Branson, MO

Date: Sunday May 15 - Monday May 24

We are in Branson, MO for a "rally" of owners of Coach House Platinum RV's.  Never having attended any rally before and never having been to Branson before, we were unsure of what to expect. 

We have had a wonderful time, and really enjoyed getting to know all the other owners. The rally was held at America’s Best Campground in Branson, MO. If this is truly America's best campground, then we are in trouble! Actually, it's a well maintained, quiet campground, and we've been very comfortable here with our full hookups. As with many private campgrounds, though, we're packed in like sardines, and there's not alot of privacy between sites.  That was almost a benefit while the rally was going on, because we were here, at least partially, to socialize with the other owners. But now that the rally is over, it's just another crowded campground.

Have any of you ever been to Branson before?  I never had, and doubt I'll ever come back.  But I'm glad I got to experience it once so that I know what it is. It's a pretty little town sandwiched between 3 lakes and the Ozark mountains that has been overrun by tacky Americanna. The town has more than 100 "shows" that include musical productions, magic, comedy, and religious plays. Many of the musical productions are headlined by has-bins and one hit wonders (think The Oak Ridge Boys, Andy Williams, and the Platters.) There are also several very popular cover bands. Everything is very "family friendly" (the comedians don't cuss) and refreshingly politically incorrect. We've had a devil of a time finding something to drink, and it's not even a dry county! Most of the tourists here are old.  Really old.  We're feeling like youngsters by comparison. 

Sally w/ quacking Duck Lips

Our schedule was full here with 4 days of rally activities. We did a number of things with the group that we never would have done otherwise. We saw shows and entertainers that we never would have picked and we even "rode the ducks." This involved riding around Branson on a tour vehicle that is able to drive on land, but also can go into the water. If I can figure out how to attach pictures to this blog, I'll give you one of me with quacking duck lips.

Rick & Sally aboard the Showboat Branson Belle

The 2 highlights for us of the Branson shows were a dinner cruise aboard the "Showboat Branson Belle", and a comedy show with has-bin Russian comedian Yakov Smirnoff.  The Branson Belle is a sternwheeler that took us on a cruise around Table Rock Lake. A mediocre dinner (with no alcohol available) was followed by a variety show that included (in my opinion) the best singing group that we heard in Branson, an aerialist violinist (!), and a magician. It was great fun!

Yakov Smirnoff

Rick really resisted my desire to see Yakov Smirnoff perform, but he was actually quite funny, and surprisingly sweet and moving as he told his story of emigrating to the US from Russia. He and his parents arrived in NYC without a word of English, and his show is full of the kindnesses that random New Yorkers showed them.

Today is our last day in Branson, and we're going to use it to do a bunch of mundane yet necessary things like the laundry, and a thorough cleaning of the RV, both inside and out.

Rick's Two Cents

Pressure Pro gave an alarm on one of the Saturn tires.  Turns out we picked up a screw in one of the tires.  This is why we purchased the system.  Unfortunately, another sensor has gone bad.  The company is going to forward one to us somewhere down the road. 

By the way, the Liberty's V-10 is a gas hog.

After some encouragement, Sally agrees that although we are not picture people, it would be nice to have some pictures of the journey so we picked up a little camera. My job to get it running.  Not too bad, just a little trouble finding where the computer hid the import.