Apparently it’s a rule that you can’t come to this part of the country and not visit the Dr Pepper Museum in Waco, TX. So being good visitors, we took the afternoon to drive 30 miles down I-35 and check it out.

The Dr Pepper Museum is a must-see for people who love vintage Americana. It’s also a fun stroll through the past if you remember some Dr Pepper commercials from the 50s and 60s (primarily), and interesting for the person who likes factory tours. The museum is not actually part of any Dr Pepper facility today, but it is located in the first Dr Pepper plant in downtown Waco, and they have a nice collection of antique syrup-making and mixing equipment.

But the museum is rather small. A $5 admission brings you through two levels of exhibits that you can skim in about 30-45 minutes, or browse in-depth for maybe an hour or more if you stretch it. We spent nearly as much time in the restored soda fountain shop, trying the “original” recipe for Dr Pepper which uses Imperial Cane Sugar rather than corn syrup.

Does it taste better? You decide!

Along the way north on I-35, you’ll pass Exit 353, where there is an abundance of Czech bakeries. It’s one of those little ethnic settlements that can be found in unlikely places in Texas. We dropped into “Little Czech Bakery”, and came out 30 minutes later with a pile of boxes filled with interesting things to eat: buns stuffed with various meats and cheeses; pastries variously filled with poppyseed, cream cheese, and cherry. That, plus a little of Eleanor’s leftover Mexican corn salad (added to tomato soup), made up dinner — easy and delicious!

Today, regretfully, we are departing NTAC. The people here have really rolled out the red carpet for us, giving us dinner, courtesy parking, high-speed Internet, local information, and little gifts. For example, I returned to the trailer yesterday to find this rock on our doorstep:

… so of course I turned it over. Who can refuse a rock that is so polite?

Sign of the week!