Regardless of Beyoncé's new album that dropped over spring break, I happened to be spending mine in Texas, specifically Dallas. We were primarily there to see the solar eclipse that happened on April 8th, but we also had family there and spent the weekend before exploring the area. We had tons of fun, and I can't wait to share it all with you! I'll split up this post into different days to make it easier.
Day 1
On our first official day there (excluding the day before when we were on an airplane), we explored the Dallas area a lot.
Our first stop of the day was the Dallas Arboretum. It's a huge place filled with plants, flowers, and trees. It was a great day to visit because the weather was top-notch. We got to see a lot of pretty flowers we hadn't seen before as well as animals. We opted for having lunch at the Arboretum, and people don't joke around when they say everything is bigger in Texas. I ordered a chicken salad and the chicken was huge! I've never seen a chicken salad quite like that. Anyways, after the Arboretum we headed off to explore the actual city of Dallas. We had a few more hours to kill until we had to be at the Rangers game, so what better way to spend it than walking around Dallas?
We drove around for a while, then decided we were thirsty enough to stop and headed into a restaurant for drinks. After our drink stop, we walked around for a little while once again, seeing lots of different things. Then it was time to go to the Rangers game! I was personally very excited for this event, and I know my family was too. I had never been to Globe Life Field and I've also never been to a Rangers game.
The great thing about this particular game was that it was a Rangers v.s Astros game. Now, if you know me, you'll know I am a die-hard Dodger fan (if you couldn't tell by my jersey) and I have some serious beef with the Astros after the 2017 World Series. I was in for a real treat at this game, because not only did the roof of the stadium open, but the Astros lost. And they lost 10-2. A very satisfying game if you ask me. The Dodger fan in me was quite happy. It was a fun experience, and I do recommend going to the stadium to catch a game if you can. Baseball games are always a fun thing to do when you travel because each team has a unique stadium, and this one was certainly unique. Considering it was built to look like a barn, it has a lot of charm. However, if the roof hadn't been opened I'm not sure we would've enjoyed ourselves as much as we did.
So that was day one of our Dallas adventure, now it's time to head on to day two!
Day Two
Our first stop of day two was the Kimbell Art Museum. Did you know that museums tend to be free in Texas? That's crazy to us Californians! The Kimbell Art Museum has a big collection of artworks, including paintings, sculptures, and even some cultural art. There were lots of pretty pieces, including the one to the left. That was my personal favorite. I love love love strawberries, but I was also hungry at the time so maybe that's why it was my favorite painting. If you happen to be in Dallas, I recommend taking a look at any of their museums! Most of them are free (like I said earlier) and usually have interesting collections to offer. Plus, they have a/c, so if you're stuck in the Texas heat it's a great place to get away.
After the art museum, we tried to go to another museum but it was unfortunately closed for the day. It was at this point that we decided to make our way out to Fort Worth to see the famous cattle drive! Pure Texas culture right there. However, we all agreed that we were very very hungry people.
Based on a recommendation from a family member, we headed over to a Mexican restaurant called Joe T. Garcia's. And let me tell you, when we first arrived I was a bit nervous. The line was almost around the corner! However, that line is well worth the wait, especially if you can pass the time with friends or family. When we got inside, I had some of the best Mexican food ever and I would just love to go back there again someday. I had the chicken taquitos which were delicious, and unfortunately, I didn't try any of the tacos but I heard they were delicious as well. If you're planning a trip to the Dallas area, I would 100% recommend Joe T. Garcia's! It's a great place to go with your friends and family, and definitely has some amazing food!
Now, after our adventure at Joe T. Garcia's, we made our way to the Fort Worth Stockyards, which if you don't know is where all the cattle is brought. We were expecting to see a cattle drive, which is when the cowboys herd the cattle from one place to another. However, the harsh reality was that the Stockyards were packed full with people because of the eclipse, and so this cattle drive was really just a few longhorns walking behind a cowboy. It wasn't that interesting if I'm being honest, but the Longhorns were pretty cute. We explored a little more around Forth Worth but decided that the crowds were just too much and we wanted out of there. So we headed out to Downtown Fort Worth to get a feel for the area.
As you can see from the picture on the left, when we arrived I saw this super cool glittery cowboy hat. I mean what's not to love about a glittery cowboy hat (I'm getting Eras Tour flashbacks)? There was a nice atmosphere in the area so we sat down at a table and watched the kids play in the water fountain (exhibit? play area?) for a while. We lucked out and got some really good weather that day, and we would definitely want that luck for Monday considering our chances of seeing the eclipse were not looking great. Anyways, we were itching for some ice cream so we went to this ice cream place called 'Melt Ice Creams' which is kind of ironic considering no one wants melted ice cream. Regardless of the name, the ice cream was still pretty good! After enjoying our non-melted ice cream, we were all pretty tired and agreed it was time for us to head home to get ready for our second-to-last day in Dallas.
Day 3
Now for our final full day in Dallas, we decided to take a bit of a breather. The last two days were non-stop exploring, so I think we were all a little tired. We went to church in the morning with the family, and afterward went to brunch at a restaurant called 'Awake'. I do have to say the service was a bit shaky, but I'm not exactly qualified to be a restaurant critic. I will say I wouldn't go out of my way for it, but the avocado toast and eggs were still good. It was nice getting to see some family I hadn't seen in a while while eating, and it was definitely a fun morning. If anyone has any more breakfast suggestions in the Dallas area, please let me know because I would love to know for our next visit. Anyways, after our brunch outing, we headed back downtown for an organ concert.
I've never been to an organ concert so this was a new experience for me. The concert was very enjoyable and he even played a few fun pieces. Listening to organ music is really lovely, it's quite an amazing instrument and it's a wonder how people play it.
We were really tired after the concert, so we made the choice to go back to the hotel and change, then go out for pizza. We ended up ordering some pizza and enjoying a relaxing evening watching the end of the Rangers vs. Astros series. The Astros won that game, but the Rangers took the series in all, which made me very happy.
Day 4
We had finally reached the end of our trip, and the day of the solar eclipse! I had already seen the solar eclipse in 2017, but to be able to see another one was really cool (considering the next one isn't for like 20 years).
Our flight home wasn't boarding until 3ish, and totality was around 1:40 pm. We were cutting it a little close with our boarding time, so we decided to be safe and head to the Frontiers of Flight Museum, which is right next to the Dallas Love Field airport. A very convenient location might I say. They were having an event at the museum, so we got tickets and got to explore the museum for a bit and have some early lunch. The museum was packed and there were a lot of fun activities open to do. If you're in the area and really love aviation (like my dad) then you'd probably enjoy this museum. There's also a huge kids area and it's overall a very friendly vibe.
We decided not to stay at the museum for the actual eclipse totality, mainly because the crowds heading back to the museum would be large and we didn't want to deal with it. So we ended up taking the shuttle back to the parking garage where we parked to see the eclipse.
We waited for about 40 minutes before totality, and it was great because we had lots of people up on the roof of the garage with us as well. We were quite scared for a bit because the clouds were pretty heavy and we weren't sure if they would clear for totality. But we lucked out and they did (you can see the clouds going around the Sun for the most part in the photo on the right). The coolest part of it all, besides the actual eclipse, would have to be the sky getting dark. I've experienced this before and it's really cool to see how fast it gets dark before and during totality. I think this time was really cool because we were higher up and could see the entire Dallas skyline, so we could see the shadow almost moving over us and we could easily see when it started to get lighter. The totality lasted for about four and a half minutes, which was much longer than the last eclipse. It was great! It was definitely an amazing experience and I'm so grateful that I've experienced two of these solar eclipses in my lifetime, and I probably will witness the next one too. If you ever get a chance to see a full solar eclipse I fully recommend it as it is a super amazing experience and very unique.
To close up, our flight home was a disaster and how we got home at a reasonable hour is beyond me. But that's a story for another time. Overall the trip was amazing and I'm so glad we got to go! There's even more to explore in Dallas and hopefully, I'll get to go back someday.
I hope everyone had a great spring break and until next time (which will be summer- a lot of traveling will be happening)!
P.S. - If you want to see more photos- check out my snapshots page!
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