Fiesta Folklorica, South Padre Island, and more birds

Charro Days Fiesta 2012 celebrates 75 years of bi-national friendship and respect for tradition.  We are fortunate to be here this week for the festival.  Monday evening we attended a festival of dances and music from Mexico presented by grade school students from Brownsville.  I thought you would enjoy the video (give it a few moments to open) and the photos. 

Aaron Blount, 7, a second-grade student at Castañeda Elementary belted out the classic Ranchera " Los Laurels" at Sams Memorial Stadium on Tuesday night during Fiesta Folklorica.

http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/articles/fiesta-137144-folklorica-monday.html

Beautiful costume for this young lady! 

On Tuesday we took a drive to South Padre Island.  A walk on the beach, another visit to a birding center, a stop at a sea turtle rescue center, and reading on the beach with a good book filled the day.  Phil was pretty happy with the variety of birds and his pictures.

Today we took a drive to the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge just outside of Brownsville. 
We walked service roads hoping to see wildlife. A wild hog run it front of us.

The brochure made the tram ride sound quite interesting;  "Take in the sights at one of the most beautiful natural areas in South Texas! Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge's tram tour explores the 15-mile Bayside Wildlife Drive. Winding and weaving past brushlands, wetlands, and the Laguna Madre, this interpretive two and a half hour tour is a great way to see what is truly a piece of living history and the largest federally protected area in the Lower Rio Grande Valley".


We were at a rest stop when another tram rider noticed a bird that had caught a fish.  Phil was in the right place at the right time to capture these pictures.

The bird dropped off his catch, presumably in his nest, and then flew around again and landed on a nearby Yucca plant!

Tomorrow afternoon is the Children's Charro Days Parade and the first day of the Sombrero Festival.