My recent trip to Branson was so fun and relaxing that I experienced a slight case of the blues when I returned home. Vacation is such a wonderful time — spent with my family — and I treasure the trips every single year.
However, this year seemed to fly by and was missing a few key players. My sister and her husband were on their honeymoon to Florida, so they were not able to join us. My boyfriend also couldn’t make the trip as we had it scheduled just before we met. Even with them missing, I had a great time with my parents and brother. I couldn’t believe a week had passed when we packed up the car and headed back home.
But let’s not dwell on the sadness felt as we left behind the beautiful hills of the Ozark Mountains, the breathtaking views at Table Rock Lake and the many talented musicians. It is vacation after all; it’s meant to end, but the memories last forever.
One of the main reasons I asked my parents to plan a Branson trip this year is because they are owners at Palace View Resort and can pretty much go anytime we want. I love Branson because you can do as much or little as you want and still have a blast doing it.
Our main objective this year was to go to a show pretty much every day, and we accomplished that task, taking only Saturday as a rest day after Friday’s travels. Sunday, we started out with one of our favorite shows, Dixieland Stampede. It was slightly different than the last time we were there, updating the backgrounds and storyline. It’s a must-see every time we are in Branson.
The second night we went to Rock and Roll Revival. It was a fun show, playing loads of rock music from the 50s, 60s and 70s. My favorite set was by David Lawrence who did an entire set as Lionel Richie. He was great.
Next we saw The Haygoods, a performing family that we have seen since they were out at Silver Dollar City in 2001. Like the Dixie Stampede, it is a must for our family when we go. The family of eight siblings only have six performing in the show now, with two brothers pursuing other things. The only sister, Catherine, playing the harp is something that I haven’t seen anywhere else. They play a variety of music and instruments, even doing some tap dance routines.
On Wednesday, we were back at a dinner show, taking a cruise on Table Rock Lake on the Showboat Branson Belle. We had been to the showboat before, but always for their afternoon show. This time we took in the evening show and got to see Branson at night from the water. It was gorgeous. The show was great, too, with four different acts that celebrated the showboats 20 years on the water. Cassandre, the female vocalist act in the show, has the voice of an angel. She sang a medley of Disney classics that had me grinning nonstop.
The last act we saw was another family of performers, Ayo featuring the Voices of Glory. They are a little less known in Branson, but they are wonderful to watch. They appeared in America’s Got Talent in 2009, and they have an interesting story. The trio of siblings are 24, 20 and 16 years of age. The youngest, and only girl, Natalie did a Whitney Houston cover that sounded perfect. If you are ever in Branson and want to see wonderful young talent, go see Ayo at The Hughes Brothers Theatre.
My parents stayed a week longer than my brother and I, which probably added to the sadness as we packed up Friday and headed back to Iowa. I can’t wait for our next vacation. If all goes as planned next year, we will be hanging out with Mickey Mouse at Walt Disney World. Three years is just too long to go without it.
Contact Pam Rodgers at prodgers@newtondailynews.com