A tour guide in your pocket

So, the thing we did today was a phone-app-based walking tour.  If that sounds strange, that's because it kind of is.  We did one a few years back, and it was sufficiently fun, so we thought an outdoor walk this morning might be a good idea.  

We bought a Groupon for a company that does guided walking tours in some major cites.  In the area, they have one for downtown Dallas and one for McKinney.  Since we wanted to try something totally new while keeping distant, we went to the seat of Collin county and checked out what there was to see in McKinney.  The tour we picked used a phone app to guide us to different locations in the city, giving us facts, photo suggestions and questions to answer (mostly based on historical building plaques) along the way.  

It was a cute walk, and as is now the norm this summer, the only problem with anything was that not everyone was practicing good social distance.  Surprisingly, though, most McKinney folks did well.  There's a saying about a few bad apples that applies, here.  

We started at their library, where we had to find a particular statue and take a photo of it.  After that, the app directed us to walk to a specific historically significant church and find the date when construction on the building was completed.  The walking tour sent us to a fountain in a park, then to check out some nearby statues.  It suggested some shops and restaurants, but we skipped those.  Maybe we'll stop by for a visit after the global pandemic is all wrapped up.  

The tour routed us to a large, imposing biding that used to be the Collin County Prison.  Famously some members of Bonnie and Clyde's gang were held here, and they were evidently planning a jail break, but were transferred to a different facility before they could pull it off.   After they stopped locking folks up here, the building was used briefly as a restaurant, and patrons could dine in tables situated in the jail cells.  A unique dining experience, to be sure.  

We also walked past an old school house where we were supposed to ring the bell out front- then to the Collin County History Museum, which used to be a very beautiful post office.  After that, a few more stops until the culmination of the tour at the Old County Courthouse, which is currently a performing arts center.  The tour offers up trivia as well as challenges and questions.  The trivia that popped up at the courthouse was that the last trial here was a murder trail, and a pretty gruesome one, to boot.  Apparently, a jealous mistress was accused of murdering her sweetheart's wife.  With an axe.  Oh, and she was acquitted...  Wow.  Such a pretty building, and such a dramatic end to its legal career.  

All in all, it was a good walk, an interesting morning, and yet another good option for the socially distant summer of local stuff we've tried to maintain.  

Here is the $19 Groupon we bought, allegedly a $50 value (it's worth $19, not $50): https://www.groupon.com/deals/zeetours-5-dallas

Here's the website for the company, though there are TONS of other companies that do this: https://www.zeetoursapp.com/

And, of course, here are photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/2XJ3mX7a61qq3KRj7