Rio Grande Valley Leftovers

We will be leaving the Rio Grande Valley at the end of December, so here are some leftover items from the "Tip of Texas" -- as always, click for a larger image:

When we went to the Hidalgo Lights it was dark, and the 10 foot statue of the Killer Bee, dressed in a sparkling coat of Christmas lights, really just looked like a giant, nondescript white blob. So we went back during the daylight hours to see what it really looks like. Here it is, a memorial to the spot where Africanized, or Killer Bees first entered the United States. If you look closely, you can still see the mesh of holiday lights on The Bee (and fans of huge animal likenesses may want to compare and contrast The Bee with the Las Cruces Roadrunner):

In the same post on the Hidalgo Lights, I mentioned the Chinese Dragons made of glass bottles that are on display at the Hidalgo City Hall. Here are a couple more photos of them, including a detail of the bottles:

 

We went to Mexico a couple times, using the border crossing at Progreso. We parked in the U.S., and walked across the bridge over the Rio Grande. Looking into Mexico from the bridge, we spotted this farmer, still using a horse and cart for transportation. And, near the crossing, are the streets of Progreso set up to trap U.S. money -- they are a hodgepodge of dentists, pharmacies, liquor stores and street vendors, and they all take dollars instead of pesos:

 

A lot of folks in the RV parks of the Valley decorate, if I can use that word to describe what they do, their yards. Here are two examples -- a beer-can cactus, and a dog/teacup .... Something, placed intriguingly at the end of their drive (let's just call it "Yard Art"):

 

A couple miscellaneous photos, one of guy on a scooter or a bike (maybe a scike?), and a store that sells secret (shhh!) underwear (a must stop after going to the Pole-Dancing-For-Brides-Store):

 

And lastly, not for the squeemish, a common sight in some grocery stores -- pig and lamb heads. Hey, honey, what's for dinner?