I've just returned from the Big Texan Adventure and thought people would like to read my thoughts on this new tour for JY. It was a great trip with each city offering different things to see and appreciate, although there were some hotel issues which I'll touch on later. I'll start with the individual cities covered by this tour.
Dallas
Our morning tour of Dallas included visits to the JFK Memorial Plaza and Pioneer Plaza (home to a series of sculptures commemorating the cattle drives of the 19th century), but for many the main point of interest was Dealey Plaza and the site of JFK's assassination in Nov 1963. I found it very moving and somewhat surreal to walk around the area as it's completely unchanged from that fateful day. The 6th floor museum in what used to be the book depository was also very interesting, detailing as it does the events leading up to the shooting and housing several artefacts from the time. The afternoon took us out to Southfork Ranch which is in a quiet, pleasant location. The Ewing mansion itself is only of interest to fans of the TV show (of which there were several on our tour) but on a sunny day it was very pleasant to walk around the grounds and we enjoyed a nice cook-out in the late afternoon.
The following morning was free and I walked around Dealey Plaza again with 3 of my travelling companions before finding a great diner for coffee and a pastry. Future travellers may alternatively wish to visit the Old Red Museum of Dallas County on Houston St, which chronicles the history of Dallas from pre-history to the present day. Amongst 1000 artefacts are Lee Harvey Oswald's handcuffs, and for an admission price of $8 I think we may have missed a trick in not going there for an hour or so.
Fort Worth
FW or 'Cow Town' as it's called is home to Stockyards Station, a National Historic District. Watch the cattle drive down Exchange Avenue, have lunch in the bar at Stockyards Hotel (the food's great with an ambience to match) or shop 'til you drop...it's up to you 'cos you'll have plenty of time to enjoy this wonderful area while you're in town. Beware though...the real cowboy gear can cost a packet. A good pair of boots will sell for up to $3000 and a proper felt Stetson hat will set you back the best part of $250. However, there are more reasonably priced alternatives to be found - you can pick up a Stetson made from more modest materials for a mere $30.
Our last night in FW saw us arrive at 'Billy Bob's', the worlds largest Honky Tonk bar. As it was a Friday night, after our included dinner we were treated to a display of bull riding in the indoor arena before we made our way to one of the 32 different bars in this huge venue. The final act of the night was a concert by Lee Brice who had just won an award for best song at the recent country music awards. It was no surprise to learn that Billy Bob's has been voted Country Music Club of the year 12 times and it was a truly amazing evening.
Austin
The state capital was interesting in a different way to our two previous locations. On our arrival we toured the Capitol Building before embarking on a walking tour of the city. This seemed to go on forever, and after a long day travelling from Forth Worth (about 190 miles) people were beginning to get very tired. I would suggest that JY consider doing this part of the tour by coach or trolley with a step-on guide in future.
Our first evening in Austin was spent at 'The Broken Spoke' club, a very different venue to Billy Bob's but no less enjoyable for that. It was little more than a large shack but the 12oz sirloin steak was superb, the beer cheep and the band great. This was another brilliant night out.
Day 2 in Austin was free so some of us spent time at the LBJ Library and Museum (worth a visit) before having lunch in one of the bars on East 6th Street. Whatever plans future travellers may have while they're in Austin, I would recommend that they pay a visit to Amy's Ice Cream Parlour at 1012 West 6th Street. Here the staff resort to various tricks whilst preparing the delicious ice cream, which include throwing the ice cream scoops under their legs and behind their backs! I can personally vouch for the white chocolate and fresh strawberry variety, but whatever you choose it will be great so DON'T miss out on Amy's - it's an Austin gem!
San Antonio
We arrived in SA at festival time which in itself presented a problem in trying to find a restaurant on our first evening. We watched an exciting flotilla of boats pass along the river but access to many of the restaurants was restricted. We did eventually get a decent meal at a Mexican restaurant on West Crockett St.
One of the main attractions in SA is of course The Alamo and whilst much of the original site has long gone, the mission church and 'The Long Barracks' still remain. There is a nice old building (c1936) to the rear of the church which houses the gift shop, and with some small, pleasant gardens to walk around there is still a fair amount to see.
Breakfast at the Guenther House on the 2nd morning was a nice alternative to eating at the hotel, and after a short walking tour of the King William Historic District the rest of the day was free. I chose to spend the rest of the day with several of my companions in returning to The Alamo while also visiting the Texas Rangers Museum located above the Buckhorn Saloon in East Houston St. Those people who took the optional excursion to the vineyard and wine tasting said they enjoyed it.
For our final evening in SA we took a 30min river boat cruise which we all thoroughly enjoyed followed by dinner at 'Mad Dogs', a supposedly English pub! That wasn't such a great success and some of us were left wondering why we were taken there when there seemed many more lovely restaurants along the River Walk to choose from.
Houston
Home to the NASA Space Centre, we had a great time here for about 4hrs including taking 2 trolley bus tours around the facility. In the evening we all had a great meal at 'The Cheesecake Factory'.
On our 2nd day several of us took the hotel courtesy bus to the Museum District . The Health Museum wasn't worth the $7 admission fee but several people spoke highly of the Natural Science Museum just a short walk away.
Our last evening was spent at a ranch 75 miles outside Houston where we enjoyed a fantastic cook-out followed by a demonstration by the owner of how he trains his horses to herd cattle - a wonderful exhibition of the relationship between man and horse.
Hotels
Hyatt Regency Dallas - A lovely hotel in a central location next to the Reunion Tower. Take a ride to the top of the Tower for great views of the city.
Holiday Inn Fort Worth - Dreadful in almost every aspect. They messed up the transport arrangements to the restaurant on the first evening which meant that we arrived late, and they failed to collect our luggage on time on the day of departure with the result that we left the hotel late. Worst of all however was the poor breakfast eaten off plastic plates with plastic cutlery, juice drunk out of plastic beakers and coffee drunk out of polystyrene tumblers. Please note JY that I don't pay JY prices to be put up in a hotel of this calibre. I sincerely hope that this is the last time I will have cause to chastise you over hotel standards as you should know by now that I AM a huge fan of your company. This hotel however was totally unacceptable.
Hyatt Place Austin - Location a bit isolated with only 2 restaurants within walking distance. The rooms however were very spacious and we were greeted with lemonade and cookies on arrival which was a nice touch.
El Tropicano San Antonio - A good hotel in a reasonable location although I understand that 2 ladies did have problems with their rooms.
Crowne Plaza Houston - A lovely hotel with nice public areas and large rooms.
All in all this was a great holiday made special by many members of the group and by our TM Jacqui who worked tirelessly on our behalf. People were exceptionally friendly wherever we went, most notably the bus driver in Austin who gave 4 of us a free ride from the LBJ museum to 6th St & Congress Avenue. Very special thanks go to the other 3 members of 'The Posse' (Bill, Joe and Maverick Mark), as well as Candi, Lottie, Tanya, Miner, Kate and any others I've forgotten to mention.
Mike (aka Slick)
