TYLER, Texas — The total solar eclipse on Monday is bringing in folks from all over the Lone Star State, the country, and even the world.
"And I thought God, not only is this science, this is also a once in a lifetime -- could be a once-in-a-lifetime thing," said Renee Sims, a Lake Charles, Louisiana native traveling to Tyler for the eclipse.
Renee Sims remembers exactly where she was the last time a partial eclipse passed through her hometown of Lake Charles. She was an elementary school student, and she was fascinated by what she saw that day. So much so, that when this eclipse came around, she scouted out the path of totality, and found Tyler.
"Ya know, on the Google map (I was) looking at all the places and Tyler popped up, and then, to be fair, the One Eleven event popped up, which is literally on top of a historic building," Sims said.
Sims has been looking forward to the eclipse for years, but she said she specifically planned her trip to Tyler around the event that’s going to be held at One Eleven in downtown Tyler on Monday.
One Eleven is home to the only rooftop bar in Tyler, and they can’t wait to welcome folks from all over to see the eclipse from their unique view.
"Yeah we’re super excited about this event. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime ordeal. We think that’s super amazing that they’re making that drive to come visit us here, and hopefully we can deliver a great time for them," said Eric Gatti, venue director at One Eleven.
Sims isn’t the only one traveling a ways to catch the eclipse. Tyler Grant is coming to Tyler from Edmonton, Canada. But this is a trip he’s had circled for a while.
"Thirty years ago I was looking in an encyclopedia and I found out there was a place called Tyler, Texas. And I was like, 'oh this is too funny, I gotta go there and get my picture taken in front of everything,'" Grant said.
Grant’s plans include viewing the eclipse, taking lots of pictures, and conducting some important research on one of Texas’ true treasures.
"Texas barbecue is gonna be right on the list, like, I’m in Kansas City (now) so I gotta try Kansas City barbecue first and then I gotta do the comparison," Grant said.