Sunday to Branson

On Sunday, we made the short drive to Branson...

Enroute, we encountered some interesting intersections on US-65 heading south -- here is a screen capture from the satellite view on Google maps:

We had seen cross-roads done like this in the upper part of Wisconsin -- there aren't actually "cross roads" but rather, all side road traffic turns right on the main road (US-65, in this case), and if the traffic really wanted to turn left, they go up a little ways and make a U-turn, or if the traffic really wanted to go straight across, they would need to turn right, make a U-turn, and then make another right to continue on the same road. Likewise, if traffic on US-65 wanted to turn left onto the cross road, they would need to make a U-turn past the cross road and then turn right onto the desired road.

We were discussing why this might be considered a better solution than a straight-across crossroads -- one thing that came to mind is that a long rig (tractor trailer or big motorhome) that could *not* fit in the median and would stick out into the main lanes would avoid that difficulty -- and they thoughtfully made a wide area where the U-turn comes back onto the main road so you had a wider space than the width of the highway to make your U-turn. It also avoids the need for a traffic signal. It could almost be thought of as a LONG traffic circle where the traffic on US-65 always has the right-of-way. It is just interesting when we're driving along and we see things that are different from what we have experienced elsewhere (like the "jug handles" in New Jersey), and the love/hate affair we have with traffic circles.

We continued our drive down US-65, got to the Branson area and checked into the Escapees RV park in nearby Hollister, Missouri. After enjoying an ice cream treat in the Escapees clubhouse, we drove in to Branson to visit Branson Landing, an outdoor shopping and entertainment area along the river. We wanted to see the Branson Landing Water and Fire show (fountains and fire display set to music that "performs" at the top of every hour).

Before the show, in front of the fountains, with the properties across the river in the background...

... and looking back up the hill toward the outdoor mall area.

We arrived in time for the 6pm show...

... you may be able to see some of the fire plumes in this picture.

The 6pm show was a "combo" show with two songs, "Rocky Mountain Way" and "Living on a Prayer"

You may be able to just distinguish a rainbow that appeared from the water in the air and sun shining through it!

Then we walked down through the rest of the outdoor mall...

... saw this in the window of a candy shop! (I personally like Regina's sweet corn a LOT better than Candy Corn!)

A view down the mall area

We returned to the fountain area and went to a Mexican restaurant that had patio seating with a view of the fountains, so we got to enjoy the 7pm show too...

It had gotten darker, so the fire part of the show was more impressive. This one was not a "combo" show, so just had one song, "Listen to the Music".

Walking back through the mall area to where we parked the Jeep -- not too many folks in the mall area.

The weather is very nice -- not too warm, not too cool, just right! We're looking forward to seeing a number of shows while we're here in Branson!