Day 36 - Still in San Antonio

Another day to sleep in before heading out for downtown San Antonio to visit the market (Mercado), and we took advantage of the extra rest. The next couple of days will be on the road and we wanted to rest up a little extra.

Sheila began hearing "The Voices" again and they were saying "If you come and spend, the people will prosper and flourish." And so The Woman who hears "The Voices" went out and spent and the people, yea they did prosper and flourish, and yea the dry spell of not shopping for The Woman was broken into many many pieces and she rejoiced and so did the people.

As you can see, Sheila managed to do a little shopping at the first store we saw and I sat on the bench for a little while during the first shopping spree. That is a picture of me after waiting for a little while when the shopping spell was being broken. The woman waiting next to me had been there for a while too.

Some tall Dude tried to point out several places to spend pesos and dollars, and I went off in search of a belt (leather, not liquid). And yea, he did entice The Woman to do additional shopping while I stepped into a small shop to look at belts. And The Woman was in her glory and enjoyed her day very much. Oh yeah, I did get a new belt and we had lunch too. K

So now Kens in the biblical mode huh? I really didn't do much shopping. The mercado was nice I felt as though I was back in Mexico. All stores had pretty much the same things but slight alteration in price, about 30 cents. I did get some Mexican vanilla and a few Christmas ornaments. I did find a beautiful sterling silver bracelet with a nice piece of tiger eye in one of the nicer galleries. I told the clerk I'd think about it. Over lunch I mentioned it to Ken and he said he thought I should get it, well who am I to argue. I went back to the gallery and it was still there, so now I'm the proud owner of this lovely piece.

We found a Wal Mart and had the car greased and the oil changed. We did some food shopping, carrots,celery, bananas, grapes, yogurt and diet drinks enough to fill the cooler and keep us going on our long rides. Oh I did get a new pair of jeans too, now all set for fall in the South.

When we got back to the motel grabbed bathing suits and hit the pool, temp 95 at 5PM
Tomorrow will start out early and probably stop in Houston for the night. Then the next day push on to New Orleans, but we'll see how it goes.

I've really enjoyed San Antonio glad, we had this chance to stop. S

Day 35 - San Antonio, Day 1

What's this? A wee bit of the old sod? Joe Kelly, EAT YOUR HEART OUT!


Our Nephew Matt, the Fighter Pilot:




Well, here we are in San Antonio, TX. We hit the sack early last night and slept soundly for almost 12 hours each. The traveling is catching up to us, it seems. About noon time, we finally ventured out into daylight and headed for downtown San Antonio.







It looks like San Antonio could be a fun city. Certainly plenty of places for Sheila to go shopping. Found the River Walk with no problems and fortunately, it was cool today and a nice breeze was blowing to keep things comfortable. Took a tour of River Walk on one of the boats and it took about 30 - 45 minutes and we enjoyed the tour. Lots of places to eat and shop in certain areas of the river, but they are doing a lot of repairs on the canal walkways. Thought we would get away from construction for a day or two, but it was not to be.



Seems easy to get around the Alamo and River Walk areas, with plenty of street signs. Also buses/streetcars to take you from place to place too. The Alamo was a lot smaller than I thought it would be, but nicely maintained. After hearing about the Alamo for all these years, nice to finally see it in person.

When we were on the River Walk, we were surprised to see Durty Nelly's Irish Pub on the walkway. Sheila and I had visited the original pub in Ireland a little over 12 years ago. Didn't stop for a "taste", but we did stop at Pat O'Brian's later in the afternoon for a bite to eat and a little liquid refreshment. We will probably visit Pat O'Brian's in New Orleans when we land there next weekend.

Plan to be here in San Antonio until Thursday morning when we will head for New Orleans. Should arrive in New Orleans on or about Friday evening. We were able to meet our nephew Matt for dinner tonight. Matt is in fighter pilot training here and is the main reason we wanted to visit San Antonio. Matt found us with no problems at all so out to dinner down the road from the motel a piece. What a nice kid and so proud of being a fighter pilot. We know he will be one of the best. Matt just became a 1st Lieutenant, so is also proud of that accomplishment. So glad we were able to see him, even if for only a couple of hours. K

New update on my cowgirl hat. Brought the hat in from the car and now it's resumed it's pre-melt state. Still will not purchase cowgirl boots. Our nephew Matt just got here, he's so grown up now and so handsome, boy time flies. So nice to see Matt and be able to spend some time with him. If all goes as expected he'll graduate in May then go back to Washington DC.

Loved going to downtown San Antonio, very pretty city. Loved the boat ride down the San Antonio river, informative, did you know Texas was once an independent country and as such can fly the Texas flag without flying the American flag next to it?

The Alamo was kind of what I expected, very well preserved. They have a list of all the heroes that died during the siege. So many were from England, Ireland, Wales, Scotland as well as all over the US. Davy Crockett is listed as David Crockett and didn't look anything like Fess Parker - so much for the Disney interpretation.

No shopping today, some looking. Ken and I had lunch at Pat O'Briens. Ken said he had the best hamburger in a long time, he also had a hurricane. I had iced tea as was very thirsty, as well as a salad with chicken. We shared the bread pudding for dessert, ummmmm good!!!

Tomorrow plan to go back downtown and go to the market area would like to find a Western store, Ken would like a belt and perhaps another shirt. I just enjoy shopping, looking. More to follow. S

Day 34 - Midland to Where are we???

What a difference a day makes... Left Bob and Ginger's home this morning headed for San Antonio, TX. Midland was about 78 degrees with wind, so was comfortable. Getting to San Antonio was a challenge, especially when you have AAA maps and a GPS that Sheila swears "is on the sauce!".

Fortunately, Bob had given us some road advise and we managed to ignore the GPS's "yapping" and actually made it to roads that both AAA and the GPS agreed with. Thanks Bob!

The wind was pretty brisk on the ride to San Antonio, but the speed limit, for the most part, was 70 mph, even on 2-lane highways. Saw landscapes that varied from flatlands with scrub brush to farm lands with cattle, sheep, and lots of goats, to rolling hills with lots of green fields. We still see the red rock formations sticking out of the ground occasionally. Not a straight road for miles and miles, as we had traveled getting to Midland.

Managed to get to San Antonio about 4:30 PM this afternoon, after stopping for gas about 30 miles away and almost ripping out the bottom of the Vette on the gas station underground storage tank fill connectors that were painted the same color as the parking lot. Quite a noise, and not one I wanted to hear. Felt better, but not much better, when I saw a Sheriff's car pull over another connector in the same parking lot and he scraped the bottom of a big Ford Victoria cruiser. Got to find a brand name gas station from now on!!!

For the most part, the drive was fine, but we did hit rain several times about 70 miles from San Antonio. The roads are heavily traveled here, and the rain pools in the lanes and made driving difficult and scary in a couple of places. Even with new tires, the fear of hydro-planning was foremost in my mind.

Surprised to see the gas mileage drop from 28+ mpg at 80 mph on Saturday to 26.5 mpg today running at 70 mph. The rolling hills shouldn't have caused the difference, but need to keep an eye on things for the next stretch of our trip. Checked the distance we've traveled since we left Salem, NH, when we pulled into our motel this evening, and we have driven a few miles short of 5800 miles - And we're still speaking! K

My cowgirl hat has gone from ravishing to ravaged. I left it in the car when we went into Bob and Gingers, the car was in the sun, locked, temp about 96 degrees. In the sun it exceeded 100 degrees. The glue in the crown of the hat melted, and was stuck to one of Ken's cleaning cloths for the vette. This means now I don't have to go shopping for cowgirl boots, as the hat is now something for the old gray mare.

Speaking of shopping I haven't done any in 6 days, Ken thinks I've joined a support group, but actually just biding my time. Tomorrow to go to the Alaimo, and perhaps the mercado, a shopping area. I've decided to start some Christmas shopping. Ken has said, he doesn't want an Alamo T shirt, and if given one, will not wear it. Why do men always tell you what they don't want and never what they do want? I read that in the mercado you can bargain about the prices, ah, once again the moth to the flame. More to follow.

Temp in San Antonio on arrival was 95 degrees. The motel is very nice and has an even nicer pool. We checked into the room and into bathing suits for some nice exercise and swimming. Felt so much better after our swim.

Ordered pizza and salad to be delivered to the room, Two hours later, a bag of celery sticks, a banana, grapes and some corn nuts Ken called to check on the status. Was informed the delivery person left a long time ago, must have the same GPS system w have. Food finally arrived after the first bite Ken and I said ,"it's amazing what you'll eat when you're starved." After the third bite I was done, Ken too, kept hoping the food would taste better, never happened. S

Day 33 - Midland, TX

Today we went out for brunch, then to Bob and Gingers church. The banners are spectacular, all relating to biblical text. The colors are amazing as is the design. Returned back to Bob and Gingers, did some laundry and waited for the kids to arrive. Ginger had made a brisket, and a delicious Greek salad, as well as a fruit salad. So nice to see Mark and to meet his wife Michelle,where does the time go??

Here are pictures of Ginger, Bob, Ken, and I and then of Ginger, Bob, Mark, Michelle, and Andrea and Errol. Andrea and Errol haven't set a date for the wedding yet, or started planning. Her engagement ring is outstanding, Tiffany setting and about the size of a golf ball, beautiful!!! Don't know if it's obvious but Errol is 6'4" and Andrea is about 5' 2", they make a beautiful couple.

Mark and his wife Michelle are going on a trip to Ireland this Thursday, they are so excited! We shared our experiences in Ireland with them, we had such a great time, hope they do too. Such a pleasure meeting both Michelle and Errol, liked them both very much. S

OK, for you car guys, Errol brought his GTR over tonight, and it looks like something out of Batman! WHAT A CAR!!! Errol was going to take me for a ride in it, but time to eat, and then too late to go for a ride later. The seats in that thing grip you like you don't need seat belts, and the driving position is incredible! With 480+ horsepower, all-wheel drive, paddle shift, and looks like this, can you imagine the ride?

Errol said some guy on a rice-rocket motorcycle tried to take him on at a stop light, and it was about an even race. Surprised that bike had a chance. The sound of that engine is something else, and I was so impressed. Figure we could both get about the same amount of luggage in both the GTR and our Vette, but Errol would get places faster than we could.

Check out the exhaust pipes on the rear of this thing - And there are four of those 12-inch pipes (just kidding) hanging out the back. The tires are as wide and as big as those on our Vette, and there is no doubt you would need all that rubber on the ground if you stomped on the throttle.

Really a great day all around. K

Day 32 - On to Midland TX

Today, we made it all the way to Midland, TX. The speed limit, after we passed through El Paso, went from 70 mph to 80 mph, and the highways ranged from "you gotta be kidding" rough to "smooth as velvet". Very little construction too, and that made a difference in how fast we made it to Midland.

Countryside again changed from rocky to desert, to flatlands, to fields of pecan trees and hay fields in places. Only hit one Border Patrol stop somewhere between the Texas border and Midland and it didn't long to get through that stop. Figured the gas mileage would suffer due to running at 80 mph much of the way, but still managed to roll out 28.3 mpg. Vette still running great. Didn't see a great number of cars on the highway to Midland, but there are sure a lot of trucks on the Texas highways.

Driving at 80 mph was quite a change, but the miles sure disappeared behind us in a hurry. We arrived in Midland to stay with some old friends from El Paso, Bob and Ginger Ellwood. We hadn't seen them since they came to visit us in New England about 10 years ago. Brian and the Ellwood's son Mark and daughter Andrea were friends when we lived in El Paso and we hadn't seen them since we moved from El Paso in 1980. They have grown up, needless to say. Andrea and her fiance came over for dinner, and we thoroughly enjoyed seeing Andrea and meeting Errol. Errol is a doctor and has a Nissan GTR. For those of you who know your cars, this is one of the hottest cars in the country right now and is a heck of a lot faster than our Vette. More on it later. K

So nice to see Bob and Ginger and Andrea and Errol, her fiancee. After Ginger and I hugged we started talking non stop like magpies. Friends for 32 years and in the past 3 decades only seeing each other twice. Ginger remains a terrific cook and made a delicious Mexican dish for supper. We've all put on a few years and pounds, but to me they look the same.
After supper we resumed catching up, so much news. Ginger is very involved in making banners for her church, can't wait to see them. S

Day 31 - We finally make it to Texas

When we hit Interstate 10 to take us to Texas, again we had multiple changes in scenery, from rocks, mountains, pecan tree farms, flat land desert, and lots and lots of trucks on the highway. Speed limit was mostly 75 mph, but construction slowed us down quite a few times all the way to the Texas border.

One of the things that really slowed us down was an accident in Los Cruces, NM. Don't know who cut who off, but the trucker pulling the twin trailers was either trying to avoid a compact car or the car swerved into the truck, and this is the aftermath of the accident. The driver of the compact car will be looking for a new car, but was standing alongside her car with a state trooper. The truck driver apparently had to be taken to a hospital by ambulance. Lots of rescue vehicles and police at the scene and we were at a standstill for almost an hour before they finally allowed one lane of traffic past the truck. The Vette WAS NOT HAPPY having to go around the wreck in the dirt, scrub brush, rocks, and sand in the median strip. Neither was I.

Interesting how the traveling public does things here when an accident occurs on the highway in New Mexico. People just drive across the median strip and go the opposite direction instead of waiting for the accident to clear. Saw some pretty fancy cars pull that trick and, of course, pickups and SUVs too. One guess as to who got stuck in the soft sand trying to get back in the opposite flow of traffic. Yup, it was some dude in an SUV with the typical cell phone stuck in his ear. Police didn't care, they just turned around in the median strip too.

We finally made it to Texas from Arizona. Maybe the title of today's post should be "Oh Gosh, More Rocks, More Construction, More Flat Lands, and What a hell of an Accident". Last night we were unable to post any photos, but today, I was able to post a photo of our dear friends Leo and Anna Wallace. For those Raytheonites that knew them, they are doing fine. They are still the same great friends we have known for over 40 years. It was so good to see them again after all this time. It was like we'd only seen them a couple of weeks ago instead of years ago. We met them at our motel in Tombstone and went out for dinner.

After dinner, Leo showed us around Tombstone, but Tombstone didn't know we were coming to town so they rolled up the streets before we got there. We left early this morning, so didn't get to see the town or visit a relative that is buried in Boot Hill. "Hand - Hung for horse thievin" was painted on a cemetery cross when Sheila and I visited Tombstone with our 4 year old son Brian years ago when we lived in El Paso.

We had a nice motel, and the desert landscape was really nice. As you can see, it is decorated in a "Gunfight at the OK Corral" theme. Nice theme change from the purple "Barney Inn" we stayed at in Sedona. K

Noticed while reading USA today that the federal government says the recession is over, now call it co-incidence that my shopping spree has been going full bore but I do feel as though I've done my part.
Today Ken and I are both tired, think we were so busy we've finally hit a wall. Out for a quiet supper tonight, then plan early to bed. So nice to see Anna and Leo, such dear friends. Tomorrow plan to drive to Midland, Texas to see other dear friends Ginger and Bob Ellwood, haven't seen them in 10 yrs. They were our neighbors in El Paso, then they came to see us in NH, I love being able to reconnect with friends.
Today is our daughter Nora's birthday, so bittersweet being away from her. Spoke with her on the phone but can't wait to give her a hug and a kiss!!!
Have done no shopping yet in Texas so hope we all do recover from the recession. If not, I saw an ad for a Tony Lama boot outlet, not that I really need a pair of cowgirl boots, but I do have the hat and a hat without shoes .......... bears thinking about.
Our motel tonight is very nice it's a Chase suite, and looks like a home, such a nice change from the other bed, chair, bathroom, and 2 drawers we have had. When we first started to travel just wanted an inexpensive, clean room. We then found out that meant no internet access, no access no blog, so upgraded to a better room with access. We then found out after driving 6 hrs in a car, we got out of the car like ruptured ducks, so opted for a motel with a gym or pool, to get the kinks out. Now here we are today in a room with a full kitchen, sofa, queen size bed, fireplace, not that we need it, and dishes, yes real not plastic. If we keep this up we'll be renting condos by the time we head home. Take care all, love you and miss you. S

Day 30 - Sedona to Tombstone AZ

Today, we left Sedona and headed for Tucson, AZ. We had planned to spend the night in Tucson, AZ, , but after looking at the miles we had to drive across AZ and Texas, we decided to drive to Tombstone, AZ, meet some old friends, and leave very early tomorrow morning for our venture into Texas. It was an easy drive, and Sheila drove part way. Easy drive, but ran into construction again all the way from Sedona. Hated to leave Sedona and the rock formations there for the prairies in AZ, and took photos, but no real excitement.

Tried to post photos on tonight's blog, but we apparently have a poor internet connection, and I can't post them tonight. We had such a wonderful time in Sedona and the Grand Canyon, and hated to leave. Met a lot of interesting people in Sedona, ranging from our helicopter pilot and the pilot and co-passenger on our flight to the Grand Canyon. Also unforgettable were the couple from Australia that we met on the Pink Jeep tour, a couple from Michigan who try to go to the Bonneville Salt Flats each year to race his 1955 Vincent motorcycle (slightly modified). It was too wet to run it this year, but his highest speed on the thing was 230 mph. Oh, by the way, the guy was about 2 or 3 years older than I am.

Then there was the woman at the swimming pool last night that never shut up from the moment we walked into the pool until we left. All she did was complain about her health and her husband never said a word. He was probably tired of listening to her. So were we. She was very disappointed that we weren't going up Interstate 40 when I ran into her this morning at the motel when I was packing the Vette. K
Continue to have fun and a lot of laughs S

Day 29 - The Grand Canyon

OMG!!!
What a day we had today! At 8:15 this morning, we checked in for our flight to the Grand Canyon and today's adventure began. About 8:30, we boarded our Cessna single engine plane for our flight to the Grand Canyon. There was only one other passenger on the flight and we hit it off right away with him and the pilot, Isaih (as in the bible). Isaih could be Matt Damon's twin and was a great pilot and was our guide for this day's adventure.

Sheila flew in the right front seat and everything went well until she turned to take some photos and accidentally stepped on the rudder pedals, thereby taking control over our directions during our approach to the Grand Canyon air field. Interesting change in approach for a landing, but we made it without additional problems. From the air, the airport looked a lot like what I would expect a Navy aircraft carrier would look like. It was a postage stamp!

When we landed, we were taken to the helipad for our flight to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. The pilot took off and we flew just a short ways before we started descending into the canyon for a landing next to the Colorado River. We landed on a spot that just about cleared the helicopter rotor and disembarked (That's helicopter speakese for "Get the heck out of my aircraft"). From the landing pad, we had to walk, climb down, and stumble over to a pontoon boat for a ride up the Colorado River and then to drift back to the dock.

From the dock, we had to walk, climb up, and stumble back to the landing pad for our flight back to the airport. Have to admit that the paths we had to take from the landing pad to the boat and back were worse and more dangerous than the paths we had to take to the Indian ruins yesterday.

From the airport, we were loaded on a bus to take us to the Sky Walk over the canyon. If you have never been to the Grand Canyon, it is hard to imagine how high and how wide the canyon is. With nothing to gauge distance, its hard to believe that you are 4000 feet above the bottom of the canyon and the opposite side of the canyon is 4 miles distant. There are also NO guard rails next to the shear walls of the canyon, and that's scary, especially when a woman from Germany was allowing her 4-year old daughter to run away from her without supervision.

Looking over the edges of the canyon, all you can see are vertical walls extending that dizzying 4000 feet in elevation. I'm glad we were able to see the canyon from both above and below.

The Sky Walk was the reason we came to Arizona and we were able to walk on the glass floor without fear. Well, at last Sheila was - I have to admit the height, looking through the glass floor, wasn't as scary as I thought it would be, but I found myself inadvertently holding on to the rails as we walked around on the platform. I think it would have really been a lot worse if you could have a reference that would help you gauge the distance from the platform to the bottom of the canyon below. I suggested to one of the guides that they should place a silhouette of a human body below the walkway, but they didn't think that would stimulate viewing.

The Grand Canyon was an incredible experience, but for all its majesty, I have to admit the colors weren't as spectacular as I had expected. Returning on our flight, with the pilot having instructed Sheila not to try to control the plane's directions again, it was nice to see the magical colors of the Sedona landscapes. This entire time in Arizona has really been an experience, but again, all of our adventures on this trip have been worth a lifetime of memories. Tomorrow, we head out again for new adventures. K

I agree with Ken, what a day!!!! I can't believe I was able to hop in and out of small planes, helicopters, and trek down rock slides to get into a boat. Ken was wonderful and helped me navigate the steep slopes. The skywalk was everything I thought it might be and more it really felt as though we were communing with nature, so beautiful!
We had lunch at the Guano Cafe, yes thats right, Spanish for bat poop, go figure. Apparently the Native Americans mined bat poop for organic fertilizer, also used in the 40's and 50's in womans makeup. The menu was braised beef and chicken, no mention of bat, but I just had vegetables, have to be on the safe side. The Indian tribe is the Huallapi, pronounced wall o pie, no who couldn't like something at has to do with a wall of pie.
Flew back to Sedona, returned to the hotel, swam for awhile, then changed clothes and Ken and I went out for supper. While at the restaurant I realized I wasn't wearing my engagaement ring, panic city ensued. We finished eating and then back to the hotel, rushed to our room, and started searching, thank God, found the ring. I have no idea why it fell off but am now wearing it under my wedding ring.
Tomorrow on the road again. S

Day 28 - Still in Sedona, AZ

Well, another day in a magic land. And we didn't do much exciting today. Such adventurers we turned out to be... After yesterday's adventures, we decided to head for bed about 10:20 PM last night, only to look at the time as we were turning the lights off and it was only 8:20 PM. We wound up getting up 13 hours later and could have still rested some more. We just decided to cool our jets for the rest of the day.

Cooling our jets included doing the laundry and Sheila doing a little shopping. I managed to clean the Vette up a little while she was getting her nails done, so a real exciting day.

This place is so magical and can't wait until our adventure to the Grand Canyon tomorrow. We were finally able to get our reservations to fly to the canyon tomorrow morning. In order to go on the flights, we had to spend another day in Sedona, and that isn't all bad. Made sure we had plenty of camera batteries and memory cards for the flights tomorrow. Everyone says the best way to see the canyon is to see it from above and then to fly into the canyon. To take a trip down the Colorado River on a pontoon boat will be just an added bonus.

Someone wondered what a squash blossom necklace was, so look at the necklace Sheila is wearing. Beautiful Zuni Indian-made silver and turquoise necklace and it's so named due to the squash blossom-shaped adornments on the necklace. Really a beautiful piece. K

That's me in front of the sign of the wonderful restaurant we had dinner at tonight. It's a Mexican restaurant, and we heard about it when we first got to Sedona. I wore my squash blossem necklace and go so many compliments on it, such a beautiful piece. Dinner was as nice as we'd been told. Met a nice couple at the next table and they took our picture, and we took theirs. I had smoked chicken enchiladas and Ken had a steak fajita, both excellent, topped it off with Mexican chocolate ice cream we shared, very yummy. S

Day 27 - Sedona, AZ

Well today I decided to go native, that's me in the cowgirl hat. Today we took a pink jeep tour for an archeological adventure! We explored a 700 yr old Sinaguan cliff dwelling. We climbed 3/4 of a mile up a rocky trail and came to these interesting cliff dwellings. You haven't hiked until you climb to 4200 feet on loose rock but we did it and then were glad we did. It was so hot - temp 93 degrees in the sun. When we climbed down and got back to town Ken and I went for something cold to drink.

Tomorrow will be a quiet day, beacause on Wednesday, yes we decided to stay an extra day, we're going to the Grand Canyon. We've decided to take a sky safari tour. We'll fly into the Grand Canyon Airport, then travel to the bottom of the canyon via helicopter. Then take a narrated tour on the Colorado River in a pontoon boat. We'll return to the airport via helicopter, then view the Grand Canyon from 4,000 feet above the river. Have lunch prepared by the Hualapai Tribe, while enjoying the view of the Grand Canyon. We will then fly back to Sedona. It sounds like an amazing trip, voted number 1 tour in AZ. Oh, also we'll be able to go on the Grand Canyon Skywalk taking this trip. We researched touring the Grand Canyon and found the Skywalk is on the western side on Indian land this is the only way to get to see it. S

The Indian ruins were really interesting, but I was watching out for rattle snakes on the whole trail. Fortunately, they were taking a day off. I can understand how the glyphs that were carved into the rocks have survived all these years, but it amazes me how the painted glyphs can last over 700 years and we have to re-paint our house every 5 years or so...

Nice ride over roads that you definitely needed a Jeep in lieu of a Corvette to traverse. Such beautiful buttes and rock formations. Back to Sedona and back to the airport to check on flights to the Grand Canyon. After flying in a helicopter yesterday, this sure seems like a greater adventure than driving up to the Canyon and back to Sedona in a day in the Vette.

After dusty roads in the pink Jeep, it was sure good to be able to jump in the pool at the motel this evening. We ate at the airport cafe and we tried fried cactus as an appetizer and it was delicious. Someone on the Jeep tour mentioned fried cactus, so we decided to try it and we weren't disappointed at all.

Don't know if we mentioned it yesterday, but when we checked into the Comfort Inn, we were surprised it wasn't called "Barney's Inn", as it is painted purple. A nice motel, but purple???

Looking forward to the flight to the Grand Canyon, and then "The Great Adventure" continues. Think after we leave here, we will be driving a few looooong days to get to some of our scheduled spots in Texas. Looking forward to tomorrow to just cool our jets a little bit before our Canyon adventure. Still trying to figure out where we're going to put the geode book ends Sheila picked up the other day during one of her shopping adventures, but they are such a pretty blue color we just couldn't pass them up. K

Day 26 - Holbrook, AZ, to Sedona, AZ

We left Holbrook, AZ and drove to Sedona, AZ this morning. Holbrook, as we found out this morning, is a lot bigger than we initially thought. It actually has three traffic lights. Holbrook had the most expensive gas since we left Salem. We had to pay $3.01 per gallon there.

This part of the trip was only about 160 miles, but as we approached Sedona, the landscape became more and more spectacular.

So many of the places we have seen on our trip have been beautiful or incredible, but this place is "OH MY GOD!!!" beautiful. The landscapes changed from praries, to rolling hills, to mountains, and the scenes in these photos. Oh yeah, we also had the chance to go up on a helicopter flight around Sedona, and it is even more spectacular from the air. This was the first helicopter ride for both of us, and what a thrill to be flying so close to these rock formations. So hard to describe the sights we saw today.

Sedona is a beautiful city with so much to see and to do. Sheila thinks she may have gotten a little sunburned today, but this is the first time I have ever seen anyone get sunburned from florescent lights in jewelry stores before. She managed to find a shop that specializes in Indian jewelry (Well, Duhhhhh, we are in the southwest!). I had been wanting to get her a silver and turquoise Navajo squash blossom necklace for years, and we found one that she liked, so I am now set with presents for birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas, and Valentines' Day for at least the next 5 years or so. (Or so I hope.)

We are starting to accumulate "stuff" and "stuff" takes up room in the Vette, so have to go to the post office tomorrow to send some "stuff" home to make room for more "stuff". We will be here in Sedona for a couple more days, and will see the Grand Canyon and hopefully, the Sky Walk, before we leave here. There are Jeep tours and we plan to take one of those tours on Monday. Just can't seem to take enough photos, nor can we keep enough batteries for our cameras. K
As Ken says Sedona is just beautiful. Drove thru beautfiul country to get here, the painted desert again so picturesque. Loved the helicopter ride, we had stopped for lunch at a cafe, met a couple who had just had a ride, and they put us on the road for another adventure. The fact that we had a couple of beers, to wet our whistle, perhaps wet yet another adventure.
The necklace Ken bought me is just beautiful. He said he has wanted to do this for some time, so how could I disappoint him.
Yes we have collected a little stuff, in an average car with trunk space no issue, in the vette with a box of kleenex excessive, well you can understand the dilemma. No I haven't yet relieved the recession in Arizona,but time will tell.
Tomorrow hope to go on a pink jeep ride, may take same to the Grand Canyon, understand the tour is very informative and fun.
Still haven't repaired my broken finger nail but it really hasn't slowed me down. S
Grand

Day 25 - Santa Fe to Holbrook, AZ

Today, we decided not to wear ourselves out driving 350 - 400 miles and decided to stay in Holbrook, AZ. Why Holbrook? Because it was about the right driving limit for the day. So far, we have seen two motels and a cafe, but there must be more to the town than that. Settled into an Econo Lodge for the night and actually went swimming for a while before a wind and rain storm sent us heading for our room.

Sheila took some great photos during the drive, and it was hard to pick shots to include in the blog today. Basically, we saw so many different changes in geology, it was hard to pick something to express how beautiful this section of our trip was. Of course, there were also some very boring stretches of road as well.

We did manage to break up the trip to Holbrook by stopping for lunch and, of course, Sheila just had to see if she couldn't add to the wealth of Arizona too by checking out the Indian jewelry here. Found some beautiful pieces, but the place we stopped at was a chain and the salesman just tried to high-pressure sale us too much and Sheila didn't pick up a thing. For a while, I was afraid Ruth had created a shopping monster, but then remembered who I have been married to for almost 41 years.

We passed a couple of hot rods from California and this one was cramped in between a couple of 18-wheelers and Sheila couldn't get a good shot of it. If you double-click the photo, it will blow up in size, and there is a great photo of Sheila taking this photo from the Vette at 75 mph reflected in the '35 Ford panel truck paint job.

Still having a great time and still enjoying being together doing things that we have always wanted to do and see and also seeing places we never thought we would ever see. Life is good. K
Today we drove thu the petrified forest,and crossed the Continental Divide. Altitude at the Continental Divide was 7258 feet, pretty high when you consider they call Denver the mile high city. Today decided to drive only 280 miles, drove thru Albuquerque and Gallop. Plan tomorrow to drive to Sedona and the Grand Canyon. We are in Arizona as we speak.
Yesterday when we were in SantaFe I bought a very unusual bracelet, sterling silver with yellow citrine, the artists name was Reginald Eustace, gone are the days of Running Bare and FullMoon. I bought a few other pieces from Miriam Gorman, they all give business cards with the jewelry and have web sites, no squaws sitting in front of teepees weaving cloth.
Today when we checked into our motel room I noticed the clock was an hour earlier than my watch, called the desk and was told that yes they are on Mountain Time, however, they do not practise daylight savings time. I felt as though we had added an extra hour to our day. Sun now out again S

Day 24 - Sante Fe, N.M.

Well, this morning we woke up a little later, it felt so good to sleep after 8AM. We had a yogurt in the room and took off for the motel laundry. We met a couple in there who expressed our sympathies exactly, they said they hated to take an couple of hours out of vacation to do laundry.

After our chores were done we took off for Sante Fe. No luck finding a parking space at a meter so parked in a garage. Then off to explore downtown Sante Fe. First stop was a bead place, second was an art gallery,and then finally to the Mecca.


The Indians, or Native Americans, sit on the bricks in front of the Governors Palace selling gorgeous jewelry. There must have been about 25 vendors. It was so much fun walking to each different vendor,found some really lovely things. Ken got a nice turquoise ring. I got, well, more later...

While I'm on the subject of "Indians", I'd like to set the record straight. They are not "redmen", I'd call the color more bunt umber or cinnamon. Red is the color I turn at the beach on a hot, sunny day, with no #30 block. I guess when I consider that Columbus named them Indians because he thought he was in India, we are taking the word of a man with a poor sense of direction and probably bad eyesight.

Well I did help the economy of NM once again, Katie Couric eat your heart out. I wore my new turqoise necklace and one of the Indian vendors commented on how beautiful it is, I think so too. At about 4:00, it started to pour again so the vendors started to pick up their blankets so shopping over. S

Cool and cloudy, then sunshine, and finally torrential downpours. That was our day. Oh yeah, it was intermixed with Sheila doing a "little" shopping. We did take a little break from the jewelery shopping to actually have a bite to eat, and then right back to her favorite pastime...

The art galleries have fabulous art works and we could fill our home with so much "stuff", but a Southwestern Indian motif in Salem, NH, just wouldn't fit, somehow. The jewelry stores had some remarkable jewelry. So many different and beautiful designs.

Today was Sheila's revenge for me getting her a little damp in the rain yesterday. At least she's talking to me again. It started to rain when we were finishing jewelry shopping and I tried to move her along before it really started to pour, but she does have her priorities and leaving shopping wasn't one of them. Just when it started to really pour, I took off for the parking garage with the intention of staying under the building overhangs and porches, but if you have ever been to the Southwest, you just have to remember that adobe motif buildings don't have overhangs very often.

Yeah, I was soaked when I got to the garage and when I tried to pull out to pick her up, no one was in the garage booth to pay for parking. Had to wait until the attendant finished his break, and then out of the garage to pick Sheila up. She was under cover while she was waiting, fortunately.

We are leaving Santa Fe in the morning, but not sure where our 300 mile driving limit will take us - perhaps Falstaff, AZ. Here in Santa Fe, we are at 6700 feet+ above sea level. No wonder it becomes tough to breathe, and no wonder they have an oxygen bar in the shopping plaza (NO KIDDING!). We have now traveled 4000.8 miles, as of this evening. K

Day 23 - Taos to Santa Fe, NM

Today we arrived in Santa Fe, in a teeming rainstorm. Typical of the southwest, the water started rising quickly. They don't have storm drains so the water really has no place to go. The rain has continued for hours so we decided to stay put at the motel.


We went out for supper and found a Mexican Restaurant, Adelitas. When we walked in, the clientele was all Mexican/American, felt this was a good sign that the food was good. Service was excellent, Ken had a combo plate, and I had the chilli reillenos (eggs and a hot pepper combo. The food was excellent. Tomorrow have to find a nail salon as I broke a nail. No, it wasn't from trying on jewelry, though it may have been looking at so much jewelry. Scenery here remains beautiful. S

Nice to have the internet back and be able to post our blog today. Had to post several days adventures today instead of on a daily basis. Nice drive to Santa Fe today and, again, hit construction. Vette still running great and averaged 28.5 mpg from Taos. Mountain roads were curving and glad I had the Vette.

Managed to take more videos while driving, but this blog will only accept 8 Mb per photo and each of the videos take a lot more than 8 Mb. Going to be one hell of a DVD when we get finished with our trip. Easy trip to Santa Fe from Taos. Figure with the pit stops, etc., it only took about 2 hours drive from Taos.

Managed to arrive in Santa Fe in light rain that turned to torrential rain (in the desert?). Had directions to the motel, but still managed to miss it a couple of times. Typical for the Southwest, they don't have gutters and the rain in the streets was 4-5 inches deep and, of course, we had the idiots that had to drive 30 mph through the water, soaking everything in their paths.

Sheila got out at another motel to see where our motel was located (I, being a male, manage to forget directions, apparently) and she got "slightly" wet getting out of the car into the lobby. The water she stepped into getting out of the car was about 2 inches deep, so she wasn't happy about that. Being a gentleman, I moved the car out from the stream of water several feet, but forgot that as soon as you put the Vette into gear, the doors lock. You can imagine she was slightly upset when she came out in the downpour only to find her door was locked. NOT A HAPPY TRAVELER!

Then, while driving down the street to our motel, I accidentally bumped the passenger window switch and down went the window. If she wasn't wet before, she was wet (and pissed) after that. She's finally talking to me again, but it took a while for her to see the humor in the whole incident. Any way, she's finally died off and not quite so pissed... K