On the Route of Don Quixote

Hi Kids,


Spain is so beautiful -- even in the rain. I sprinkled off and on yesterday but seemed to stop when Miss Elaine wanted to take pictures. This morning we went to a 500-year old inn, like the ones Don Quixote would have visited on his travels. Then we saw more windmills -- and another castle. Wow!
This is the time in La Mancha -- this particular region of Spain -- when they harvest the saffron fields. Saffron is a very expensive spice -- it´s the a part of the crocus flower. We got to watch some people picking the flowers. Then they throw away the pretty purple petals and keep the little yellow part at the end of the stamens. Miss Elaine bought some saffron from the people who had just been harvesting it. She´s never cooked with it because it is so expensive but she says she will try it now. (It doesn´t cost as much here.)
Then we went to Toledo -- a very beautiful, very old city. We saw many famous paintings including lots by El Greco (His real name was Domenico Theotokopolis) but the Spaniards just called him "The Greek." The cathedral was very elaborate.
We spend a lot of time eating. Miss Elaine says we will have to exercise a lot when we get home!
We leave tomorrow to come back to the U.S. I am bringing you some little treats.
Love,
Batman

Castles in Spain

Hi Kids,
Yesterday I had lunch in a castle! Spain is so beautiful and surprising. There are acres of olive trees and grapevines and beautiful scenery. The highlight of the day was seeing windmills -- not the kind we have in Oklahoma but old-fashioned ones. In the story of Don Quixote, he thinks they are giants and he charges them with his lance. Poor Don Quixote! The food here is super -- I think I told you about the chocolate on the breakfast buffet. They also have pate, which is ground-up, seasoned liver. Miss Elaine LOVES it. Sorry this is so short -- but Miss Elaine is telling me I have to go. One of the writers is doing a video show on elephants -- he´s from India. Not exactly on the Spanish program -- but it should be interesting.
Love,
Batman

Ola from Espana

Hi Kids,
I´m in Alcala de Henares, a city close to Madrid, Spain. I can´t show you pictures until I get home but I wanted to tell you a bit about my trip. Miss Elaine and I are following the route of Don Quixote (pronounced Don Kee-oh-tee). He is a character in a book written 400 years ago -- maybe the most famous book in Spain. It was written by a man named Cervantes (Sir-vahn-tays) and I will go see his house later today. It is a funny book -- but very long. Cervantes was making fun of the popular reading material of his time -- stories about brave knights going on dangerous missions and saving damsels in distress. That´s an old-fashioned way of saying ´´ ladies in peril.´´ Don Quixote read too many of those books and he began to imagine that he was a brave knight going on missions. He wore a cardboard helmet that he made and got a bony, old horse and thought it was a strong, young war horse. He imagined many dangers on his trips -- I´ll tell you more later.
Miss Elaine and I are staying in a parador -- this is a hotel owned by the Spanish government. They take historic buildings and turn them into really cool places to stay. Centuries ago, this was a convent. Now it is a modern hotel -- so modern that we don´t have a room key. We just hold a card to a spot on the door and it opens. When we get in the room, we put the card in a slot and all the lights go on automatically. When we wanted to take a nap, Miss Elaine pressed a button and curtains came out of the ceiling and made the room dark. Wow! I love this place. Miss Elaine is taking lots of pictures. Maybe we can do a show when we get back.ç
Love,
Batman

Batman at the Beach

Hi Kids,

Miss Elaine and I just got back from Apalachicola, Florida. If you look at a map, you'll find it at the bottom of the big bump on the Florida panhandle. (Pronounce it: app-uh-latch-uh-cola) It's a beautiful little town with lots of friendly people. Miss Elaine said they are very dog-friendly there -- and now she knows they are bear-friendly, too.

The town is on Apalachicola Bay, which is an estuary. An estuary is a very important biological area where fresh waters (in this case from the Apalachicola River) mix with ocean water. St. George Island, which is a barrier island off-shore, helps hold water in the bay so that the water isn't completely fresh and isn't completely salty. Lots of species use this area as a nursery so there are many, many kinds of animals and plants found here. They have a very good visitors' center at the Apalachicola Estuarine Reasearch Reserve -- I learned a lot. As usual, Miss Elaine wanted me to get a good view of everything. Here, she is holding a corn snake -- a colorful, harmless snake, which is found here. It crawled on my face and around Miss Elaine's neck! Everyone thought we were very brave but it was fun. The snake was smooth and cool and not slimy at all.

Saturday we got up early to go fishing. This is Justin McMillan of Journeys of St. George Island. He has a lovely, big boat.

I didn't get to fish. Bears fish with their paws and claws -- and somebody forgot to give me any claws! Miss Elaine had to use a fishing pole. Fingernails don't work as well as claws! She caught lots of fish but we threw them all back so they would be okay. This is a Spanish mackerel she caught -- it was really pretty but it had sharp teeth so we were careful not to get close to those!

There were dolphins swimming close to the boat. When we got ready to go home, Captain Justin speeded up and the dolphins swam in so they could surf in the wake. Isn't this neat?

Love,

Batman

Taking the Train to Hit the Trail

Hi Kids,

Week before last Miss Elaine, Mr. Jack and I took a train trip to Fort Worth, Texas. I LOVE the train -- the seats are roomy and comfortable, the scenery is great and there's even a snack car! In the picture at the top, you can see part of the Oklahoma City train station through the train window. This is me in my comfy seat.

We saw lots of museums in Fort Worth. My favorite was the Cowgirl Museum. It's not as big as the Cowboy Museum here in Oklahoma City, but it's still really good. I got to pose for a picture on this little pony. Miss Elaine and I made a video of us riding a bucking horse -- but she can't download it. It wasn't a real horse anyway -- more like a rocking horse -- but it was fun.

We got to see real horses and cattle when we visited the Stockyards. Cowboys used to drive their cattle up the Chisholm Trail -- this is me by a Chisholm Trail marker.

Every day, cowboys do a mini-cattle drive. This is one of the cowboys and he let me ride on his horse.
I really liked seeing the longhorn cattle -- but those horns were scary!

Love,

Batman Bear