Tired of Walking

Fairmount Lobby
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Tonight is Rodeo night so today we decide to look at some of the venerable hotels in town and do a bit of sight seeing.

Firstly we visit the Fairmount Hotel; remember that is the hotel that I mentioned earlier in this blog.  the one that was moved 5 blocks down the road.  When we arrive the very small foyer is taken up by one huge dog lying in front of a small piano.   Even though the hotel is relatively small you simply cannot believe that it was moved on wheels through the town to its current location.   We have a brief lunch in the bar/dining room and look at the historic photos of the move which are displayed around the walls.

After 5 minutes training we are off.

Have we run out of Rough Riders around here!?
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We now visit the Menger Hotel which is just up the road.  Built in 1859 by a German immigrant the hotel has an incredible history and is really stunning.  The bar is a replica of that which was used to serve the Lords in the English Parliament at the House of Lords and was imported from England.  This bar was where Theodore Roosevelt (later to become President of the USA) recruited his "Rough Riders" for the United States war with Spain in 1898.  There are numerous Black and White photographs of Roosevelt in the corridor leading to the bar and Pauline & I enjoyed the handsome woodwork and sizeable Gins that were to be found within it.   Among the many notable guests who stayed at the Menger Hotel over the years were regular visitors Roy Rogers and his wife.  Their suite is still furnished exactly like it was when they used to stay.    For those heathens who do not know who Roy Rogers was he was a genuine Cowboy star.  When I was a kid I disliked my Christian name of Laurence and started to tell everyone my name was Roy.  My father heard about this and then to put me off started to call me Trigger, which of course was the name of Roy Roger's horse!

Danger on the Street!
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Anyway now we are off for own wild west ride but using an animal of the new west rather than the old, and it is called the Segway.   After 5 minutes training we are off.  By the way we have signed waiver forms that state that if we should kill ourselves or anyone else for that matter we are entirely and legally responsible for all consequential legal actions.   Have a look at the pictures including the one of the safety notice attached to the Segway.  God did we enjoy ourselves, fantastic device, easy to control and so intuitive.  We travelled through town for over an hour and by the end were travelling at speeds of up to 10 mph!

The Dynamic Duo on the town
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Now we are back to our hotel just in time to get ready for the Rodeo.