Cumulative miles driven: 2,192

There are times when being from out of town really does help. We arrived in Fort Worth, Texas to discover that the annual Stock Show and Rodeo was underway so we thought that would be a great, very American, thing to see. Initially we were out of luck when we arrived at the box office to get tickets for the Saturday evening rodeo as they were sold out but the nice lady behind the counter asked "Where y'all from?" and once we said England she disappeared to see her supervisor and came back with two prime seats for us!

We also had a bit of luck when visiting an old Cattle Baron's house that is managed by Historic Fort Worth. The tour normally only includes the downstairs rooms as upstairs was being used as offices but our enthusiastic guide was so pleased that his visitors were from the UK that we got a full tour upstairs and downstairs. I am not sure the office workers were as pleased as our guide however.

Prior to arriving in Fort Worth we visited Southfork Ranch, about 20 miles north east of Dallas, which was the location for all of the external filming in the hit 80s TV show Dallas. Interestingly all of the internal filming was carried out in Hollywood on a sound stage with the cast and crew moving back and forth nearly 2,000 miles to complete the show. The ranch now has been converted, internally, to reflect the TV show with conference facilities and shops selling all sorts of tat having been built too.

The metroplex area, as it is known, of Dallas, Arlington and Fort Worth (and a myriad of other cities in between) is a sprawling mass of urban development and roads stretching for well over fifty miles in each direction. Thank goodness for the 'sat nav' as getting around without it would certainly be more difficult as it is at times like Spaghetti Junction after Spaghetti Junction but on a larger, Texan, scale. They are also building more toll roads, high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes needing more flyovers and land for roads - at least they have the space.

Dallas is also the location where President John F Kennedy was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald as his motorcade passed through Dealey Plaza in the downtown area. The sixth floor of what was at the time The Texas Book Depositery, from where the shots were fired, is now a museum about the events of that day in November 1963. We spent well over two hours here followed by a walk around the downtown area of Dallas which, like many US cities, is less than inspiring but at least we can say that we have been.

Prior to returning to our hotel we travelled through the rush hour traffic to Sundance Square in downtown Fort Worth and what a breath of fresh air it was! A US downtown area that had life with people walking around enjoying the many bars and restaurants. It really was a pleasant place to spend some time and a world away from the urban sprawl and tangled web of roads that surround the downtown area. It has gone on our 'return to' list as it is a shame to be stopping out of town. Our hotel however is fine. It offers free laundry facilities but not too many places to eat within easy walking distance with the exception of a Texas Roadhouse and an interesting place called Red Neck Heaven that looked like a rough version of Hooters.

Texas is well known for cowboys, cattle, steaks and wide open spaces. Our visit to the Fort Worth Stockyards, which was once the centre of the cattle business but is now a preserved and touristy area, gave us a feel of what it would have been like as they stage a slow cattle drive of Texas Longhorns down the main street twice a day. A better feel for the Texan cowboy/farming way of life came about by visiting the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo. There was plenty of stuff to buy from John Deere tractors through to leather belts, hats and boots. This all felt a lot more genuine than the Fort Worth Stockyards. Being international guests at the show also gave us access to a special lounge offering free drinks and snacks as well as free daily entry to the show for the whole month it was on. It really did pay to be English! Prior to the evening rodeo event we escaped the sheep, pigs, cows and fast food offerings at the show site and walked to a nearby bar/restaurant which offered better value and surroundings for an early dinner.

The rodeo was interesting and a first for us being a truly American or probably Texan affair. After prayers (!) and the singing of the national anthem the action started. We got to see bare back bronco riding, wagon races, tie down competitions and barrel racing as well as bull riding. The people that do this are either very brave or just plain crazy. It was an experience that is worth doing at least once in your life if you get the chance.