texas
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LBJ National Historical Park and Presidential Library, Texas
Despite falling somewhat in the middle of the “which state is home to the most US presidents” list, Texas actually tops the list of “which state has the most presidential libraries” with three. Of those three, though, only one commemorates a president who was actually born in Texas: Lyndon Baines Johnson or, as he’s commonly… Continue reading
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Hiking in Texas Hill Country: Inks Lake State Park and Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge
In the past few years, my uncle has rediscovered his love of hiking and has pretty thoroughly explored the trails around Austin. Sharing some of his favorite hikes with us was one of the things he was most excited for during our visit, and my mom and I were looking forward to getting out into… Continue reading
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Spanish colonial history at the San Antonio missions
If you say the words “San Antonio” and “missions,” the first thing to come to mind for most people would probably be the Alamo. And while the Alamo is indeed a former mission, it’s just one of the more than twenty Catholic missions built by the Spanish in the early 1700s. It’s also – and… Continue reading
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Springtime in Austin, Texas
My aunt and uncle moved to the suburbs of Austin, Texas almost six years ago, and they’ve been trying to get us to come visit ever since. But my extended family is spread across multiple states. Add in my inlaws, and now we’re up to over a dozen. In other words, they’re everywhere, which makes… Continue reading
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Uncovering my inner umbraphile – total solar eclipse 2024
When I asked my husband what he wanted to do for his birthday this year, he answered immediately and without hesitation: travel to see the total solar eclipse! For perspective, I typically ask him this question months in advance because he’s usually quite indecisive. Given the certainty in his answer this time, I started planning… Continue reading
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Snapshots from the sky: spring 2024 edition
In retrospect, flying to Seattle for 3 days, Austin for 5 days, and Dallas for 4 days – all in a 5 week period – was overly ambitious. I definitely overbooked myself, and in the aftermath I very much paid the price. I don’t regret it, per se, because all three trips were fun. But… Continue reading
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A Year in Review: #52HikeChallenge 2019
In 2019, for the first time ever, I participated in the 52 Hike Challenge. This is exactly what it sounds like: the challenge of completing 52 hikes in 52 weeks. The only guidelines are that the hike should be at least 1 mile (1.6 km) long, you can complete a maximum of 1 hike per… Continue reading
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Lemurs, Lavender, and Palm Trees: Texas + a (not so) quick layover in Orlando
A few years back, a family member was graduating from college, so I headed to Texas for a few days for the ceremony. Some other family members also made the trip, so it was a mini family reunion. Obviously, we spent one day on campus for graduation. On the other days, we squeezed in some… Continue reading
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Close Encounters of the Rattlesnake Kind – Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas (part II)
After the beautiful sunset the night before, we were treated to a similar splash of color upon waking. Just one of the many reasons I love the wide open spaces and big skies of the west. Continue reading
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Everything is bigger in Texas – Guadalupe Mountains National Park (part I)
When I think of Texas, mountains certainly isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. But there are in fact mountains there, and they’re decently large. Guadalupe Mountains National Park is located in west Texas, just south of the border with New Mexico and 2 hours east of El Paso. From Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico,… Continue reading