Little Rock - (Continued)
We checked into our hotel, DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Little Rock, and dropped off our luggage. I love checking into a Doubletree hotel because they give their guests delicious fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies.
view of Little Rock from our hotel balcony
We knew we did not need the rental car while we were staying downtown. Our plan was to return it but before we did, we used it to get dinner. I was starting to notice a trend in our dining choices. It seems we crave pizza when we travel internationally but when traveling in the U.S., we crave barbeque. For this trip, we chose Sims Bar-B-Que which was located on the other side of town from where we were staying. It is located in a strip mall and has been a fixture in the community since 1937. There are pictures on the wall of the founders, news articles, and famous people. Yes, there is a picture of the Bill Clinton greeting the staff. We had a decent meal at Sims accompanied by good old southern hospitality.
We return the rental car to the airport and then called the hotel to send the shuttle to pick us up. The Doubletree has a complimentary shuttle that will not only take you to and from the airport but will also take you anywhere within downtown Little Rock.
We were up by 6 AM the next morning so that Traci could participate in the 10K run. The course for this race allowed me to photograph her at more places than just the start and finish. Now that it was daylight, I was able to see a little more of downtown Little Rock. One of the most striking aspects of Little Rock is its series of bridges over the Arkansas River. I had a good view of at least one of them from our hotel room.
Traci got cleaned up after her race and then went off to the convention center located on the same block as our hotel to volunteer at the expo with some of her running friends. While she did this I enjoyed the breakfast buffet at our hotel. During this breakfast, I was seated at a table next to Marilyn Bevans. Ms. Bevins was an elite distance runner in the 1970's and 1980's. She placed second in the women's category of the Boston Marathon back in the late 70's among other accolades. It was a joy to chat with her over breakfast.
Later that day Traci and I took the hotel shuttle to the Central High School National Historic Site. This famous high school was at the center of the Little Rock Nine controversy that had to do with the desegregation of school systems in the U.S.. This took place at a pivotal time in our country. The National Guard was called in to protect nine black students who were attending an all-white high school at a time when segregation was the law. Today there is a small visitor center across the street from the school where we were able to see exhibits and film clips from that controversial period of the U.S..
Traci and I walked across the street from the museum to have a closer look at Central High School. It is still an active high school and thus we were not able to enter it - besides it was Saturday. However, I felt compelled to walk the steps just as the Little Rock Nine did back in 1957. Doing this made me realize how brave those nine black students were to face angry mobs and daily harassment in their quest to get an education. I doubt I would have had the courage to do what they did back then. I am grateful for their contributions to making our country a better place.
Traci and I had the shuttle pick us up from Central High and return us to the hotel so that we could get dressed for dinner. Traci's running club hosted a nice banquet at the hotel that night.
We were up at 6 AM again the next day so that Traci could take an early photo with her running club members and then head to the start of the half marathon. The conditions that day were less than ideal. The race began in a cold, windy downpour. At one point, it even began to sleet. Nonetheless, Traci and thousands of runners completed their events. Traci was able to collect her medal and add Arkansas as state #18 to her quest to run a half marathon in all 50 states. By the way, the medal for those who completed the full marathon (26.2 miles) was enormous! When I saw people wearing them, it brought back images of 80's rapper Flava Flav who used to wear a clock around his neck. The medal for the half marathon was not as big. It goes nicely with the other medals on Traci's medal rack.
Yay! Traci completed the 10K and the half marathon that weekend!
We still had a few hours after the race before we needed to make our way to the airport therefore we decided to check out the old State House which was located next to our hotel. It still amazes me how Traci can run 13.1 miles and still have the motivation to sightsee. The Old State House was an attraction recommended by a lady we met in the elevator of our hotel the previous day. Normally visiting our state house is not high on my list of things to do when visiting a new city; however, I am starting to become a fan of these old capital buildings. I really enjoyed the one we visited in St. Louis and really enjoyed our visit to this one in Little Rock.
The Arkansas Old State House is now houses a museum that has an impressive range of artifacts. Of course, you can stroll through the old chambers that have been restored to appear as they would have in the 1840's. The interesting thing for me was to see the photos of congressmen from the late 1800's and early 1900's. There are many other exhibits to see in other parts of the state house ranging from dinosaur bones to police badges. By now, it probably comes as no surprise that there is a small exhibit dedicated to Bill Clinton. There is an exhibit of Arkansas First Lady dresses (including Hillary Clinton's) that is very well done. We also took some time to walk through the temporary exhibit A Piece of My Soul: Quilts by Black Arkansans. This brought back memories of my grandmother who used to make quilts.
quilt exhibit
dress worn by First Lady Hillary Clinton
Traci and I left the Old State House Museum to get something to eat. We walked through Little Rock's River Market district which consists of restaurants, bars, and shops. Our destination was a restaurant called the Flying Fish. It is located on (you guessed it) President Clinton Avenue. We really enjoyed our meal here. I was never a fan of catfish but the Flying Fish changed my mind. It came with my shrimp basket and I liked it.
Our time in Arkansas was quickly coming to an end. We walked back to the hotel and took the shuttle to the airport. Our trip home was not so smooth but it was an adventure nonetheless. Our flight departing Little Rock was delayed by an hour. I know I have said less than flattering things about United Airlines in some of my other trip reports but I have to compliment them this time on how they handled the situation. Knowing that most of us had a tight connection at Chicago O'Hare that we were endanger of missing, the friendly hostess in Little Rock worked with each person individually to help avoid the inconvenience of missed flights. For Traci and me, she assigned us seats at the front of the plane (rows 1 and 3) so that we would be among the first to deplane when we landed in Chicago.
When we landed in Chicago, a bunch of us had to hustle from Terminal F all the way across the humongous airport to Terminal B. I broke into a sprint as our gate came into view because I thought I saw the host about to close the door. I had a bit of a panic when I approached him because he asked, "Little Rock?" Thinking I had run to the wrong gate, I replied, "No, we are going to D.C.!" He clarified by saying, "Did you just arrive from Little Rock?" He continued by telling us not to worry. They were waiting for us. This was the first time I heard of an airline waiting for passengers.
It was after midnight when we landed at DCA. There was a very long wait to retrieve our luggage which I was happy to see also made the flight. Our adventure continued thanks to all the construction taking place at the airport at the time. It took a while for us to find the pick-up location for the economy lot shuttle. In the end, it was after 2 AM when we arrived home. Needless to say, I struggled staying awake at work the next day but I have no regrets about our weekend. I look forward to other weekend runcations as we sightsee in this beautiful country. Main Page...
