Houston to Marfa

In my last (serious) blog, I talked about Galveston and barbeque in Houston. Well, that pretty much summed up Houston. We spent the next day trying to figure out what to do in Houston, and repeatedly getting two recommendations: go to Galveston, and go shopping. True, Houston had some great shopping, but nothing we couldn't do back east. It was so strange that Houston could be so big, and have so little to do, even according to the natives. We did end up finding a very hopping brunch/bar place for snobby I-think-I'm-soooo-hot 30 and 40 somethings, mostly single. (BTW, these people exist in droves in NYC too, but we generally avoid their see-and-be-seen hangouts.) Of note was how integrated Houston seemed to be, with blacks, Hispanics, whites, Indian (dots not feathers), and others all found together at the restaurant and bars we went to; this wasn't the case in the south. The real reason we went to Houston was to attend the largest mega-church, Lakewood, for Sunday service (see a separate entry). Suffice it to say, it was an interesting experience, and perhaps explains why Houston was so damned dull.

We left Houston Sunday afternoon to visit Sarah's college friend Andy, his wife Shauna, and their 3-year-old daughter Irene. Irene was just the cutest, smartest, little girl. It was nice to catch up with old friends, and just too bad that we can't all live a bit closer together (they're moving soon to Arkansas).

We drove the next morning to Austin, and spent several hours there soaking up the culture. It is truly a very liberal island in Texas, full of many eastern comforts and ammenities. But it's still Texas to an easterner. At a totally superficial level, it still has the huge spaces and cowboy boots, so come on. We drove on, in late afternoon, to San Antonio, in time to have an authentic Tex-Mex dinner, and a stroll around the River Walk. The River Walk is really pretty at night, if a little too perfectly polished, like a Disney World rendition of itself. In the morning it wasn't quite as spectacular, and the chemicals they use to keep the algea from growing in the river are more apparent, tainting the river green in color. The Alamo and Mission San José were both pretty cool, and the review of American history that they provide, I think, can help somewhat explain modern Republican motivation, even though the events occurred several generations earlier.

We drove from San Antonio 414 miles (666 km) to Marfa, along route 90. This part of Texas was actually quite beautiful in parts, and didn't feel quite as big as we'd prepared ourselves for. There is nothing but ranches the whole way, interspersed with small, nothing towns. The mountains and canyons in the last 100 miles, whose rivers feed the Rio Grande, were especially beautiful. More about Marfa later, and pictures too, but our internet connection isn't so good here.