El Paso Neighbor Makes Cool List Of 10 Prettiest Texas Towns

A recent World Atlas list of the 10 prettiest towns in Texas contains one that's pretty close to El Paso.

I don't really know much about these towns, other than one of them is among the top 3 oldest towns in Texas and one is where my niece lives.

Nacogdoches claims to be the oldest town in Texas but it isn't. It was founded in 1779 while Presidio popped up in 1760 and Ysleta was founded circa 1681-82. That's all I got on that one.

Canyon, if you care, is where my niece lives.

Marfa, I can talk about a little because it's close to El Paso and I've been there enough times to kinda get to know it.

First, here is part of what World Atlas said:

Here, the Lone Star's mountains blend with the Chihuahuan Desert, creating a backdrop like few others.

This makes Marfa an ideal home base from which to explore the 300,000-acre Big Bend Ranch State Park, and the adjacent 800,000-acre Big Bend National Park, both of which are a straight shot South, right on the Mexican border. - worldatlas.com

There's more to Marfa than that though and some of it is kinda spooky.

Marfa is home to the world famous, Marfa Mystery Lights.

From spooky, we move on to silly. Marfa also has a thriving artist community that is the artist world's best kept secret. It's also home to an exhibit known as Prada Marfa.

It's a tiny replica of a Prada store sitting alongside US Highway 90 between Marfa and Valentine.

There's a lot more to Marfa that make it well worth the drive, an easy day trip from El Paso and, if you want to stay longer, there are a number of cool places to stay.

Like The Paisano, which I love. Built in 1930 by Henry Trost, it's a beautiful place that was home to many of the Giant cast members, including Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean, while filming in and around Marfa.

Keep scrolling for some more cool, Texas facts.