The Pony Express - Part 19

“What’s the Dreamcatcher for?” asked the pretty girl with the cowboy hat, as we stood waiting for Lavinia at the Ripley’s museum. For a moment I was stunned. Was she really talking to me? I was on cloud 9, and started explaining about nightmares and dreams. She seemed much impressed. Then it dawned on me that perhaps she believed I was a Red Indian in disguise. But then, this was Indian country, in one way or the other. The Red Indians may have long gone, but the Indians sure seem to be everywhere.

Texas is like India in many ways. There is the long plain, stretching to where the sky meets earth – with the odd tree breaking the monotony. It is hot like hell – in fact it was the first time I saw a fan in a house (Lavinia was surprised to hear that) - and of course, the Indians: not Red, but the saffron-white-and-green variety. Jaysheel had an interesting observation: “This is the town Irving. It’s called Mini-Hyderabad. 85% of the population is Telugu. The rest 15% are Americans and other Indians.”

Lavinia seemed to take a liking to Ripley’s. Like a little girl, she was wide-eyed with excitement. It seemed a trifle difficult to distinguish who was younger – she or her three-year old daughter. Not a lot seemed to have changed with her in the last eight years. Every place in the USA, however big or small needs a museum. Dallas is famous two things – being the place where John F Kennedy was shot dead, and for sharing its name with one of the most popular soap operas of the late 20th century. I was never a person to adore soap operas - with the odd exception of Kyunki Saans Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi till a few years back – but Kennedy? That would give me some bragging rights over Vinay Shenoy. The highlight of the day was Pioneer Plaza, which housed a bronze sculpture of four cowboys herding buffaloes. There were around 100-odd buffaloes. Texas and India…now you know.

“I like the T-Shirt!” said the lady at the counter pointing to that age-old tiger-eyes thing I always wear. I was on the clouds. “Well, at least someone liked it! My team mates have forbidden me from wearing it to office” I exclaimed to Lavinia. She’d taken me to a quaint little town called Grapevine, and was looking disappointed that nothing much was happening there. She’d promised that there would be a bustling market, and perhaps to hide the same, was taking me into all the antique stores. To my liking, I found a tin advertisement board which said: “Coffee: Do stupid things faster”. Even the lady at the counter pretended to be impressed at my choice. “I’ll hang it on my cubicle” I promised Lavinia. She looked embarrassed.

One look at Grapevine Main Street and you’ll realize why it is “quaint”. To my utter surprise, here was a town that seemed to have been lifted straight out of a Lucky Luke comic book or one of those John Wayne-Clint Eastwood Westerns. There was the big town hall at the end of the street. Lining the street were two-storied buildings which if you stepped a couple of hundred years back would have formed the banks and saloons where all those cool dudes hanged around. The difference perhaps was that, , huge motorcycles were to be spotted in place of the horses that would be drinking from wooden water buckets as their riders drank more exotic liquids from better-shaped containers. With the increasing gas prices, giving them a drink would not exactly be on the minds of their riders (who perhaps, would still be drinking more exotic liquids from better-shaped containers).

There was also the old railroad, now running as a showpiece attraction. But incredibly, I neither rode it, nor took a picture of it.

We had lunch at a (genuine) Thai restaurant. Lavinia seemed to be an expert at ordering Thai food, sparing me the trouble of not knowing what to eat. And then, to my surprise, she said: “Take a little bit of everything. That way, you will get to taste all the good things in life”.

It was the last weekend of my trip here in the USA. Jaysheel and Lavinia seemed to be a bit disappointed that perhaps I didn’t get to see anything much in Dallas (“Dallas is the most interestingly boring place.” he joked). But if someone asks me “What did you see in Dallas?” I know I have an answer.

“All the good things in life…” Of all the things I saw, there was nothing more delightful than spending time with their family.

The Pony Express grounds to a halt here.