Off To Ft. Worth
- Michael Jay Tucker's explosive-cargo
- May 25
- 4 min read
Hello, Everyone!
So today I start a new adventure. Late last year (2024), Martha and I headed out for yet another trip to Fort Worth, which -- along with San Antonio -- is one of our favorite cities in Texas. As I’ve said before, it feels like an Eastern city to us, and Martha in particular feels at home there.
But...
This series is going to be a little different. It may be rather short, for one thing. We weren’t there very long. And, besides, I don’t want to bore you by writing about things I’ve written about before. There’s enough tedium vita in this Ole Vita of ours as it is without my adding to it.
And...and...there’s something more. This is, after all, a travel blog. And, most often, I try to suggest things that you might find fun to do, or which you might enjoy seeing. This time, though, I’m going to suggest something *not* to do.
In fact, I’m going to warn you about something. I’m going to say there is one attraction in the city...something beloved by residents and written about in glowing detail on tourist info websites...which you should avoid at all costs.
This is particularly true if you have children. That includes even teenagers...or even some twenty-somethings...who might do something stupid...say, to show off, or as a “joke,”...and then too late discover that it was a fatal error.
Oh, and to prove that I’m not being disrespectful of the young, if you are...like Martha and me, of “a certain age,” and have any mobility problems at all...then you, too, should avoid this place. It would all too easy to make a single misstep, and regret it forever.
Finally, I will say that this attraction, which I will name in due time, is all the more deadly because it doesn’t *seem* hazardous. Indeed, it seems profoundly innocent. It is the quintessential wolf in sheep’s clothing, Or, in this case, in stone.
So...beware and be aware.
Anyway...
As I say, we had decided to go to Fort Worth. It was October, and Martha had a birthday coming up. For one of her presents, she suggested a new trip. And we hadn’t been to Ft. Worth for a while, so that seemed like a viable option.
About the photos: First, one of the massive angels that decorate the Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth. We didn’t visit the Hall this trip, but the angels are well worth seeing. Second, one of the massive and mysterious structures outside the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth. Again, decidedly worth a visit. Third, and finally, Martha at the Stockyards. This is actually from a previous trip, but the Stockyards haven’t changed much.
We spent a little time planning our trip. There were, of course, a couple of old standards that we wanted to revisit-- the Stockyard district, which is kind of a tourist-oriented area, but still a lot of fun. And downtown is always cool.
But we also went onto the web and looked for new stuff to see. Two items immediately presented themselves. First was the Fort Worth Water Gardens. This is, well, obviously, a series of fountains in downtown Fort Worth. It’s described on the “Visit Fort Worth” webpage as a “... beautiful and refreshing oasis located downtown, adjacent to the Fort Worth Convention Center. Designed by Phillip Johnson (Amon Carter Museum of American Art), the Water Gardens is an architectural and engineering marvel to be enjoyed any time of the year. Visitors can experience a variety of water features as they wander through this relaxing urban plaza.” (1)
We’d never heard of the place, but the photos on the web looked fantastic -- particularly when the fountains were illuminated at night. And the idea of a “refreshing oasis” in the middle of the city was appealing. Even in October, Texas can be warm. The joke we heard at the time was that it wasn’t October, it was Hot-ober.
The other thing we wanted to see, and which Martha had discovered, was the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens.(2) Again, as the name would suggest, this is an enormous garden and nature area in the city. It was another place we’d never been to, and we’re big fans of green and growing things, so, it went on the list of things to do.
Thus it was that on October 14, 2024, we were up early, had a quick bite, and were on the road to the north.
How were we to know that it was going to be one of *those* trips...?
The kinds that combine, somehow, in one seamless whole, the delightful...
And the perfectly dreadful?
More to come.
Footnotes:
1. Visit Fort Worth, https://www.fortworth.com/things-to-do/attractions/fort-worth-water-gardens/, accessed November 26, 2024.
2. the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens’ webpage is here: https://fwbg.org/
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Copyright©2025 Michael Jay Tucker
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