DFW - Dallas Forth Worth, Texas

In July 2017 I happened to go to Texas, Dallas & Austin to be precise on business i.e. to visit clients for some meetings and work for a month and half. I took Emirates Mumbai - Dubai - Dallas (DFW) flight. The second leg is one of the longest flights of 15 hours on a wide-bodied Boeing 777-ER plane. Landed at DFW (Dallas - Fort Worth) in the morning around 11AM and taxied to Extended Stay very to the client's office in the North Dallas area. Got a taste of American stick to the rule book when I was told that check-in will happen only at 3PM and had to sit out for 2 hours! Anyhow the lodging was decent.

During the week, just walked to the office and to nearby Chipotle or other eateries nearby. I don’t drive in the US so walking or public transport or can is the only option. Dallas is spread out and is known to be not walkable. The chance to venture out happened on the first weekend. Took DART from Forest Lane station was a mile long walk. From there took the Red/Orange line to Westend which is Dallas downtown.

DART to DFW

The station is located in the historical heritage district which has red brick builds and same brick cobbled streets.

Historic district with vintage ride

Historic District

I looked up Dallas tours and found a Dallas City tour which starts from JFK memorial Plaza. John Frederick Kennedy (JFK), one of the most charismatic US Presidents, has the unfortunate connection to Dallas having been assassinated in the most sensational manner possible. The city tour for 2 hours was mostly about JFK than about Dallas. The bus was a minibus painted with JFK and the other identity of Texas being Cowboys and Rodeo.

Dallas City Tour bus

They had a video with a program mostly about JFK. First the bus took us around Dallas downtown pointing out main attractions like the Art Museum and First Baptist church.

Dallas Museum of Art

We stopped at The Pioneer Plaza which has bronze sculptures of Cowboy and the longhorn cattle. The longhorn is due to the size and shape of horns on the cattle. The sculptures were impressive.

Cowboy sculpture

Cattle sculpture

The Downtown had tall impressive buildings of banks and companies. There is also an impressive 30-feet model of the human eye which seemed so real with blood vessels and striations in Iris.

Dallas downtown

Dallas eye

From here on started the story of JFK. We first visited Dealey Plaza which is a 6-storey red brick building on whose 6th floor Lee Harvey Oswald shot President John Frederick Kennedy while he was being driven in an open car on Elm street amid all the fanfare with people lining the street. This may be one of the macabre assassination which was caught on camera where one could see bullet blowing off JFK’s head. The Dealey Plaza has been declared a monument of national importance. There is a X on Elm street exactly as the spot where the bullet hit JFK.

JFK Memorial Plaza

Dealy Plaza

Spot of assassination

From here we drove all the way to 1026 N. Beckley Street in the Oak Cliff section of Dallas where Lee Oswald Harvey, the assassin of JFK lived temporarily. The house is now a memorial for JFK with original preserved newspapers of the next day. The tour guide enthusiastically spoke about the entire JFK assassination episode. They also passed by another spot where Oswald shot a police officer before being captured at nearby Movie Theatre.

Newspaper of that time

Lee Oswald Harvey house

There is extensive literature on assassination, its motive and subsequent murder of Oswald. On return the video in the bus showed eerie trivia about similarities between Abraham Lincoln and John F Kennedy’s life and death both of whom were presidents who have been assassinated. Overall I felt that amused obsession of this tour with JFK and his assassin and drawing comparison to Lincoln.

I came to know that Dallas has a heritage streetcar called M-line Trolley. I came back again next day to Dallas downtime getting down at Cityplace/Uptown where the M-line connects DART. The ride was pleasant and mostly had joyriders like me. The ride is free on M-line.

M-line Trolley

M-line Trolley

M-line Trolley

From there went to Klyde Warren park which was flocked by a lot of people. It had a walking path, fountains and a bar to have drinks. The M-line streetcar also served the park.

DFW (Dallas Fort Worth) is a Metroplex, a twin city. Sometimes referred to as Cowtown, it is by far closer to its cowboy roots than neighbouring Dallas. It has historic Stock Yards which used to be the hub of livestock or cattle industry in old times.

Fort Worth Stockyards

Photo-op with longhorn

The stock yards still have pends, barns to hold cattle with some cattle kept for display. There is a guided tour which takes tourists through all that is there to see and its history. Apart from tours, there are shows like Rodeo where cowboys hear cattle and display their rope skill to catch cattle by their horns or legs conducted in an arena called Coliseum. Then there were a couple of cowboys who set up a cart displaying the old ways of cowboys living on the move

Sculpture in Stockyards

Cowboy life

Rodeo

Stockyard station

where one could also try some of the rope tricks. Then there are restaurants in the Stockyards station building. In the evening, the Grapevine Railroad train with its massive engine came all the way inside.

4th of July is Independence Day in the USA and a public holiday. US cities have a tradition of public fireworks to celebrate independence day. For Dallas it was to happen at Cotton Bowl stadium in Fair park. There was an actual fair there with Ferris wheel, cable car rides, food stalls and other attractions. After savouring them all made their way to the stadium seating. The fireworks happened outside the stadium in a designated direction so all were seated in half facing the fireworks. There was a small band and music to keep the audience entertained till the fireworks. Eventually the fireworks started with a countdown around 8 PM and lasted for 20 minutes or so. At the upper edge of seating one could witness not just the fireworks but the Dallas downtown with buildings all lit up. It was an amazing experience.

Ferris Wheel Fairpark

Cotton Bowl stadium

Crowd gathered to watch fireworks

I happened to travel a bit in Dallas and found it to be quintessential American city with huge construction of buildings, multi-level flyovers, huge parking spaces and long distances, break from Newyork or Bay Area. Later came to know about a trivia is Dallas has more shopping area per capita in entire US. One of the people I met lamented that they are staying in a one big shopping mall!