The Two Springs (Hot and Eureka!)

In the fall, when the leaves begin to change is a great time to visit Arkansas! 

So in October, Mike and Becky and Linda and I drove up to the Ozarks
to enjoy the color. First stop, Hot Springs!

 Our favorite place to stay is the Arlington Hotel. 

It's a century old, but still very elegant. And it has this grand veranda 

that stretches down the two front sides of the hotel, providing a great place

to relax and do some quality people-watching!

 Inside, the place is maintained just as it was in the early 1900s.

Our first Selfie on the veranda

 After checking in and chillin' awhile, we took a walk down Central Avenue. 

It's several blocks of shops, galleries and cafes. One of the
oldest establishments is the Ohio Club, a nightspot that was a favorite
with regulars Scarface Al Capone, Lucky Luciano and Bugsy Stegel,

back before they opened their own place, Las Vegas! 

 So naturally, we pull in.

 Check out the magnificent carved wood bar, as well as a souvenir
from an earlier era, when we called them "one armed bandits"!. 

We sat upstairs, near the stage, and had dinner. For some reason, 

I couldn't find any pictures from this part of the trip. I guess the party was too much.

Next morning we started with a brisk walk along the Grand Promenade.
It's a nicely maintained walkway that starts just across from the hotel,
and winds along the hillside for about a quarter mile.

The walk begins 

with a hot spring

that steams up

big time in

cool weather!

From there we climb
a long stairway 

up to the Promenade.

Then it's

Away We Go!

Nice View!

This sidewalk stretches along a ridge that overlooks Central Ave.

At the far end, you reconnect with the city streets, and have a
nice view of Bathhouse Row which runs all the way back to The Arlington.

 After breakfast, we shopped a few antique stores
and just enjoyed the slower pace.

By evening, we were ready for something completely different!
Let us recommend "Rolando's", for tasty Cuban fare!
It's across the street, and one block down.

 It would be well worth a visit, even if you just had dinner and left.
But don't do that!

Instead, make your way through the dining room to the back door,
sneak out and climb the two flights of stairs that lead up to the
hillside Grotto/Patio that sits behind and above the restaurant.

 This space is built into the side of a cliff, where they have several tables
for food and drink, a nice sized stage for live music, heaters for chilly evenings,
and is basically lighted year-round by Christmas lights in the trees!
It all adds up to a cool and funky vibe, but don't go blabbing about this
spot to everyone, because then it would get way too crowded!

Next morning after breakfast we start the second part of the trip:
Up Hwy 7 to Eureka Springs!

 This is a very scenic route, and it takes us right by Sam's Throne,
with such great views, it is designated as a national forest!

 This spot would be perfect for a Photo Op:

Me, taking a picture of Linda, taking a picture of Becky and Mike!

 You can see why this area is so popular with rock climbers!

OK, this is how tourists ought to pose...

Not in dangerous spots like this... 

 And certainly not like this...

That was a fun side trip, and made the drive to
Eureka Springs even more pleasant!

Eureka is always fun to visit, because of the shopping and dining, 

and just taking in the Victorian ambiance!

 But the real reason we came on this particular weekend was to be here
for Halloween, and take part in the Ghostly Goings-on at the Crescent Hotel!
Que the wolf howl here...

The Crescent is a majestic old hotel that sits atop the tallest mountain in town.
It's been operating as a grand hotel for many decades, but the building dates back
to the 1880s, when it was an early hospital facility, actually a sanitorium,
where a fake doctor ran his scams on unsuspecting patients!

His diabolical schemes led to many deaths, and he was finally run out of town!

But the hotel is still visited by ghosts (ask Becky W).  In fact, there's a floating head in the 

picture below, to the rear of the SUV, just under a sign...no, wait.  That's just Mike.

Still, that's pretty creepy!

We're a day early, but we wanted to scope out the grounds before

 the big Halloween event - Ghost Stories by the Campfire!

Check out the fog in the background...

Even though it's the end of October, there's still lots of beautiful flora!

Finally, the big day arrives! Linda, in her Halloween costume:

Since the Ghost stories don't start til 10 pm, we head to the
Cathouse Lounge and Pied Piper Inn!

It's a popular night spot in Eureka, which operates like the sign says:
From Mid-day to Mid-nite!

 Actually, we spent two nights at this place, because we liked it a lot!
The first night, All Hallows Eve's EVE, we were treated so well,
we came back again on All Hallows Eve! Our waitress kept bringing us
free appetizers, and then the Budweiser route lady showed up and
bought the house a free round of Bud Lights!

We were afraid our sweet waitress Fatima was going to get in trouble
with the boss, then we found out she owns the joint! Both joints!
Then we understood why the place is so popular!

What a fun two nights! Here we are with the boss in her Halloween costume,
as the Proprietor of a Cathouse, of course! And coolest of all,
she knew to call Linda's cute little hat a "Fascinator"!

 Later that night we gathered around the campfire up at The Crescent,
and listened to Ghost Stories!

 After stories, we were invited to tour the basement inside the hotel,
where the Bad Medicine was practiced!  Oooohh!

 Finally, we saw a room where the unholy operations took place. Hang on.
That guy there reminds that Christmas is coming, and we gotta get home!