Dallas and Amarillo, Texas

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Thankfully, my brother, Leo, lives in Arlington (Go UTA!), so we were able to take advantage of a couple free nights at his house, have a nice time with him, and check out the surrounding Dallas area. I think the previous entries may have been dated incorrectly. We were actually in Dallas on the 4th of July, so there was also a big festival going on in downtown Dallas.

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Photos

Dallas
This is the old courthouse in downtown Dallas. It is a beautiful red brick building and is across the street from the Kennedy assassination site. The courthouse is now a museum that recounts the history of Dallas county. We did not actually go in the museum, but the exterior of the building was still really interesting.

Dallas
This is the Kennedy assassination site. The site is actually located in the middle of Dealey Plaza, which was built as the "birthplace of Dallas," long before the assassination. There are 2 white X's placed in the middle lane of the highway that mark where shots 1 and 2 were fired at Kennedy. The grassy knoll is just out of the picture on the right side and the book depository, where Lee Harvey Oswald was, is right behind us.

Dallas
The is the Texas School Book Depository where Lee Harvey Oswald worked, as well as, where he fired the shots that assassinated the president. It is now the Sixth Floor Museum, which explains the assassination and displays artifacts. The infamous window is the fifth window up on the end column (closest to the corner). The window is left slightly open year round to show the origins of the shots.

Dallas
This is the John F. Kennedy Memorial Plaza. American architect Philip Johnson designed it to be an open tomb, which apparently symbolizes the freedom of JFK's spirit (or so the signs say). It is 30 feet high with a large granite stone in the center with JFK engraved on it. Also, there used to be lights in the interior space, but have since been neglected.

Dallas
In this photo you can see the proximity of the historical area. To the right is the red courthouse (which is just left of Dealey Plaza), the left of the picture is the Kennedy Memorial and in the foreground to the right is the "representation" of what a supposed original cabin would have looked like when John Neely founded Dallas in the 1840s. We loved the disclaimer of this cabin, noting that this was not the original cabin, but what one possibly MIGHT have looked like in Neely's time. In other words, this cabin has little historical significance :).

Dallas
Pioneer Plaza was created by the sculptor Robert Summer to honor the cowboys and the cattle trails that are throughout Texas. The 4.2 acre site features bronze sculptures of cowboys, their horses and the herd of cattle being driven. I could not believe how big each statue was. There are actually 39 steers and 3 cowboys on horseback. Cowboy up!

Dallas
Here is a shot of one of the cowboys and you can also see how it winds up the hill.

Dallas
The statue meanders up a hill and takes the herd through a stream. It was very life-like.

Dallas
I certainly don't want to get in the way of this longhorn. This kinda shows the scale of how big each of these statues were. They are also extremely hot in the 95 degree Texas heat (as I quickly learned in the taking of this photograph). It isn't a real vacation until you get a few 2nd degree burns!

Dallas
Thanksgiving Square is in the center of downtown. It was created in the 1970s as a non-denominational peaceful gathering place in the middle of the crazy city.

Dallas
This is the exterior of the chapel at Thanksgiving Square.

Dallas
This is the inside of the chapel. It only has 12 or so chairs, so it is not very big. It is air-conditioned though! I loved the spiral stained glass in the ceiling. The picture does not do it justice. Who'da thunk in the middle of skyscrapers you could find something so pretty and peaceful?

Dallas
Here is a close up of one of the stained glass panes. I think Cody was sick of me by the time I was done with him trying to get the perfect photo with purple in it. The glass was created by French artist Gabriel Loire and tops out at 60 feet.

Amarillo
Here is Cody outside the American Quarter Horse Association Museum and Hall of Fame in Amarillo. To those of you who are AQHA members, you too can enter the museum for free!

Amarillo
The entrance hall/hall of fame is huge. If you can see the door on the right side of the picture you can imagine how tall the ceilings really are. On the floor is a "family" tree that plots out the original blood lines of all American Quarter Horses. So, before you pick out your next stud (horse, not husband) make sure you track him back to a biggy on this floor.

Amarillo
Like all good hall of fames, you must have pictures of the inductees. Peppy San is one of the horses that can be tracked in the Cranson horses. Isn't his smile pretty?

Amarillo
This saddle is on display at the AQHA and was commissioned for the current President Bush. Upon his return to his Texas ranch he will be presented this saddle. If you can see on the back of the saddle the presidential seal is actually tooled into the leather. It was a very nicely crafted saddle (or so I am told by Cody).

Amarillo
A true roadtrip would not be complete without a visit to the Cadillac Graveyard, outside of Amarillo. Although not on our route to Colorado, there was no way we would miss it. How often can one say they have visited dumpy old Cadillacs, half buried, and covered in random spray paint messages? Not often enough I say!

Amarillo
Makes ya wanna visit doesn't it :)! I was quite surprised on how many people were actually there. I guess any chance to deface property is a reason to visit.

Amarillo
I would like to take this opportunity to mention that we did not participate in the aforementioned debauchery (primarily because we didn't bring any spray paint!). There are 10 cars total and they are visible from Highway 40.