Friday 12 July
After a quick daylight inspection of this hotel and facilities, we decided we were happy enough with it to book our two rooms for the next two nights as well. Our plan had been to travel to San Antonio today and back to Dallas tomorrow, but we have decided just to base ourselves in Dallas as San Antonio is over 4 hours away and such a trip would be more difficult in the car than an RV. So now San Antonio is added to the must-do list for next time, but the decision proved to be the right one.
We were so tired after arriving so late last night, we only just made it in time for the included breakfast which finished at 9.30am. I extended our booking, but Ross decided to ask them for adjoining rooms rather than across the hallway. He returned to level 3 looking like a Cheshire Cat – he not only managed to get us all into one room, he organised for us to have the Executive Suite on the ground floor, with two bedrooms and a living area, that opened out onto the pool…AND saved us $80 per night!!!!!!!
We drove into downtown Dallas to jump straight on a city bus tour. A 75 minute trolley bus showed us all the sights and gave us a lot of history, and the tour guide’s obvious passion for the city was infectious. My favourite part of the tour was Thanksgiving Square, a little park in the middle of downtown that celebrated not only the American Thanksgiving but also that we all should be grateful all year round all the world. It all expressed my motto for this year brilliantly.
Dallas is very hot at this time of year, with temperatures well above 100 degrees F (mid 40s to us?). We notice the main question we are asked is why we are here at this time of year! We ducked into restaurant chain for lunch called T.G.I.Fridays, and enjoyed their delicious food and air conditioning. We then walked down to the Sixth Floor Museum at the Texas School Book Depository to explore the JFK Museum, stopping first at Dealey Plaza and the “grassy knoll”. We were at the Museum for two hours before we realised it, so engrossed in the tour and information. I did not expect it to keep us involved for that long. We were able to stand at the window and see the same view Lee Harvey Oswald had. The trolley bus tour had stopped on the road in exactly the same spot where JFK was shot, and it was interesting to look down on that. I must admit, I was a doubter of the official conclusion but being there made it seem more likely to me that Lee Harvey Oswald had committed the assassination.
Belle’s temperature had returned by then, so we thought we had done enough for the day and drove back to the hotel for a cooling swim in the pool. I decided to then get a jump on my laundry, so went to start it while Ross bathed the little kids. He decided to do the kind and gentlemanly thing and went to open the balcony door for me to re-enter the room the quick way. I was unaware of this, and when I returned to the room found him looking deathly pale on the floor clutching his leg. In his attempt to open the door for me, he had stepped awkwardly over a suitcase and did some damage to his calf muscle 😦 As he has torn his calf muscle before, he was pretty sure that’s what it was. He went to lie down while I got him ice and google-diagnosed him.
As no doctors were available at night, the front desk gave me the address of the nearest ER. We all piled into the car and drove there, and parked by mistake in the Children’s’ Hospital parking (which meant the walk for a limping and in pain Ross was longer). The queues were SO long at the ER, they said he would be waiting for hours, and we were told we would have to wait for Ross on another floor. So we left without him being seen, and drove around to find a pharmacy to get him some crutches (as Dr Nicole discovered you should not put pressure on that leg). Our parking at the hospital should have cost is $10, but the kind lady on the gate told us our accent was so sexy, she let us out for free! The older kids went next door to Starbucks and bought us all frappucinos for dinner while we purchased crutches ($45!!!!), and then Ross proved to me he was delirious by asking could we drive downtown to see Dallas by night.
Now Ross does not like city driving, and is not fond of cities! But, we did notice today that Dallas was not crowded, because they all apparently prefer to use the airconditioned skywalks or tunnels under the city to get around. Parking in downtown is also a maximum of $5 per day! So we toured downtown again and admired all the lights and buildings, and then took our injured Dad and sick baby home to rest. Remember that comment we made about how no one had been sick while we were away?…

Photos are of the Sixth Floor Museum, Thanksgiving Square, and Ross being brave and posing at the ER (you will notice he isn’t straightening his leg, but was willing to pose there so we could record the memory he is making here!) 😉