Texas - Pt. 2 (Days 28-32)

As a native Texan, I am used to weather changing on a dime...but our drive from Memphis to Texarkana was a doozy. Storms had been ripping through Tennessee and Arkansas while we were in Memphis, so we knew we'd need to be cautious on our drive into Texas. It was smooth sailing to Little Rock - we stopped for a bit so Alex could visit the Clinton Library. I was a bit museum-ed out, so I took a nap instead (sorry, Bill). Alex did enjoy it, and we stretched our legs a bit around the property before moving on. 

Originally, I really wanted to visit Hot Springs on our way to TX, but decided against it due to the impending weather. I'm VERY glad we did that given the timing of the storms that were to come...we will have to catch Hot Springs another time. As we got closer to TX, the storm clouds and severe thunderstorm warning/tornado watch became very concerning. We were only about 30 minutes away from our motel in Texarkana when it began raining so hard that we eventually had to pull off into a Denny's to wait out the worst of it. After stress-eating some salted caramel french toast, we caught a lucky window where the rain died down enough to see and get to our destination...but the storm pounded the entire region all night and into the morning. It was quite intense! Fortunately, the rain subsided around midday, and we were able to finally depart for Dallas. Poor Alex had to experience almost every type of crazy Texas weather you can on this trip...and we're very grateful our plans were flexible enough to not have to drive into anything dangerous for very long. Our reward for making it through the storms safely was getting to meet Buc-ee the Beaver on our last stop before arriving in Dallas! For those who may be unfamiliar...Buc-ee's is the greatest rest stop/gas station in the world (you can fight me on that). Their mascot is of course, Buc-ee the Beaver, and he is NOT always present at the store, so getting to meet him in person is a special treat! Additionally, I am exceedingly proud that Alex has become a Buc-ee's superfan in such a short time (we stopped at 4 different locations). 

​Days 29-30: Dallas - Ft. Worth

We finally arrived in Dallas, and met up with my long-time friend Jonathan at Meow Wolf - Grapevine (our 4th Meow Wolf location!). I won't spoil anything, but for the uninitiated (or if you didn't see the Houston post), every location of Meow Wolf is unique - but they are all interactive art exhibits/experiences that incorporate a vague storyline somehow related to accidentally openeing a "portal" to another dimension (AKA, it's very trippy). You can either look for clues to try to solve the mystery, or just take it all in (I always choose the latter). It's very weird and fun, although this location was maybe my least favorite due to how overwhelmingly crowded it was (it is inside of a giant mall). It would be great if they could reduce capacity by at least 20% so you're not constantly trying to get around people, but I'd still recommend checking it out if you're curious and it's the most convenient location for you. Their other locations are in Santa Fe, Denver, Houston, and Las Vegas, with another opening in Los Angeles at some point in the (hopefully near-ish) future. It's definitely not for everyone, but I am a big fan of the fact that they bring in local artists at each location to collectively create such unique experiences. We also had a great dinner at one of my Tex-Mex favorites (Uncle Julio's) - although as a bit of a Tex-Mex snob, I don't think any of the additional locations are quite as good as the original location on Lemmon Ave in Dallas....

Since Alex had never seen Fort Worth before, we had to make a quick visit to the historic Fort Worth Stockyards. Ft. Worth is nicknamed 'Cowtown' for its long history of livestock exchange/rodeo, and it is a TOTALLY different vibe from Dallas. There are many great attractions that I wish we'd had more time to see - if you're ever in the area, definitely check out the Stockyards, Ft. Worth Water Gardens, Ft. Worth Zoo, Kimbell Art Museum, Bass Performance Hall, the Van Cliburn Competition...the list goes on. There's so much happening in Cowtown - just listen to Girls5Eva and Tap Into Your (Fort) Worth (RIP Girls5Eva... the most underrated show in recent memory). We got there just in time to see the morning cattle drive (they literally do a cattle drive twice a day) and poke around some local establishments a bit (White Elephant Saloon, Avoca Coffee Roasters). I wish we could have stayed longer to look at cowboy boots...but we had a pretty packed day of social engagements, with lots of friends and fam to see. 

We then began our whirlwind tour of back-to-back social engagements to try to catch who we could (apologies, I totally failed at pics given how busy it was). We first headed to Arlington to catch up with one of my oldest friends, Lacey, at Braum's (an old favorite, they make killer sundaes). Lacey and I go back to elementary school...she is a girlboss technical writer/mom of 3, who I try to make sure I get to see anytime I come to DFW. From there we headed to Oak Lawn to pick up some goodies from Eatzi's (gourmet market mecca) to bring to my 97-year old grandmother, Jody, and my Aunt Amy, who we got to catch up on all of our road trip adventures. Jody is a legend, who is still very with it at 97. Our next stop was El Fenix, probably the biggest staple Mexican restaurant of my childhood (and also the literal inventor of Tex-Mex, est. 1919). My college friend/therapist extraordinaire, Brooks, came to meet us, who is always a sassy delight, and forever ready to devour queso and guacamole with me. After a whirlwind social day, we finally arrived in Highland Park, where Alex's aunt and uncle (Michelle and Houston) live, and graciously offered to put us up in their fabulous home. It was wonderful to finally meet the Texas branch of Alex's family, including 3 of his cousins (Madeleine, Hailey, and Francesca), and hope we can return to DFW again soon!

Days 31-32: Dallas to Amarillo

I wish our visit could have been longer, but Michelle treated us to a fantastic lunch at Hudson House before we hit the road for Amarillo. The drive from Dallas to Amarillo is a fairly dull one that most people do not look forward to...but we stopped in Bowie, TX to see the World's Largest Bowie Knife (which was...something). For those who weren't forced to take 2 years of Texas history in social studies (TWO years, you guys), Jim Bowie was a pretty bad guy who fought at the Alamo, and allegedly died while he was bedridden, fighting off the Mexican army with his famous huge knife (...). It's also very confusing for non-Texans to learn his name is pronounced BOO-EEE (not like the superior BOW-EEE). I'd recommend sticking with David, personally. 

We did make a few worthwhile stops in/near Amarillo, though - 

1) The Big Texan: This restaurant/brewery/motel first opened on Route 66 in 1960. It was a fun place to stay (the rooms are cowboy-kitschy, but affordable and very nice), but the Big Texan is best known for its absurd 72 oz steak competitive eating challenge. If you can finish an obscenely large steak, a fully-loaded baked potato, 3 jumbo shrimp, a salad and a dinner roll in an hour, the meal is free....but the catch is you have to do it 'on stage' at the restaurant. It's VERY silly, and you could not pay me to do that - surprisingly, though, their reasonably portioned food is actually fantastic. This place is a ~whole~ vibe (and sadly not veg-friendly) - still worth a stop for the kitsch factor. 

2) Dutch Bros Coffee/Got Donuts?: Since this was our last day in Texas, I made it my mission to find one last good kolache before leaving the state. Kolaches are Czech pastries that come in both savory and sweet varieties, and they're a big deal in TX. I was only able to snag some savory ones this trip (thank you Got Donuts) and some fancy coffee at Dutch Bros Coffee before hitting our next two stops. 

3) Palo Duro Canyon: This state park is only a 40 minute drive from Amarillo, and holds the second-largest canyon in the U.S. (behind the Grand one, of course). As a kid, though, I saw this one before the Big one, so it will always hold a special place in my heart. It's also not too challenging to access - you can see a lot by just driving through the park, and there's also some great hiking. We drove through and did a tiny bit of hiking before it got too hot. My favorite thing about this park is the amphitheater built into the canyon that shows "Texas: The Musical" every summer (which I got to see as a kid, and my mom was also a performer back in the day)!

4) Cadillac Ranch: The West TX/Panhandle region loves its weird outdoor art installations (almost as much as it loves measles....), and the Cadillac Ranch was a shining example of that. Given the massive amount of rain, the cars were completed surrounded by a pool of water. This prevented us from participating in the ritual of perpetuating the art by spray painting the cars ourselves - but I can almost guarantee there would have been some kind of major spray paint can malfunction if we'd tried it, so probably for the best....

Next up: New Mexico, Arizona, California (Pt. 2)