I don't know about you, but cattle don't parade down the streets of my city, but apparently they do at The Stockyards in Fort Worth. Holy cow! at 11:30am and 4pm they have a mini cattle drive and the Texas Longhorns march right through the streets with cowboys keeping the herd in check. My kids and I stood at the curb and watched them saunter by with their long horns, I must admit it was all pretty impressive. Believe it or not, I have a super old pair of Tony Lama cowboy boots I bought when I was eighteen. I brought them on the trip just for this moment and wore them proudly as the cowboys rode on by. I also kept them on when we headed to Billy Bob's famous honky tonk bar later that evening right around the corner. I just love getting into the culture whether it be through the clothes or foods or dance and try to feel like a local wherever I am. It just adds another dimension to the adventure. The Stockyards is a must see destination if you are visiting Texas because it's such a great way to connect so much Texas history and they way life used to be here. Cattle auctions are still held here but unfortunately none were going on the day we were there but we still checked out the arena where they hold them. We strolled around taking in the atmosphere. There were old time candy stores and some really cool gift shops and even a cattle pen maze (which you can read about by clicking the link). We stopped to get a snack of fried hush puppies at one bar and grill where the bar stools were saddles-how cool is that? We then perused a little indoor swap meet and found an awesome 4"metal Texas lone star that sits on my bookshelf today. By the way, did you know that Dr. Pepper was invented in Texas. I was so sad we just didn't have the time to get to the factory, it was just too far out of the way, but at the swap meet we did get a small 6 pack of glass bottle Dr. Peppers made at the factory in Dublin, Texas. In the hot Texas heat they were so refreshing and so much better than any Dr Pepper in a can. I am not a big soda drinker at all but Dr. Pepper is my second favorite soda next to Coca Cola. And when you are hot and sweaty and dusty from a cattle drive, it just hits the spot! Don't miss the Fort Worth Stockyards y'all, it's authentic Texas at it's best!
