Festival of Sand

Even though the weather wasn’t great yesterday, Matt and I ventured out to Port Aransas for the day. Port Aransas is about 20 minutes away from North Padre Island (where we live – yes, we are “Islanders”) and is my favorite place here in Texas. It is a beach resort town filled with rental go-carts, surf shops, beachy restaurants, and gift shops. People come from all over Texas to visit Port Aransas. When we first moved here I asked Matt if he was willing to commute. It is about 40 minutes from the base, needless to say, I wasn’t able to convince him (maybe it was those 5:00 a.m. briefs…) They promote Port A as “Texas – Island Style” and have restaurants with names like Castaways, Fins, and Moby Dick's...what more do I need.

We started out at a little café, Island Cafe. Those who know us best know how much we LOVE hole-in-the-wall restaurants (what I would do for a taco from El Charrito’s on Washington Blvd. in Arlington). I think my appreciation for local hole-in-the-walls comes from my parents who love to discover unknown eateries in small towns. The food was great, service was fast, and the prices were CHEAP. After finishing up with brunch, we headed to the coffee shop for some more caffeine to get through the day. *Matt had two flights on Saturday and didn’t get home until midnight* The coffee shop was an awesome discovery; big leather couches inside and relaxing beach chairs outside. They served all the regular coffee, plus gelato (Matt had a Butterfinger and Andes mint double scoop)!

Next stop – Sand Fest 2010. I read about Sand Fest a couple of days ago and was expecting a simple sand sculpting contest. I figured we would park on the beach and see a few cool sand sculptures and then make our way back home. Little did I know, people come from all over the country to participate in Sand Fest. It was amazing! Not only were there sand sculptures, but it was a flea market on the beach. There were vendors from all over South Texas, plus live music, amazing Texas food like fried cheesecakes and fried pie, and a mechanical bull in the sand (only in Texas!) We spent an hour or so wandering around; upset that we had eaten our fill at the café and couldn’t make room for the potato on a stick. All I can say is that I was impressed with what one could do with a little creativity and a whole lot of sand.

One of the best parts of being a military family is the opportunity for new experiences. We have had so many down here and this was one of the best. What could be better than a morning that starts off with corned beef hash and ends with a flea market on the beach…

I look forward to sharing our next Texas adventure with you. Until then, love from Texas!

Our new hole-in-the-wall discovery

Local coffee shop - Coffee Waves

Sand Fest 2010

Note the concentration...

Wouldn't be a Texas event without a mechanical bull

Even though this wasn't in the finale, we definitely thought it was the shit;)