Dallas. Austin. San Antonio. Dave and I have started a tradition of visiting friends someplace warm every February when we are getting tired of winter in Pennsylvania and need some warm sunshine. Last year it was Morocco. The year before that it was Chile. This year, Texas. Dave's sister Kristine and her husband Daniel live in Dallas, and I have family in Austin, so a Texas trip made perfect sense (plus $97 non-stop roundtrip flights on Virgin America was a steal. First time flying with them and they're great!)

I decided to give myself the challenge of just one lens for the photo essay, one of my favorite all-purpose tiny lenses the 50 mm f/1.4  Photos are posted in order, for the most part, and you'll find some descriptions of what's what below.  Ok so this one is out of order, but I wanted to start with something colorful and delicious, since we ate a LOT of good food (especially tacos and guacamole) while we were in Texas. These delicious breakfast tacos were eaten by Dave at Twin Sisters Bakery & Cafe in San Antonio. And above is Kristine and Daniel's famed kitty Max on his throne in their apartment. I'd like to think he enjoyed our company. Below the well-known suspended bridge in Dallas taken from the car window. Chicken Scratch was the first restaurant we went to Dallas and I think it ended up being my favorite place we ate during the whole trip. Check out that menu! Good 'ol fried chicken, all farm local and hormone-free. I'd love to go back in the summer and eat in their outdoor courtyard strung with lights and surrounded by cactus plants. It definitely has a unique vibe and rustic feel. When you walk in to order, your nostrils are filled with the scent of their pecan wood fired rotisserie. Our table was made of an uneven, shellacked tree stump. And most importantly, the food was delicious! Here we are at the Perot Museum of Nature & Science. My favorite part was the special Sherlock Holmes exhibit where you got to become a detective and try and solve a murder by taking various rubbings in your notebook, making observations about potentially poisonous plants and types of blood splatters, etc. and deducing how it all went down. Czech Stop! This was a delightful breakfast en route to Austin, and obviously popular too since the line was almost out the door! No trip would be complete without a surprise mermaid sighting in Salado, Texas. The Austin Capitol Building   A tasty lunch stop at La Condesa restaurant in Austin, Texas. Walking down South Congress, the place where they say Austin gets weird ;)

Unicorn magic at Lucy in Disguise with Diamonds. I would have purchased this unicorn hat if it weren't $99.   self portrait taken in our lovely Georgetown B&B San Gabriel House. Sculpture garden LOVE statue at the McNay Art Museum in San Antonio. The record birds were made by a New Orleans artist who salvaged the records after Hurricane Katrina.   Lovely mosaics and a fish pond in the courtyard of the McNay Museum, which reminds me of a Spanish villa. The Alamo in San Antonio was not as impressive as I imagined. What did surprise me were the lollipops for sale in the gift shop with real scorpions inside them! We spent a night in San Antonio right along the river walk. Strange enough it went from 65 degrees to 35 degrees overnight! We warmed up with dinner at County Line BBQ. Last stop in San Antonio, the San Jose Mission. A piece of history restored to it's original beauty over the last 50 years.  Can you find the unicorn on this old world map? And to end the series, why not end with some delicious Amy's Ice Creams, born in Austin and now located in Houston and San Antonio as well.