Exploring the Past

This post is dedicated to my visit to the Bullock State Museum, LBJ Presidential Library and my short walk through University of Texas. Bullock State Museum was magnificent on the outside with a huge, nicely designed building as well as massive star outside the entrance (symbolising the Lone Star State). I had no clue what to expect on the inside and i was pretty satisfied with my time there. The museum had three levels, the bottom two levels were more about the older history of Texas and the third one was highlighting the changes Texas had experienced in the last 50 years or so.. There was also a special exhibition on Slavery and Discrimination on the top floor that was very informative. The first two levels had numerous exhibitions on the various battles fought in the state, the struggles faced by the people, and even a huge part of a ship that was recovered and put back together. These two levels really interested me as it showed the changing landscape in Texas as it transformed from a republic to a state as well as the various issues it dealt with. The top level had some cool exhibits but the one about NASA was the one that interested me the most.

After about 2 hours at the Museum, i headed to LBJ’s Presidential Library on a walking route that took me through the University of Texas. It was so cool walking through the campus, seeing the UT tower and various buildings. The campus was really quite big but the football stadium i passed really took the cake. It is so big that i literally stood there staring at it for a good few minutes until someone asked me if i was lost!. It honestly seemed to rival the size of Anfield or Emirates (stadium of Liverpool FC and Arsenal FC respectively). It was so surprising to me that a university could have such a huge stadium, but i guess it does follow the central theme that America has a huge sporting culture. There was also an interesting garden in the campus where the Texas Capitol lines up directly with the University’s Tower. The reason i found this interesting was because it reminded me of the National Mall in D.C. where Capitol Hill and National Monument lines up in a similar manner, which begs the question whether this was just a coincidence or by design.

After a lengthy walk through the campus i reached LBJ’s Library. The library was dedicated to the life and work of President Lyndon Baines Johnson. I had always considered him an American Hero even though some people did not like him due to American involvement in Vietnam. He signed the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act which was a major victory for the Civil Rights Movement. I did not know that much about LBJ’s life and presidency other than his landmark accomplishments, so the time i spent at the library was pretty special. I saw his progress through politics, his struggles but more importantly, i realised how tirelessly he worked at his job. The amount of things that he did during his short tenure is beyond belief (i recommend checking his work out). The moment that was really special was a video of his “We Shall Overcome” speech as well as the reactions of the speech from Civil Rights legends such as Mr John Lewis. One Presidential library down, 43 to go (not 100% sure if all of the presidents have libraries).