I attended the 2019 Applique Getaway in Dallas Texas last weekend. I took several pictures along my trip and thought I would share some of them so you can see my route and decide if you may want to attend next year. Dallas is a LONG drive from my home state of Alabama so I divided the trip into several days to break it up. We left early Thursday morning with plans to stop in Texas for an overnight stay.
I had to include this rest stop in Mississippi. If you travel much, you might be hesitant to stop at a rest area. As you can see from the pictures, this one is really beautiful. I love the brick floors and all of the antique furnishings. I have been here during the holidays and they decorate it really well. This would be the very first rest stop as you cross over the state line on I-20. They even have free coffee to perk you up.
So back on the road toward Louisiana and this is the rest stop right past the border from Mississippi on I-20. This is another good place to stop as they have free coffee and it is very busy so I felt safe. We wound our way across the state and encountered some construction right at the Texas line. I don't have pictures of that stop because it was kind of hairy with a couple of detours. We were getting tired also as we had been driving about 9 hours.
We made our first night stop Thursday in Lindale Texas. This is a small town right off I-20. It is close to Tyler and if you are ever going to Canton Trade Days which is held once a month, this is a good place to stay. The La Quinta hotel is clean and quiet with a free breakfast. There is a WalMart directly across the highway in case you forgot anything. The best reason to stay here is.... POSADOS MEXICAN RESTAURANT. All I can say is I would drive another 9-10 hours today to eat their food. We literally inhaled our dinner. It is located within walking distance from the hotel.
Now I will tell you that I do not like to worry about getting caught in gridlock. I know you probably don't either and Dallas is kind of a gamble. You never know what construction will be going on or if an accident will totally shut down the roads. The Event was held in Irving Texas which is actually on the Northwest side of Dallas close to the Airport. Here is a map of my route avoiding driving through Downtown Dallas. We left Lindale Friday morning and scooted north toward McKinney. Then we went south on the toll road and that took us right to the Sheraton DFW hotel. The tolls are mailed to you by the state from photos of your license plate so you don't even have to worry about exact change. Just get on the road and drive. You will get a bill later. On Google maps this route was supposed to add about 20 minutes to our trip, but it was worth it. Nice two lane roads, plenty of places to stop, beautiful scenery and 75 miles per hour. Gotta love Texas!
We drove casually and arrived Friday afternoon. The event was hosted at the Sheraton DFW hotel. It is located adjacent to the airport. Check in time was at three o clock. We tried to get in earlier but it is very busy and our room wasn't ready. It is a nice hotel but I will tell you that we brought a cooler and snacks. There is no refrigerator or microwave in the room. We did have a coffee pot but if you don't have access to a car you will have to rely on the hotel restaurant. It was pricey and the food although good was limited. We always travel with drinks on ice and snacks to save money so that worked out well for us. We were able to get our event tickets easily and they had everything posted on large signs so you knew where to go. I opted for the VIP pass which included extra classes the first evening, a shopping event and 80's party the first night as well as lunches for Saturday and Sunday.The event was well worth the drive for me. I learned some new techniques, got to do some shopping and met some new friends. If I talked to you at the event, I hope you had fun also. By the time it was over Sunday afternoon, we were ready to start back home. So we drove back to Lindale, stayed at the LaQuinta one more night and yes we ate at Posados again. Not sure when I will get back to that part of the country!
We dipped down into Louisiana to Natchitoches on our ride back and ate at Lasyone's. This is the home of the original Louisiana Meat Pie. If you have never had one, do yourself a favor and stop in. We had lunch there on Monday, went visit some friends Monday night and then had breakfast on Tuesday. We also brought back some meat pies in our cooler. Trust me, just go ahead and stop by the store on your way, get some fresh ice. We also brought back some Zwolle Tamales which are hard to come by in Alabama.
We drove a lot of miles, saw some beautiful country and ate really well on our trip. The event was well put together and worth the drive. I had time to see new things and those creative juices have really been flowing since I got back home. I am hard at work in my studio on new embroidery designs like my new Shark Risk in the Hoop Sign. You can see it in my store here.
I hope you have enjoyed coming along with me, share what you learn and are generous with what you create. Someone will appreciate your hard work!
