Things to Do in Galveston, Texas

I took advantage of the brief break in-between the summer and fall term to do my favorite thing: haul my little fanny out to the beach. For me, the water is home. My hometown, Beaumont, is very close to the Texas coast — about 45 minutes away from Crystal Beach and an hour and a half from Galveston on a day the ferry's not too crowded. I spent as much time as I could there growing up.

I feel pretty landlocked in Waco, both geographically and culturally. When I'm here, I miss the sound and smell of the water and the taste of salt air. I especially miss the fresh Gulf seafood. Naturally, my occasional trips back to Beaumont are all opportunities to get my beach fix. 

The beach at Galveston isn't an ideal tourist location. The water isn't very pretty — it looks muddy — and the sand isn't white. In short, it's not the most picturesque landscape. Prettier beaches are out there. But this one is my beach, and I don't hold its lesser beauty against it. The water is warm enough to swim in, and that's enough for me. A note for all you would-be beachgoers out there: they've recently started charging for parking. You can find information about that here. If you want to avoid paying for your parking and, of course, the crowds, try nearby Crystal Beach. There's less to do, certainly fewer restaurants and clubs, but you get more privacy. Since the area is less developed, you just park on the sand. 

On to what you came for: food! Today, we're gonna talk about dessert, and on Galveston, that means one thing for me: LaKing's. 

I've been coming to this old-fashioned candy shop since I was a little girl, and it's never yet lost its novelty. The candy is delicious and it has a real soda fountain. It's located on Galveston's historic Strand.

Best of all, LaKing's makes its own homemade ice cream in dozens of interesting flavors. I intend to try them all, but somehow I always end up ordering the amaretto almond, my favorite flavor. I have tried several others in the past, and I haven't had one I didn't like. They serve a generous scoop.

Of course, that's not all they serve. The candy side of the shop features a variety of candy from chocolate to taffy (complete with a taffy pull where visitors can watch employees making the shop's saltwater taffy. If you smile or wink, sometimes they'll toss you a piece).

And never fear, diabetic friends! They have an impressive collection of sugar-free sweets, too. All in all, you just can't go wrong with LaKing's, and I never make a trip to Galveston without visiting it. There are other places to buy ice cream on the Strand, but none with the character and quality of this one.