Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Texas Shopping Around the Square

I don't know if this is true of every small town in Texas, but it is of Decatur, Weatherford and Granbury; they have very ornate courthouses smack dab in the middle of their "downtown" area and the streets surrounding these courthouses are rife with shops. Antique shops, junk shops, funky shops, shops selling everything from quilting supplies and quilts to books to candles to clothes to furniture to coffee. And just about everything in between. This first picture is of the courthouse in Decatur. It's by far the prettiest one, in my opinion. They don't have quite as many stores as Weatherford or Granbury - that's just by my casual observation, not an actual count. Still, it's a charming little square to walk around and the people are very friendly.
This second picture is of the courthouse in Weatherford. The shops there are a little different than Decatur and Granbury in that they aren't exactly located on "the square" around the courthouse. There are some stores, but it's a little challenging to walk around this courthouse because it happens to be in the middle of a round-about. For those of you who don't know what a round-about is, let me enlighten you. It's a driving nightmare. Especially if you don't know the rules. Which I don't think I do. I'm glad Randey was driving and let's just leave it at that. So while the actual courthouse is surrounded by traffic going around in circles, there are some "side" streets that are loaded with good places to shop. The people there are also extremely friendly and outgoing - I had a blast going from place to place. They also have a little ice cream/sandwich shop that makes their own bread every single day. I can't believe I didn't get a picture of the place. It's perfectly charming. And the bread...ooh, la, la! I'm sure I'll be darkening their doorstop again one day soon. Maybe I'll quit stuffing my face long enough to take a picture next time.
This last picture is of the courthouse in Granbury. Looks like a haunted house, to me. lol Of all three of these towns, Granbury is my absolute favorite. They have shopping all the way around their square. We spent 7 hours there the other day. Seven hours! It went by so fast! I know I'll be going back at least 2 or 3 times before Christmas. If only I could manage to shop for Christmas presents instead of for myself...

4 comments:

  1. Love the pictures!

    I have never dealt with a round-about and hope I never have to! :)

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  2. Love these pictures! These building have alot of character. I am familar with rond-abouts. They have them in Hilton Head where we go every year. You do get used to them after a while, but I do agree with you they are a little intimidating at first.

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  3. I love a stately Courthouse...Chesterfield's Old Courthouse, that Sherman, the dirty bastidge, tried to burn on his march to the sea, still stands proudly in the Old Town Square...will you a picture of it...no, will post on in my blog!
    Love ya
    Aunt Sandi

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  4. Oh, I forgot to tell you, England is the home of the round about, and I absolutely love them...if you miss your turn, you just keep going around til it comes up again...they have "magic roundabouts" thats two or three sometimes four roundabouts connected...I became quite profient at manuvouring around these beastly little (sometimes big) traffic hurdles. No lights to worry about though!
    Me again

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