Dallas is not for me...

I just came back from a 3-day conference in Dallas, TX. Now there's not anything really wrong with Dallas (or Texas), but I just didn't really like the city too much. Not that I saw very much of it other than the 3 blocks around the Magnolia Hotel, en route to the Convention Center, and the highway back and forth between Dallas and the DFW Airport...

It seemed to me that the sidewalks just rolled themselves up after 6pm every night. Not that I'm a city girl, but I like the idea that I can go and get what I want or need when I want or need it. Here's an example: THE STARBUCKS IN THE MAGNOLIA HOTEL CLOSED AT 6PM.

How is that even possible?????!!!!!?????!!!!!?????

We talked with a few locals, and they told us that there are tons'o'people who live in Dallas' city limits, but only 5000 of them live in downtown Dallas. Apparently, you live in the suburbs of Dallas (Irving, Richardson, etc.), drive in every weekday to go up into your highrise office building, go downstairs into the food court underground in your building's basement for lunch (similar to what's under Rockefeller Center in NYC - which doesn't close at 6pm, by the way!), then leave to go back to your home in the suburbs. You don't stay in the city.

Apparently it's a GREAT city for philanthropic fundraisers - lots of black tie events to collect oil money for good causes, but it's not the kind of city where you go to Burger King on Tuesday night 'cause you don't feel like cooking...

The Magnolia Hotel is GORGEOUS! I had a "cute" room, according to the front desk. Room 616. It had a huge king-sized bed, 3 walk-in closets, a BIG tub/shower combo, and an absolutely immense full kitchen. A full kitchen. A full kitchen bigger than the kitchen I have in my 5-bedroom home in Clifton! With a dishwasher, a full-sized refrigerator, a microwave, a full-sized electric stove and oven, a coffee-pot, blender and toaster, and cutlery, china, and pots and pans. Amazing! And all for the low, low price of $261 a night! (Not in NYC, baby!!!)

I took some pictures - if I could only figure out how to download photos into this blog, I would. I tried some artsy ones - we'll see how they came out when I pick them up from Costco tonight...

I had the brilliant idea to visit a Recollections; there's one 5.5 miles from the hotel, according to the almighty Mapquest. According to the person who answered the phone and admitted she didn't know downtown Dallas very well, it was "much farther than that." So without a car, I didn't go. Rats!

This weekend is a surprise party for SN, then Jack has an all-day Special Olympics event on Sunday. I think I might shop a bit, then scrap a bit, then clean a bit, then cook a bit... I'm big into bits, as you can see...