Hello Friends,
I’m sorry that I was out of pocket for most of last week. My husband and I were celebrating our 15th wedding anniversary in Galveston. We had a beautiful time. We stayed in a room facing the ocean at the Hotel Galvez. It was the first hotel built in Galveston after the devastating , “Great Storm” in 1900. Sadly, somewhere between 8,000-12,000 people lost their lives. The location where Hotel Galvez now stands was the location of an orphanage called, "St. Mary’s Orphans Asylum,” ran by the Sisters of Mercy. 90 of the children perished, along with all 10 of the sisters.
The sisters, to protect the children and keep from losing them, tied themselves to the little boys and girls with clothesline ropes. To calm them, they sang “Queen of the Sea” as a distraction from the gusting winds and rising waters. Sadly, only 3 of the children survived. It was so brutal and there were so many bodies that many of them had to be buried wherever they were found. Because of this, among a few other reasons, it is rumored that the Hotel Galvez is haunted. Especially Room 501, a room that is believed to still be occupied by the grieving would-be bride, Audra.
In the mid-1950s, she would stay at the Galvez, waiting for her mariner fiance to return from the sea. One day, she had received word that his ship had gone down and everyone had been lost. In an attempt at joining him in the afterlife, it is believed that she had climbed up the West tower, and hung herself. Making the story even more tragic is that it turned out to not have been his ship that had gone down, but another. The man returned to the Hotel Galvez mere days later, hoping to reunite with his soon to be bride, only to learn that she was gone.
Now, I know this is a very sad story so far. But, on a lighter note, the Hotel was considered being the Summer White House under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, but it also hosted other Presidents as well, such as Eisenhower, Nixon and Johnson. It also hosted celebrities like Sammy Davis Jr., Frank Sinatra, Duke Ellington, Jimmy Stewart and Jerry Lewis. Despite the supposed haunting, the hotel was warm and elegant. It has a lot of Deco elements to it, which make you feel you’re walking back in time. But by far, is my favorite part of the hotel? The pool. Oh, my gosh. It was huge and warm. It had this swim-up bar and a hot tub. Honestly, I could have just stayed in it all day.
I also visited Pleasure Peir, which is a tiny theme park that jets out right over the water. I recently discovered that I no longer love roller coasters! I used to love them. I’d ride all of them, happily, all day long. But, I sat on the outside edge of one called, "The Iron Shark" and HATED it with every fiber of my being. I knew I was going to die lol. It was definitely exciting, but I will never get on that thing again, so help me God!
Probably some of the nicest, most relaxing moments were sitting on the big patio of a souvenir store, of all places, called Murdoch’s. My husband grabbed a beer, and we both just sat on these great Adirondack chairs, over the water. The waves were very active, and we watched seagulls and pelicans. I was disappointed that I didn’t see any dolphins this trip, but that’s okay, maybe next time! Anyway, I sound like a vacation brochure. I say a lot of negative things about Galveston, but it has really cleaned up quite a bit since the last time I went. So, I wanted to gush. Besides, 15 years with my love is nothing to scoff at! I’m excited to see what the next 15 brings for us... and the 15 after that and so on and so forth.
We also got some more exciting news yesterday. My daughter’s boyfriend had asked my husband for her hand in marriage many, many months ago. Yesterday, he asked her with his mother’s ring at a little cafe, and I’m so excited to announce that she said yes! We love this young man, he has been a part of our family since they met, and he fits in beautifully. If I had to hand pick someone for my girl, it would have absolutely been him. She’s had a rough go of it with exes. She’s endured so much abuse at their hands that I was nervous before I met him. But he is so kind, patient and loving with her. Very calm. He’s also quite funny and very talented. He works hard, both with his job and school, and I’m just really so proud of both of them and how far they’ve come. I cannot wait for it to be official!
Anyway, That’s it, I suppose. I am hoping to have some surprises for all of you on Thursday with my next blog, story updates and maybe, FINALLY, the cover reveal, perhaps? Crossing my fingers, it’ll be ready!!
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