Day 9 (Baton Rouge): Headed to New Orleans

The morning breakfast is at Louie's, a hole-in-the-wall diner that got 4 stars on Yelp.  The bounty: a seafood omlette with crawfish and shrimp and hashbrowns smothered in cheese.

Then, on our way out of the city, we headed to the shorefront to see the Old Capitol Building.  Thee New York Times 36-hours article made a big deal about it and talked about how the now museum building showcases Governor Huey Long so prominently.  Great place to go.  The Ghosts of the Castle movie is only $3 and excellent.  The entire room is wired with projectors, so the movie surrounds you.

We finished our time in Baton Rouge with a trip to the USS Kidd.  Nice, but not different than the other Navy vessels I've seen.  It was a terrible idea to go when it is so hot out, though.

Off to New Orleans.

Day 7 (Baton Rouge): Small City, Large Food

We arrived in Baton Rouge after a 5 hour drive from Houston that included a severe storm that followed us around.  At some point, we couldn't see more than a few feet in front of the car.

Eating at The Chimes.  Having an Abita Andygator, very flavorful and a favorite of our table.  Crabcakes and blackened alligator to start.  The sausage-encrusted, oyster Po'Boys are amazing.

Later in the night we return to our very stylish Radisson (it Loos like a Japanese garden inside of each room).  We end up walking (against the advice of locals) to Port Royal and The Cove, two local bars with an excellent selection of beer.

Off to the State Capitol and then New Orleans tomorrow.

Day 7 (Houston): Food, folks and fun.

Yesterday we explored Hermann park.  We then bought a CityPass and headed to the Houston Museum of Natural History.  (Travel note: always check if the museum has a free day before you spend money on a pass.)

Last night we visited a Chipolte-esque Mexican burrito and bowl restaurant.  We followed it up with a Texas Pecan Porter at the original Ginger an (same original owner as the one in NYC).

This morning we had breakfast at the Breakfast Klub.  This restaurant got 4.5 stars on Yelp and deserved it.  We agree that this has been the best breakfast of the trip.  Chicken wings and waffles.  Green eggs (spinach and bell peppers) and ham (with grits).

As we drive to the NASA Space Center this morning, we realize that this is not a dense city.  Everything is spread out, yet this is the fourth largest city in America.

(Technical note: the Motorola Xoom comes with many built in restrictions that are bothersome.  It (purposely?) lacks the capability to teather to mobile Internet via ad-hoc hotspots and via Bluetooth.  Companies should put customers before their aspirations to sell expensive data plans.)

Day 6?

Somehow blogger lost this entry.

Day 5 (South Padre Island): Beach and Big Boy's

There is some nightlife on the Southern end of South Padre.  This town must be an entirely different place on Spring Break.  These days there is mostly families and kids.

This morning we took the camera and the underwater housing out to the beach to film ourselves playing water Frisbee and football.  The water is great, light waves and decent temperature.

For lunch we went to Big Boy's for wings and BBQ.  Not nearly as good as the briskets at Salt Lick, but definitely a good eat.  The BBQ sausage was particularly delicious.  I recommend sharing a bunch of their BBQ dishes across your party's table.

After lunch, Arash and Tom were hurled through the sky on a bungee ride.  We all did a banana boat (off of which Arash and Anna fell).  The afternoon concluded with a go cart track that spiraled up and down in the air.

Day 4 (South Padre Island): Sand Castles and Seafood

It was a long 4+ hour drive from San Antonio to South Padre.  Fortunately, the traffic was very light.

The beach here is much like you'd expect from a beach town.  It seems like a smaller version of Myrtle Beach, SC.

For dinner we went to Daddy's Seafood and Cuban Grill.  Great food, though the wait was entirely too long.  They allow take out, so we ate back in our hotel room.

Day 3 (San Antonio): Tower of the Americas and Big Lou's Pizza

So, the first Six Flags Great Adventure started in Dallas.  It was named after the six nations whose flags have flown over the state or republic of Texas.  We learned that at a great 4D movie about Texas at the Tower of America.  (The fourth dimension consists of rumbling seats and water that sprays you at inopportune moments.)

Later we skipped a two hour wait at Big Lou's pizza by taking out a 18 inch pie with all the trimmings.

Day 4 (San Antonio): Leaving for South Padre

Only one night in San Antonio.  River Walk is a great place, though I feel like the selection of nightlife was somewhat better in Austin.  The crowd was limited on a Saturday night, though that might be a sign that everyone has gone to the Texas Shore for Independence Weekend.

This morning we went out to Guenter House.  It's an elegant place on the banks of the river, a historic mansion with museum.  But despite the phone operator saying that there would be no wait, seats were not available for over an hour.  So instead were at El Milagrito.  It's not as fancy, but it's cheap, no wait and it has 4 stars on Yelp.

Probably a 3 hour drive to South Padre.

Day 3 (San Antonio): Guns

After our celebration of Texan emancipation at the Alamo, we headed to "A Place to Shoot" for a primer in guns.  Three of us shot about a box a piece of rounds from a Beretta 9mm into a target 100 feet away.  Scary, loud, but fun.

A brief rest then off to the San Antonio Tower to look over the city.

Day 3 (Austin): Farewell to Austin

Two days in Austin concludes with a farewell breakfast at Jo's.  The selection of omlettes, pancakes and breakfast tacos was great.

A two hour drive on to San Antonio.  We're noticably surprised that downtown by the Crowne Plaza in S.A. is far more run down than anything we saw in Austin.

Day 3 (San Antonio): Remember the Alamo and Eat Local

Saw the Alamo a few minutes after arriving in town. We had all pictured it as a building far off in the desert.  It make much more sense that the city's downtown was built right around the complex.

For lunch we then headed off to the Cove.  The place has a sign up top that reminds you to eat local.  Right next to that sign is one that reminds you that they are the home of the fish taco.  (Remember that San Antonio is mostly landlocked, except for its river.  But in their defense, they have a map of the local farms from which their meat comes.)