Paris, Texas?

[lhuff]

Anyone ever been there? I've been thinking about it since Mark sent me the link to www.texastwisted.com. It's a 4-6 hour round trip from Shreveport. I know that the drive up to Mt. Pleasant is beautiful and there is a town along the way that I've been dying to explore (sorry- I can't for the life of me remember its name).

So I guess my question is - Is it worth a 6+ hour total round trip to see the Eiffel Tower with a giant cowboy hat on top and is there anything else cool there?

[azo]

I think it is worth it. Now its not some huge tower, but its still pretty impressive and the Cowboy hat adds a special touch. If your looking for more tacky roadside attractions, paris also has: A giant Cambells tomato soup can and a cemetary there has a jesus statue with Cowboy boots. The town overall is like any medium sized town and has alot of unique attractions to offer.

[AZBuck]

I've driven farther for less. Sometimes the drive is the thing, and the destination is just a convenient place to turn around. That's pretty country, and one other possible stop you might consider is Daingerfield State Park where you can rent a canoe or paddle boat for some quiet time on the lake. Besides, you never know, you might have some luck like mine. Last year I got sent to a conference in Moscow, Idaho. I just got back from this year's trip - to Moscow, Russia.

AZBuck

[lhuff]

I've seen signs for that park but have never visited. The paddleboat intrigues me.

Thanks azo for the firsthand experience - I'd forgotten about the Jesus with cowboy boots (am I detecting a theme here) and did not know about the soup can. I wonder if it's an Andy Warhal take-off?

I think I'll head up that way either this Saturday or next. I love tacky things on the side of the road. I've often thought about having a road trip that consists of doing nothing but driving to all of the tacky things in the Midwest like the giant ball of yarn, etc.

Laura

[PNW Judy]

"Tacky Tourist Traps" are often some of my favorite things on a roadtrip. Oh, I'll ooh and aah with the best of 'em over the beauty of the Grand Canyon, the coast, and even the mundane scenic views that you just see from the driver's seat while tootling down the road....but those TTTs stick in my mind and bring a smile to my face.

Enjoy and let us know how it went. Pictures of TTTs are always good. :-)

[Mark Sedenquist]

I love tacky things on the side of the road.

Laura, Our collegues at RoadsideAmerica.com wrote the book on tack attractions, but RTA is slowing putting together its own collection. So.... if you take your camera, please consider submitting for inclusion in our roadside wonders directory or even the roadside murals collection.

Thanks,

Mark

[lhuff]

it will definitely be my first day trip after returning from Indianapolis at the end of the month.

Mark - I will definitely attempt to upload a picture of the tacky things in Paris and whatever else I see on the way to and from Indianapolis. I don't tend to get on the computer at home since I'm on it constantly at work, so I don't know how to do any "fun" things with it.

Laura

[lhuff]

I've tried to make this trip several times, but something always comes up. I'm going to try to get a day off in the middle of the week and do an escape day sometime in October.

Does anyone know of other places near Paris that are cool? I'm thinking somewhere on the west side of it. My gigging has lead me to most of the towns between here and Paris and I want to get away from the familiar.

Laura