Texas
We covered a lot of ground in Texas. In our compact car, we hit three major cities, saw two geographic regions, and witnessed a lot of cultural contrasts. There was Norteno music and Spanish missions in south Texas and San Antonio; Austin has its hipsters, hanging out and eating well; Dallas features vacant streets and traces of ‘80s veneer; and in between, the ever-present bar-b-que and cowboy hats.
The big sky outside our hotel, and on the road.
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The elements are merciless out there.
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Driving towards San Antonio—lots of pawn shops, fixit spots, and bars.
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San Antonio’s most beautiful mission. It’s still an active monastery and church.
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We could have still been in Mexico considering these surroundings.
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It’s not as extreme as in Slacker, but Austin still has a slow moving vibe.
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The sign of a college town.
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It’s an Austin tradition—going to the bridge overpass at
dusk and watching over a million bats fly out into the night.
They turn the sky black. And watch out for the guana.
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The nocturnal city lit up.
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On top of Austin at a famous look out.
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Colorful stores and piñatas.
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On our drive to Dallas, we stopped Carl’s Corner, a town that Willie Nelson made famous.
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Dallas’ downtown was rather abandoned.
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We’re greeted by the gang at Todd’s parents’ alpaca ranch.
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They were cute, but skittish.
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I was rather shy too. Todd wasn’t.
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We wished we were going back there, but will someday soon.
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