This post has been delayed, but over Memorial Day Weekend, we drove (!) to Hot Springs, Arkansas for a wedding. It was about a 9-hour drive, but we stopped in Mesquite, TX (next to the Rodeo grounds) overnight to break up the drive.
Arriving in Hot Springs by noon, we first went to eat! Had to try McLard's BBQ-a famous local place. There was a line out the door, so we knew it was the right place. DH said the meat wasn't as good as Cooper's, that all the flavor is in the sauce. We had their beef tamales, and the homemade cobbler for dessert. I thought the ribs were pretty good. We later found out that this was President Bill Clinton's favorite restaurant. Hot Springs is his hometown.
This is a photo of a hot spring cascading down a rock face in downtown Hot Springs! This is the town that's also a national park! And one of the first natural places to be protected by the U.S. Government. There were over 100 hot springs in this area and they became very popular with tourists for improving health! You can still take the mineral baths, but they are reg
ulated by the parks service. At our hotel, the Arlington, you can get mineral water-hot or cold- out of faucets in the lobby.Some of the Victorian Bath Houses are being renovated and one is the park service visitor center. You can see how our modern health clubs came to be. This Hernando de Soto fountain is in the middle of one of the restored bath houses. Cubbies along the walls have bathtubs for soaking, interspersed with needle showers to stimulate the nerves.
We took a dinner boat ride on the Belle of Hot Springs and toured Lake Hamilton. We went shopping along the main drag, and DH even got in a little fly fishing. I had a facial at the spa.
And the wedding was beautiful and lots of fun!
Sunday found us on the road again, back to TX. Spent the night at Santosha-on-the-Llano and had fun playing in the water.
That's all for now!
