Innholdsfortegnelse for January/February 2024 i Texas Highways Magazine

Welcome to the 50th year of Texas Highways! As a staff, we’re honored to shepherd the magazine through this milestone year, one that would not be possible without loyal readers like you. When I joined the team seven years ago, I was quickly struck by our readers’ high level of engagement and passion for the magazine and exploring Texas. I have loved reading your letters, many of them handwritten, detailing stories that connected with you, memories of past Texas trips, and even corrections when we got it wrong—y’all don’t miss a thing. Thanks to each of you who responded to my October letter with suggestions on what you’d like to see during our 50th year and beyond. You will see many of your ideas incorporated into issues this year. This…

Directions to Laredo are easy. Get on Interstate 35 and head south. Go far enough and you’ll get there eventually. Coming from the Valley? Take a left at the Whataburger in Falfurrias and keep going. The flat scrub of South Texas leads to this sprawling border town spread across a jagged crook in the Rio Grande. Today, 250,000 people live in the city that was originally founded as a Spanish colony in 1775. Laredo has long been a nexus where Mexico and Texas commingle. Its most popular and enduring cultural festival, the monthlong George Washington’s Birthday Celebration held every February, features a jalapeño festival and a debutante ball in full U.S. colonial garb. Laredo is now experiencing a renaissance. Local entrepreneurs, chefs, and artists are transforming the city into much…

Given their retro charms, it’s not surprising that motor courts are enjoying fancy redesigns by hip hotel chains—with fancy prices to boot. That’s what makes the Dixie Motel in Brenham a star among motor courts. It is not part of a chain, but a stand-alone original born from the creativity and roll-up-your-sleeves hard work of Brenham couple Sarah and Karl Stopschinski. Self-described “motel people,” the Stopschinskis, who married at the Marathon Motel in West Texas, bought the Dixie after it had long lost the luster of its 1950s origins. They pulled out the motel’s shag carpet and pink asbestos siding and updated the décor of eight streamlined rooms that sit around a courtyard of Zen-raked gravel and twinkling lights. “Guests love the West Texas-like simplicity,” says Sarah, an antiques vendor in…

Lulu is a flirt in the best kind of way. She makes you feel special, pampered, like it’s time to kick up your heels, forget city life, and linger with a book of poems on the porch. Even in your hotel confirmation email she calls you “darling,” as in: “Friendly reminder that we don’t have a fitness center—that’s the point, darling!” “As soon as you walk onto the property at Hotel Lulu, you feel the presence of the character we created, Lulu,” hotel marketing director Matt Johns says. “She is the personification of the Italian art of ‘il dolce far niente,’ or the sweetness of doing nothing, and the property was designed to encourage that.” Each guest room is an artful merging of Round Top farmhouse—original floor-to-ceiling wide-plank timber and…

With a flag-strewn balcony emblazoned with the hotel’s name in bold letters, the Holland Hotel reigns over Alpine’s main thoroughfare. Opened in 1912, it was expanded and revamped in 1928 by Henry Trost. A master of many architectural styles, Trost built the Holland in Spanish Revival; his signature dark wooden beams with gold etchings stretch across its cavernous red-tiled lobby. “The entrance and lobbyTrost designed give that unexpected grand sense of arrival,” says Charles Mallory, the hotel’s owner who reopened its shuttered doors in 2012. The space was once occupied with ranchers and oilmen who’d come to town for a little society, and many still do. Outside in the lobby’s hacienda-style courtyard, trees and a fountain make a cool oasis in the summer heat. Popular with locals, the hotel’s Century…

At Hotel Ritual, the words “Raise Your Vibe” are etched in gold on the pink roomkey keychains. This is but one of the many playful details at this feel-good retreat tucked away in a small East Texas town. Guest rooms are dripping in pleasant touches: pink zinnias plucked from the owner’s garden, palo santo incense sticks, organic beauty products, and sheets so soft you’ll want to linger in bed. Downstairs, a hot tub bubbles by the pool, and the sauna gets so steamy you’ll be grateful for the mineral water on hand to further whisk away impurities. Warmed sesame oil is also provided for massage. Immersed in so much care and beauty, your vibe can’t help but boost. The hotel offers wellness, meditation, and yoga classes in a brick-walled studio with…

EL CHICO 503 I-30, Rockwall. Open daily 11 a.m.- 9 p.m. 972-771-8814; elchico.com It’s now accepted wisdom within the state: The words “hot plate!” roared by a server is something of a culinary covenant guaranteeing Tex-Mex transcendence. As soon as that steaming dish hits the table, you just know it’s going to be good. For me and my family, nothing epitomized that notion quite like El Chico. I heard those words ringing throughout childhood excursions to Dallas, where the restaurant has been based for more than 80 years. Although our preferred location was an outlet in Waco—a halfway point to our home in Austin—those same molten hot cheese enchiladas, saturated with meaty chile con carne, christened every return trip. And no vacation felt complete until we drizzled honey over a…

In Alpine, the Museum of the Big Bend employs W.D. Smithers’ work to illustrate regional history. It also explores his legacy with an exhibit on his biography and a sampling of his photos. The Smithers exhibit features one of the lamps he produced at his Alpine shop in the 1940s and ’50s. The base of the lamp is a wooden wagon, and the shade, shaped like a wagon covering, is a picture of cowboys branding a calf. In the museum’s mining exhibit, Smithers’ photos of quicksilver mines in Terlingua show the difficulty of the underground work; and in the frontier exhibit, one photo gives insight into the equipment used by the cavalry. Open Tue-Sat 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on the Sul Ross State University campus, 400 N. Harrison St., Alpine. museumofthebigbend.com…

The New Year will last 14 days longer this year in Grand Prairie, a suburb of Dallas home to 196,000 people. The Lunar New Year, that is. Beginning Jan. 26, the15-day celebration is held within the walls of the city’s Asia Times Square. It’s a time for revelry, dancing, cooking, and honoring ancestors. Best of all, admission is free. Most popular in the countries of east and southeast Asia, the Lunar New Year begins on the first new moon and ends on the first full moon of the lunar calendar. But even if you’re not familiar with the custom, don’t let that deter you from joining the fun. “We take pride in sharing our cultures as well as bringing others in to celebrate the Lunar New Year,” says Matthew Loh,…

When Dianne Connery moved to Pottsboro in 2010, she was ready to retire. After years working in gerontology consulting in Plano, she just wanted to enjoy the view of Lake Texoma and live the small town life in the community of 2,873 about 77 miles north of Dallas. “I didn’t want to work, I didn’t want to volunteer, I didn’t want to meet people—I just wanted to do my own thing,” she says. But when the Pottsboro Library was going to close due to lack of funds and volunteers, Connery raised her hand to volunteer as board president, eventually becoming director. “When I moved to this small town, I realized one person can make a difference,” she says. Before her tenure, the library was in a poor state: cramped, unwelcoming,…

The Willow House was made for sky-watching. Owner Lauren Werner planned it that way. “The intent was to position every window and every patio as a perfect frame of either the Chisos Mountains or Santa Elena Canyon without any sort of obstruction in between,” she says. “I want to create spaces that really make you appreciate the landscape.” A former SMU pre-law student, Werner lived on the Terlingua property for much of its construction process. She got to know her surroundings while sleeping on the floor in whichever space was the most habitable. Her respect for the land comes through in the design, from decorating the 12 casitas in colors and textures that exist naturally on the land to the placement of the sunken living room in the main house, which…

Last July, Lower Colorado River Authority Parks opened 10 new beach bungalows that overlook the spot where the 862-mile Colorado River finally flows into the Gulf. In this dramatic setting of river-meets-the-sea, the two-bedroom bungalows offer well-designed modern comfort amid the wilds of the Texas coast. Their ample decks make prime spots to watch the unfolding estuary action, like anglers catching redfish and flounder and pelicans gliding in unison over the Colorado. It’s also the perfect place to catch a sunset that will transfix you until the sun ducks behind the dunes and leaves the sky in scarlet ribbons. The bungalows’ interiors are airy with white wood-lined walls, high ceilings, and a soothing sand and pale blue color palette. Pretty wool rugs soften the concrete floors, perfectly fluffed throw pillows…

The C. Baldwin, a sleek downtown high-rise with sweeping views of Houston, pays homage to the life and work of Charlotte Baldwin Allen, wife to Augustus Allen, one of the two brothers who founded the city in 1837. While the Allen brothers get the credit, historians say it was Baldwin who in part funded the purchase of the new settlement’s land and suggested it be named after her next-door neighbor, Sam Houston. Baldwin was a rare specimen in 1800s Houston: a female business leader, a land developer, and a philanthropist who separated from Augustus in 1850. Long after the Allen Brothers were gone—John Kirby died in 1838 and Augustus moved away after the separation—Baldwin dedicated herself to civic life until her death in 1895 at the age of 90. In…

When you spend the night at The Jefferson, a French Quarter-style hotel with a balcony overlooking the town’s red brick streets, you may come across a few unpaid guests. Like the Mill children, who died there as 7-year-olds in the late 1800s, most likely when the building was used as a warehouse for Jefferson’s booming cotton industry. Or the Vanishing Man, a fellow in a coat and high boots who is the hotel’s most common apparition; he is known to spend the night just standing in your room. And then there’s the jilted bride who hanged herself in Room 19. All of these extra guests are welcome here, a highlight of the East Texas town’s popular ghost tours. The hotel even has its own YouTube channel chronicling paranormal activity. The…

“Anyone can be a misfit!” is the slogan of the Krewe de Isle of Misfits, who ride each year through Galveston’s Fat Tuesday parade atop a double-decker float made from an old school bus. But it might easily be the slogan of the Mardi Gras! Galveston celebration itself. Whether you’re sporting an oversize, gold, feathered ruff to proclaim your individualist status or just feverishly decorating a golf cart or umbrella in decidedly impractical fashion, you’ll fit right in among revelers of all ages and levels of creativity at Texas’ largest Mardi Gras celebration. Mardi Gras! Galveston has existed in some form as long as the historic port city itself, which was incorporated in 1839. The event’s history dates to the early 19th century when French pirates Louis-Michel Aury and Jean…

Lake Bastrop North Shore Park, Bastrop. Does it count as “roughing it” if you’ve got access to your own private hot tub and outdoor movie screen? Located 45 minutes east of Austin, this spot includes safari-style tents and retro Airstream RVs, all within a few steps of the lake. Prices start at $150/night. lcra.org/parks Lucky Arrow Retreat, Dripping Springs. Get lost in the sounds of nature (plus a few Texas tunes) in one of the boutique lodgings outfitted with a record player and curated vinyl library. The tents and yurts on this 15-acre property are climatecontrolled, and there’s even an on-site beer garden. Prices start at $123/night. luckyarrowretreat.com Palo Duro Glamping, Canyon. Even state parks have gotten in on the glamping game with amenities such as a complimentary breakfast, a…

550 PIZZERIA 2101 Shiloh Drive, Laredo. Open daily, hours vary. 956-602-0082; 550pizzeria.com As she observed the pizzaiolos of the now-defunct Laredo Pizza Factory toss dough and maneuver peels in and out of its sweltering oven a decade ago, Janet Zapata took mental notes. In the past, she had asked if they could teach her how to make pizza, but the team of all-male chefs laughed and waved off the then-23-year-old “cashier girl.” After months of watching the men toss, knead, and bake, she went straight to her boss and asked if she could step into the kitchen. Not only did he agree, but he offered to train her himself. “No,” she insisted. “Let me show you that I know how.” Before long, Zapata not only graduated from cashier girl to…

To properly enjoy Canton, an East Texas town of 4,200 near Tyler, you should show up with two things: an empty car trunk and an empty belly. Before you head back home, they’ll both be full. Founded in 1850, the community is a paradise for antiquers, junkers, and thrifters. It’s home to the self-proclaimed World’s Largest Flea Market—here you can find vinyl, yard art, aprons, bathtubs, old phone books, knickknacks, you name it. Canton is also a great place to sample comfort food, both traditional and experimental. For your next vacation, consider this small town destination, where they don’t care if you show up empty-handed—so long as you don’t leave that way. First Monday Trade Days Folks have gathered near the Van Zandt County Courthouse since the 1800s to swap…

For a decade, my wife, Valentina, and I traveled every weekend to see our younger son, Guillermo, play soccer in Houston, Dallas, College Station, or San Antonio, where he defended the goal as a keeper since he was a boy. During that same time, my older son, Emiliano, taught himself how to make ’80s-inspired dance music and recorded his first songs amid walls plastered with graffiti and posters of Michael Jackson and Lady Gaga in the bedroom that now acts as my writing studio. Today the weekend road trips are scarce, and there’s a blank and quiet that floods our home. Both kids have left Austin, where my family and I have lived since 2004, to chase their athletic and musical dreams in Madrid and New York, respectively—faraway places where…

For travelers seeking experiential accommodations, staying in a Swiss Family Robinson-style treehouse retreat is a thrilling opportunity. In Texas, these options range from rustic cabins to whimsical hideaways to luxury glamping getaways. Head toward the Hill Country, Piney Woods, and North Texas, where tree species like live oaks, cypress, and loblolly pines thrive. When staying in a treehouse, just remember: The trees are alive, growing, and going through seasonal cycles. A treehouse may sway on windy days, shed bark, and release sap. But being this close to nature is what the experience is all about. Savannah’s Meadow CELESTE Located about an hour northeast of Dallas, Savannah’s Meadow invites guests to experience a working farm sprinkled with pixie dust. Playful flourishes include a tree tunnel decorated with faces and an adorable…

Upon checking in to the Joule, marvel at the 14-foot spinning industrial gear by the front desk—preferably while sipping the glass of prosecco that the friendly staff pours you upon arrival. The gear is the anchor installation of a lobby brimming with fanciful, thought-provoking art. Among the pieces are the lobby’s many Italian glass mosaics by midcentury artist Millard Sheets. The mosaics’ human figures—reaching heavenward, making fire—were almost lost when the building that originally housed them was demolished. But the Joule’s billionaire oilman, film producer, and art collector owner Tim Headington saved, restored, and rehoused them in this neo-Gothic building turned swanky and supremely comfortable boutique hotel. Headington’s personal art collection is always on rotation in the Joule lobby. Recent highlights include colorful oil paintings by art luminaries such as Paul…

While staying at Casa de Palmas in downtown McAllen, you may catch sight of a young woman in a princess gown celebrating her quinceañera; a groomsman taking a break by the bougainvillea during an extravagant wedding; or perhaps a bride in a swirl of white posing for photographers. Since it first opened its doors in 1918, Las Palmas has been the festive heart of a city that loves a celebration. Texas architect M.L. Waller designed the hotel more than a century ago, reportedly because no hotel chains would build in McAllen due to its remote location. Waller paid homage to the community’s Spanish history by building Las Palmas in classic Mission Revival style, with curved stucco parapets and arched exterior walkways. “This hotel is very important to McAllen,” says Elva…

Popularity brings challenges. For the owners of Hotel Turkey in the town by the same name, the challenges have inspired some cool, kitschy solutions. Tina and Pat Carson and their partner, Carley du Menil, cultivated a live music scene so popular that music pilgrims flock to this tiny Panhandle town from across the country. Turkey was used to crowds showing up for their annual Bob Wills Day, a music festival in tribute to its hometown hero, but the Hotel Turkey’s regular back patio weekend shows have planted this wee burg firmly on the map of year-round music destinations. In 2021, the trio brought in five 400-square-foot shipping containers for music nomads to call home. Although the containers arrived in Turkey as empty boxes, the Carsons transformed them into comfy hideaways…

During a sunset walk at Contigo Ranch, you might lock eyes with a 14-point whitetail buck before he dashes into the limestone caprock behind your cottage. Or maybe you’ll catch sight of cottontails darting across your trail into tawny grasses. And if the weather gods allow, you might be lucky enough to hear the slow roll of distant thunder against the backdrop of a double rainbow so pretty it could lift the gloomiest mood. Contigo, a 300-acre working family ranch about 6 miles from Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, sets the stage for Mother Nature to do her thing. Owners Claudia and Frede Edgerton have assured that the lodging—nine white contemporary cottages, three historic hand-hewn Kentucky log cabins, the original 19th-century German ranch house, and a stone building evocative of…

Stamping—not to be confused with stamp collecting—is awell-occupied niche in the crafting world, frequently practiced by those who excel in giving creative, personalized gifts. Stampers, along with their allies in the scrapbooking trade, are always on the hunt for unique materials to make their keepsakes stand out, whether it be special paper, dyes, or an exemplary rubber stamp. They’ll find it all in Mesquite, where the Stamp Scrap Art Tour is held Jan.13-14. “Rubber stamping and scrapbooking are great ways to express creativity,” says Rhonda Potts, one of the show’s organizers. “You can make something beautiful without having to learn to draw, and they’re great ways to preserve memories.” The event, held in theDallas-Fort Worth area for almost 20 years, hosts hordes of vendors offering stickers, ribbons, baubles, and just…