Alamo Report: 02/18/12

Weather has been uneven. Today it is mid 70s and crystal clear, blowin' to beat hell.

We are still adjusting to the local layout, getting to know some of the locals, finding the best bakery (!), finally finding a liquor store - surprisingly difficult, restaurants. There is a Tex-Mex restaurant within a long block which has a lot of fresh seafood. It is hard to screw up shrimp stuffed with white cheese, wrapped in bacon, coated with a spicy crust.

The locals are not what I expected. A lot of the locals Hispanics have been here for 200 or 300 years. Last night I asked our Hispanic waiter how to pronounce something on the menu. He didn't know. He confessed he could not speak Spanish. So I asked him where he was from. Local, lived here all his life. 

We've been on bird outings every day. Most of the people staying in this place are "birders". We are not, we are more "birdwatchers". The birders are trying to check off as many species as possible. We try to I.D. them, but are not really driven. The folks who were in a nearby unit have a "BIRDR" licence plate. They spend their time driving all over the country in quest of one more notch on their life list. They were here to score a Rose-throated Becard and a Golden-Crowned Warbler. This morning they headed for Florida on a report of a wild breeding Flamingo. Frankly, I don't get that, but they were pleasant people. And then there are the professional birding guides. ??? One on one guides, apparently mostly for older women. They are what Lorna refers as Birder Gigolos.