MARFA
Marfa is now known as an art tourism destination town. Since the 1970s Marfa has grown as an arts community. Driving through it looks like a combination of many old west Texas small towns but with renovated gas stations-now-turned-galleries and modernized adobe homes that are studios and galleries. There is a mental split between the ranchers of the old days and the artsy crowd of the new.
But Marfa was also the setting for James Dean's last movie, 'Giant'—so this may not be new for them.
Our campsite was in the Tumble In RV Park. It was a no frills space just outside town—so close that had the weather been better we'd have walked. Close by is great pizza and an awesome dive bar. The park was just fine and had bathrooms, showers and laundry. There was no host ( just the honor system ), but you self registered and paid inside a tiny little camper. I am in love with tumbleweeds so the park's sign was my favorite part—a set of five neon swirls that lit up in order to show the motion of its namesake. We went to the dive bar for drinks and then over to get a pizza to take back to camp. And then we fell asleep to the sound of trains.
Marfa is an intriguing place. And I can see why artists are drawn here. Parts are already pretty pricey and I can see things going that way more and more. Hopefully it will retain both sides of its history and be the better for it. I think it can. After all, Marfa has already survived Elizabeth Taylor.
