On the advice
of people we met in the swimming pool in Eureka Springs we stayed at an RV Park
on the Arkansas River right across from the William J Clinton Presidential
Center; which was very convenient as an old railway bridge had been pedestrianized
as part of the development of the Presidential Center. Opened in 2004 the center
is a striking modern building surrounded by a lovely parkland which (to scale)
mirrors the topography of the State of Arkansas. From here a pathway links to a
walking and biking trail that runs along both sides of the river; it is 17 miles
long and much used. In the basement which has views of the river and trail
there’s an unbelievable gourmet restaurant called “Forty Two” where we dined in
great style with tablecloths and napkins; the food was simply excellent.
The center comprises
of three floors, the entrance lobby where there’s a decommissioned Presidential
automobile and an interesting historical exhibit of both Bill and Hilary’s Mothers
with lots of family photos…they were two
very strong ladies. On the second floor a replica of the Oval Office that one
can view but not enter and of the Cabinet Room where one can enter and,
imagining being in the Cabinet sit at the table; Tom of course sat in the
Presidents chair! Also on this floor there’s a chronological history of Bill
Clinton's time in office, very interesting as it is recent history. Apart from
the sterling work Bill and Hilary did to bring peace to Northern Ireland
another interesting Irish connection is that the archive section of this floor
is based on the design of the library at Trinity College in Dublin.
On the
third floor there was an exact replica of a White House table set for a formal
dinner, Bill our guide told us when the center first opened people stole
plates, glasses, silverware (cutlery) and even signs off the wall. Another
exhibit was about getting the White House ready for Christmas - it takes a year
to organize - maybe that’s why the President is sworn in in January! Along a
wall was the family life of the Clinton's; Hilary's inaugural ball gown,
another red velvet gown, a number of Bills saxophones and of course, lots of photos
with foreign dignitaries. Bill was born William Blythe IV, sadly his father
died three months before he was born. At age 4 his stepfather formally adopted
him and so instead of another famous Blythe we have President William J Clinton.
We enjoyed our day at the William J Clinton Presidential Center…it was well worth
our while to visit Little Rock.
Next day we
took an antique trolley tour around Little Rock that didn't take too long after
which we visited the Historic Arkansas Museum which has a wonderful sculpture
outside; inside it had some very nice historical art including lovely scenes of
wide open country, an exhibition of cabinet work and a very good exhibition of
Indian memorabilia. An officious museum guard ordered us to leave at 4.45pm (closing
time was 5pm) so we didn't see it all. Adele wanted to tell him we had 15 more
minutes but was prevailed upon to remain silent - we didn't want to be run out
of town by the Sheriff. We crossed the road to the Peabody Hotel and were just
in time to join a huge crowd to see the infamous Peabody Ducks performance. A
porter (dressed as a Major Domo) announces the imminent departure of the ducks
tells the story behind the tradition and places steps against the edge of the
fountain from which the ducks waddle down and along a red carpet to the
elevator around the corner. The elevator is made of glass so all can see the
ducks as they head up to their nightly accommodations and food.
We had our
dinner in a restaurant called The Flying Fish just a walk from the RV Park in a
redeveloped part of town called The River Market District.
The
following day we drove to Hot Springs, about 55 miles south of Little Rock. As
the name implies this is where hot springs surface. The Hot Springs area has
been under the protection of the National Parks Service for over one hundred
years. The fear was that the springs and water would be destroyed through
commercialism; so seven big beautiful spas (only one still operating) are on
one side of the road with shops and hotels on the other side. There are
fountains along the promenade where one can fill bottles with the spring water.
We saw a man filling huge glass bottles so Adele filled a plastic drinking
bottle and as the water was so hot couldn't hold it. There’s no notice to say
it was hot but as our children would say “Mom it is called Hot Springs!” The
water comes out of the ground at 140F, way too hot for a human, so they cooled
it down in the beautiful Bath houses along Bathhouse Row. The Fordyce Bathhouse
now houses the National Parks Office Visitor Center where one can take a self-guided
tour of 23 restored rooms, cubicles for changing, baths, needle showers, hoses
to wash one down, steam cabinets, massage rooms and on the top floor a lounge
to relax. Oh yes one could sunbath nude on the roof! How is that for medicine? The
men's accommodations were much more ornate and spacious than the women's hmm…? At
the end of the lovely avenue which is lined with Magnolia trees there’s a hot
spring waterfall.
We also
learned that there was a lot of gambling in Hot Springs especially during
Spring Training. Eventually the law intervened much to the annoyance of the citizens
because gambling brought huge revenues to the town.
Weather wise
it is still very hot in the Heartland, but we are getting used to it,
thankfully it’s not too humid. In fact sometimes the air conditioning in
buildings is so very cold that we are happy to go back out into the sun.
