By 9am we’re on our way, with Triple J’s Smokehouse on the GPS. After a quick search for top Houston BBQ we found this authentic place for some extraordinary Texas food.

” If your face and hands don’t get messy eating BBQ.. You’re doing it all wrong.” 

– That Texan guy from that BBQ place

Our order of ribs, brisket and something called a Ravens Bowl (fries, chopped beef and cheese) is not disappointing and húge! While Dutchies say ‘Evertyhing is bigger in the US’, Americans claim that ‘Everything is bigger in Texas’. So you can only imagine…

Tomorrow more about N’erlins, NOLA, Paris of the South, The Big Easy, .. and its yum yum beignets! 

Read more after Houston:
New Orleans

You’re in San Antonio. And then? What’s there to visit?

The Alamo

This is where the well-known Battle of the Alamo took place, and is basically the beginning of Texas as we know it.

River walk

The second must-do in San Antonio. We were the lucky spectators of the over 100.000 holiday lights, which gave this 2-mile walk a magical feel. You’ll find plenty of bars and restaurants, with the greatest views 🙂 And bonus: You can take your beer to go along on your walk.

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Tomorrow’s an 8-hour drive to New Orleans, where a warm Marriott will be having its kingsize bed ready for us. That’ll be 2 relaxing nights of no setting up camp.

& we’re very excited about a barbecue lunchstop in Houston – we’re talking Texas here!

Also interesting:
Santa Fe

If I had to describe the Carlsbad Caverns National Park in New Mexico in one word: WAUW!

Don’t forget to bring your America the Beautiful Pass if you got that.

We start the 2 self-guided trails: The Natural Entrance and the Big Room – both 1.25 miles long. 750 feet underground (229 meters), the trails take us across giant, overly impressive stalagmites, stalactites and columns, covered in soda straws and popcorn (we learned a few fancy words today).



Fairyland (what an appropriate name), hall of giants and the bottomless pit, mirror lake.. We saw it all! Sometimes pictures say nothing; I’d recommend visiting yourself and check this must-see off your list 🙂

From April to October the Carlsbad Caverns are home to thousands of bats, that fly out at dusk. While this spectacle might definitely be worth visiting for, our wintertime visit with very few people around was an awesome experience. So great to walk the trails at your own pace and to enjoy the sound of silence!

Previously:Santa Fe

Santa Fe (New Mexico) shows up in a valley with her barely visible low ground colored houses. She welcomes us, almost like an open air museum, and full of cozy Christmas lights.

It only makes sense to feminize Santa Fe, as she has a pretty high female-to-male ratio of just 91.7 males for every 100 females. Vegas on the other hand, has about four men for every three women.

So all the single ladies looking for single men: try your odds in Vegas. And this time I’m not talking about the casinos.

There are some things you cannot not see when you’re in Santa Fe.

Once occupied by the Puebloans and then the Spanish, this ‘City Different’ is extremely rich in culture. It has the oldest house of the US, the oldest church of the US and the historic Canyon Road.

Santa Fe Plaza

Even if you’d try you couldn’t miss it, as it’s the heart and soul of the city. Although this little square looks nice, it’s not so much about the square itself, but more about its proximity to art, culture, history, shopping and food.

There are plenty of benches to sit and watch the world go by and listen to the occasional live music. Or just wander around the narrow streets and alleys to unexpectedly stumble upon some very photogenic buildings.

Canyon Road

A so called ‘magical half-mile’ with over 80 galleries and many picture-worthy sights (that’s describing this whole city btw). Indigenous art. Western art. Contemporary art. Digital art. This historic arts district has something for everyone.

Although the art’s not necessarily my taste and window shopping might price-wise be the only option for most, it definitely makes for a nice stroll.

Attention art gallery lovers and street photographers: Santa Fe is the place to be.

TIP: If you ever feel like walking (a long way) – Santa Fe marks the end of the 19^th century historic wagon trail that runs all the way from Missouri.

Also interesting:
The Smoky Mountains and Gaitlinburg