George W. Bush Presidential Library: Checking it off the Texas Bucket List

One of the last items on my Texas Bucket List was the George W Bush Presidential Library. A few days ago one of my college friends and I decided to sneak away from work and check it out. The library is on the SMU campus and getting there reminded me of Texas A&M. Bush Sr's library is at A&M and I know that I went several different times with different people and every time it was a great story. So I was excited to check out Ws library.

We started with the special exhibit, Presidents and Baseball. I was pretty underwhelmed by this, however I do not love baseball. I would go as far as to say that it is one of my least favorite sports. But it was well put together and worth the visit if you happen to go in Dallas before the exhibit closes in October (I think).

From there we headed into the main portion, it starts with the declaration of running for president and then the whole hanging chad debacle (oh 2000, you were so long ago it seems). I found this part very interesting and it was interesting to read about his plans for his presidency and how his family shaped his life. There is a ton of influence by Laura Bush, I think she is amazing.

Eventually, we get to September 11, 2001. Even now days later I don't know what I can write about this part, it was breathtaking and a perspective that I was not prepared for. This is not for the faint of heart but I could have spent the whole time in this portion. For this alone you should hit up the library.

After this portion, there isn't much left or what was left was slightly underwhelming. I did take a chance to sit in the Oval Office, this could be the future? I like it, it looks good on me.

Future President? I hope so

I will say that regardless of your opinion of W as a president you should check this out, it reminds you that the office of president is not always for everyone. It is also a reminder that sometimes the best laid plans fall apart for reasons out of your control, no president plans for a terrorist attack. I loved the reminder that his main plan before that was education (my personal favorite cause) and he was able to lead us through a very dark time.

I am so glad that I took the time to check this out before I move out of the area. I am pretty sure that hitting up presidential libraries is now part of my travel bucket list, they may not all be this cool but so far I am enjoying them. I hope you get a chance to check this out, it is one of my Dallas must sees!