What a great weekend it is to be in Austin. As you wander around the heart of the city, you can stop wondering about the stories behind all those cool old buildings and hear about them in person. Call in advance to book a place for the free guided walking tours that take place Thursday through Sunday. You’ll hear all about the history of the culture and architecture that shaped the center of town during 90-minute walks. The 10-block Congress Avenue/East Sixth Street tour winds through downtown’s National Register District, focusing on buildings dating from 1850. The Bremond Block Tour gives you a look at distinctive old homes near downtown, including the elegant Victorian houses built between 1854 and 1898, as well as the Governor’s Mansion. Groups meet and depart at 9 a.m. Thursdays and Fridays from the south steps of the Texas State Capitol and at 2 p.m. Sundays for the Congress Avenue tour and 11 a.m. Saturday and Sunday for the Bremond Block tour. Reservations are required; call 512/478-0098 or go HERE.

Stick around after for Kite Day in Austin’s Zilker Park, from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Sunday. It’s among the oldest kite-flying gatherings in the nation, bringing in thousands of professional (who knew?!) and amateur kite-ists (not really a word, but it sounds good). Competitions are part of the fun, and the whole thing is free – but you’ll want to bring money for food and T-shirts. There are free shuttles and parking at State Garage E (1604 Colorado St.). For more information, go HERE.

One of my good friends growing up was born on February 29, during a leap year, which I always thought was pretty darn amazing. Despite us both being born the exact same year, I was already 12 years old by the time she turned 3. When I turned 20, my friend looked far older than her youthful 5 years. Like most “leaplings,” she celebrated her birthday either the day before or the day after February 29. It was only every four years that she was able to celebrate her true birthday. Fortunately, for all those leaplings out there (there’s an estimated 200,000 living in the United States; 4 million throughout the world), there is a place for them to celebrate: Anthony, Texas.

Located 20 miles north of El Paso in Big Bend, Anthony, a tiny farming community, is the Leap Year Capital of the World. And beginning tomorrow, February 29, through March 2, leap-year babies from as far away as Germany and Norway will flock to this town of 3,850 to celebrate their big day during the 6th Annual Worldwide Leap Year Festival.

Begun in 1988, the festival was founded by Mary Anne Brown, a leapling herself (she was born in 1932, which makes her 19 years old!) with the help of the Anthony Chamber of Commerce. This year’s event will include a golf tournament, parade, birthday dinner, and carnival.

For more information, or to join the Leap Year Birthday Club, call 505/882-5677; or go HERE.

With Easter coming early and more pretty days now than not, you can already feel it in your bones – spring is on the way. That means it’s time to start planning your daytrips and weekend getaways. But, hmmm, where to go? I suggest Aggieland. Head to the MSC Forsyth Center Galleries at Texas A&M University for an exhibit called Pressed Glass: An American Art & Industry, opening Monday, March 3, and continuing through June 1. Dating from the 19th Century, the glassmaking industry once served only aristocrats, but with advances in machinery, beautiful pressed-glass objects became items the middle class could afford for their home decor. The creations you’ll see in this collection are stunning. If you like looking at pretty things, don’t miss this. The galleries are inside the Memorial Student Center on campus and are open daily. Read more HERE. While you’re in the neighborhood, visit the nice people at Messina Hof Winery in Bryan. On Friday evenings, they do a sunset tour in the Wine Bar, which includes a flight of three wines ingeniously paired with selections from the tapas menu, all for $25. You might want to plan your arrival in time for lunch, served daily, or dinner, served Wednesday through Saturday, in the winery’s Vintage House Restaurant. Go HERE) to find out about special events, such as the Cajun Cooking Party on March 13, where you can cook dinner with the winery chef for $65. Make reservations for the restaurant and special events by calling 800/736-9463, ext. 34. Or just make a weekend of it and book yourself into the luxury B&B, the Villas at Messina Hof. There are 10 fabulous rooms, as well as lots of packages to consider. Reserve your stay at 979/778-9463, ext. 22.

So, how are you going to celebrate Texas Independence Day? That’s March 2, this Sunday, so you better get on the stick. If you’re stumped as to where you might go pay homage to the Texians’ fight for freedom, allow me to point out the abundance of destinations where history was made along the march to Santa Anna’s defeat at San Jacinto. At Gonzales, east of San Antonio, you’ll see a monument in front of the town’s Memorial Museum to the first patriots to die for the cause, as the revolution’s first skirmish happened here – thus its nickname, “the Lexington of Texas.” On Friday, there’s an Independence Day Celebration with a breakfast at the Old Jail, followed by a historical presentation, wreath-laying ceremony, and walking tour of historic downtown.

Near Brenham, Washington-on-the-Brazos State Park will celebrate the state’s 172nd birthday on Saturday and Sunday with costumed re-enactors, craft demonstrations of the period, military encampments, and music, all on the site where the early Texans signed their declaration of independence in 1836. The museum at the park is a wonderful history lesson. Read more HERE. In Nacogdoches, visit Oak Grove Cemetery, where four of those signers – including my great-great-great-great-great grandfather, William Clark, Jr. – are buried. Of course, you can find plenty of ways to reacquaint yourself with the events of 1836 in San Antonio, starting with a visit to the Alamo. On March 6, there’s a pre-dawn commemorative ceremony that honors those who died on both sides of the fight, and dramatic presentations are scheduled during Remember the Alamo Weekend, March 8-9. Read more HERE.

At Goliad, you can visit Presidio La Bahia, a fort built to protect the nearby mission, and the place where Col. James Fannin and his army were held prisoner after surrendering to Santa Anna on Palm Sunday in 1836. A short walk away, see the monument marking the grave where these men were buried after the general ordered their massacre. An excellent small museum at the presidio is worth exploring. A historic re-enactment of the events of that fateful time is schedule for the weekend of March 29-30. Read more HERE.

You don’t need to wait for signs of spring before getting out and about in North Texas. Denton already has great reasons to come up and see what’s going on. A couple of weeks ago, the new Denton County African Museum was dedicated at the county’s Historical Park, at the corner of Carroll Boulevard and Mulberry Street. Along with the Courthouse-on-the-Square Museum and the Bayless-Selby House Museum, it’s a great example of how Denton’s cultural assets are evolving. The new African-American museum is found within an original Quakertown house and showcases exhibits that tell the story of local African-American families since the 1840s, well before slavery was abolished. Among the collections is that of Dr. Edwin D. Moten, Denton’s first African-American doctor. You really shouldn’t miss this historical treasure trove; read more HERE. And if you should visit Denton on the first Saturday of the month, you can take one of the popular Horse Country Tours. Tours depart Denton County Historical park at Carroll and Mulberry at 9 a.m. and take you to beautiful horse ranches throughout the region, returning to Denton at 1 p.m., just in time for lunch on or near the pretty courthouse square; my favorites places to eat are Hannah’s, the Loophole and Sweetwater – you can’t go wrong at these. Horse tour tickets are $25 in advance, $30 on tour day, but note that tours often sell out and you’re wise to book in advance by calling 940/382-7895.

There’s just so much rodeo and barbecue and monster-truck pulls and antique shopping you can do until something inside says, “Hey, Bubba, go get some real culture. Do something for your brain, OK?” So in the interest of enlightenment, I thought it might do to see what kinds of exhibits are out there in the museums near and far. Lo and behold, Abilene’s fabulous Grace Museum has just launched a major exhibit called Picturing Eden, which continues through May 5. Organized by the George Eastman House in Rochester, N.Y., this very special photography collection presents interpretations of the Garden of Eden in more than 130 pictures conceived by 37 contemporary artists. It’s sponsored partially by the Abilene Interfaith Council, which has planned a panel discussion for April 17. Find the wonderful museum across the street from the old railroad station, right in Abilene’s very charming downtown. For details go HERE. And a great reason to visit Austin this spring and summer – as though you needed another good excuse – is to spend an afternoon at The Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas to see, On the Road With the Beats, an exhibit continuing through August 3. This one offers a journey through the towns, topography, and cultural destinations where the Beat Generation traveled from the early 1940s to the mid-1960s. Of particular interest is Jack Kerouac’s scroll manuscript of On the Road; the first 48 feet of this 120-foot-long “page” will be on display in the gallery from March 7 through June 1. For more information, go HERE. And a great reason to visit Austin. If you must reward yourself afterward, go stuff yourself silly on old-school enchiladas at El Azteca on East Seventh Street, one of my all-time favorite Austin cafes.

Rare is the week in which nobody asks me my favorite place to travel. My job as a travel writer has granted me the opportunity to see wondrous things and sites, near and far, so people naturally assume that the Alps or Fiji or another far-flung place is my idea of the perfect escape. So it usually surprises them when I say that my getaway yearnings take me deep into the Chihuahuan Desert, in the southwesternmost corner of Texas. And if you’ve been likewise hypnotized by the Big Bend area, you know precisely what I mean. After countless visits over the past 20 years, I’m forever dazzled by the mysteries and magic of the landscape and sky that await there. Whether hiking, rafting, riding a horse or jostling around in some four-wheel drive vehicle, I simply cannot get enough of the sensory overload so generously offered throughout the Trans-Pecos. Some people go specifically to take on the dramatic physical challenges the land doles out, and these are exactly the types who will converge upon the legendary little hamlet of Terlingua next weekend, when the Mas o Menos 100K Mountain Bike Endurance Fest takes place. The Presidents’ Day Weekend gathering starts on Thursday and continues through Saturday, giving cycling fiends all the roadwork they can handle. If you’re not so hard-core, you can take part in the fun rides offered through the weekend, and everyone gets to enjoy the fabulous feasts offered at the Starlight Theater Cantina, as well as the Saturday-night bonfire and desert dance, with live music. For registration, camping, and lodging details, go HERE.

It would seem that I’m stuck on Jefferson, but there’s so much to love there. And there’s plenty of reason to celebrate love in Jefferson next week, too. On Valentine’s Day – that’s one week from tomorrow, for those of you not paying attention – you can go to an old-fashioned Valentine’s Dinner Dance in Jefferson. It should come as no surprise that the sweet celebration will take place at the Excelsior House Hotel, one of the oldest and most beloved inns in Texas. At the Excelsior’s formal ballroom, you’ll find live musical entertainment and a gourmet buffet, all for just $27/person. (For tickets and other info, go HERE.) You’re welcome to bring your own wine, if you like. Why not make a weekend of it? Book yourself into one of the lovely guest houses, B&Bs, or historic inns in town. The Excelsior stays booked up most of the year, so you’ll need to look around at one of the other 30 or so great choices. Among my personal in-town favorites are the Breckenridge Garden Cottages, Claiborne House, Old Mulberry Inn, House of the Seasons, McKay House, and the Stillwater Inn. You’ll find plenty of lodging info HERE. If you’re looking around for breakfast, you can’t do better than the lavish spread at the Excelsior, but I’m also fond of The Bakery. For dinner, one of the finest in all of East Texas is found at the Stillwater Inn. See why I’m in love with weekend getaways in Jefferson?

Always one to mangle an axiom, I was eager to find the correct expression that has to do with wine and romance and love before making a fool of myself. But alas, I can’t locate the adage, and I’m kind of bad at romantic babble anyway, so I’ll just wing it. The point is, there’s much to be said for romancing someone with wine, especially if that someone you’re hoping to hit with Cupid’s arrow this Valentine’s Day gave up chocolate for Lent. (There ought to be a rule – Lent cannot begin until after V-Day.) Because winemakers in Texas understand there’s much to be gained by promoting their vino on the lovers’ holiday, you have a selection of opportunities for winning your sweetie with Texas wine, coming up soon. First, on February 9 – that’s this Saturday! – you can hit the Grapevine Wine Trail for its tasting spree. Grab your honey (or anyone you like fairly well) and roam the nine tasting rooms for special pours, food, and music from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. It’s $40 if you buy tickets in advance, or $45 at the door, which includes a bottle of wine to take home. Start at Delaney Vineyards, where you’ll receive one oversized crystal wine glass, then proceed to the other wineries. (For ticket information, call 817/481-9463.) Also this Saturday, Fall Creek Vineyards on Lake Buchanan (northwest of Austin, near Burnet and Llano) hosts its Wine and Roses Valentine Lunch, with seatings at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., for $40 per person, including wine and food. If you’re like me and are a little late on everything, celebrate the Saturday after Valentine’s, February 16, when Fall Creek will offer its “Like Wine for Chocolate” pairing class with Jane Nickles, the Texas Culinary Academy’s Director of Wine Education, at 2 p.m. That’s $18, all-inclusive. For all Fall Creek events, reservations can be made HERE.