We departed 2:50am out of Dubai with a nice 15 hours and 15 minutes over to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. Prior to coming into DFW Airport we flew over Kansas where I studied abroad and following the map on the screens on the passenger seats it pointed out right where I used to live, I was glued to the window with such a big smile on my face wishing I could just hop out for a catch up in my favourite US town.

Landing at 9am to a huge down pour of rain, not ideal when the forecast was sunshine for your entire layover and you’d only packed summer clothes, we headed over to the hotel to check in and head to bed before meeting up that evening.

I had spoken with the hotel concierge about a rodeo in Dallas. He recommended heading over to Fort Worth as that was the best one so we jumped in two Uber’s and made the 45 minute journey over there. However, the concierge clearly had no idea what he was talking about as the rodeo was only on in January. What a complete waste of a journey AND money.

As a saving grace, thankfully a few of our passengers had recommended a restaurant over there called Joe T Garcias so we jumped in the line outside asking for a table for 6 and ordered some margaritas! The restaurant was absolutely huge and such a pretty setting, and just the ideal temperature for al fresco dining unlike Dubai currently. I could see why we had to queue for 20 minutes for a table!

Asking for menus our server told us there was two things on the menu, either enchiladas or fajitas. We ordered two of each and tucked into the chips and dips they had brought out.

The food was amazing and I can see why a few of our passengers had recommended it to us. Apparently people travel far and wide to come here and we went back to the hotel feeling very content and stuffed.

The next morning I woke up and went downstairs for breakfast and phoned my parents as I tucked into home made granola with yoghurt and strawberries. I grabbed a Starbucks before heading downtown and bumped into one of the crew Sameh who had just missed the shuttle to the mall. I asked if he wanted to join me and we made our way over to Dealey Plaza where the John F Kennedy memorial is.

Walking through the city it was busy with people exploring and a lot of people were engaging in a 4th July scavenger hunt! It was a typically American city, but one that I was more than happy to wander round admiring the architecture whilst searching for a magnet to add to the collection on my fridge.

On November 22 1963 whilst in Dallas, President John F Kennedy was assassinated as he drove in a motorcade through Dealey Plaza. Kennedy was fatally shot by a former US Marine, Lee Harvey Oswald, while he was riding with his wife, Jacqueline, Texas Governor John Connally, and Connally’s wife, Nellie.

There is a small X on the road where he was sadly assassinated and it’s a strange ambience that surrounds the spot. It’s almost silent like and chilling in comparison to its surroundings filled with people enjoying their 4th July Weekend. A touching tribute despite the cause.

Moving on we went over to Reunion Tower (often referred to as Gods Microphone due to how it looks) for panoramic views over the city. It was just $17 to head up to the top which I thought was pretty reasonable for the amount of viewing towers I’ve been up.

The views over the city were great and of course no observation deck would be complete without a complimentary cheesy picture!

Ready for some shopping, we made our way back down and took an uber over to the Galleria Mall which was patriotically decked out for independence day weekend complimented with some fab sales. Lets just say I shopped till I dropped, not before stopping for a Five Guys to reenergise.

That evening I went to bed for a good nights sleep before the long flight ahead of us back to Dubai. A mellow trip, but a great one with such a fab crew. We laughed so much and had so much fun on both flights.

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