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Rising out of the dry Texas prairies like a majestic city of the future, Dallas is an unique blend of Texas down-home charm, cosmopolitan flair, old west friendliness, and ultra-modern sophistication. Settled as a trading post on the banks of the Trinity River in 1841 by a Tennessee lawyer and entrepreneur, John Neely Bryan, Dallas ended the 19th century as a leading railroad, agricultural, and trade center. Although Bryan envisioned a port on the Trinity River which was never built, Dallas became the largest land-locked city in the nation which boasts more shopping centers per capita than any other major U.S. city and four times more restaurants per person than New York City.
A center of banking, manufacturing, oil field management, and the world cotton market, Dallas entered the high tech age when the integrated circuit computer chip was invented in Dallas in July, 1958. Today, Dallas has the nation’s third largest concentration of high technology companies and employees -- and has long been called the ‘Silicon Prairie.’
For the visitor, Dallas is easy to get to and easy to get around. Home to American Airlines and Southwest Airlines, the former now flies into both DFW International and Love Field, the later into Love Field. Most every major domestic and international airline serves DFW Airport, one of the most efficient airports in the world and larger than the island of Manhattan. Love Field is minutes from downtown Dallas and considered one of the premiere ‘close-in’ airports of the nation.
Four interstate highways and many U.S. highways provide easy access by automobile, and Amtrak and major bus lines offer scheduled service into the Big D. Once in Dallas, you can use mass transit buses, light rail and commuter trains, or zip around town in taxis or private cars on well-marked parkways, tollways, interstates, and wide boulevards. Hopefully your first glimpse of Dallas will be at night...a truly awesome sight.
Before you decide what to do when you’re in Dallas, you’ll need to decide where to stay. Dallas offers more than 40,000 hotel rooms, ranging from the budget-minded to the very opulent. Over the years, we’ve stayed at The Adolphus Hotel, Double Tree Hotels (there are two), The Fairmont Hotel, the Hyatt Regency Dallas Reunion, Le Meridien, The Mansion on Turtle Creek, and the Westin Hotel at the Galleria. There are several excellent Bed & Breakfast establishments and RV/Campground facilities are nearby. It’s best to determine your budget and where you want to be located, then go shopping on the Internet at http://cityview.com/dallas/. You’ll also find useful information on Dallas in the travel section of http://www.outoftexas.com/.
Culturally, Dallas boosts an outstanding offering with more than 160 museums, galleries, and historical sites. In addition, artistic attractions offer more than 100 live performances each night.
One of Dallas newest and most dramatic historical attractions is Pioneer Plaza where one relives the city’s western past as three cowboys drive more than 40 longhorn steers, all cast in larger-than-life bronze, down a rocky embankment to a stream in the middle of the city, surrounded by towering glass skyscrapers and public gardens. More recent history draws thousands each day to The Sixth Floor exhibit in the former Texas School Book Depository at 411 Elm Street which takes one back to November 22, 1963, with educational exhibits and a photographic tributes to the life, death, and legacy of our late president, John F. Kennedy. A stark memorial to President Kennedy, designed as a place of meditation, is nearby in Dallas County Historical Plaza at the corner of Main and Market.
A popular destination of the fans of the Ewing family is Southfork Ranch, the ranch home of the long-running ‘Dallas’ television series. Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the series captivated millions of viewers weekly for 12 years and has been shown in some 96 different nations...presently still a ‘first-run’ series in more than 40 countries. The working ranch, open daily except December 25th, offers a guided tour of the mansion where memorabilia of the television characters are displayed, and Texas Longhorns and American Paint Horses can be seen grazing nearby.
When it comes to art museums, Dallas is a leader with its world renowned Dallas Museum of Art located at 1717 Harwood, with spacious galleries featuring permanent collections of pre-Colombian to modern eras. The museum regularly attracts outstanding international touring exhibits and houses a children’s area, museum gift shop, and an outstanding restaurant, Seventeen Seventeen. A long awaited dream recently fulfilled was the opening of the African American Museum at Fair Park. The $6-million museum, unlike any other in the world, houses one of the largest collections of African-American folk art and historical archives, and regularly hosts outstanding touring exhibits. Some of the other museums of note are the Cavanaugh Flight Museum, Dallas Firefighters Museum, Dallas Museum of Natural History, Frontiers of Flight Museum, Legends of the Game Baseball Museum, and Old City Park: The Historical Village of Dallas.
In performing arts, a unequivatable jewel is The Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center, home of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and site of many cultural and trade events. The Dallas Starplex at Fair Park hosts concerts ranging from symphonic groups to giant touring rock shows in an open-air amphitheater with covered reserved seats and casual lawn seating. The restored 1920’s Majestic Theatre, featuring state-of-the-art stage/sound and lighting equipment, is located on Elm Street.
Dallas is a shopper’s paradise -- a shopping guide who regularly broadcasts on a local Dallas radio station claims ‘if it can’t be found in Dallas, it can’t be found anywhere in the world.’ Premier of the hundreds of malls is the Galleria, at LBJ and Dallas Parkway North, with more then 200 of the world’s most celebrated stores: Tiffany & Co., Gucci, Gianni Versace, Louis Vuitton and anchor stores such as Marshall Fields, Sak’s Fifth Avenue, Nordstroms, and Macy’s. Stop with a cappuccino to watch the ice skaters under a breathtaking, vaulted skylight inspired by the Galleria Vittorio Emmanuele in Milan, Italy.
Other shopping areas not to miss are Highland Park Village, Snyder Plaza, Inwood Village, Preston-Royal, and Preston-Forest. The world’s largest collection of antiques, collectibles, and antique cars is housed in the Love Field Antiques Mall on Cedar Springs at Mockingbird. Just north of DFW Airport is the awesome Grapevine Mills Mall with its hundreds of boutiques, manufacturer’s outlets, and restaurants.
It’s been more than 150 years since Texas broke free from the rule of Mexico and became first an independent country, then the 28th state of the United States. Today, that Mexican heritage is still strong in the Dallas restaurant scene with Tex-Mex and Southwestern offerings throughout the city. Dallas chefs have gained international reputations for other cuisines, such as nouvelle, new American, Continental, Italian, Brazilian, and Asian-Japanese. Of particular interest to the person with diabetes are the Colonnade on Preston Road which offers a heart-healthy menu; and the area’s top vegetarian restaurant (rated the best in the Southwest by Vegetarian Times Magazine), Kalachandjis Restaurant.
But, truthfully, as a person with diabetes I’ve always been able to find delicious, satisfying dishes on any of the menus at the more popular restaurants such as Star Canyon, AquaKnox, Mansion on Turtle Creek, the Pyramid Room at the Fairmont Hotel, The Riviera, Toscana, Mediterraneao, Beau Nash, and The French Room at the Hotel Adolphus. Dallas portions are huge so just be prepared to not adhere to your mother’s ‘clean your plate’ rule. Talk to your wait person and ask that sauces be served on the side, food be prepared without salt (if you’re on a salt-restricted diet), etc. Dallas is such a tourist Mecca, I can assure you that any special request will be met with courtesy and a friendly smile. For example, my last meal at the famed Pyramid Room consisted of a grilled portabello mushroom on a bed of wild greens, a perfectly grilled piece of Dover sole with a melange of steamed vegetables seasoned with fresh dill, and for dessert, a trio of luscious fresh berries. Since the portions were large, I ate only a third of what I was served, but I dined ‘like a queen’ and went to bed that night with a blood glucose level well within normal range.
Indeed, ‘the stars are big and bright at night in Texas.’ You can catch the hottest rock, pop, and country stars at StarPlex and Reunion Arena, or your can catch the touring artists in the more intimate setting of Deep Ellum and Lower Greenville. If line dancing and the Texas Two Step are your fancy, you’ll find plenty of places to swing your partner to the music of live country bands. Or, sample a little bit of everything in nightlife in the West End Historic District, home of Planet Hollywood and any number of mimes, comedians, magicians, and street musicians. For information, call the Dallas Events Hotline at (214) 571-1301.
For the sportsperson, Dallas is the home of internationally known professional teams, collegiate athletics and amateur events. The hardest tickets to get are for the Dallas Cowboys battles against the best of the NFL at Texas Stadium. In winter and spring, one can watch the Dallas Mavericks of the NBA and the Dallas Stars of the NHL, both of which play home games at Reunion Arena. The Texas Rangers in the American League begin their yearly pennant hunt in their home at The Ballpark in nearby Arlington. Dallas also offers outstanding golf, indoor soccer, bronco busting and roping, polo, rugby, tennis, and more.
Though all roads in the Metroplex lead to Dallas, you might wish to stop off at any of a number of interesting places on the way into the city such as the Stockyards Historical District in Fort Worth; the antique square in Granbury; Canton’s First Monday Trade Days -- the largest flea market in the Southwest; the wineries of Delaney Vineyards and Cap Rock Winery in historical Grapevine; or a day of horseback riding, sand volleyball, fishing, and horseshoes at Texas Lil’s Diamond Ranch.
Go to Dallas just for the fun of it, knowing that you’ve taken along your supply (plus extras) of medications and testing supplies, packed a pair of comfortable walking shoes, and are ready to enjoy the friendliness of a small town in a big city with the amenities and excitement that rival the capital cities of the world. And each night you can go to bed, pleasantly tired from your active day and evening, but resting assured that you’re but minutes away from several of the world’s finest medical facilities...should you need them. Buen Viaje!
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