houston, tx.

Because I am such a slacker and always do things last minute, I had to make a quick trip to Houston to get a visa for India before my trip overseas. D & T were kind enough to accompany me and to help drive, but also to check out Houston. The drive was about fourteen hours, and I actually drove for the first eight hours without having to switch drivers. That is a big deal for me, because normally I get antsy after four. The drive was pretty uneventful, other than the fact that I crossed the Mississippi for the first time! Here are some pictures from the drive over:

[what do you expect after a 14 hour drive?]

[t]

[all-in-one shopping]

 When we finally got to Houston, we checked into our suite at the Residence Inn by the Galleria in Uptown. I didn't know what to expect, but it was big and really nice. We were impressed. We decided to walk around for awhile and try to find something to eat, as we were basically across the street from a huge mall and lots of shopping. After wandering for what seemed like hours, we finally found the only place still open at 10 pm on a Sunday night:

[only in texas]

[d & t in the scary elevator]

 The next morning I went to the visa office while they slept in. I was one of the first in line, so it went very quickly. I was glad to have it over with and know for sure that I was actually going to be able to go to India that coming weekend. That's my family way...cutting it as close as we can before it's too late. When I got back to the hotel, we decided to check out the mall. I had read that they had a Dylan's Candy Bar shop so I had to stop by:

After shopping at Dylan's Candy Bar and the Lego store, we walked back to the hotel to get the car so we could go to lunch. This is what Houston fire hydrants look like...SMURFS:

We had seen The Hobbit Cafe featured on a website earlier that day, so we obvi had to go:

[i had the strider sandwich: egg salad, tomatoes, sprouts and mushrooms]

[d & t each had the hobbit wrap. it was humongous but they both champed it out and finished. this is d's wrap with grilled tuna and avocado added]

 We were all big fans of The Hobbit Cafe after lunch. Such good food, decent beer selection, and very veg-friendly. Plus, the whole 1960s-era-Lord-of-the-Rings decor was nice. After naps, we went to the social hour at the hotel for free drinks and appetizers. Then, we went out to the Rice University area of Houston to go to some bars. The first place we went was Brian O'Neill's Irish Pub. It was okay, but we only stayed for one drink. Then on to The Ginger Man, which was much more our style:

 After drinks, we walked around for awhile, saw some university housing and a bunch of random stores:

 We got back to the hotel and started to get ready for bed. Then I made the mistake of watching the Weather Channel and realized there was going to be crazy wind and thunderstorms and tornadoes along our route home the next morning. So we just decided to leave Houston right then, so we didn't have to deal with all the rain and whatnot the next day. At midnight we set off, taking turns sleeping, and after we downed an entire pound of espresso beans, we made it into Athens by late afternoon. Even though it was an extremely short trip, it was very fun and gave us a nice glimpse into the over-sized strip mall that is Houston, Texas. I will leave you with Kim, who tried to sneak into my bag before we left: