Tuesday 24/05/2011 Houston to Amarillo
After a great week in Houston we put our road trip hats on again and away we went in The Turtle heading north for Dallas, Texas! It was a nice 4 hour drive to Dallas travelling through ranch country - spied the odd Texas Longhorns here and there as well as lots of Angus. The beef, horse and crop ranches followed us all the way to Amarillo (10hrs and 600 miles- a big day!), the land getting flatter and flatter as we went. Interesting to see most ranchers have their own oil wells and the pumps bobbing away in their fields. Also the wind farms surfaced again - excellent out on this flat, windy part of Texas for “green” energy!
Downtown Dallas appeared on the horizon hovering in a haze - we discovered later that it was dust in the air. What a beautiful city! Again lots of interesting architecture, old and new. Our highlight was driving along the infamous Elm Street, the same route that president Kennedy took that fateful day when he was assassinated. A cross on the road indicated the exact spot he was shot. There is a a lovely memorial park either side of Elm St around the spot, and the Book Repository, the building Lee Harvey Oswald shot the President from, looms at the top of the street. "John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the thirty-fifth President of the United States, was assassinated at 12:30 p.m. Central Standard Time(18:30 UTC) on Friday, November 22, 1963, in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas."
From Dallas we headed across to Fort Worth and picked up H 287, and drove until daylight ran out. The Tom Landry Highway, named after the Dallas Cowboys Legendary coach Tom Landry, whisks you out to Fort Worth. Along the track is Six Flags Texas, and the Dallas Cowboys Stadium - in typical Texas style they are huge!
What a day for weather! Hot and sunny in Dallas - in the 90’s - very hot! Once we hit Fort Worth the haze began to increase and we realised then that we were heading into dust! The wind got stronger and stronger until Pete was wresting with the wheel to keep us on the road and of course the dust got worse as we headed out into the plains which characterise this part of Texas. We were wrestling along to the radio and they announced a severe thunder storm warning for Dallas and Fort Worth - lucky we were heading north and away from it! We could see the ominous black clouds rolling in behind and beside us and the sunshine and the dust in front of us! - a bit of the rain caught us as we raced to beat the storm - we were lucky! As we rolled into Amarillo we were treated with a phenomenal sunset!
A quick spruce up saw us sitting at The Big Texan with Pete drooling for a steak! and what a steak it was! This Texan restaurant has an interesting challenge - if you can eat their 72oz steak and all the sides in an hour you get the meal free - if you fail your meal will cost you $72! - $1 an oz! 1 in 9 people that attempt it are successful! Pete didn’t take up the challenge but he really enjoyed his big Texan steak! - a quarter of the size of the 72oz.
Great restaurant, great decor and atmosphere! A fun night with great service! (No beer on the head Betty! or honey mustard in the handbag! lol)
A long and interesting day! Nice to top it off with a chat on Skype with our beautiful Happy Jac! xo
The people in the USA have had and are still having a horrendous time with weather and storms - another devastating tornado hitting Denning, Oklahoma today, hot on the heals of the Joplin disaster and all the flooding etc prior to that. Storms, floods and tornado’s have been ripping through the country all spring causing huge damage, disruption and fatalities in towns and communities.Last month - April - there was a record 800 tornado’s reported. Our hearts go out to all those affected - such beautiful people and an amazing country.
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Leaving Houston we travelled through Huntsville and found Sam Houston
casually standing on the side of the road (looked a little stiff and cold!) - Huntsville
was where he lived, and of course Houston is named in his honour
Sam Houston successfully defeated Mexican, Santa Anna , and secured Texas long fought independence.
Sam Houston (1793-1863)
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| Dallas downtown skyline |
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They like the mirror buildings in Texas!
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| The light rail runs through the city |
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| Again, old and new architecture meld well together in Dallas |
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| Interesting! |
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| Performing Arts Centre |
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| Apartments in uptown Dallas |
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| More architectural marvels |
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| The famous Elm Street where President J F Kennedy was assassinated |
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| The memorial area to President Kennedy in Dealey Plaza |
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| Click to enlarge |
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| Click to enlarge |
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| The parks and memorial areas on each side of Elm Street |
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| The spot on Elm Street where President Kennedy was assassinated |
Have to say I am disappointed Pete didn't take on the 72oz steak challenge!!!
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