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During your Dallas vacation, don't miss these great establishments and attractions:
Nasher Sculpture Center
Despite its status as the principal art museum in a city of considerable wealth, the rather modest permanent collection of the Dallas Museum of Art is proof that either north Texans don't collect much great art or they don't donate it on a grand scale to local institutions. One notable exception to that rule is Raymond Nasher, one of the world's foremost collectors of contemporary sculpture. A local businessman, by way of New York, who made his banking and real estate fortune in Dallas (with the shopping mall NorthPark Center, among other properties), Nasher decided, after years of being wooed by the Dallas Museum of Art as well as major institutions like the Guggenheim Museum in New York and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., to establish a public sculpture garden in his adopted city. The $50-million project was entirely funded by the private Nasher Foundation.The Nasher Sculpture Center opened in 2003 on a 2 1/2-acre site adjacent to the Dallas Museum of Art, in a glass-and-marble structure infused with natural light, designed by the renowned architect Renzo Piano. The center should change the way art aficionados think about Dallas and make it an art destination. The collection, which includes high-quality pieces by virtually all of the great modern masters and was amassed over 4 decades by Ray and his wife Patsy, is considered by some art experts to be the finest private sculpture collection in the world. The tasteful 54,000-square-foot center, a place of quiet refuge in downtown Dallas, features an outdoor sculpture garden landscaped by Peter Walker, with pieces from Nasher's immense collection exhibited both indoors and out. The collection includes some of the finest individual works from the likes of Pablo Picasso, Auguste Rodin, Joan Miró, David Smith, Constantin Brancusi, Henry Moore, Alberto Giacometti, Henri Matisse, Alexander Calder, Isamu Noguchi, Richard Serra, Mark di Suvero, Magdalena Abakanowicz, Joseph Beuys, Roy Lichtenstein, and many others. Among the monumental pieces in the open-air museum there are too many highlights to mention, though James Turrell's "skyspace" Tending (Blue), perhaps deserves special recognition as a site-specific piece commissioned for the museum. At the back of the garden, near the bathrooms, it is a walk-in box open to the sky, with optical effects and an unexpected perspective. Although the Nasher Sculpture Center -- which has some of the biggest names in art and architecture attached to it -- opened with big publicity and truly ought to be one of Dallas's most highly prized treasures, it is sadly and inexplicably having some difficulty attracting visitors, especially locals. If you're at all a fan of modern art, don't miss the opportunity to see this spectacular collection.
The Dallas Arboretum & Botanical Garden
Dallas may not be celebrated for its cool green beauty, but the area around White Rock Lake, and more specifically the Arboretum and Botanical Garden, is a welcome oasis. Just 15 minutes from the gleaming skyscrapers of downtown Dallas are nearly 70 acres of carefully planted and groomed gardens and natural woodlands, interspersed with a handful of historic residences, that meander along the banks of the lake. The Jonsson Color Garden features one of the nation's largest collections of azaleas, which bloom spectacularly in spring, and nearly 6 acres of chrysanthemums in the fall. And while North Texas is not exactly New England, October and November are as ablaze in color as anything you'll see in this neck of the woods. If you find yourself in Dallas during the torrid summer (or spring and fall) months, the Palmer Fern Deli is a secluded, shady spot where mist-sprayers drop the temperature at least 10° to 15° -- reason enough for a visit here. An hour is probably enough time to see most of the gardens, though it's a fine place to linger, read, and relax.
Old City Park
Dallas's Old West heritage is on self-conscious display in this downtown 13-acre park of three dozen historic buildings. The complex re-creates a late-19th-century village, complete with a redbrick Main Street, Victorian homes, a log cabin dating from 1847, and Old West standards like a train depot, general store, one-room church, schoolhouse, bank (said to have been robbed by Bonnie and Clyde in the 1930s), and law offices. All have been transported from their original locations in and around Dallas, immaculately restored and reconstructed on the attractive grounds, which have the glittering city skyline as a backdrop. Guided tours escort visitors inside several of the buildings, including a "Living Farmstead," a re-creation of a North Texas farm (ca. 1860). On selected dates during the first 2 weeks of December, the village celebrates "Candlelight at Old City Park," a popular "Victorian Holiday Celebration." (Candlelight admission tickets are $3 more than regular prices.)A pretty good restaurant, Brent Place, occupies an 1876 "architecture catalogue" farmhouse (ordered by mail and shipped by rail to rural areas) and serves lunch Tuesday through Saturday from 11am to 3pm; call tel. 212/421-3057 for reservations. Visitors are also allowed to picnic on the grounds. Plan to spend 1 1/2 hours or so here.
Courtyard by Marriott Dallas LBJ at Josey
The hotel designed by business travelers, Courtyard by Marriott surrounds you with all the comforts that make business and pleasure travel easy. Get ready for the day ahead in one of our guest rooms featuring cable television with pay movie channels, comfortable sitting area, free high speed Internet access, hairdryer, in-room coffee and tea service, iron and board, spacious well-lit work desk with ergonomic chair and two dataport telephones with speaker and voicemail. Wireless Internet access ...
Motel 6 Dallas Southwest
Motel 6 is one of the United States' largest economy motel chains, with well over 800 locations throughout North America. Motel 6's are conveniently located near attractions and businesses and are accessible from major interstates and highways. In addition, there are several restaurants and activities surrounding this location to make your stay more ...
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