A chilly trip to Marfa, TX

We recently took a trip down to Marfa & I am ready to go back!  I hadn't been since I was a kid, going to Girl Scout Camp at Mitre Peak in Ft. Davis, which was always a highlight of the summer.  I remember horseback riding, swimming & even repelling during one summer.  It was great.

I don't know why it took me so long to get back that far West, but I assure you, the break is over.

My sister was graduating from Sul Ross University in Alpine last Friday, so we took the opportunity to head down a little early & check out Marfa on Thursday.  

We knew it would be a little chillier than we were used to, but boy were we in for some weather changes.  On the drive down, we started running into snow flurries around Ozona & by the time we got to Alpine, we were in full-on winter mode!

We had to pull over & check out the Winter Wonderland that we were suddenly engulfed in.  It was incredible how quickly the terrain changed from a couple of flurries to white frost everywhere, & once we passed through Alpine, how quickly it went back to just a few flecks of snow in the air.  By the time we reached Marfa, there was nothing but cold.

It was about 25 degrees by the time we reached El Cosmico, our home for the night, & we were a little worried that our little teepee was going to be pretty frigid.  But, a blanket warmer & a fire pit at the foot of your bed can do great things, y'all.

We settled into our teepee & then headed out to explore.  The El Cosmico grounds are awesome, with little ecentric touches everywhere that are just so fun.  I would describe it as a much slower, laid-back community, with an Austin feel.  We were in love as soon as we drove onto the property.

I would love to go back when we havea few more days (we were only able to stay one night) & take in more of the atmosphere.  I've heard of reading retreats & I think El Cosmico would be a perfect place to cozy up with a few good books & a strong drink.

We headed off to dinner at Jett's Grill inside the historic Hotel Paisano.  I had been told by many friends to be sure & make dinner reservations, as restaurants can fill up, but it turns out we didn't need one that night (we had made one just to be sure though!)  I think that it might have been so quiet because of the sudden temperature drop.

Drinks & appetizers were first, & did not disappoint.  We tried the fried artichoke hearts, along with a glass of Prosecco (my go-to) & a Tequila Cowboy for Andrew.  The Tequila Cowboy was a sweet & spicy blend of honey, lemon, tequila & habanero hot sauce.  It had a pretty big kick, but I really enjoyed the swigs I took.

The fried artichokes were crispy on the outside, creamy creamy on the inside & came with a delightful chipotle ranch.  It was the perfect bite to start with after a long day on the road.

We then moved on to entrees, & they were just as tasty.  Andrew had the pork & I ordered a vegetable pasta.  Both were awesome & large portions.  The pork was well seared & the sauce paired really well.  My pasta was dressed with a bright pesto & the vegetables had just enough crunch left in them to compliment the starchy pasta.    

After dinner, we bundled up & headed over to Stellina for coffee & dessert.  When you're only in town for one night, you have to hit up several places for each meal!  The coffee was rich & strong & the chocolate cheesecake was dense & delightful.

Around 6am, I woke up to go to the bathroom (thankfully the staff had left the inside bathroom open for us, so that we didn't have to brave a 25 degree toliet seat in the outdoor bathrooms!) & decided to stay up to see what I could capture with my camera.  After several failed attempts, I got some pretty cool pictures of our teepees & the community areas on the grounds.

Post-photo shoot, we headed over to Buns N' Roses for breakfast.  They had a fun tire snowman greeting us & I couldn't resist getting a pic.  

Staff was friendly, coffee was abundant & the food was killer.  While we waited for our order, we shared a homemade chocolate glazed donut that was soft & delicious.  Andrew got waffles, eggs & bacon, which was so plentiful, it could've fed both of us.  The waffle was a good combo of crispy & fluffy.

My dish was the real star of the morning, eggs, cheesy grits & the best toast I've had in a long time. The bread was perfectly made & toasted so well.  Though  Andrew had more than enough food, he kept sneaking bites of my cozy, creamy grits & eggs.  If you're in the area, I think it's a must-try.

I wish we would've had more time to explore the art museums, but we did have a chance to stop by the Chinati Foundation.

And afterwards, we stopped in to Moonlight Gemstones & fell in love.  This quirky, fun little shop is full of treasures.  The owners told us about the various local agates & showed us several varieties.  It's amazing how much just a few miles can change the look of a gem.  We ended up coming home with one of those big 'ol pretty rose quartz pieces.

After some browsing & exploring around town, we grabbed tasty sandwiches, & a couple of coffees at Squeeze Marfa before heading out to Alpine.