Best Hotel Decor: Stephen F. Austin Intercontinental, Austin

The Intercontinental in Austin wins the hotel decor award on account of its sophisticated -- and consistent -- stylings. From the lone star emblazoned on everything from the wallpaper to the carpets, to the cowhide & leather armchairs, everything was extravagantly Texan, but not in a vulgar way. Extra points for the fancy curtain valance over the shower.


First runner-up: Holiday Inn Express, Cortez, CO. Again, I was impressed by how this hotel took a decor theme -- in this case, the American Indian/Southwestern theme -- and maxed it out. Kokopelli (the dancing flute player) and other petroglyph figures appeared everywhere from the room number plates to the bathroom mirror.


Second runner-up: Hampton Inn, Savannah, GA. Kudos to this mid-range hotel chain for such an elegant outpost in the heart of the old South! The spacious breakfast room, with its Louis XIV chairs upholstered in rose and mint, was particularly charming.

Roadside Eats: Chinese Food in Cortez, CO

We're bunking for the night in the town of Cortez, Colorado -- quite the surprise destination since we were planning on staying somewhere else. But passing through Cortez, Kaii suddenly realized it's much closer to Mesa Verda National Park, which we'll be visiting tomorrow, so we pulled into a Holiday Inn Express here and booked a room.

For dinner, we were craving something different from all the Mexican recently and decided to take our chances with... Chinese! Yes, it could have gone very, very badly, but we had an all-around enjoyable meal at Hong Kong Chinese Restaurant: sizzling chicken, shrimp & scallops w/ vegetables and fish w/ garlic, soy sauce and ginger (a little dry but still tasty).