i HEART marfa

and let me tell you why. here are a few things to do in town:

get up for a breakfast at austin street cafe. the perfect blend of country simplicity and modernist sensability. the food is delicious too.

go for the early tour at the chinati foundation. view the installation works of donald judd, john chamberlain, and ilya kabakov. the afternoon tour includes pieces by dan flavin and john wesley. beautiful, perfect.

grab a coffee at the marfa book company. an extensive list of art titles combined with the usual bookstore fare in a store which also hosts its own minimalist gallery.

keep an eye out for your own celebrity sighting. films from elizabeth taylor's classic giant to an art film by the band secret machines have been filmed in marfa. currently, both the coen brothers and p.t. anderson are shooting in the area.

visit the marfa ballroom, an old dancehall-turned-gallery space. the most exciting news about this gallery is their collaboration with moma to create the first fine art-based drive-in theater. included in the line-up this fall will be the wind, a silent film that will be accompanied by live orchestration.

after dinner, drive 8 miles out east to see the marfa mystery lights. the source of these desert lights continues to remain a mystery to locals and scientists, even though reports of these floating spectacles have continued night after night for centuries.

when the day is done, crash at the hip thunderbird hotel. a renovated mid-century roadside hotel, this hipness doesn't miss a beat. relax by the pool or fire pit, borrow a turntable and vinyl from the front desk, or even a check out a typewriter for catching up on tardy correspondences. and enjoy. enjoy marfa.