Texas
Six Flags Fiesta Texas - Six Flags Over Texas
Schlitterbahn
Whole
Foods - Pasha - La Fonda - Istanbul Grill - Torchy's Tacos
Monday May 26th -
Friday May 30th
Click each picture to make it bigger, then back to return here.
Day 1 - Monday May 26th 2014
Here I am blasting off from Fort Lauderdale. After arriving Austin, I headed downtown to Whole Foods. There was an event downtown, because this was Memorial Day. I had to drive away from the city before I could get to the other side where Whole Foods is located. This is the original store where it all started.
Pictures leadiing into Whole Foods, and the eating area up front. The place was packed.
Pictures of the salad bar, many choices, more than you could imagine.
After driving for a couple hours, I arrived at the entrance to Six Flags Fiesta Texas. It had just rained, and there wasn't much of a crowd. Pictured is the roller coaster Goliath, and Road Runner Express.
This is one reason I came here, to ride Iron Rattler, a coaster by Rocky Mountain Construction. 179 feet tall, 70 mph. One of the best rides of the trip, this coaster was voted best new ride for 2013.
Super Krypton Coaster - 168 feet tall, 70 mph This is the tallest / fastest floorless coaster, another I checked off my bucket list.
After a busy day and getting a lot done, I visted a Medetterean restaurant called Pasha. Here I ordered a Falafal Pita with salad to go. Tasted great back at the hotel room.
Day 2 - Tuesday May 27th.
Here I am at Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels TX. This is where the Master Blaster was created, they have two. A master blaster is an inner tube ride that shoots the riders uphill with drops and turns similar to a roller coaster. This was also something I wanted to check off my bucket list, I had never been on a master blaster before.
After a great visit to Schlitterbahn riding the master blasters, I headed back to San Antonia TX and visited La Fonda. Here I ordered veggie tacos with salad. The salsa that came with the chips had a unique taste, really good.
Day 3 - Wednesday May 28th.
I woke up early and drove 5 hours to Arlington and Six Flags over Texas. These ducks walked right up to the car asking for food. Lucky for them, I had a piece of bread to give them. $20 to park, what a rip off. Lucky for me, I had a season pass and didn't have to pay it.
1st picture is a coaster named Titan, 245 feet tall, 85 mph. In the 2nd picture is the New Texas Giant, 153 feet tall, 65 mph. In the 3rd and 4th pictures is Shockwave, 116 feet tall, 60 mph. . Riding the New Texas Giant and Shockwave allowed me to check two more coasters off my bucket list. I came here two mornings in a row. In each case, Titan opened first. So the thrill ride tour would be Titan, New Texas Giant, Mr Freeze, Batman, Shockwave.
After a great day at Six Flags over Texas, I visited Instanbul Grill for dinner and had a Falafel plate.
Day 4 - Thursday May 29th
I visited SFoT in the morning, then drove 200 miles back to Austin TX. Here I visited Torchy's Tacos, one of the top rated restaurants in Austin. The Independent taco was the best. The Queso and Chips were also good. I flew home the next morning.
Conclusion: Good trip, except for a toll issue in Austin. Rental car companies want to charge people $8-$10 a day to rent a toll device, because tolls in Austin are cashless. I had no desire to drive on the toll roads and declined the option. I was using the Avoid Toll roads option with Google Maps on my iPhone, but forgot to set the option the one time I was driving back to Austin (I-35 to SH45 to 1). There was no Last Exit before Toll sign. I ended up going through a toll for $1.06. When I tried to pay this toll at the Thrifty counter, they told me it would be $41.96, or $10.49 times 4 days. Or I could pay a $45 processing fee plus tolls. I said no way and closed the contract. Many phone calls to Thrifty, TexTag, and the department of transportation led no where. There was no way to pay the toll through TexTag because they send the bill directly to the owner, in this case, Thrifty. When I returned home, I reported my credit card as lost so Thrifty could not automatically bill me. I haven't heard anything since. If you rent a car, be sure to use the Avoid Tolls option on your GPS and avoid these problems. I'm not the only one wtih problems renting a car and tolls. Many peole are reporting similar problems on the Trip Advisor forums. Avoid rental car companies that try to gouge people for a toll device, like Thrifty. Some rental car companies are even charging $20 a day for a toll device. On my next trip I used Alamo and everything was fine. I wrote the governors of Florida and Texas telling them this price gouging practice will hurt tourism.
The other problem with Austin is the traffic, it's horrible. Stop lights what seems like every block, wall to wall traffic, not fun driving. When staying at the La Quinta near the airport, I took a shuttle to the airport. The driver took me through a staging area and told me they pay a dollar each time they drive to the airport ramp. If they fail to stage going through a toll gate, someone will call the cops on the airport ramp and they'll issue a ticket no questions asked. What does this matter to me? The hotel prices in Austin cost more, and this is one reason why. All these extra fees and tolls are passed on to tourists. I flew into Austin because it was in the middle between Dallas and San Antonio, but next time I'll fly into Dallas.
Regarding the parks and coasters, everything was great. I checked
off 4 coasters on my bucket list and also rode two master blasters.
What is my bucket list? It's right here.
The USA Steel List
Regarding the food places, here is how to eat healthy on trips. Frist see if there is a Whole Foods, Fresh Market, or similar. If so, then eat the salad, even if it costs $10-$15. After that, use the Trip Advisor app and find the best Mediterranean or Mexican restaurant. Mediterranean restaurants will serve Falafel pitas. Mexican restaurants will serve vegetable fijitas or tacos.
More info on Healthy Eating can be found here.
Healthy Food Pictures
End of Report. Thanks for reading.
Email me at skiguy777@bellsouth.net.