscapes, nature, and its sounds were calming to the mind and soul. Looking at it all, the fields, flowers, listening to the birds, we could forget about all the badness that was going on in the world.

 

Physically, we did get tired and strained our joints a bit, but it was worth it. The area we live in is so beautiful.

J for Jackrabbits

Another letter related-post in "My Texas Alphabet" is dedicated to Texas jackrabbits. We have met them quite often in the countryside. Jackrabbits are considerably bigger than their European cousins. Their long ears give them quite an unusual look.

 I do like those long-eared hoppers.

Video made during our walks in the Texas countryside.

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"My Texas Alphabet" is my, quite a personal, summary of our hitherto life in Texas. 

 

A for Armadillo

Coming back to "My Texas Alphabet" and to the letter "A", it is for Armadillo, of course. 

How could it be different since the animal is one of the symbols of Texas?  
You can meet it in the countryside.  Armadillos tend to be rather slow regarding their actions. They are cute in their own way, though.

Video and photos: One of the Texas symbols met during one of our walks in the country area. 

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"My Texas Alphabet" is my, quite a personal, summary of our hitherto life in Texas. 

D for Deer

I do not know how I could forget about them writing about Ds in "My Texas Alphabet"!

There are so many deer in our area and they are everywhere. It always amazes me how gracefully and effortlessly they hop over fences. 

 

 

Sadly, it happens a deer jumps on a road and perishes, colliding with a vehicle. When we drive in the countryside, especially when it's dark, we always ask those pretty creatures, "Dear deer, stay aside on the roadside." 

 

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"My Texas Alphabet" is quite a personal summary of our hitherto life in Texas. 

 

K is for Kerrville

 

We go there both for business and for pleasure. From time to time, we visit our favorite places in the city.

 

 

The Guadalupe River area is quite picturesque. 

 

 

If you happen to be in Kerrville, do not miss its parks (situated by the river).

 

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"My Texas Alphabet" is quite a personal summary of our hitherto life in Texas.

Our Cats & Friends: The Bat Tunnel & State Park

Our Cats & Friends: The Bat Tunnel & State Park:
Not far from Fredericksburg, in the Texas Hill Country (off the old San Antonio Road) there is an old tunnel. It used to be part of the Frederickburg and Northern Railway Co. (1913 to 1941). These days it is famous for about three million Mexican free-tailed bats and three thousand myotis bats, which live there and which emerge from the tunnel every evening... - click on the link above to read more.

New Guests on The Patio

I have heard their loud chirps a few times. Yesterday, I finally managed to see them.  First I, spotted ten or eleven of them fly away, then I noticed a row of black, little figures sitting, almost vertically, on the flat, outside frame of a window. It was quite a peculiar view: they looked like a wall decoration, sitting in exactly the same position, as stuck to the wall, all of them turning their heads on the right. Some were peeping uncertainly in my direction so I was trying to stand still, not to scare the cute guests resting on our patio. I was happy to see a 'new' kind of local birds.

How they were sitting

Later I checked that the species is called:
 

Chimney Swift 

Although it reminds a swallow, the two species are not closely related. Chimney swift is a great aerialist. Its beak is tiny (about 0.20"/5mm) though its gape (mouth) is much bigger inside - the bird eats insects and little spiders. An interesting fact is that chimney swift is able to focus both eyes at once or one only/independently. The bird winters in South America and comes back to eastern North America in the summer. The species is protected by law in the US, it is also regarded as 'Near Threatened' by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. 

Chimney swifts are monogamous birds

Chimney swifts are really cute little creatures (size: 4 3/4 - 5", 12-12.5cm) and I am happy they are in our area too. Hopefully they find home in our chimney.


Picture and birds' voice from:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ChimneySwift23.jpg

Birdwatching in Texas

I used to think birdwatching is boring.  In the city where I lived, most common birds where sparrows, pigeons, seagulls, crows and ravens. They were all mostly black and gray and I found nothing interesting in watching them. Maybe because I so very much got used to them and, in a way, they were simply part of a well known landscape. Or maybe I because I was too busy. Or maybe both.

Baltic Sea seagulls

In Texas, due to the climate difference, wildlife - fauna and flora - is obviously not exactly the same as in Poland. It is interesting to see birds, plants and animals new to me. I not only enjoy watching them but also learning something about these unknown (to me) species.

In our neighborhood there was an area with a very old wood, trees and bushes untouched by humans for ages. With a little stream, it was a habitat and home for various kinds of creatures including many birds. Their songs and chirps were heard from early morning till the night. I loved listening to their voices. Especially the cardinal's calls were quite distinguished. Since the wood was not far from our house, I could observe the birds sitting in the trees and flying around our yard.

Here are some of them which I really liked.

1. My favorite one - Northern Cardinal.  They sing so beautifully!

The males, so pretty in red, because of their color were easy to spot among the greenery of the woods. The females are pale grayish brown with some reddish pink bill, not that noticeable at all.

2. Blue Jay - size: 10-11" (25.5/28cm)

They are also great vocalists and wonderful singers. Sometimes they even imitate hawk screams.

3. Northern Mockingbird - size: 9-10" (23-25.5cm)

The mockingbird can not only imitate other birds but also incorporate many various sounds into their repertoire (eg. barking dogs). Both males and females are alike in appearance.

4. House Sparrow - size: 51/2-6" (14/15cm)

Male House Sparrow

My favorite city bird which cousins live in Poland also. The male has a gray crown and gray rump. The female is dingy gray. Size: 51/2-6" (14/15cm).

5. Ruby-throated Hummingbird

These are very difficult to spot as they are so tiny (31/4 - 31/2"/ 8-9cm)! I have seen them twice maybe - thanks to my husband who noticed them and showed them to me.

It was so great having all the beautiful singers around! The area was also full of other musicians - katydids, crickets and similar instrumentalists which played their loud music days and nights.

/

One sad day the wood was cut down and destroyed, and so were the animals' lives. Only a few trees were left. It was so terrible, especially that the little woodland had also been a stop for flocks of migrating birds - since always I guess. When the season came, once we heard lots of birds' cries, we looked out and saw plenty of yellowish birds, sitting on the three trees - the remains of the wild land. Many were flying around as if they had not known where to sit. They looked disoriented and confused. - no high branches to rest, no water to drink (the stream had been covered with concrete), no bugs to eat. It was all so sad! Probably quite a lot of those birds did not survive that migrating season.

Great Crested Flycatcher - size: 8-83/4" (20.5/22cm)

It eats large birds and dwells in treetops. Migrates to Mexico and South America in April.

All in all, with no trees around, most of the birds were gone. So it was nothing to be sorry about leaving the place when our migrating time came.

Some other birds which are quite popular here and do not occur in Poland:

• Mourning Dove - they are quite lovely. A couple of them visits our patio quite often. I like them too! They migrate to South America in September. Size: 10-12" (25.5/30cm)

Mourning Doves are monogamous birds

Interesting though maybe not that cute:

• Common Grackle - size: 10-12" (25.5/30.5 cm)

Picture from From Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 3.0

• Great-tailed grackle - size: 101/2-181/2" (26.5/47cm)

Quite noisy guys. Usually there are a lot of them around supermarkets, looking for something to eat. "In Mexico, where it is known as the chanate or zanate, there is a legend that it has seven songs. 'In the creation, the Zanate having no voice, stole its seven distinct songs from the wise and knowing sea turtle. You can now hear the Zanate's vocals as the Seven Passions (Love, Hate, Fear, Courage, Joy, Sadness, and Anger) of life.'" (citation from wikipedia)

Credits: pictures of American birds & birds' sounds source - wikipedia.org
Northern Cardinal: By Stephen Wolfe from Columbus, OH, USA (Northern Cardinal I  Uploaded by Snowmanradio) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons;
Blue Jay: By Mdf (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], via Wikimedia Commons;
Northern Mockingbird: By Captain-tucker (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons;
House Sparrow: By Passer_domesticus_on_rose.jpg: PewuCom derivative work: Totodu74 (Passer_domesticus_on_rose.jpg) [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons;
Ruby-throated hummingbird: public domain, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Great crested flycatcher:By DickDaniels (http://carolinabirds.org/) (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons;
Great-tailed grackle: (Photograph taken by Patrick Coin) [CC BY-SA 2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5)], via Wikimedia Commons.

Summarizing My Three Years In Texas - What I Learned, Enjoyed & How To Adjust To Life In Another Country

Time passes by so quickly. Soon there will be the third anniversary of my arrival in the States and in Texas. I think it is a good reason to sum up my experiences and write something about it. Just a few thoughts. Some of my previous posts have already touched the topic in certain ways but I do not intend to repeat myself.

A brief summary on what was new to me, what I learned/experienced/found out.

1. Housing
That was quite surprising - to learn that houses here are built in a totally different way, comparing to houses in Poland and Europe (where houses are made mostly of bricks and concrete, not wood). When I lived in Poland I read an article about a lady who had been stuck in an office toilet (somewhere in the States). Since it was late and there was no one to free her, within a few hours, she managed to scratch a hole in a wall and got out. Reading that news I could not understand how she had been able to do it. Because I had a Polish kind of wall in mind - thick and hard. You could scratch it for a month or longer and who knows whether it would be long enough to be successful (to make a big hole to go through it). Now I know the difference. But I still find it peculiar when I see a half of a house being transported somewhere.

2. Before I moved to Texas, I sometimes happened to watch a show (on TLC) about a health place, run by doctors and other professionals, for teenagers with obesity problems. The program presented the kids' dramas and struggles. At that time I found those young ones (with no offense) extremely and unusually big. Mainly because proper diet and keeping the right body weight had always been a topic in Poland. When I came to Texas, I learned those teenagers were neither extreme nor unusual. At least not here.

3. Clothes and their sizes
I am S when in Texas (feels good!). When in Europe, I am M, sometimes L, depending on a country where the clothes are made or/and the manufacturer.

4. Language
Of course, it helps when you are able to speak English (unless you can speak Spanish). But since I had learned British English, sometimes the differences in vocabulary and pronunciation caused a lot of confusion. Meaning myself and people whom I tried to talk to.
Some examples? Here they are:
Once I wanted to get a haircut and have my fringe trimmed. A usual thing but the hairstylist did not understand what I wanted. So I showed her. Later I learned that 'fringe' is called 'bangs' here.
Another time, when at a supermarket, I wanted to get a trolley - people did not know what I meant. So now I also call it 'a cart' as everybody else around.
There are more such words of course: a plaster and bandage, plaster and cast and so on, and so on.

5. Food/ Cuisine

• I quite like the traditional Southern dishes. However, when I prepare them at home, I try to make them lighter and, of course, add a Polish style to them. 
• Coleslaw is a popular side in Poland, so I was happy when I also found it on the menus here. 
• Fish and chips in Texas taste much better than the ones I happened to have in England.
• I have always liked cod and other cold sea kinds of fish. In Texas, catfish and hush puppies have become my favorite food too.
• Tea is very popular in Poland but it is commonly served hot. I guess the reason is much colder climate there. In Texas, I learned to drink cold tea, especially during the summer. By the way, my husband makes the best cold tea in the world!
• Buffet type food places are fun (and the ones we visit offer tasty meals too).
• Best hot & sour soup ever, not to mention other Chinese dishes, are made in a certain Pearl Chinese Restaurant in North TX.
• Obviously, while in Texas, I have learned a lot about Tex-Mex cuisine too. And I also enjoy having it from time to time. 

Some of the posts on food and drinks I wrote earlier: 

My First Thanksgiving & Cooking Challenge

About Groceries, Bread And Everyday Meals

About Doing New Things & How I Won With Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

Pearl Chinese Restaurants

The Ultimate Buffet Experience At Pizza Inn

6. Music and Live Entertainment

• Bass Hall in Fort Worth is quite a pretty place and so is Winspear Opera House in Dallas. 
• I have always been fond of music by Tchaikovsky but I needed to come to Texas to see 'The Nutcracker' live. At Christmas. And learn that it is one of the local Holiday traditions.
• Besides that, we enjoyed watching many other ballets and music performances including a musical by Gershwin, classical music, jazz, traditional Irish music and more.
•  North Texas Irish Festival - various interesting traditional music and dance groups, and more modern, rock bands. Quite an event. While listening to some of the musicians who sang and played shanty-like songs, I had a feeling I was back by the sea in Poland.
• Scottish Festival & Highland Games - music and fun again!
• Scarborough Fair reminds me old times country fairs seen in movies. The same atmosphere and similar attractions. Laughter and stage magic! Not to mention the mermaids and their stories. :)
• Sports: rodeo, baseball, and hockey games - enjoyable and entertaining.

My First Live Baseball Game
My First Live Hockey Match
My First Time At The Rodeo

7. Cars and washing machines
Mostly everybody in Texas has a car but not everybody has a washing machine. It is the opposite in Poland. With very well developed public transport, numerous bus stops and buses going to various places every few minutes, commuter trains, ferries (at least where I come from), a car is simply not needed there. I used to know people in Poland who, despite having a car, preferred going to work by bus - to save on gas and to avoid traffic stress too.
In Texas, a car is a kind of first aid thing. Not having one can cause real problems.

8. Travel

• Texas Hill Country is absolutely beautiful!
• Everybody is somebody in Luckenbach.
• We remember the Alamo too.We visited the place during our first Texas travels. 

9. Nature
Texas is not just a desert as quite a lot of guys in Poland tend to think (maybe because of the westerns they have seen and the scenery shown in those movies). The state has a lot of greenery, flowers, botanic gardens and beautiful landscapes.
When in Texas, I 'discovered' many plants which are also grown in Poland. The difference is that there, they are small, nursed mainly in plant pots. It is nice to see how big and beautiful they can become in the hot climate and weather conditions.
I saw raccoons as big as fat cats, admired the lovely birds of Texas (the red cardinal is my favorite one) and enjoyed listening to their songs (meaning birds of course, not raccoons); smelled some animals (guess what it was - did not enjoy it at all).
Bluebonnets are smaller and cuter here than similar kinds of plants which I know from Poland. On the other hand, the European ones are colorful, not only blue.

Finally, my advice for those of you who have moved to another country:

• Visit various places in your new neighborhood/ area. Try to learn some history to better understand local people and  their customs as well.
• Be open to differences and new things.
• Do not categorize: 'better'/'worse' than at home. It does not change anything and leads you to nowhere. 
• Find some places you like to go to and something you like doing.
• Take everything as it is.
• Try to adjust to new life circumstances and the society but remember who you are and where you come from.

• ENJOY!