Flat Stanley Goes South!

by Stacy Puryear

For Sophie Rogers

“Adventure is worthwhile.” – Aesop

Stanley arrives in Austin
Wurstfest
Gameday in Aggieland
Afternoon Tea
Weekend in Atlanta

Stanley Arrives in Austin

Sophie sent her Stanley to visit Stacy in Austin, Texas. Stacy is her mom’s best friend who lived across the street when they were kids. Later Stacy and Sophie’s mom both attended the same college and were roommates.

Austin is the capital for the state of Texas. While there Stacy took Stanley downtown to see the state capitol building. It is a very tall and large building. It was built in 1888 and has a beautiful park surrounding it. While there Stanley got to see some of the grounds and statues that are there.

Also while downtown, Stacy and Stanley went to a luncheon. The lunch was a special one to celebrate the Girlstart organization. Stacy loves to work with Girlstart as they empower young girls like Sophie to be interested in STEM. They offer after school programs and other activities for the whole family. Girlstart began in Austin 20 years ago and has now spread to other cities in Texas as well as other states.

Wurstfest

One Sunday afternoon, Stacy, her mom, and Stanley went to New Braunfels to attend Wurstfest. It is a small town that celebrates their German heritage each year with the festival.

While at the festival, Stanley and the others listened to live music. The favorite music choice is polka music! Lots of people danced and sang along with the bands. They also met up with Stacy’s friends who lived near by.

In the evening there was a fun band with a lead singer named Alex. He played the accordion and had a great time with the crowd watching. Stacy’s mom even got to meet Mollie B who is famous for her televised polka parties!

Gameday in Aggieland

On another weekend, Stacy, her dad, and Stanley took at trip College Station, Texas. This is the location of Texas A&M University and where both Stacy and Sophie’s mom went to college. On this Saturday, the Aggies were playing football so they went to the tailgate before going to the game.

At the tailgate there was good food and time to visit with friends. One of the fun games played was 4 square where both adults and kids all played together. Also while there the students who keep the tradition alive of riding horses came by on a ride around campus. The horses were beautiful!

While there Stacy and Stanley walked around and saw the campus. On the tour they saw the status of Sully. Students put pennies on Sully’s feet for good luck before a big test! Fun fact about Sully is that he is the inspiration for the lead character in the movie Monsters Inc. Former students from Texas A&M worked on creating the movie and got to pick Sully’s name. Other places they went included the Century Tree where people often get engaged to be married. It is a favorite places for an Aggies to propose to other Aggies.

Also on campus they went by the Psychology Building where both Stacy and Sophie’s mom had classes while in college. They even got in trouble once in this building for passing notes in class!

For the football game, Stanley went with Stacy into Kyle Field. It is a huge stadium that seats over 104,000 people. The game was great – in the end the Aggies won and the fans were happy! Stacy and her dad attend all the home games and have for the 15 years. It is one of their favorite traditions.

Afternoon Tea

The next weekend, Stanley got a special treat – he got to attend Afternoon Tea with Stacy and her mom. Afternoon tea is an adult tea party where you have hot tea and nice snacks and desserts.

This tea was special as it was a birthday present for Stacy’s mom. To make it even more fun they both wore fun hats! The location for the tea was at an old hotel in downtown Austin called the Driskill. This hotel was built in 1886 which means it is over 130 years old.

During the meal they had 5 different kinds of tea, small finger sandwiches, and mini desserts! Everything was very yummy. Stacy and her mom had a wonderful time chatting and enjoying the afternoon together.

Weekend in Atlanta

The last weekend that Stanley visited Stacy, they headed to Atlanta, Georgia. The weekend was full of adventure – including an airplane ride and fun places to visit. One of the stops there was to see the World of Coca-Cola. There Stanley learned about the history of the Coca-Cola company and met the Coca-Cola Polar bear.

One of the best rooms was the Tasting Room. There you can taste over 100 type soda pops from all over the world. There were some good ones in other locations but some were not very good! The place was decorated for Christmas and had all kinds of trees already setup.

Also while there Stacy and Stanley visited the College Football Hall of Fame. The place was crowded and had lots of fans visiting. Outside the museum the park next door was beautiful with all the fall colors.