Show Me Missouri: Branson (6.10.24 to 6.13.24)

We spent three days in Branson, Missouri, June 10 to 13, 2024, courtesy of our timeshare servicer, Capital Vacations.  We stayed at Grand Crowne Resorts, in a unit with a jacuzzi in the corner of the bedroom.

We didn't realize, when we accepted Capital Vacations' offer, that our timeshare complex, Villas at Southgate, had already been sold to Capital Vacations, subject to Capital Vacations dealing with a few last hold-outs.  When we met with a counselor, we were told that we either needed to convert to the Capital Vacations system or have our annual maintenance fee raised from $700 per unit per year to nearly $5,000 per unit per year, over the next ten years.  We converted to the Capital Vacations system and made the best deal we could.  We figure that we will break even in ten years, when Dave is 87.  In the meantime, Capital Vacations does have beautiful units in interesting places like Cape Cod, Kennebunkport, Hawaii, and, of course, Florida.  We were given three free nights in Myrtle Beach this fall for a "new member's seminar."  We were also promised there will be no sales pitches.... 

Branson is all about shows.  I love musical programs and I thoroughly enjoyed the five shows that we attended during the four days we spent in Branson.  In contrast to Vegas, where I also love the shows, Branson's programs are much cheaper and completely clean.  Dave could hardly wait to get out of Branson, and I agree that it is full of hype and hucksters.  Still, I love the music.

Our favorite show was "Queen Esther", a Bible spectacular with elaborate sets, animals trotting across the stage and up and down the aisles, sumptuous costumes, and beautiful voices.  The one thing that could entice David back to Branson is next year's presentation of "David."

We also loved the Haygoods show.  The six or eight siblings play a total of nine musical instruments, and they shuffled between them throughout the show in an impressive way--banjo to violin to harp to guitar to piano to harmonica to....

The Haygoods are an example of a Branson phenomenon--family shows that continue for decades.  They Haygoods were presenting in Branson back in 1999.  Shades of the Jackson Five and The Osmonds.

One recent twist--one of the sibs has studied pyrotechnics, so the stage was, literally, "on fire."

Dave loves "oldies" music from the 60s, 70s, and 80s, and the group, "Pierce Arrow," delivered.  "There was nothing worth anything in the 90's," one of the musicians lamented to his oldster audience.

I love Celtic music, country, and Gospel, and so we included shows featuring those types of music, as well.

I couldn't resist buying Deanna's very own Southern cookbook.  The recipe for pralines looks great.

It was obvious that Branson is a MAGA kind of place.  Dave and I wondered if we would be mobbed if we wore "Biden/Harris" t-shirts.  Still, I am patriotic and religious, if not right wing.  I do stand for the flag and kneel for the cross.

A display outside one of the shows took me aback--"My family is forever."  That is a tenet of the LDS faith and a variation on a Primary song.  My values align and misalign with Branson culture in strange ways.

In addition to good music, Branson has good Southern food.

The specialties at Farmhouse Restaurant were biscuits and blackberry crumble.  I ordered both.

Next door was Dick's Five and Ten, which advertised that it sold  250,000 items.  Many of the items were trashy, such as pink pajama bottoms with whiskey bottles decorating them.  The store did carry a line of sauces and pickles from which I chose gifts for my paralegal, Cate.

Our final dinner at "Local Flavor" restaurant reminded me of what I like about Branson, despite the traffic, miniature golf courses and souvenir shops on each corner, and time share sales everywhere.  

Live country music swirled around us comfortingly, as we ate our barbecued salmon with collard greens, corn bread, and sweet potato fries.