Austin, Texas

some places of note in Austin include the South Lamar Alamo Drafthouse which is a cinema that serves beer, wine, and other alcohols as well as some decent food. There's plenty of leg room and the pre-show entertainment is very unique. They show anything from old cartoons to youTube viral videos during this time. Highly recommended.Alamo Drafthouse - South Lamar

Also a good take: Fogo de Chao, the Brazilian BBQ restaurant. Pricey, and a little on the fancy side. They have an amazing salad bar and walk around serving a variety of meats. http://www.fogodechao.com/

There's also 6th Street which is just one big block party at night where all the bars serve alcohol for cheap. It's like Mardi Gras three time a week. I walked it one night and while it looked fun it's not really my cup of tea these days.

Texas Hill Country Horseback Riding

Trevor, Diego and I left Fredericksburg and stopped at Colbert Ranch on the way to Austin to do some horseback riding. I rode Rocky who was afraid of rocks, Diego rode Jesse who was a pokey, lazy horse and Trevor rode Skippy who was a rather stubborn horse. The guide explained that Rocky wasn't wearing shoes towards the end of the trail which explained why he would always stray off the path where the ground was soft and walk me into a branch. Trevor really got into it halfway through. He thinks he's a cowboy now because the Game Red Dead Redemption apparently teaches you everything you need to know about horseback riding.

The country we rode through was beautiful. We traveled through big field filled with Monarch butterflies and walked across rivers. The guide let us help untack and groom the horses before walking them outside to the pasture. Some of the horses were pretty friendly and stuck around to be pet for a minute. I think Rocky is the softest horse I have ever touched. I think he enjoyed being pet.

Above are pics Diego took. We had other great ones too but of course I reformatted the disk by accident and there they went. I'm still upset about that :(

Later on that night we reached Austin and went out for Brazilian BBQ. The food and drinks were great. Diego went back to the hotel to do homework and Trevor and I took a carriage ride around the Warehouse district before going back and soaking in the hot tub.

Fredericksburg, TX: Octoberfest

Upon arriving at San Antonio we went out for Mexican food where I got a Margarita. It was pretty good considering I don't really like margaritas.

Later in the evening we went to octoberfest in Fredericksberg. It's all about the beer and the German heritage but to me the best part was all the crafters and artists. I bought a pair of earrings and then Trevor and I got our charicature done which I've always wanted to do.

Somerville Open Studios

On Saturday I went to Davis Square to see the Somerville Open Studios. The event is held every year and features emerging and mid-career artists that open their apartments and studios to the public to show off their work. There was a large range of mediums and styles and everything was original yet tasteful. The studios were all cute or unique. I can't say enough good things about the Open Studios and hopefully they will be doing it again next year. Somerville Open Studios Link. What made this day even better was that the weather was spectacular and the town was beautiful with flowers and freshly popped leaves. We stopped at the Boston Burger Company for lunch which had awesome sweet potatoes and we watched the Square from the big open window. There was some kind of folk dance crew performing throughout the area and later on we stopped at the Joshua Tree where we watched part of the Kentucky Derby and I had a snow berry martini which was very tasty.

Rockingham Park

Rockingham Park in Salem, NH features harness racing. They race trotting or pacing Standardbred horses hooked up to small carts apposed to galloping Thoroughbreds with their typical saddle riders. The Standardbred was developed in America and has a strong build and a good character. The races are one after the other at the Park so there's not too much down time and bets are taken inside. The horses look like they are not overworked which is important to me and they are just a ball to watch. I love them! Their names kill me too: "He's a Player", "Ask for Bliss, "Frankly Fit", and my favorite "Aim for the Stars".

The photos below were taken with my film BlackSlim Devil camera.

DC Trip

I went to DC recently for the second time and I highly recommend visiting. The monuments and federal buildings are gorgeous in person and the Smithsonian museums are just incredible, not to mention free. There are some nice restaurants and bars in the area as well. Places that get extra kudos: Smithsonian Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, Arlington Cemetery and of course the National Mall.

Botanical Garden

Lost ducks we found under a car

Korean War Memorial

Watergate

Arlington

Piano at the American Art Museum

Pompeii at the American Art Museum

American Art Museum

Adams Memorial, by Augustus Sain-Gaudens 1886

“Clover” Adams, wife of the writer Henry Adams, committed suicide in 1885 by drinking chemicals used to develop photographs. Adams, who steadfastly refused to discuss his wife’s death, commissioned Augustus Saint-Gaudens to create a memorial that would express the Buddhist idea of nirvana, a state of being beyond joy and sorrow.

Winter in VT After Christmas

I spent several days way up in northern Vermont, having the luxuries of civilization provided not by basic electricity but by my dad's array of generators, inverters, solar panels, and who knows what else. I went snowshoeing with my mom and the dog which was fun until I fell through the ice of the pond up to my knees. We came up to what looked like a dip in the snow where a river fed into the pond and when I tried to jump over it I just kind of slid down and once I hit the ice I just kept going. I was stuck pretty good since I couldn't get a grip on anything. When I got out my toes were about as freezing as they have ever been but as far as those kinds of experiences go it wasn't that bad.

We went snowmobiling a couple days too. We came across a whole herd of deer on the trail and followed them for a ways. They were the biggest deer I had ever seen and their coats were a deep red with snow white patches.