The cities are in two different states, but are less than 45 minutes apart. El Paso is a city of about 800,000 at the western tip of Texas. Las Cruces sits just north, in southern New Mexico. At just over 100,000, it is the second largest city in the state (behind Albuquerque). Both are cities…
Two children are born on the same day, and live two hundred feet from each other. They speak the same language, and are maybe even related going back a few generations. And yet, these two children will have completely different lives. One will have opportunities the other cannot even dream of. And this is all…
The mountains tower over the Chihuahuan Desert of west Texas, silent sentinels that seem incredibly out of place here in what is largely flat and arid land. The desert extends for hundreds of miles, the remnants of what was once a shallow sea that covered this portion of the continent, with the stunning Guadalupe Mountains…
Growing up in California, I learned all about missions. Well, I learned a watered-down story of them, one of Spanish friars civilizing and colonizing the area, bringing farming techniques to the natives. It was, and in fact still is, part of the fourth grade curriculum, complete with visiting a local mission and - in my…
El Paso is a place I’ve only ever driven through. But with the city in the news so often - mostly because of its border with Mexico, one of the busiest crossings in the country - I felt it time to actually stop and explore the place. Plus, the beauty of southern New Mexico’s national…
“Why are you going to Texas?” The question came at me from nearly every quarter when I announced my intention to spend a few days visiting the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Austin perhaps would be understandable. After all, Austin seems to be populated largely by liberal west coast expats. But Dallas? Dallas is “real” Texas. To…
At first glance, it’s a bit like Disneyland, a facade of “old Texas” eager to part swarms of tourists from their dollars. Ten dollars for parking, five to take a photo of your child on a longhorn steer, and unknown amounts to ride the electronic bull or try to find your way through a maze…
On November 22, 1963, Dallas was the talk of the world. While riding in an open limo, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated as his motorcade passed Dealey Plaza. The event shook the world, with even the Soviet Union playing funeral dirges on state radio. It’s a rough thing for such an event to be…
Editor’s note: the US national parks system is truly diverse, ranging from awe-inspiring beauty to a more subtle wonder, like in this view of Amistad National Recreation Area by Christian, our resident national parks expert. For more of his experiences, click here to visit his index page. The Amistad National Recreation Area lies along the…
Editor’s note: it’s awesome that Christian wrote this the same day I visited another National Seashore: Point Reyes in California. It seems the experiences couldn’t be more opposite! For more of Christian’s National Parks themed articles, click here for his index. Texas is known to many Texans as the Best Country in the World. Traveling…