ROAD TRIP
Day 6, Part 2
Marfa, Texas
After an 8-hour drive and a run-in with a dirt devil, Rachel and I finally arrived in Marfa, Texas at 3:30pm, two and a half hours behind schedule. In our defense, we did lose an hour with the time change but I am not quite sure where the other hour and half went. We were both exhausted and starved (we had skipped lunch) but still SOOOO excited to explore this town.
Marfa, Texas was a last-minute addition to our overly ambitious itinerary. We had heard a bunch of great things about Marfa from very cool people a few weeks before our trip and thought maybe it was worth a stop?? It became a finalized addition to the itinerary the minute we found out there was a hotel there that offered teepees to sleep in!
A teepee = a must stop
(bottom pic by One Part Gypsy)
Cut to, the day we drove into Marfa..we pulled into a dusty little town in the middle of nowhere, checked into our hotel, signed a waiver acknowledging we were aware that wildlife could crawl into our teepee through open holes and dropped our bags quickly to set off to find food and explore Marfa. We drove around to ALL the recommended restaurants (4 of them) only to find out they were all closed. But why?? It was Tuesday at 4pm? We just couldn’t make sense of it.
In addition to everything being closed we also noticed that the streets were strangely empty. We roamed the streets looking for food feeling like we were in the twilight zone. We finally stumbled upon a little thrift store that was OPEN (shocker) and we decided to go in. After making a loop around the store (a quick one) we walked up to the lady behind the counter (imagine your grandmother wearing blue eye liner and smoking a camel) and asked…”pardon me, we happened to noticed that everything was closed and were wondering why?” In the friendliest voice possible.
She shot us one of the strangest looks I have ever been privy to (it actually gave me chills)- a mix between disgust (she looked us both up and down) and wonder (like we were aliens that recently landed in Marfa), cocked her head, furrowed her brows, crossed her arms and whispered…”I don’t know what you mean”
I mean, there isn’t really anywhere to go from there, right? Clearly, she was not the kinda woman you argued with, especially when you haven’t eaten all day. So, Rachel and I just looked at each other and walked out.
When we got back on the desolate street (to safety) we started laughing and then stopped, realizing we were still exhausted and starved and said, “Now what?”
In the distance we saw a hotel sign which seemed promising. Enter in El Paisano Hotel– the only food source open on a Tuesday at 5pm in Marfa. We crawled there. Sat down. Ordered two margarita’s and two burgers (it was a serious situation that only margarita’s and burgers could solve) and sat silently for a bit, taking in the scene. It was 5pm and 10 people, which seemed like most of the town started to trickle in to grab a drink and a bite.
When our waiter came back with our drinks we asked “So, why are all the restaurants and stores closed today?” he smiled and said, “well, most things are closed on Sundays, Mondays and Tuesday”, “But, Why?”, we asked. He looked at us, puzzled for a moment, and said, “I don’t really know”
Fair enough.
Marfa makes its own rules.
I guess I can get down with that. Wish I would have known though, because I would have found lunch along the way.
After our burger and Margarita’s, we drove around the little dusty, little town looking for something…anything to do. We stopped for a few pics in front of cool signs (I will say Marfa has got some cool signage), and retired back to our hotel, The El Cosmico, to work for the night.
I love the El Cosmico, by the way- such a cool model for a hotel! They offer converted airstream trailers, safari tents, camping tents and teepees as accommodations each and every one more unique than the next.
As you know, we choose a teepee…
and after I stuffed the holes that wildlife could possibly climb in through, with pillows, it was SUCH FUN!
Have you ever slept in a teepee?
If not, I think you should, it’s like camping but better. The one and only time I camped I had to sleep on the ground, with some hard rocks but this time I had a heated bed….waaaaay better. I still had to walk a mile in the middle of the night to pee and had to shower in a communal shower, but hey, you can’t win them all.
I’m not quite sure what I think about Marfa. It is one strange little town in the middle of nowhere. Am I happy we went? Yes. Am I going to go back (when things are open)? Maybe.
….
See Rachel’s take and more pics click here!
365til30: instagram @kate365, twitter, facebook
One Part Gypsy: instagram @onepartgypsy, twitter, facebook
365til30.com 