Old City Park

 

In 1876 it was Dallas's new and first City Park, gracing The Cedars, a fashionable neighborhood of Victorian homes. The 1885 Sullivan House above, decked out for the holidays, once stood nearby. Along with a variety of other historic buildings from the Dallas/North Texas area, it was moved to the park, which for a period of time was called Dallas Heritage Village. Now it's Old City Park again, with free regular admission, and a pleasant place simply to have a stroll on its wooded acres. Below on the left is the 1888 Renner School with a backdrop of downtown Dallas skyscrapers.

 

 

White birds at White Rock

 A spin around White Rock Lake on our bicycles always includes a stop at Sunset Bay where a variety of water fowl hang out on the mud flats and fallen tree limbs.  What a surprise to discover a lone elegant white swan!  From what I could find out it is a Mute Swan and has been at the lake for several months, but no one knows how it came to be there. The American White Pelicans are also here to spend the winter, providing an ongoing show as they glide around the lake or soar overhead displaying the black tips on their ample wings.  The big birds always seems to be escorted by a flotilla of amusing little coots.  If you'd like to see some really fine photos others have taken of the pelicans and various White Rock Lake birds, click here and here.  Such a treasure we have in this lovely lake right in the heart of East Dallas!

 

Money, money, money

We examined it, we read about it, we even got a little bag of it, the equivalent of about 40 bills of mixed denominations - alas, all shredded.  These little souvenir bags of worn-out money were being given away at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas first open house on Thursday.   And what a interesting and informative event it was!  The staff in this highly secure place and the numerous policemen could not have been more welcoming and  pleasant; there was even a table with an array of cookies and other treats.  Mr C said that Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernake has been concerned about public relations and trying various avenues to help the public understand exactly what the Federal Reserve does, so maybe that accounts for the all-out hospitality.  But whatever the reason, it certainly made for an enjoyable experience. 

 The Dallas Fed is a striking contemporary complex built in 1992.  From the corner of the visitors' hall, you can look across Klyde Warren Park to the Arts District.

 

 Here are various displays, some interactive, on the regional economy, historical currency and the history of banking in the United States, explanations of how the Federal Reserve works and more.  This is a scale used by the Dallas Fed to weigh gold shipments that were used by many national banks to purchase their initials shares of capital stock in the Federal Reserve.



For the open house, there were also displays from the Bureau of Printing and Engraving in Fort Worth, the only place in this country outside of Washington, D.C. where paper currency is made.  (Did you know that?  I certainly didn't.)  Tables manned by craftsmen - Intaglio engravers, platemakers and photoengravers -  who actually do the work featured examples of the several processes that go into printing the new $100 bill that will be released in October.

We also attended a terrific presentation from Charlene Williams, associate director of the BEP's Western Currency Facility in Fort Worth (who obviously loves her job), on the history of the BEP, the money production process and the security features in U.S. paper currency.  There we learned that the BEP, which has regularly scheduled visitor hours, will also have special craft demonstrations during the last full week of July, so we are planning on going to that.  And we discovered there are regular visitor hours to see the Economy in Action permanent exhibits here at the Dallas Fed, well worth doing even without the added attractions that were part of the open house.  Indeed, a good way to pass some time in air-conditioned comfort during summer's 100-degree days while learning some fascinating facts about money, money, money.

Up White Rock Creek

White Rock Lake is a magnet for walkers and runners and cyclists, not to mention folks just enjoying being out by the water.  And on the water are usually some rowers and kayakers and perhaps a sailboat or two.  But enter White Rock Creek, that slightly mysterious wooded mouth at the north end of the lake, and the urban world slips away.  Or so it seems, although in the course of our one and a half mile journey up the creek this morning, we passed under a bridge thundering with rush-hour traffic and just beyond that to one side was manicured parkland.  Still, it's easy to imagine being in some secluded wilderness.  Well, okay, you do have to overlook the odd floating bottle or plastic bag draped over some tree roots; sadly it's not pristine.  Each time we've been there, we've talked about how, with some attention, this could be the kind of jewel that White Rock Lake has become.  But then, I guess it wouldn't offer this illusion of being remote and secret.

Our craft?  The noble Sea Eagle...it fits in the trunk of the car and inflates in less than 15 minutes.  (Pumping it up is great exercise for the legs!)  Mr. C. bought it four years ago; in addition to rowing about on White Rock Lake, we've taken it to Broken Bow, Oklahoma where we had an idyllic day on the lower Mountain Fork River.  And it's ferried us about the truly mysterious recesses of Cado Lake in East Texas with its moss-dripping cypresses and expanses of lotus.  The first time we rowed up White Rock Creek, it was an adventure, not knowing exactly where it went.  We had to portage around a huge fallen tree that required scrambling up and down a high and very muddy bank. And, curious to know what lay beyound each bend, we continued much farther up the creek where the snags (and the trash) became thicker.  Then one of those snags snagged us!  A few minutes of panic as a section of the bottom deflated, but we were able to make it back, all tired, hot, wet and muddy.  Mr. C said he had a great time.

Today was not, fortunately, as "adventurous," but it was a very pleasant way to begin the day.

Spring in the city

Lee Park was April-perfect – all glorious greens, frothy white dogwoods and brilliant azaleas – on our stroll Friday afternoon. Dallas at its springtime best.
 

Taking the trolley

How appropriate that we chose to take the McKinney Avenue trolley to see the "Lost Dallas" exhibition at the Dallas Center for Architecture.  And what a glorious day for it we had, all sunshine and balmy breezes after three days of rain that lowered temps to near April levels.

Petunia arriving

"Forward-looking" Dallas removed its streetcars in 1956, and it was not until 1989 that they returned, operated by a non-profit organization, the McKinney Avenue Transit Authority. They now run from the West Village through Uptown to downtown by the Dallas Museum of Art, around two miles, and are in the process of expanding.
 

Inside Petunia

 

Matilda arriving

  At the West Village, we boarded Petunia, a 1920 "Birney Safety Car" that plied the streets of Dallas until 1947 when she settled as a residence for 30 years before being restored to glory.  A mom and her excited kids, a nicely-dressed older couple, and a few other people were our fellow passengers on this ride which took us nearly to the end of the line on the edge of downtown. 

Returning from the exhibit, we caught Matilda heading back.  She's a 1925 car who served six decades in Melbourne, Australia and is now the largest in MATA's fleet.  Lots more people on board now: kids and parents just having a ride for the fun of it, workers heading to lunch.  We hopped off for lunch at a shaded patio that was bustling on this perfect-for-alfresco-dining day.
 
After lunch it was Petunia again who arrived to take us back to the West Village.  As an extra special treat, we got to revolve around on the Uptown Station turntable which delighted all the kids. So ended our first excursion on the McKinney Avenue trolley, but it won't be our last.

 

Petunia on the turntable

Ciclovia de Dallas

Downtown

The first annual (hopefully) Ciclovia de Dallas has taken place and we were there.  It was a low-key, laid-back, car-free event that turned the century-old Houston Street Viaduct over to cyclists and pedestrians for six hours on Saturday.  From downtown Dallas on the northeast side to Oak Cliff on the southwest side, people strolled, skated and cycled across the mile-long span over the Trinity River. Among the attractions were assorted booths, occasional live music and entertainment, zumba and yoga sessions and a couple of the now-indispensable food trucks, but mostly everyone seemed to be simply enjoying the chance to have this unusual playground for socializing and getting a bit of fresh air while taking in views of the city.  You can check out more photos here.

I happened to learn about the event through an article in the Dallas Morning News about the city's ambitious but stalled Bike Plan which brought Gil Penalosa, former parks commissioner in Bogota, Colombia to town to give City Hall some pep talks about creating pedestrian- and bike-friendly streets.  Bogota, Columbia and bicycles?  Well, according to Wikipedia, Bogota deserves credit for creating the first ciclovias way back in 1976, and now these temporary street closures take place weekly. The concept has spread to other countries as well as several cities in the United States. Let's hope the trend continues.  

View toward Oak Cliff and the Trinity River

On the Bridge

On Saturday we availed ourselves of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to walk on the pristine new Margaret Hunt Hill bridge, even caught a glimpse of its designer, Santiago Calatrava.  In fact, we spent several hours walking on the bridge as volunteers for the Trinity Trust during the bridge celebration street fair.

There's been a whole lotta hoopla here in Dallas about the intended-to-be-iconic bridge and what it will do for the city, specifically opening up and revitalizing West Dallas (a defined area just across the river from downtown).  All very interesting.

But what is even more interesting to us is the area underneath the bridge, where flows the neglected and much-maligned Trinity River. (That's it, off to the far right of the picture below, with the banks and levees freshly carpeted in spring greenery.)

The plan is to transform all that idle floodplain, 20 miles of it snaking through the city, into a natural and recreational showpiece, with lakes, a promenade, plaza, amphitheaters, recreational fields, hike and bike trails, wetlands.  (Oh yes, and a toll road. We'll just ignore that for the moment.)  Those idyllic landscape renderings of things to come certainly elicit enthusiasm.  Could this really be Dallas, with a waterfront? 
We're waiting.

Window shopping

Snapped this brightly blossoming window at Neiman Marcus, the last of Dallas' downtown department stores which is holding the fort with such panache.

Ritzy view

This was one of the views we enjoyed from a thirteenth floor balcony of The Tower Residences at the Ritz-Carlton last Thursday.  And what were we doing there?  Attending an Arts District Volunteer Appreciation Reception spread throughout three of the model residences which truly deserve the term "luxurious."  We certainly felt appreciated.  There were drinks in the contemporary residence looking north across Uptown.  A buffet in the spacious, more traditional home with its sweeping views toward downtown and the west.  Coffee and sweets in the vibrant red and mirrored north-east facing residence. All overseen by smartly uniformed and obliging staff from the Ritz-Carlton.  A sincere thank-you to Veletta Forsythe Lill, the Executive Director of Dallas Arts District, and Doug Thompson, the ever-ebullient Volunteer Coordinator, for such a lovely evening and the opportunity to take a lofty look over urban Dallas. 

An aside...  Despite having had my little Canon Power Shot A540 for a few years, I had never tried out the Stitch Assist feature for shooting panoramic views which I used on the photo above.  But the real magic was with Photoshop.  Just click Automate > Photomerge, point it to the photos, and sit back while it does the rest!  It whirred away, throwing up what looked like empty windows, and taking its time, and then, voila! there were my four shots, all melded seamlessly together, leaving me nothing else to do but crop the somewhat raggedy top and bottom. I wonder if anyone has ever penned an ode to Photoshop, because it certainly makes me want to rhapsodize about it.

So much stuff

Big Mango Trading Company

Glass disc at Big Mango

Antiquing I did go with my friend Linda last Thursday, down along Riverfront-formerly-Industrial Boulevard.  Our first stop was the Big Mango Trading Company, and what a discovery!  This is the sort of place that makes me long to be rich, so I could have the dilemma of trying to decide which of the columns of satiny, striated petrified wood or how much of the lusciously colored chunks of glass slag I'd like for my garden.  Or perhaps some exotic Indonesian architectural objet for the foyer. We wandered through oohing and aahing, and I couldn't resist stroking all the sensual surfaces of wood and glass and stone along the way.  And, oh yes, there is a shop cat, a pert little tabby with an assertive personality.

Antique high tech

Who were these children?

After that we headed over to one of the several antique malls clustered in the area.  (You can pick up the handy map shown below at any of them.)  I'm sure you've been to similar antique malls, so no need to go into descriptive mode.  Basically, there's so much stuff.  Stuff that's interesting, stuff that's beautiful, stuff that's hideous, stuff you might like to have, stuff that someone once wanted and acquired and now waits for another person to do the same. The fact is that I already have a lot of stuff, so really, I just go to look at these vestiges of times past, like touring quirky museums with price tags on the exhibits.

For lunch w treated ourselves to a most delicious meal at the newly opened Bridge Bistro.  Occupying the corner of a renovated, mid-century modern-looking building, it's all windows and white walls, tables draped in black with sprigs of rosemary in the bud vases, very spare but not stark and quite pleasant.  However, don't go expecting views of the soon-to-open, Calatrava-designed bridge over the Trinity; the restaurant is directly on Riverfront.  


Riverfront, which, of course, leads one to expect some trace, some glimpse, of the Trinity.  Alas,  the river is back behind its levees, and the "boulevard" remains firmly industrial in character, a hodgepodge of warehouses and odd, assorted businesses. (My view from the bistro was a lot filled with boats, mostly small cabin cruisers, although the sign said it was the Big Rig Reconditioning Center.) Yet it does have real character, gritty but interesting, probably rather jarring to the eyes of those who come from the suburbs to the north with all their neatly landscaped and sanitized shopping areas.    

After the meal we managed two more antique malls before succumbing to that fatigue which is more an overload of the senses – the constant visual and mental processing of shopping – than it is physical.  We stopped at Zaguán Latin Cafe for a coffee and pastry to regain our strength, then finally called it a day.

A peek at "The Park"

 Thursday evening we Arts District volunteers got a great opportunity to attend a special presentation about "The Park."  That is the five soon-to-be-fabulous acres decking Woodall Rodgers Freeway between Uptown and the Arts District.  Come this fall we can expect to be taking our ease on a bench in a grove of oak trees, having a bite to eat at the pavilion restaurant, pitching a ball for Fido in the dog park, strolling through the botanical garden,  bringing the kids to their very own play area, watching a performance on the great lawn....  Well, I could go on and on, but the best thing to do is to click on over to their very lovely and informative website. This is the sort of thing that makes you want to live in Dallas.

An additional perk of the evening was a chance to take in the marvelous view from The Park office's fourth floor balcony overlooking the nascent park (see the first of the trees!) with the Arts District and downtown beyond. 

Carpe diem

When the thermometer is thrusting past 100º this summer, these are the days one needs to remember in order to keep living here in perspective. We flung to-do lists aside last Thursday to stroll around the Dallas Arboretum, serene in its more subdued hibernal aspect. 

View across White Rock Lake

This spring-like weather is encouraging over-eager blossoms: forsythia, azaleas, tulip tips poking up through beds of pansies. 

Forsythia

Most likely next  month they’ll be rudely rebuffed by a lashing of frigid weather that we’re never quite prepared for.  So for now we’re trying to make the most of these blue skies and balmy temperatures.  Of course, what I really should be doing is cleaning leaves out of the flower beds, to grind up and return as mulch.  Well, maybe tomorrow...

Camellias