Texas Sun & Rain

Dallas was unfamiliar to me, a city I had never walked in before. What I found was warmth—smiles on wide streets, conversations that opened easily, and an endless sky that made me want to return in a pair of cowboy boots.

In three days, I saw a city that greets you with genuine friendliness. The highlight came early one morning on the Katy Trail. For someone who measures cities in footsteps, it was a gift: a green corridor through steel and concrete, once a Union Pacific line built in 1865, now reborn by the community as a living artery. Joggers, dog walkers, friends sharing time—each passing face felt part of something local and rooted.

Walking, for me, is discovery through conversation. Ask a local where to eat or what to see, and the city opens up. In Dallas, that openness led me to José on Lovers. I had seen it on Netflix’s Taco Chronicles, but sitting there was something else—the flavours bold, the atmosphere alive. Chef Anastacia Quiñones-Pittman’s kindness sealed it: she sent me home with freshly made tortillas, still warm, so that I could cook fish tacos for my family in London.

Dallas felt different from Austin. There’s a drive here, a can-do energy that pulls you along. The city sprawls so wide it challenged even my love of walking, wearing down the soles of my Nikes. But I left impressed—and wanting more. Next time, I’ll head beyond the city, into the countryside with cowboys, cattle, and open land.

I ended my trip at Merrit Coffee in Deep Ellum, watching the last drops of Texas sky before the airport. On the way out, a rainstorm caught me—raindrops the size of eggs, soaking me through. I was cold, even grumpy, but smiling too. Because travel is like that: sometimes messy, always unforgettable.

Dalls Downtown worker