TEXAS

Palo Duro Canyon State Park is a canyon system of the Caprock Escarpment located in the Texas Panhandle near the cities of Amarillo and Canyon. As the second-largest canyon in the United States, it is roughly 120 mi long and has an average width of 6 mi, but reaches a width of 20 mi at places. Its depth is around 820 ft, but in some locations, it increases to 1,000 ft. Palo Duro Canyon has been named "The Grand Canyon of Texas" both for its size and for its dramatic geological features, including the multicolored layers of rock and steep mesa walls similar to those in the Grand Canyon.

The Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden is a 66-acre botanical garden located at 8525 Garland Road in East Dallas, Dallas, Texas, on the southeastern shore of White Rock Lake.

The Alamo Mission in San Antonio, commonly called The Alamo and originally known as the Misión San Antonio de Valero, is a historic Spanish mission and fortress compound founded in the 18th century by Roman Catholic missionaries in what is now San Antonio, Texas, United States. It was the site of the Battle of the Alamo in 1836. Today it is a museum in the Alamo Plaza Historic District and a part of the San Antonio Missions World Heritage Site. The historic district was one of the early Spanish missions in Texas, built for the education of local American Indians after their conversion to Christianity. The mission was secularized in 1793 and then abandoned. Ten years later, it became a fortress housing the Second Flying Company of San Carlos de Parras military unit, who likely gave the mission the name Alamo. During the Texas Revolution, Mexican General Martín Perfecto de Cos surrendered the fort to the Texian Army in December 1835, following the Siege of Béxar. A relatively small number of Texian soldiers then occupied the compound for several months. The defenders were wiped out at the Battle of the Alamo on March 6, 1836

The San Antonio River Walk is a city park and network of walkways along the banks of the San Antonio River, one story beneath the streets of San Antonio, Texas, United States. Lined by bars, shops, restaurants, nature, public artwork, and the five historic missions, the River Walk is an important part of the city's urban fabric and a tourist attraction in its own right. The River Walk is a successful special-case pedestrian street, one level down from the automobile street. The River Walk winds and loops under bridges as two parallel sidewalks lined with restaurants and shops, connecting the major tourist draws from the Shops at Rivercenter, to the Arneson River Theatre, to Marriage Island, to La Villita, to HemisFair Park, to the Tower Life Building, to the San Antonio Museum of Art, to the Pearl and the city's five Spanish colonial missions, which have been named a World Heritage Site, including the Alamo. During the annual springtime Fiesta San Antonio, the River Parade features flowery floats that float down the river.

Padre Island is the largest of the Texas barrier islands and the world's longest barrier island. The island is located along Texas's southern coast of the Gulf of Mexico and is noted for its white sandy beaches. Meaning father in Spanish, it was named after Father José Nicolás Ballí, who owned the island and served as a missionary priest and collector of finances for all the churches in the Rio Grande Valley. He also founded the first mission in present-day Cameron County. Padre Island is the second-largest island by area in the contiguous United States, after Long Island in New York on the Atlantic Coast. It is about 113 miles long and 1.8 miles wide, stretching from the city of Corpus Christi, in the north, to the resort community of South Padre Island in the south. The island is oriented north-south, bordered by the Gulf of Mexico on the east and Laguna Madre on the west. The island's northern end connects to Mustang Island by roadway. The southern end of the island is separated from Brazos Island by the Brazos Santiago Pass. The town of South Padre Island is located on its southern end, but the island as a whole is sparsely populated

Walk up and down the most famous street in Austin, Texas and you’ll understand why it’s called the Live Music Capital of the World®. A destination for locals and tourists alike, find rollicking bars, cheap drinks and live music alongside fabulous restaurants, dark speakeasies, world-class hotels and more on historic Sixth Street.  (Daniel's first job was bartending at the Driskill Hotel right there!)

When most people think of Austin, visions of things like tasty taco and musicians performing all over town come to mind. But the city is also known for its love of certain winged nocturnal animals that appear at sunset. Yep, those are the Mexican Free-Tailed Bats.  

A 1980 renovation transformed the Congress Avenue Bridge into an ideal bat cave, soon attracting migrating Mexican free-tailed bats. Decades later, Austin's bat numbers have swelled and locals have adopted the beloved creatures as neighbors who happily handle the city's bug mitigation and provide an amazing nightly show.

Head south for a glimpse of the U.S.' second tallest statue. At 67 feet tall (on a 10-foot-high Texas granite base) the statue is called "Big Sam" by locals, but its official name is "A Tribute to Courage." Sam Houston, political architect of Texas, towers in concrete above Interstate 45. The colossal monument is dedicated to the man who still inspires Texans to reach lofty heights. Sam Houston (1793-1863) remembered the Alamo, then went on to become President of the Republic of Texas, Governor of the State of Texas, and a U.S. Senator.