3. one road, no stoplight towns

texas is a big state. there are a lot of small towns here, some smaller than others. small towns have their issues, certainly, but many of them also have an undeniable charm.

this is marathon coffee in marathon, tx. 430 people live in marathon. they are 70 miles from big bend and boast a very small handful of businesses. this is one of them.

it was run by two little old ladies who kept track of the orders on paper and did a better job than their mid-20s waitress. the cappuccino was excellent and the green chile omelette left nothing to be desired.

there are a lot of towns like this in texas, most of which have been ignored with the advent of car travel. people breeze through without stopping. but so many of them have a few great gems going for them, and a lot of old fashioned people with that familiar (and in their case, genuine) hospitality.