Day 9: Break Out the Sandals

New Orleans, LA to Galveston, TX

360 Miles

BG

RB

We started out the new state by dipping our toes in the gulf of Mexico. Seemed like a fitting way to begin Texas and get us excited for the warm weather to come. Unfortunately the water was freezing and neither of us wanted to get more than a toe in. 


After an extremely foggy and spooky drive out of the Bayou and the flats of eastern Texas, we decided to rest up in a small beach town, Galveston. Our route brought us through Sabine Pass, at which point we boarded a ferry. After the long car ride and even longer night before, the cold air and a walk around the boat helped to wake us up better than any cup of coffee had. 


We watched as the lights from the little town of Galveston materialized out of the fog. To my great surprise, we discovered that Galveston is a beach town with a surf culture.

Nothing but cheap motels and surf shops.

Brangelina looking good in Galveston

We pulled into town at night and quickly sought a hotel. We were warmly greeted by an Indian family running the Seaside Motel. $35 later, we were given a remote for the tv, a space heater for the room, and a shotgun for the imminent, midnight intruders. 


We headed for the local cantina and ordered two of the local specialties, fresh fish tacos (talapia) and some authentic chicken-fried steak. After a good meal we felt like new men, so we headed into town to see what this town offered in terms of night life.

This is actually a picture of Austin.

We found a few bars inhabited by a friendly group of locals. We stopped in one bar for a while and listened to a small country band play a few classics: Johnny Cash, Alabama, and even a twangy rendition of U2. My jaw dropped when I noticed one of the southern belle bartenders with the cutest southern accent i'd ever heard. Unfortunately, I wasn't the only one whose eye she caught and my attempts to woo her went unnoticed. 


Feeling suddenly tired, we decided to call it an early night and rest up for Austin. Waking up early the next morning, we stopped at a bunch of local surfshops and snagged a few stickers to bring back home, after which we said goodbye to Galveston, with the full intention to return with a surfboard as soon as the water warms up.