Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2024 i Texas Highways Magazine

Elizabeth McCracken, who wrote “Engines of Optimism” (Page 72) about the Austin Public Library, started studying libraries while shelving books at age 15. “I always knew I’d get a library degree,” the Austin-based writer says. Her first boss taught her the friendly ethic of the trade: “that everyone is to be treated equally and with respect; that everybody needs access to the library; that librarians are protectors of both the First Amendment and the right to privacy. That seemed like a good gig to me.” Now the author of eight books, McCracken explores the Austin library system beyond the books—how it serves as a gathering place for all types of visitors. “I loved seeing everyone who came through the front door,” she says. “Libraries are full of weirdos—my people.” FEATURED…

WHEN DOGS ARE LIKE FAMILY members, it’s hard to leave them at home when they could be sniffing out new adventures by your side. There are hotel chains, including Virgin Hotels, Aloft, Motel 6, Red Roof Inn, and Kimpton Hotels, where dogs stay free with their owners. For travelers seeking more specialized lodgings, a few Texas hotels and resorts are offering luxury canine amenities like premium pet beds, dog-walking concierge services, and handcrafted treats. At Collective Hill Country retreat at Montesino Ranch, a quaint glamping experience 5 miles from downtown Wimberley, dogs even get their own menu. The Bone Appétit tasting menu is a three-course, chef-created meal for $29 designed to pamper dogs while their owners also enjoy a gourmet meal. Courses include an “Amuse Bite” of bone broth gummies;…

THE WILD DETECTIVES A fixture in Oak Cliff since 2014, this welcoming bungalow emphasizes international selections—especially from Latin America and Iberia—in both Spanish and English translations. Owners Javier García del Moral and Paco Vique carry many of Deep Vellum’s titles. thewilddetectives.com INTERABANG BOOKS Co-owner Lori Feathers is the co-host of the popular podcast Across the Pond with U.K. publisher Sam Jordison. Feathers also supports the Inside Literary Prize, where a jury of 300 incarcerated individuals are sent a selection of National Book Award honorees and choose their own winner. interabangbooks.com WHOSE BOOKS NEIGHBORHOOD BOOKSTORE Another Oak Cliff neighborhood standout, Claudia Vega’s shop specializes in children’s books and young adult fiction with a mission to promote literacy at all levels. A former educator, Vega focuses on creating a vibrant community…

STEPHEN TOBOLOWSKY BECAME a “Hey, I know that guy!” character actor after playing the relentlessly cheerful insurance agent Ned Ryerson in the 1993 Bill Murray flick Groundhog Day. But Tobolowsky hasn’t always been a nice guy. In 1988, after 15 years of bit roles, he broke out in the Civil Rights drama Mississippi Burning, playing a hate-spewing Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. Coincidentally, both movies had the same casting director, Howard Feuer. “That doesn’t happen very often, that you play a racist in one movie and later they bring you in to try out for Ned Ryerson,” Tobolowsky says with a laugh. Tobolowsky was born and raised in Dallas and has acted for 50 years. After graduating from Kimball High School in 1969, he left his native Oak…

ON WEST COMMERCE Street, a mural on the back of a bail bonds building marks the gateway between downtown San Antonio and the city’s West Side. Bursting with life, La Música de San Anto depicts several of the city’s musical legends, from the Texas Tornados’ Doug Sahm to “The Meadowlark of the Border,” Lydia Mendoza. They’re all mid performance as couples dance in the background. The mural is a colorful love letter to the city’s history and cultural impact, and to friendship. San Antonio has always had a reputation as a friendly city. When I grew up there, people were eager to come together. We took advantage of any excuse to throw a party, light up the River Walk, or play music in the streets. Whether you’ve lived in town…

A LINE OF people in camping chairs and pop-up tents snakes down Crosstimbers Street in Houston’s Independence Heights neighborhood. Many have brought portable heaters to brave this prolonged, quarter-mile trek that extends north up Old Yale Street well before the sun begins its ascent. It’s just before dawn on Thanksgiving Eve, and the queue of customers, many repeating an annual ritual, numbers in the hundreds. No, there aren’t free turkeys being given away. These friends and soon-to-be-friends have gathered this Wednesday in pursuit of what will be the triumphant grace note of their Thanksgiving feast: scratch-made pies from Flying Saucer Pie Company. Those arriving an hour before the store opens at 7 a.m. will head to the end of a line that started at 3:30 p.m. two days prior.…

AT ARWA YEMENI Coffee in Richardson, co-owner Susan Shihab says many of her visitors have never even heard of the country featured on the company’s marquee. But for some, like Athena Abujaber, a vice president at a health care staffing company, Arwa provides a “safe space” and a welcoming environment with Middle Eastern accents, such as Ramadan celebrations with strumming oud players. Others like Abrar Naely, a dietitian from Sachse, drive dozens of miles out of their way every weekend to hang out in an alcohol-free place she calls “a small piece of Yemen in Richardson.” As a Yemeni American from Lubbock, Shihab has fielded questions about her native country her entire life. That lack of awareness, paired with the Dallas area’s booming Arab population, was the impetus for Shihab…

The Daytripper The Daytripper heads to Giddings, a small town of 5,000 located between Austin and Houston. If you find yourself cursing the stoplights and stuck at the busy train tracks while driving between the two cities, Chet Garner’s suggestion is to simply take a deep breath, slow down, and pull over to explore the numerous adventures Giddings has to offer including an old train depot turned whiskey distillery and the Texas Wendish Heritage Museum. Inchin’ Along The latest installment in our Roadside Oddities series is a friendly metallic caterpillar named Bruco. Located off Interstate 35 in Italy, the dome-shaped worm has smiled at passers-by since 1995. Bruco—which means caterpillar in Italian—was created by Monolithic Constructors, a construction company started by South brothers David, Barry, and Randy. Writer Andrea Luttrell…

ON A RECENT trip to Wimberley, I attempted to fly—and failed. I’ve never heard of someone being bad at zip lining, but as I flailed 100 feet above scenic Hill Country canyons and creeks, I discovered I was. I’d signed up for a 10-line session with Wimberley Zipline Adventures, located on the historic Four Winns Ranch. Despite thorough directions from the encouraging instructors, I still zigged and zagged when I should have zipped. After a couple of aborted flights—including one ending in me dragging myself to the end—our team leader had the wisdom to offer me, a 30-year-old woman, a “kiddie tail.” After attaching an extra strap usually reserved for children to my harness, I had no trouble flying high. Wimberley Zipline Adventures 376 Winn Valley Drive, Wimberley. 512-847-9990; wimberleyzipline.com…

GROWING UP, ALAINA Tahlate visited with her great-grandfather nearly every week. A language worker, he inspired Tahlate’s current role as the Caddo Nation’s language preservationist. She would listen intently as he, a native Caddo speaker, recorded and documented the endangered language once spoken widely across modern-day East Texas. Tahlate went on to study Native American language revitalization and now teaches Caddo to children and adult members of the Caddo Nation. “He was such a cool old man,” she says. While the Caddo Nation currently counts more than 6,000 enrolled members, the majority of whom live in Oklahoma, only two native speakers of the Caddo language remain. The story of the Caddo and their language is tightly intertwined with the formation of the state. Historians believe the name “Texas” is derived…

Daphne Adkins, Amarillo Owner, Daphne’s Tour & Travel 806-576-8191 Adkins has deep knowledge of historic Route 66 and Palo Duro Canyon—Texas’ Grand Canyon. “My family moved here in the ’40s, so I have wonderful firsthand stories of the oil boom, tornados, and Amarillo’s growth,” she says. “The Panhandle is not easy. The settlers survived some of the toughest conditions in Texas. They helped their neighbor; if they survived, you survived. Being there for one another comes naturally.” Ryan Rodriguez, Rio Grande Valley Trip leader, Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival rgvbf.org Seventeen-year-old Rodriguez is a renowned birding guide in a world-class birdwatching hot spot. “People seek me out to accurately identify birds by sight and sound and to teach them about the birds’ habits, habitat, vocalizations, and identification characteristics,” he says.…

As you explore, you’ll find an amazing range of relaxation and adventure, natural beauty and urban culture, fine art, fine dining, small-town charm and big-city amenities… but what you will remember most is the warm, West Texas hospitality. MIDLAND–Drop by Midland’s trendy down-town for a cocktail, luscious pizza, stylish shops or a game of chess in Centennial Park. There is no end to what downtown has to offer. visitmidland.com Dec 5-7 - Midland Storytelling Festival Dec 21-22 - Midland Festival Ballet’s Nutcracker ODESSA–Known for breathtaking sunsets, wide-open spaces and warm West Texas hospitality; you’ll enjoy shopping, dining, unique cultural attractions and events. Discover Odessa! discoverodessa.org Dec 5-Jan 1 - Starbright Village Dec 6-Mar 2 - “West Ward Faux” exhibit @Ellen Noël Art Museum ALPINE– Natural beauty, unique nightlife and…

BIG BEND COUNTRY EL PASO La Frontera Print Fest Nov. 9 Watch 10 artists from El Paso and Ciudad Juárez create a panoramic print of the sister cities as a way to showcase the unity and shared culture of the cities. Art Masters of El Paso, 6501 N. Mesa St., Suite C. 915-701-8863; skuishipress.com/lafronteraprintfest FORT STOCKTON Fall Festival Nov. 1 The town celebrates the 45th anniversary of its roadrunner mascot, Paisano Pete, with food and craft vendors and live music including the Randy Rogers Band. Fort Stockton Convention Center, 2181 I-10 West. 432-299-1220; visitfortstockton.com MIDLAND Home for the Holidays Gift Market Nov. 15-17 Shop for unique gifts and festive items from 130 merchants. Bush Convention Center, 105 N. Main St. 281-788-4297; homefortheholidaysgiftmarket.com VAN HORN Trans-Pecos Big Buck Tournament Nov. 29-Dec.…

THE KIDS WON’T UNDERSTAND, but in the dark ages, before GPS and cellphones, motorists agonized over floppy foldable maps and dubious directions given by gas station attendants. Vacationing could feel like charting a course through the Strait of Gibraltar, or rafting down the Mississippi with Huck Finn. That’s where the Texas Travel Information Centers, the first of which opened in 1936, come in. Travel counselors are on standby at 12 centers across the state to provide current information on routes, local events, and road conditions. This Texas Highways photo, taken in 1969 by Jack Lewis, shows travel counselor Reva Keltner helping visitors inside the Gainesville Travel Information Center. Though today’s technology has made it easier for Texans to find their way, the centers still provide service with a smile to…

WHEN FAMILY AND FRIENDS FROM OUT OF STATE VISIT, they often mention the friendliness of the Texans they encounter. “A family at Zilker Park shared their snacks with us!” “The clerk at the grocery store was so nice and talkative.” While the image of Texans most often portrayed in media outside the state tends to focus on bravado and big personalities, anyone who’s from Texas or has spent any length of time here knows a more common characteristic is our down-to-earth friendliness. Test the theory by asking a Texan about a time they’ve encountered kindness from a stranger, and I bet they’d be able to rattle off a few stories without thinking too hard about it. I posed it to my husband, and he quickly told me a story I…

SPRING BREAK It’s best to book a Palo Duro Canyon State Park spring break getaway five months in advance. The park’s CCC cabins offer expansive views of the second-largest canyon in the U.S. RIVER WALK San Antonio’s riverside attraction sparkles with festive lights from Nov. 30-Jan. 5, 2025. Take a relaxed stroll on the path lit 24 hours a day through the downtown area. SAN SOLOMON Balmorhea State Park’s CCC lodges reopened this summer. Since the pool’s temperature stays in the 70s year-round, a winter stay doesn’t have to mean a freezing pool. SEE ANIMALS Zoos and aquariums sometimes offer discounted or free admission during the off-season. Enjoy a less crowded animal-watching experience this winter.…

TRAVELERS TEND TO PASS THROUGH LLANO on the way to see wildflowers or go deer hunting, but those who stop in the town square may find a lifelong friendship. That’s what happened to Greg Zimmerman, who started visiting Enchanted Rocks & Jewelry in 2009 and became pals with owner Frank Rowell. When Rowell retired last year, he offered Zimmerman the shop. “Llano was my getaway,” the former electrician says. “I decided I was going to make a life change and moved to Llano so I could run the shop and keep it going.” Located just south of Roy B. Inks Bridge and the Llano River, the square is part of the city’s historic downtown district, which includes the Llano County Courthouse and several buildings dating to the 1880s and 1890s.…

DURING THE PAST 11 years, Will Evans has become a force of nature in Dallas, transforming its formerly sparse literary scene into a humming nexus of creativity and connection. “When I arrived, there were no literary publishers and only a few bookstores,” says Evans, the CEO of successful nonprofit publishing house and bookstore Deep Vellum. “There was a readership and several literary arts organizations, but no one had connected all of the dots.” Initially, Evans was inspired by the city’s ethos and its familiar slogan, “Big things happen here.” You can see that Texas-size spirit in Deep Vellum’s prodigious output, which includes about 1,000 volumes in 70 languages—making it the largest publisher of translated literature in the country. Beyond the publishing arm, the Deep Vellum bookstore has hosted over 700 events,…

I’M SITTING ATOP a quaint grassy hill in Houston, petrified with fear. This place—Hippie Hill—is one of the only elevated knolls around town where people can indulge the carefree pastime of rolling down a pleasant incline. I’ve never been afraid of heights, and the prospect of grass stains doesn’t bug me. Still, I can’t make myself budge. On this gusty March day, scores of Houstonians have flocked to this hamlet in Hermann Park, a 445-acre park brimming with lush gardens, water features, and pavilions located by the city’s museum district, to launch kites into the breeze. As I sit on the hill, I tilt my head back and follow a neon-green octopus kite flailing in the overcast sky. Its tentacles seem to mock me and my unwillingness to move. Roll,…

“HOWDY” IS NOT like any other greeting. I don’t just mean it’s decidedly Texan and a little folksy. For the record, it’s an abbreviation of the formal “How do ye?” that got shortened to “how dee” and shortened again. There may be other places where howdy is said. But I have lived in more than a few states and traveled to even more, and I’ve never heard it outside Texas. I mean that you can take any other greeting, a “hi” or a “hello,” and add an unfriendly word of your choosing, something that rhymes with other-clucker, maybe, and you can start a fight, if that’s your thing. It’s easy to misunderstand someone’s intent, in text or even in person. You can walk away from any conversation if you’re the…

AT TEXAS A&M, congeniality rivals football as the ultimate passion—and the school is far more successful at it, too. That’s because kindness is rooted in the institution’s core principles. These are just some of the hallowed traditions that serve as a de facto guide to Aggie etiquette. 12th Man With the Aggie football team decimated by injuries during a 1922 clash with the Praying Colonels of Centre College, coach Dana X. Bible called student E. King Gill out of the stands and asked him to suit up in case Bible couldn’t field 11 players. Today, Aggies celebrate Gill’s readiness to help by standing throughout games and hosting the annual Big Event, the nation’s largest single-day student-run service project. Hissing True Aggies would never dream of showering a nearsighted official with…

WHEN YELLOWSTONE CREATOR Taylor Sheridan and 101 Studios started moving their projects to Cowtown a couple of years ago, the Fort Worth Film Commission was prepared. “We quickly identified a need for crew positions like grip and electric, set building, and hair and makeup,” says Jessica Hill, the longtime film commissioner. Since collaborating with Tarrant County College to train students for those roles, up to eight graduates have landed jobs on Sheridan productions like Landman and Lioness, as well as local film projects. All of this comes as a result of the state Legislature approving $200 million in statewide film industry incentives in 2023. This 400% funding increase from the previous session is aimed at boosting local TV and movie production. Beneficiaries include the more than 175 communities in the Film Friendly…

IT’S VOLUNTEER GARDENING day at Community First! Village in East Austin, and Shaeneeka and I are kneeling in flower beds by the chicken coop, planting tomatoes. She makes a hole with her spade, and I plop in a tomato plant. We find a snail and feed it to chickens on the other side of the fence, telling them it’s escargot. Shaeneeka’s good conversation distracts me from the stench of bird poop. She shares what it’s like to be a “neighbor,” the term for “resident” in this 51-acre master-planned community that roughly 390 formerly homeless men and women now call home. “This place has so many amenities to it, and it also gives you an opportunity to grow, and not just with Christ but within yourself, too,” she says, her smile…

To receive free travel information from the following destinations, simply circle the number on the attached reply card that corresponds to your selection, fill in your name and address, and drop it in the mail. To find our advertiser information online, go to texashighways.ai-dsg.com. 1 Briscoe Western Art Museum 2 City of Huntsville 3 Cleburne Chamber of Commerce 4 Columbus Chamber of Commerce 5 Corsicana Convention & Visitors Center 6 Cuero Chamber of Commerce, Agriculture & Visitors Bureau 7 Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden 8 Destination Bryan 9 Discover San Angelo 10 Discover Temple 11 Dumas Moore County Chamber of Commerce 12 Go Round Rock 13 Grapevine Convention & Visitors Bureau 14 Heard Natural Science Museum & Wildlife Sanctuary 15 Heart of Tyler, Inc. 16 Irving Arts Center 17 Irving Convention &…