Repeating 'I do' in Galveston

Some couples may want to run in the opposite direction. But some romantics may want to say "I do" all over again. 

The Hotel Galvez and Spa in Galveston, Texas, will host its seventh annual Galvez Wedding Vow Renewal on Saturday, June 10, 2017, on the hotel grounds. The ceremony begins at 10 a.m. and is officiated by Justice of the Peace Jim Schweitzer. Following the ceremony, a small reception will be hosted by the hotel.

Couples may join in the wedding vow renewal at no cost or book an overnight package which includes a courtesy bouquet and boutonniere for the ceremony, participation in the vow renewal and reception, a room for two and champagne accompanied by chocolate-covered strawberries upon arrival. Couples may keep their champagne glasses as a keepsake of their renewal and professional photos are available for purchase.  

The ceremony is scheduled in June to honor the most popular month of matrimony and the 106th anniversary of the historic Hotel Galvez and Spa, a Wyndham Grand Hotel. Available for June 9-11, the package is offered as a one-night package starting at $359 per night or Friday and Saturday package. Advance reservations are required for both. For reservations, call (409) 765-7721 or visit www.HotelGalvez.com and click on “Special Offers.”

Cheré Dastugue Coen is a food and travel writer living in South Louisiana who is the author of several Louisiana romances under the pen name of Cherie Claire and the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.

Galveston's little teapot

            Drive down Seawall Boulevard to the West End of Galveston Island and you’ll be treated to the most unusual house, something akin to a silo top upside down.

            Called The Kettle House because it also resembles a teapot, the home is the cause of many a tourist causing traffic slowdowns on this stretch of highway just outside the Galveston Island State Park.

            According to “Weird Texas: Your Travel Guide to Texas’s Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets” by Wesley Treat, Heather Shades and Rob Riggs, the house was built by a man who once constructed storage tanks for oil companies. “The neighbors, some of whom were residents when the ‘Kettle’ went up, have seen the man but know little about him,” state the authors.

            If you search the Kettle House online you get much of the same, plus one story about how it was constructed to be a convenience store and abandoned.

            My source on the island told me that a man built the unique establishment and a hurricane arrived, preventing him from moving in. The owner passed away and his son now owns the curiosity. It’s believed that no one lives there because they couldn’t get permits to finish the building.
            I don’t know about you all, but I would give anything for a peek inside.