USS Texas - Floating Museum Visit

[Major_A]

I've lived within 15 minutes of the USS Texas all of my life and have only seen it twice. The first time was when I was in elementary school and it was falling apart. Aside from that I was too young to appreciate the ship and what she did. Last week I revisited the ship, this time with an appreciation for her. Luckily for me the boat is painted in her fighting camouflage from WWII. Here are a few pictures that I took from the outside of the ship.







While playing some Company of Heroes I realized that the USS Texas was featured in the game firing on Cherbourg.




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Texas_%28BB-35%29

And here's a picture of the San Jacinto Monument/Battleground. It's the monument built roughly where we (Texans aka mostly non-Texans) kicked Santa Anna's ass back to Mexico and won our independence. This picture was taken from the USS Texas which is across the street from the monument.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Jacinto_Monument

[pwcmed]

Every time I go to Houston to visit a good friend he ALWAYS wants to take me. I saw the Belfast in London and the Alabama in Mobile and explored every nuck and cranny of those ships. Maybe I should stop by.

[Major_A]

Go when you have to wear a jacket outside. I was drenched when I came out of the ship's interior.

[Tim Burton]

I've snuck on that ship a couple of times when it was closed.

I really want to go into the magazines and through the armor belt. I know they do tours, but everytime I am there, isn't the time that they do the tours.

[Major_A]

From what I gathered most of the "off limits" tours happen at night or if you have a large private group. If Houston is indicative of the heat and humidity of the conditions in the Pacific (when the ship went to fire on Okinawa) then I truly feel sorry for the sailors. They must have lost 5+ pounds a day just from water loss.

[vicaphit]

I imagine the pacific being a lot more humid than Houston. I have never been to Texas, but isn't that a dry heat?

[Major_A]

Northern Texas yes, Houston no. The humidity is consistently in the 80s%-90s%. Most people outside of Gulf Coast humidity have never heard of the heat index. Basically it's the heat plus humidity. For example it is 91 degrees but with the heat index it's 97. You go to Dallas and that's a dry heat, if it's 100 outside then it feels like 100. If it's 100 here it probably feels closer to 115.

[HONkUS]

Houston is like the sweaty arm pit of Texas. Only its an armpit full of Asians, messed up roads, and mosquitoes.

I lost a pair of $100 dollar sun glasses on a tour of that ship! Fun tour though!

Id also recommend the USS Lexington in Corpus also a very big very fun tour!