SPI or Bust!

Last week, work took me to South Padre Island for our trade industry's annual administrative conference. Now, I wouldn't say I did much working, but I thoroughly enjoyed the week day trip to the beach. I've made this trip almost every year for as long as I can remember and this year didn't disappoint.

The Beach

If you've never been to South Padre, it's the best beach and blue water you can find in Texas. I'm not knocking any of our other beaches, but SPI offers a nice beach with clear water, good sand and no seaweed. Now, if you've been to Destin or a Carribbean beach, you will definitely need to remember you're in Texas and remind yourself to not be a beach snob.

The Lodging

While there are plenty of places to stay on the Island, we chose to rent a condo at the Sapphire Towers, located on the South end of the island. For the past few years, I've used VRBO by HomeAway to find our rentals at the Sapphire. It's a great website to find vacation rentals all over the US and abroad, not to mention, it clearly provides the rates, dates available, pictures of the condos, and descriptions of what's included in the rental. Our condo was top notch offering beautiful views of the ocean, comfy beds, free WiFi and even NetFlix streaming. The Sapphire is connected with the Pearl Hotel (Formerly Sheraton SPI) next door which allows you access to the hotel pool, swim up bar, and Buddy's Beach rentals, offering beach umbrella/chair rentals, water sports, etc. We rented a couple umbrellas and posted up for a few days of sand and surf.

The Food

My favorite place, Dolphin Cove, closed a few years ago after Hurricane Dolly came through wreaking havoc with her high winds and rains. (Bitch!) I'm still sad that it's closed. This place was the best little dive bar & restaurant around...killer atmosphere ripe for chowing down on some killer boiled shrimp and fried shrimp tacos and knocking back a few cold cervezas.

With that being said, I do still have a few other favorites and "must eats" when I visit SPI.

-Da Pizza Joint: Tasty thin crust pizza and other Italian tasties! Try Da Pizza Special loaded with Italian sausage, mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, olives and lots of cheese. If you like appetizers, the mozzarella sticks are solid and the fried zucchini is delish. On the weekends, the Joint offers a piano player rocking hits from the 50's to the 2000's...he's a little cheesy, but fun.

-Wanna Wanna: This bar sits beach side and offers wonderful atmosphere both day and night. The beers are cold and the food is fried. The kitchen slings solid fried fish, shrimp and oyster baskets, as well as a mean hamburger for you land lubbers. If you're over 21 (or have a good fake ID), check out the house specialty, the Turbo, a pina colada with a shot of Bacardi 151 on top. DELICIOUS!!! I love this place and can spend hours on the deck just drinking beer and hanging out.

-Dirty Al's: While it looks like a dive on the outside (and inside for that matter), it's delicious. You must try the fried fish, fried shrimp or blackened fish tacos! Throw on the magical wing like sauce on top and it's tasty seafood heaven. This local spot also offers a huge botana platter offering all types of fried goodies from the sea. Now there is usually a wait, but for me, the fish/shrimp tacos are totally worth it!

Now there are other places to eat and I'm sure people have their own favorites, but this is my blog and those are my favorites. :) If you have some suggestions for me, please feel free to share in the comments. I'm always up for trying new places and adding "must eats" to my list.

And finally I leave you with one of my shots of the sunset over Laguna Madre, the bay separating South Padre Island from the rest of Texas. Now you can sit at one of the many Bay side bars to watch the sunset, but on this night, I snagged this pic in the parking lot of the IBC Bank. The palm trees added a nice frame to the picture. As I watched the sun slowly sink into the bay, it was as if the sun was melting into the water. The big burning ball dissolved into the horizon and in a matter of moments it was gone. As a avid sunset lover, it was one of the most unique sundowns I've witnessed.

So as Tropical Storm Don brought in higher waves, big clouds, and a little rain, we started our road trip back home with another great beach trip under our belt. This trip a little different from the last, but still with the undertones of relaxation that can only be obtained from time spent with toes in the sand. As I drive north, I begin to think of where my final beach trip of the year will be to successfully complete my 2011 New Year's resolution of hitting a beach once a quarter. Destin, Key West, South Padre Island...what's next? As soon as I figure it out, I'll let you know.

Until then happy travels and many laughs...