The final leg of a ten month journey, and an odometer showing we had put 26,900 miles on the truck, came to an end as we arrived home on Wednesday, April 28... Two days before Anne’s big day…
We left Sunnyside around 7:30 AM, and began our trek toward the Cascade Mountains…
This country (from Sunnyside to the Cascade foothills) is eye-pleasing, to say the least…
Valleys are filled with vineyards, berries and apple orchards, and farms of all sort and sizes… Small, quaint towns cluster the freeway here and there, but you also come across bigger cities, like Yakima and Ellensburg…
Hopefully, if you come for a visit, the skies will be clear, and the sun will be out, because the vistas are breathtaking, and you can almost see forever…
Talking about the sun… As we neared the mountains, the Big Orb began its hide and seek behind layers of clouds: At first, flimsy little wisps, but then, as we got closer to Snoqualmie Summit, they gathered strength and purpose, and, before we knew it, we were in a light mist…
Of course, that turned into rain as we began our descent toward Puget Sound…
Welcome to the Evergreen State!
Backtracking for a sec…
A couple of weeks ago, we ordered an electric “kromkake” iron (from “Scandinavian Specialties,” in Ballard - a suburb of Seattle) for Anne’s birthday…
Luanne’s sister (“Gede”) was kind enough to pick it up for us, so we didn’t have to take the trailer into Seattle proper, so, today, for our first stop in Western Washington, we stopped at her house (in Mountlake Terrace) to fetch the little goodie…
Thanks, “Gede” for doing us that favor… We really appreciate it!
The clouds began to part, as we headed North on I-5, and by the time we reached Mount Vernon, we could see Lummi Island (in the distance) having no cloud cover at all… Nice welcoming sign!
We‘re dependent on a fairly high tide to take the trailer onto our little ferry, and, since high tide was at 7:00 PM, we had a few hours to kill before driving to the ferry terminal… Hence, we headed over to Costco, where we picked up some needed food stuff, and then walked over to Billy McHale’s for dinner: Prawns for me, nachos for the missus…
That done, we headed to the ferry, and lucked out… The tide was up enough so we got on the 5 o’clock, which was totally awesome… Saved a couple of hours, and that’s always good…
Home, sweet home!
It was good to be back…
Of course, as you all know, there are always some tumultuous days after you get home, especially after such a long trip…
All kinds of things need be addressed… Hook up water; call the appropriate authorities about TV and garbage, and, of course, you have all that stuff to put away…
Luanne wanted everything done in a day, which was virtually impossible, so I reminded her she’s now officially retired, but she only slowed down a bit… It’ll take a while to get her mind set to retirement… It took me a couple of years…
Anyway, we’re glad we came home early, so we got some stuff done…
From one thing to another…
It was a good thing we talked to Anne on the phone on Thursday and Friday mornings, because it was a bit hard to keep a straight face when we lied about where we were… But, hey, the end (in this case) justified the goal…
Of course, on Friday, our “Little White Lies” were revealed…
We drove down to Burlington, where we entered SAKURA, a Japanese restaurant, a half hour ahead of the appointed time…
Had the camera out, and took pictures as Anne and Dan entered, but Anne spotted us right off the bat, and moved so fast that none of them turned out… She dashed around folks eating, cooks cooking, tables aflame, and waiters wondering where the fire was… Tears in her eyes… Huge Bear hugs… Laughter…
Ah, what a joyous occasion!
Took her completely by surprise!
Our ruse worked…
She had no idea…
Our “Little White Lies” paid off…
Happy ending….
And that brings me to the end of my Blog…
We’ve had an incredible journey… One which we wish every person in America (the entire world, actually) would have the opportunity to experience…
This country is vast and diverse, and when it comes to beauty… Well… There can’t be many places that can compare… This country has it all: From prairies to snowcapped peaks; from sun baked deserts to rugged shores… Farmland, stretched from horizon to horizon… Forests and Swamps… There’s enough to cover everyone’s taste…
We’ve walked beaches, strolled along famous (and infamous) buildings, streets, and parks…
We’ve gazed upon some of this country’s celebrated statues and sculptures, and immersed ourselves in the history that made this country (in my mind) the best country in the world to live in and be a part of…
We’ve met some amazing and remarkable people, and we’ve eaten everything from gastronomic wonders to hot dogs…
I could go on and on, but you get the idea…
So, in closing, I would like to convey to those of you who looked in on our trip, and wished us well along the way, our sincerest and warmest THANK YOU… We’re grateful - to no end - for your friendship, your encouraging words, and your love…
A special thanks to “Gede” and Terry, who crossed the country (horizontally and vertically) to be with us for just a few days here and there… How cool is that?
And, of course, our most heartfelt and sincerest thanks to our kids and grandkids, Stein & Tina (Reese, Hailey, and Hannah); Anne & Dan (Hunter, Morgan, and little Holly); and our bachelor son, Erik, and his dog (Samson?), who kept an eye and an ear on our trip at all time, and who welcomed us with open arms when we arrived… Love you guys!
THE END
Oh, yeah… Here’s the last picture show: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/SUNNYSIDE%20to%20LUMMI%20ISLAND%5EJ%20WA.%20%5E5APR.%2028%5EJ%202010%5E6%5EJ%20and%20a%20surprise%20visit%20for%20ANNE%e2%80%99s%20%20birthday%20%5E5April%2030%5EJ%202010%5E6
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Monday, May 3, 2010
ELY to JACKPOT, NEVADA, and then on to SUNNYSIDE, WASHINGTON (APR. 26 & 27, 2010)
I have an apology to make to my Blog readers…
Our daughter’s birthday (Anne) is April 30, so about a month ago, as we were contemplating our return home (which we had tentatively set for may 1), we decided to surprise her, by trying to make it home on or before her day…
To that end, we contacted Dan (her husband), and asked him to include us in whatever he had planned for her birthday…
Anne’s been an avid follower of the Blog (of course), and over the ten months we’ve been away, we’ve kept contact every day by either Email, Facebook, phone, or through SKYPE…
So, in order to surprise her, we had to cover up our intentions, which, in turn, had us dishing out “Little White Lies” the last week of our trip…
Dan let us know he had reservations at the SAKURA Japanese Restaurant, in Burlington, WA. (on Friday, April 30), and we, in turn, kept telling Anne we were in the desert, and a long way from home; Sorry, no chance to get home before your birthday…
The troubles we had (the tire blow-out, and the breaking of the power chord receptacle) were real, but we embellished on the truth a bit, on the Blog, Facebook, and phone, so we could explain not coming home before her day… I actually fixed the power chord thing the day we got to Ely, but wrote that it would take a couple of days to get the part sent there…
Of course, we embellished the weather angle, as well…
We had pretty much decent weather all the way home, but told Anne (and you) that we were stuck in snow, or the wind was blowing too hard to go any further…
What it all boils down to is that all this nonsense provided the excuse we needed to keep Anne in the dark…
Tuesday was a very long driving day (from Ely all the way to Sunnyside, in Washington), and we took a lot of pictures (I split them into two Blogs - this one and the next)…
They’re taken in Nevada, Idaho, Oregon, and Southeastern Washington, and I believe I put enough captions in to give you an idea of where we are and what it looks like…
So that’s it for this Blog… Take a look at the pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/ELY%20to%20JACKPOT%5EJ%20NEVADA%5EJ%20and%20then%20on%20to%20SUNNYSIDE%5EJ%20WASHINGTON%20%5E5APR.%2026%20%5E0%2027%5EJ%202010%5E6
Our daughter’s birthday (Anne) is April 30, so about a month ago, as we were contemplating our return home (which we had tentatively set for may 1), we decided to surprise her, by trying to make it home on or before her day…
To that end, we contacted Dan (her husband), and asked him to include us in whatever he had planned for her birthday…
Anne’s been an avid follower of the Blog (of course), and over the ten months we’ve been away, we’ve kept contact every day by either Email, Facebook, phone, or through SKYPE…
So, in order to surprise her, we had to cover up our intentions, which, in turn, had us dishing out “Little White Lies” the last week of our trip…
Dan let us know he had reservations at the SAKURA Japanese Restaurant, in Burlington, WA. (on Friday, April 30), and we, in turn, kept telling Anne we were in the desert, and a long way from home; Sorry, no chance to get home before your birthday…
The troubles we had (the tire blow-out, and the breaking of the power chord receptacle) were real, but we embellished on the truth a bit, on the Blog, Facebook, and phone, so we could explain not coming home before her day… I actually fixed the power chord thing the day we got to Ely, but wrote that it would take a couple of days to get the part sent there…
Of course, we embellished the weather angle, as well…
We had pretty much decent weather all the way home, but told Anne (and you) that we were stuck in snow, or the wind was blowing too hard to go any further…
What it all boils down to is that all this nonsense provided the excuse we needed to keep Anne in the dark…
Tuesday was a very long driving day (from Ely all the way to Sunnyside, in Washington), and we took a lot of pictures (I split them into two Blogs - this one and the next)…
They’re taken in Nevada, Idaho, Oregon, and Southeastern Washington, and I believe I put enough captions in to give you an idea of where we are and what it looks like…
So that’s it for this Blog… Take a look at the pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/ELY%20to%20JACKPOT%5EJ%20NEVADA%5EJ%20and%20then%20on%20to%20SUNNYSIDE%5EJ%20WASHINGTON%20%5E5APR.%2026%20%5E0%2027%5EJ%202010%5E6
Monday, April 26, 2010
LAS VEGAS to ELY, NEVADA (APR. 25, 2010)
We were ready to leave “Sin City” at 7:30 today…
After a while you get tired of all the hustle and bustle, and you’re ready to leave it behind… Far behind…
Well, that was the plan, but it didn’t turn out that way…
Remember when I told you about the first horrible night we had, with all the highway construction right outside our door?
Well, when I moved the trailer the next day, I didn’t realize I ripped the “umbilical” (read: power) chord out of the trailer receptacle, and, in so doing, I broke the lid off the receptacle… That would not have been a problem if the umbilical chord would stay put, but the lid is spring loaded, and it has a little lip on it, which holds the chord in place while you’re driving… Without a lip to hold the chord, there’s no power to the trailer, and the turn signals, the power break, and other electrical “stuff” needed for a safe trip is out the window…
There’s nothing open at 7:30 on a Sunday morning, and we would have to wait until 10:00 (at least) to get a replacement receptacle, so I made the decision to take off… Thinking: Since we’re going to drive the GREAT BASIN Highway (as desolate and as empty a stretch of road you‘ll ever find), we wouldn’t encounter all that many vehicles, and we could pick up the part in Ely…
I jury-rigged the chord with a bungee, but it didn’t work… I left it in place anyway…
All went well for the first hour…
I decided to trust Jill (our GPS), who guided us Northeast onto Nellis Boulevard (which I’d never thought of taking before), and that turned out to be great… It took us away from all the freeway traffic in town, and hooked us up with I-15 East of Las Vegas International Speedway and Nellis Air Force Base…
We stopped to check the power chord situation, and, of course, nothing worked… As we did that, Lu noticed that the right rear tire on the trailer was showing a bit of steel belt… I looked at it… The area in question was on the edge of the tire, and it didn’t look like much of a deal… I thought we’d be OK until we got to a big town where we could replace it…. WRONG!
A mile after we got onto I-15, and about two miles before we would turn off this main artery, a truck passed and honked… Then a pick-up truck passed… The passenger had his window down and looked at me while pointing dramatically down toward Terra Firma… I got the message!
Funny, but there was no notice of the problem inside the cab… No vibration, no nothing… We slowed and pulled over to the shoulder, and as we did, Lu said she saw our tire take a detour into the desert… Benedict Arnold!
After coming to a full and legal stop, we found only the rim and a few remnants left of the tire…
Thank goodness, the rim was OK…
As I realized our early start had come to a screeching halt, I steamed for a bit, said a few cuss words (which I’m sure made Luanne blush), but collected myself nicely (Luanne was proud of me), and then called Good Sam Platinum Road Service… Within 1 1/2 hour we had a new tire, and were on our way again…
The road to Ely, as the pictures show, is long and lonesome, and located, for the most part, in the center of two mountain ranges (don’t feel like looking it up, so, don’t know their names), but this time (we’ve lost count of all the times we’ve driven this route), we were totally amazed (blown away) by how green everything is… Usually, when we’re here, it’s as brown as only a desert can be…
Anyway, we got to Ely, and we hooked up, and I went to the town’s main RV parts store to get a new receptacle… No go…
Had to ship it here by Pony Express, which might be here in a day or a month… Who knows?
We’re in High Heaven here (as you can see on the pictures)… I mean, we’re at an elevation somewhere between 6 and 7 thousand feet, and my oxygen intake has escalated to a wheezing 4,000 breaths a second, so the sooner we’re out of here, the happier my lungs are gonna feel, so… Let’s get the show on the road…
To celebrate my lack of breathable air (and after the wonderful news about the umbilical chord), we decided to head over to the Old Nevada Hotel (it has a colorful story, but look it up yourself… I‘m too tired to elaborate), where we bellied up to the bar for a celebratory drink, and found out that there was a free dinner buffet being served for people who might have popped in, or who had trouble breathing the thin air around here…
Wonderful food… Even though it was Mexican, and I couldn’t pronounce the names if I tried…
That was it for this magnificent day… Now the waiting for the Pony Express starts…
I’m afraid this will be my last Blogs until we get home… I’m taking a break, and I deserve it… Any questions, please write me at kjelljohnsen$@msn.com, or on my Facebook… Take care until then…
Oh, Anne, we’re trying to get home on the 1st, but they’re calling for snow, so it might be a few days after that… Love you all!
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/LAS%20VEGAS%20to%20ELY%5EJ%20NEVADA%20%5E5APR.%2025%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=72&isFromRichUpload=1
After a while you get tired of all the hustle and bustle, and you’re ready to leave it behind… Far behind…
Well, that was the plan, but it didn’t turn out that way…
Remember when I told you about the first horrible night we had, with all the highway construction right outside our door?
Well, when I moved the trailer the next day, I didn’t realize I ripped the “umbilical” (read: power) chord out of the trailer receptacle, and, in so doing, I broke the lid off the receptacle… That would not have been a problem if the umbilical chord would stay put, but the lid is spring loaded, and it has a little lip on it, which holds the chord in place while you’re driving… Without a lip to hold the chord, there’s no power to the trailer, and the turn signals, the power break, and other electrical “stuff” needed for a safe trip is out the window…
There’s nothing open at 7:30 on a Sunday morning, and we would have to wait until 10:00 (at least) to get a replacement receptacle, so I made the decision to take off… Thinking: Since we’re going to drive the GREAT BASIN Highway (as desolate and as empty a stretch of road you‘ll ever find), we wouldn’t encounter all that many vehicles, and we could pick up the part in Ely…
I jury-rigged the chord with a bungee, but it didn’t work… I left it in place anyway…
All went well for the first hour…
I decided to trust Jill (our GPS), who guided us Northeast onto Nellis Boulevard (which I’d never thought of taking before), and that turned out to be great… It took us away from all the freeway traffic in town, and hooked us up with I-15 East of Las Vegas International Speedway and Nellis Air Force Base…
We stopped to check the power chord situation, and, of course, nothing worked… As we did that, Lu noticed that the right rear tire on the trailer was showing a bit of steel belt… I looked at it… The area in question was on the edge of the tire, and it didn’t look like much of a deal… I thought we’d be OK until we got to a big town where we could replace it…. WRONG!
A mile after we got onto I-15, and about two miles before we would turn off this main artery, a truck passed and honked… Then a pick-up truck passed… The passenger had his window down and looked at me while pointing dramatically down toward Terra Firma… I got the message!
Funny, but there was no notice of the problem inside the cab… No vibration, no nothing… We slowed and pulled over to the shoulder, and as we did, Lu said she saw our tire take a detour into the desert… Benedict Arnold!
After coming to a full and legal stop, we found only the rim and a few remnants left of the tire…
Thank goodness, the rim was OK…
As I realized our early start had come to a screeching halt, I steamed for a bit, said a few cuss words (which I’m sure made Luanne blush), but collected myself nicely (Luanne was proud of me), and then called Good Sam Platinum Road Service… Within 1 1/2 hour we had a new tire, and were on our way again…
The road to Ely, as the pictures show, is long and lonesome, and located, for the most part, in the center of two mountain ranges (don’t feel like looking it up, so, don’t know their names), but this time (we’ve lost count of all the times we’ve driven this route), we were totally amazed (blown away) by how green everything is… Usually, when we’re here, it’s as brown as only a desert can be…
Anyway, we got to Ely, and we hooked up, and I went to the town’s main RV parts store to get a new receptacle… No go…
Had to ship it here by Pony Express, which might be here in a day or a month… Who knows?
We’re in High Heaven here (as you can see on the pictures)… I mean, we’re at an elevation somewhere between 6 and 7 thousand feet, and my oxygen intake has escalated to a wheezing 4,000 breaths a second, so the sooner we’re out of here, the happier my lungs are gonna feel, so… Let’s get the show on the road…
To celebrate my lack of breathable air (and after the wonderful news about the umbilical chord), we decided to head over to the Old Nevada Hotel (it has a colorful story, but look it up yourself… I‘m too tired to elaborate), where we bellied up to the bar for a celebratory drink, and found out that there was a free dinner buffet being served for people who might have popped in, or who had trouble breathing the thin air around here…
Wonderful food… Even though it was Mexican, and I couldn’t pronounce the names if I tried…
That was it for this magnificent day… Now the waiting for the Pony Express starts…
I’m afraid this will be my last Blogs until we get home… I’m taking a break, and I deserve it… Any questions, please write me at kjelljohnsen$@msn.com, or on my Facebook… Take care until then…
Oh, Anne, we’re trying to get home on the 1st, but they’re calling for snow, so it might be a few days after that… Love you all!
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/LAS%20VEGAS%20to%20ELY%5EJ%20NEVADA%20%5E5APR.%2025%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=72&isFromRichUpload=1
Saturday, April 24, 2010
LAS VEGAS - ALBUM 1 (APR. 23 - APR. 24, 2010)
Friday, Apr. 23...
If one picture tells a thousand words, then I have about 186,000 words to tell you, because we took about 260 pictures in Las Vegas over the past two days, which I have now managed to squeeze down to 186…
Since there are so many, I decided to break them into two Blogs…
There’s not much to say about Las Vegas that you probably don’t already know, so, I’m gonna make this short and sweet…
As I understand it (from personal experiences, and talking to people living here), Las Vegas is still recuperating from the “depression.” There are a lot of commercial buildings and homes empty when you drive around town, and there is a lot of new construction which has simply stopped in mid-stride, but, when you drive, or stroll down “The Strip” (Las Vegas Boulevard), you’d be hard pressed to think this town is hard up…
Tourists are here by the thousands, and traffic is awful whether you‘re driving The Strip or Freeways…
Luanne and I’ve been here many, many times over the years, and we really don’t like going into town any more… To us, Las Vegas has become so “impersonal,” and so big, so “stretched” out that it’s almost impossible to “take it all in” and enjoy it any more… Of course, the prices of everything has skyrocketed, which doesn’t help either…
Anyway, now-a-days, we usually drive through town just to check out the new casinos, and then go to “people friendly” places (like Laughlin) instead of fighting the crowds…
As I said, I’ve split our two-day venture here into two Blogs: This one consists of (for the most part) pictures taken while driving, and the following contains pictures we shot while walking…
Most of the pictures will be self explanatory, so I haven’t bothered writing anything on them…
I think it’s true when I say that Las Vegas has gone over the top when it comes to everything, and that’s only been a good thing (to me) when it comes to the architectural designs of new buildings… They are sleek, and right down fabulous, and that’s the only comment I will make… See the pictures for yourself: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/LAS%20VEGAS%20-%20ALBUM%201%20%5E5APR.%2023%20-%20APR.%2024%5EJ%202010%5E6?uc=96&isFromRichUpload=1
If one picture tells a thousand words, then I have about 186,000 words to tell you, because we took about 260 pictures in Las Vegas over the past two days, which I have now managed to squeeze down to 186…
Since there are so many, I decided to break them into two Blogs…
There’s not much to say about Las Vegas that you probably don’t already know, so, I’m gonna make this short and sweet…
As I understand it (from personal experiences, and talking to people living here), Las Vegas is still recuperating from the “depression.” There are a lot of commercial buildings and homes empty when you drive around town, and there is a lot of new construction which has simply stopped in mid-stride, but, when you drive, or stroll down “The Strip” (Las Vegas Boulevard), you’d be hard pressed to think this town is hard up…
Tourists are here by the thousands, and traffic is awful whether you‘re driving The Strip or Freeways…
Luanne and I’ve been here many, many times over the years, and we really don’t like going into town any more… To us, Las Vegas has become so “impersonal,” and so big, so “stretched” out that it’s almost impossible to “take it all in” and enjoy it any more… Of course, the prices of everything has skyrocketed, which doesn’t help either…
Anyway, now-a-days, we usually drive through town just to check out the new casinos, and then go to “people friendly” places (like Laughlin) instead of fighting the crowds…
As I said, I’ve split our two-day venture here into two Blogs: This one consists of (for the most part) pictures taken while driving, and the following contains pictures we shot while walking…
Most of the pictures will be self explanatory, so I haven’t bothered writing anything on them…
I think it’s true when I say that Las Vegas has gone over the top when it comes to everything, and that’s only been a good thing (to me) when it comes to the architectural designs of new buildings… They are sleek, and right down fabulous, and that’s the only comment I will make… See the pictures for yourself: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/LAS%20VEGAS%20-%20ALBUM%201%20%5E5APR.%2023%20-%20APR.%2024%5EJ%202010%5E6?uc=96&isFromRichUpload=1
Friday, April 23, 2010
LAUGHLIN to HENDERSON and LAS VEGAS (APR. 19 - APR. 22, 2010)
Monday, Apr. 19... Happy birthday to me…
Can’t believe how old I’m getting, but I don’t feel old, and, as mom always told me: “You’re only as old as you think you are,” so, I guess I’m at the tail end of puberty… I’ve been told I act like that at times… Of course, my bones and muscles tell a different story…
Ah, shucks… Let’s get into something less dramatic…
The day started poorly, because my cell phone was totally dead, so I missed calls from kids, grandkids, friends, and relatives…
The Internet Service was iffy at it’s best, but I managed to see all the greetings on my Facebook and Email, so, thanks to all of you for taking the time to write and for remembering this Old Fart…
The rest of the day was fine…
We did some shopping, visited some slot machines, had dinner at the River Palms, and between us, Lu and I actually managed to win over a hundred bucks before calling it a day… All in all, I’d say that’s a good day…
Tuesday, Apr. 20...
Got fed up with lack of phone service, so we piled into the truck and drove a hundred miles, to Costco, in Henderson, to get it taken care of… That’s where I bought the thing, and they’re always good in taking care of their customers…
OK… You’re gonna laugh now, but it really wasn’t all that funny… Well, I guess it was… The little Oriental girl, at the Cell Phone Kiosk in Costco (I swear she couldn’t be more than 13), took the phone out of my hand…
Looked at it… Opened the battery cover… Took out the battery…
Put back the battery… Put back the cover… Gave me back the phone… Once again: Fully operational! Thank you very big!
That’s all I’m gonna say about that…
Just so the trip wasn’t totally wasted, we stopped by Sam’s Town to check on the RV Park… Got home around 1:30, and took a nap…
Won a little at the slot machines, and celebrated by going to Joe’s Crab Shack for Nachos… Home fairly early, where I worked on my Blog until 10:30…
Wednesday, Apr. 21...
Up early, to go and get my truck filled up, then back to Ridgeview to hook up…
Left at 8:30, and arrived at Sam’s Town RV Park, in Las Vegas, two hours later…
Spent some time uploading pictures and writing on my Blog, then went and had a fantastic lunch buffet at the Casino…
We spent some more time in the Casino in the evening, and I was up another hundred bucks at one time, but Lu was loosing, so we ended up with a total winning of six dollars… Now, there’s success for you…
Thursday, Apr. 22...
What a horrible night!
Didn’t sleep a wink!
Boulder Highway is located about 50 feet away (on the other side of a concrete block fence) from where we planted the trailer…
We noticed there was road construction going on as we arrived, but thought nothing of it… Didn’t realize it was night work…
At precisely 9:00PM the backhoes, dozers and trucks fired up, and it was a constant racket, with ear-piercing backup horns screaming, and heavy duty buckets and blades grinding rocks to a pulp…
There was a lull at exactly 2:00AM (probably “lunch” time), but it all started up again a half hour later, and it kept on going until 5:30AM…
I went to the office, when I finally got my senses back, and complained to the manager…
She gave us another site - at the very back of the park - and also gave us an extra free day’s stay, so that was nice… Of course, I had to unhook everything, and re-hook in order to move, but it was worth it…
We actually got everything done before the sky opened up and we got drenched, so even the timing was good…
Took a long needed nap, after which we visited Joe’s Crab Shack for a drink, stopped at Lee’s Liquor Store to get a bottle of Bombay Sapphire for Uncle Terry (for when they come to visit), and wasted a half hour in the Rainbow, and Fiesta Casinos (in Henderson) while waiting for our good friends, Larry and Lori to get home from work (at 6:15)… They live across the street from where Stein and Tina used to live, and we’ve been good friends from the time we met, back in whatever year that was… In fact, they’ve visited us on Lummi Island, and just about every time we’re through Las Vegas, we stop to have some fun…
Went to the Fiesta Casino, where we all had Mexican food…
Good time… And good to see you guys again…
Got home around ten, and went straight to bed, where we got a good night’s sleep… Barely noticing the road noise across the park and over the fence…
That’s it… I’m caught up… And so are you…
Here are the pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/LAUGHLIN%20to%20HENDERSON%20and%20LAS%20VEGAS%20%5E5APR.%2019%20-%20APR.%2022%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=90&isFromRichUpload=1
Can’t believe how old I’m getting, but I don’t feel old, and, as mom always told me: “You’re only as old as you think you are,” so, I guess I’m at the tail end of puberty… I’ve been told I act like that at times… Of course, my bones and muscles tell a different story…
Ah, shucks… Let’s get into something less dramatic…
The day started poorly, because my cell phone was totally dead, so I missed calls from kids, grandkids, friends, and relatives…
The Internet Service was iffy at it’s best, but I managed to see all the greetings on my Facebook and Email, so, thanks to all of you for taking the time to write and for remembering this Old Fart…
The rest of the day was fine…
We did some shopping, visited some slot machines, had dinner at the River Palms, and between us, Lu and I actually managed to win over a hundred bucks before calling it a day… All in all, I’d say that’s a good day…
Tuesday, Apr. 20...
Got fed up with lack of phone service, so we piled into the truck and drove a hundred miles, to Costco, in Henderson, to get it taken care of… That’s where I bought the thing, and they’re always good in taking care of their customers…
OK… You’re gonna laugh now, but it really wasn’t all that funny… Well, I guess it was… The little Oriental girl, at the Cell Phone Kiosk in Costco (I swear she couldn’t be more than 13), took the phone out of my hand…
Looked at it… Opened the battery cover… Took out the battery…
Put back the battery… Put back the cover… Gave me back the phone… Once again: Fully operational! Thank you very big!
That’s all I’m gonna say about that…
Just so the trip wasn’t totally wasted, we stopped by Sam’s Town to check on the RV Park… Got home around 1:30, and took a nap…
Won a little at the slot machines, and celebrated by going to Joe’s Crab Shack for Nachos… Home fairly early, where I worked on my Blog until 10:30…
Wednesday, Apr. 21...
Up early, to go and get my truck filled up, then back to Ridgeview to hook up…
Left at 8:30, and arrived at Sam’s Town RV Park, in Las Vegas, two hours later…
Spent some time uploading pictures and writing on my Blog, then went and had a fantastic lunch buffet at the Casino…
We spent some more time in the Casino in the evening, and I was up another hundred bucks at one time, but Lu was loosing, so we ended up with a total winning of six dollars… Now, there’s success for you…
Thursday, Apr. 22...
What a horrible night!
Didn’t sleep a wink!
Boulder Highway is located about 50 feet away (on the other side of a concrete block fence) from where we planted the trailer…
We noticed there was road construction going on as we arrived, but thought nothing of it… Didn’t realize it was night work…
At precisely 9:00PM the backhoes, dozers and trucks fired up, and it was a constant racket, with ear-piercing backup horns screaming, and heavy duty buckets and blades grinding rocks to a pulp…
There was a lull at exactly 2:00AM (probably “lunch” time), but it all started up again a half hour later, and it kept on going until 5:30AM…
I went to the office, when I finally got my senses back, and complained to the manager…
She gave us another site - at the very back of the park - and also gave us an extra free day’s stay, so that was nice… Of course, I had to unhook everything, and re-hook in order to move, but it was worth it…
We actually got everything done before the sky opened up and we got drenched, so even the timing was good…
Took a long needed nap, after which we visited Joe’s Crab Shack for a drink, stopped at Lee’s Liquor Store to get a bottle of Bombay Sapphire for Uncle Terry (for when they come to visit), and wasted a half hour in the Rainbow, and Fiesta Casinos (in Henderson) while waiting for our good friends, Larry and Lori to get home from work (at 6:15)… They live across the street from where Stein and Tina used to live, and we’ve been good friends from the time we met, back in whatever year that was… In fact, they’ve visited us on Lummi Island, and just about every time we’re through Las Vegas, we stop to have some fun…
Went to the Fiesta Casino, where we all had Mexican food…
Good time… And good to see you guys again…
Got home around ten, and went straight to bed, where we got a good night’s sleep… Barely noticing the road noise across the park and over the fence…
That’s it… I’m caught up… And so are you…
Here are the pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/LAUGHLIN%20to%20HENDERSON%20and%20LAS%20VEGAS%20%5E5APR.%2019%20-%20APR.%2022%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=90&isFromRichUpload=1
Thursday, April 22, 2010
A visit from family, and some time spent in LAUGHLIN, LAKE HAVASU CITY, and OATMAN (APR. 15 - APR. 18, 2010)
Thursday, Apr. 15...
When “Gede” and Terry visited us on Cape Cod (whenever that was), we discussed the possibility of them meeting up with us again somewhere in Arizona; the premise being they’d get out of some cold NW weather…
Lo and behold, they were as good as their word, and, even though I spent some of the morning in the prone position, suffering from some mental instability and lower abdomen upheavals from the previous night’s bash (see last Blog), we managed to greet them at the Laughlin/Bullhead International Airport (a pretty large title for a strip of asphalt a hundred feet long) at approximately 12:20PM…
It was a joyous reunion, which lasted about five minutes, since they were on a “Flight and Hotel Gambling Jaunt”… In other words, they had to take a bus from the airport to their hotel (Don Laughlin’s Riverside) to check in, which was good for me, since it gave me an additional half hour to lay down (at home), while they got themselves checked in, and all that…
Turned out their room wasn’t ready, so, when we got there, they were deep into the magic of loosing money…
Of course, somehow, we got our directional signals mixed up, so we all spent some time cruising the casino grounds (both inside and out) before we finally caught up with each other…
The intrusion and confusion didn’t seem to matter, and, even though we’d interrupted their fun time, a second Happy Reunion took place with hugs and love all around…
We dropped a few coins ourselves just for the practice (actually, it’s not coins any more, it’s bills and paper vouchers), and then took a stroll on the Riverwalk… Lovely afternoon (80-some degrees)…
Stopped at a few of the other casinos, and had a late lunch at Joe‘s Crab Shack, where we discussed what to do and see while they were here… They’d never been here before…
After some running around trying to find a rental car place in town (and not succeeding), Terry and I left the girls, and ended up back at the Airport, where we reserved a vehicle for the next day…
It was getting late (7:30PM), and they’d been up since before extremely early, and, needless to say, I was ready for the sack as well (not mentioning Lu, ‘cause she’s always ready for the sack)…
Anyway, we parted ways with the promise of meeting up fairly early the next morning…
Friday, Apr. 16...
Got up early… Big sightseeing day planned… But before anything could be accomplished, Lu and I had to get ourselves a Starbucks fix, so we parked at the Riverside, and walked over to the Aquarius before meeting up with the McCanns back at the Riverside…
Terry and I the drove over to the Airport, parked my truck and rented a Mazda (zoom, zoom) from Hertz…
Picked up the girls (who had fun with the machines while the boys were away), and headed down to Lake Havasu City, to check out the London Bridge, which some fool brought (block by block) over from London…
Guess he wasn’t such a fool after all, ‘cause it put place on the map…
We stopped in Needles to get some literature from a Land Management Office, and arrived in LHC all rearing to mingle with the crowds… The problem: No crowds… Matter of fact, there were hardly anybody there… The place was dead! Found out this is the “in-between-season”…
The snowbirds have trekked North, and nothing of importance will happen until the summer crowd comes on Memorial Day, at the end of May…
We sauntered around taking a few pictures, and then decided to vacate to a more promising tourist trap: Oatman…
Oatman is an Old Mining Town nestled in the hills (Southeast of Bullhead City), on “famous” Route 66...
It’s claim to fame these days are “wild” burros (donkeys, or asses, if you’d rather call them that), and a couple of staged gunfights… The one we watched was totally botched by the participants (guns which didn‘t fire, poor acting, and missed dialog), but no-one seemed to care… It was fun to see anyway…
It’s been about ten years since we were here, and things have changed…
There are now dozens of souvenir shops and eateries, but the Old Oatman Hotel is still the main attraction, if you get tired of looking at, buying for, or petting the ever-increasing burro population…
We had a fantastic lunch at the Hotel, and, so not to leave the poor critters hungry, “Gede” bought carrots which she and Lu doled out to the herd…
After the good time in Oatman, Lu and I were dropped off at home, to get ourselves ready for the evening session, which consisted of some slot playing, a walk on the Riverwalk, some more visits to some more slots, having dinner at the Gourmet Room (Riverside), and just a little bit more play, before getting home around 9:30... Very good day!
Saturday, Apr. 17...
The day started with a trip to Starbucks with “Gede” and Terry; then a trip up and down the Riverwalk to various casinos to try our luck… Surprising thing is, we’re about even fund-wise (a few bucks to the good, actually), so that’s a good thing…
Had lunch again at Joe’s Crab Shack, after which Lu and I went home for a rest, and to let “Gede” and Terry have some private time by themselves… Found out they took the river taxi up to Harrah’s (which is a bit out of the way from the other casinos), where they planted themselves on the beach for a couple of hours…
We hooked up again around 4ish, and since Tuesday is my birthday (and Terry and “Gede” would’ve left by then), they wanted to take us out for dinner tonight… So, after some time messing around with the odds at the Riverside, we piled into the water taxi and went over to the River Palms, where we had great food, and a very good time at the Lodge Steak House…
Thanks heaps you guys! That was a wonderful birthday gift, one I’ll remember for the rest of my life…
Oh, and thanks, “Gede” for telling me that Dee is one of my Blog readers…
How fun is that?! Now there’s a lady with high spirits… Always a great, big smile on her face…
F.Y.I.: She used to be a neighbor many years ago, but, unfortunately, we lost touch over the years, but “Gede” and Dee have retained their friendship, and I’m really thrilled that she has found some interest in my Blog…
I don’t know why the heck I’m writing like this, since Dee obviously reads this mess, so, let’s just say,
Hi, Dee, it’s a great pleasure to hear you’re doing good… We miss seeing your happy face like we did, but, maybe we can all get together one of these days? Hope so…
Sunday, Apr. 18...
Had breakfast with “Gede” and Terry this morning, after which we gambled at the Riverside…
Both Lu and I had a good morning, since I won 55 and Lu won 70 bucks after breakfast… Not too shabby, huh?
Around 10:30, or so, it was time for “Gede” and Terry to say farewell… They had to go and pack, and be ready to take off for the airport by 11:00...
It was kind of sad to see them take off, but that’s the way it goes…
We really enjoyed having you guys visit, and appreciate it very, very much…
Not too many people would’ve taken the time, and paid the cost, to fly from one end of the continent to the other, just to visit in-laws for a few days…
We love you for it, and so grateful for your kindheartedness… Thanks, guys, from the bottom of our hearts! Let’s sit down and reminisce one of these days when we get home…
That’s about all there is to tell, so, I’ll quit for now, and get this Blog and the pictures posted…
More later…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/A%20visit%20from%20family%5EJ%20and%20some%20time%20spent%20in%20LAUGHLIN%5EJ%20LAKE%20HAVASU%20CITY%5EJ%20and%20OATMAN%20%5E5APR.%2015%20-%20APR.%2018%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=123&isFromRichUpload=1
When “Gede” and Terry visited us on Cape Cod (whenever that was), we discussed the possibility of them meeting up with us again somewhere in Arizona; the premise being they’d get out of some cold NW weather…
Lo and behold, they were as good as their word, and, even though I spent some of the morning in the prone position, suffering from some mental instability and lower abdomen upheavals from the previous night’s bash (see last Blog), we managed to greet them at the Laughlin/Bullhead International Airport (a pretty large title for a strip of asphalt a hundred feet long) at approximately 12:20PM…
It was a joyous reunion, which lasted about five minutes, since they were on a “Flight and Hotel Gambling Jaunt”… In other words, they had to take a bus from the airport to their hotel (Don Laughlin’s Riverside) to check in, which was good for me, since it gave me an additional half hour to lay down (at home), while they got themselves checked in, and all that…
Turned out their room wasn’t ready, so, when we got there, they were deep into the magic of loosing money…
Of course, somehow, we got our directional signals mixed up, so we all spent some time cruising the casino grounds (both inside and out) before we finally caught up with each other…
The intrusion and confusion didn’t seem to matter, and, even though we’d interrupted their fun time, a second Happy Reunion took place with hugs and love all around…
We dropped a few coins ourselves just for the practice (actually, it’s not coins any more, it’s bills and paper vouchers), and then took a stroll on the Riverwalk… Lovely afternoon (80-some degrees)…
Stopped at a few of the other casinos, and had a late lunch at Joe‘s Crab Shack, where we discussed what to do and see while they were here… They’d never been here before…
After some running around trying to find a rental car place in town (and not succeeding), Terry and I left the girls, and ended up back at the Airport, where we reserved a vehicle for the next day…
It was getting late (7:30PM), and they’d been up since before extremely early, and, needless to say, I was ready for the sack as well (not mentioning Lu, ‘cause she’s always ready for the sack)…
Anyway, we parted ways with the promise of meeting up fairly early the next morning…
Friday, Apr. 16...
Got up early… Big sightseeing day planned… But before anything could be accomplished, Lu and I had to get ourselves a Starbucks fix, so we parked at the Riverside, and walked over to the Aquarius before meeting up with the McCanns back at the Riverside…
Terry and I the drove over to the Airport, parked my truck and rented a Mazda (zoom, zoom) from Hertz…
Picked up the girls (who had fun with the machines while the boys were away), and headed down to Lake Havasu City, to check out the London Bridge, which some fool brought (block by block) over from London…
Guess he wasn’t such a fool after all, ‘cause it put place on the map…
We stopped in Needles to get some literature from a Land Management Office, and arrived in LHC all rearing to mingle with the crowds… The problem: No crowds… Matter of fact, there were hardly anybody there… The place was dead! Found out this is the “in-between-season”…
The snowbirds have trekked North, and nothing of importance will happen until the summer crowd comes on Memorial Day, at the end of May…
We sauntered around taking a few pictures, and then decided to vacate to a more promising tourist trap: Oatman…
Oatman is an Old Mining Town nestled in the hills (Southeast of Bullhead City), on “famous” Route 66...
It’s claim to fame these days are “wild” burros (donkeys, or asses, if you’d rather call them that), and a couple of staged gunfights… The one we watched was totally botched by the participants (guns which didn‘t fire, poor acting, and missed dialog), but no-one seemed to care… It was fun to see anyway…
It’s been about ten years since we were here, and things have changed…
There are now dozens of souvenir shops and eateries, but the Old Oatman Hotel is still the main attraction, if you get tired of looking at, buying for, or petting the ever-increasing burro population…
We had a fantastic lunch at the Hotel, and, so not to leave the poor critters hungry, “Gede” bought carrots which she and Lu doled out to the herd…
After the good time in Oatman, Lu and I were dropped off at home, to get ourselves ready for the evening session, which consisted of some slot playing, a walk on the Riverwalk, some more visits to some more slots, having dinner at the Gourmet Room (Riverside), and just a little bit more play, before getting home around 9:30... Very good day!
Saturday, Apr. 17...
The day started with a trip to Starbucks with “Gede” and Terry; then a trip up and down the Riverwalk to various casinos to try our luck… Surprising thing is, we’re about even fund-wise (a few bucks to the good, actually), so that’s a good thing…
Had lunch again at Joe’s Crab Shack, after which Lu and I went home for a rest, and to let “Gede” and Terry have some private time by themselves… Found out they took the river taxi up to Harrah’s (which is a bit out of the way from the other casinos), where they planted themselves on the beach for a couple of hours…
We hooked up again around 4ish, and since Tuesday is my birthday (and Terry and “Gede” would’ve left by then), they wanted to take us out for dinner tonight… So, after some time messing around with the odds at the Riverside, we piled into the water taxi and went over to the River Palms, where we had great food, and a very good time at the Lodge Steak House…
Thanks heaps you guys! That was a wonderful birthday gift, one I’ll remember for the rest of my life…
Oh, and thanks, “Gede” for telling me that Dee is one of my Blog readers…
How fun is that?! Now there’s a lady with high spirits… Always a great, big smile on her face…
F.Y.I.: She used to be a neighbor many years ago, but, unfortunately, we lost touch over the years, but “Gede” and Dee have retained their friendship, and I’m really thrilled that she has found some interest in my Blog…
I don’t know why the heck I’m writing like this, since Dee obviously reads this mess, so, let’s just say,
Hi, Dee, it’s a great pleasure to hear you’re doing good… We miss seeing your happy face like we did, but, maybe we can all get together one of these days? Hope so…
Sunday, Apr. 18...
Had breakfast with “Gede” and Terry this morning, after which we gambled at the Riverside…
Both Lu and I had a good morning, since I won 55 and Lu won 70 bucks after breakfast… Not too shabby, huh?
Around 10:30, or so, it was time for “Gede” and Terry to say farewell… They had to go and pack, and be ready to take off for the airport by 11:00...
It was kind of sad to see them take off, but that’s the way it goes…
We really enjoyed having you guys visit, and appreciate it very, very much…
Not too many people would’ve taken the time, and paid the cost, to fly from one end of the continent to the other, just to visit in-laws for a few days…
We love you for it, and so grateful for your kindheartedness… Thanks, guys, from the bottom of our hearts! Let’s sit down and reminisce one of these days when we get home…
That’s about all there is to tell, so, I’ll quit for now, and get this Blog and the pictures posted…
More later…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/A%20visit%20from%20family%5EJ%20and%20some%20time%20spent%20in%20LAUGHLIN%5EJ%20LAKE%20HAVASU%20CITY%5EJ%20and%20OATMAN%20%5E5APR.%2015%20-%20APR.%2018%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=123&isFromRichUpload=1
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
YUMA, and the trip to BULLHEAD CITY, AZ (APR. 10 - APR. 14, 2010)
I’m sitting here (on our 8th (and last) night in Bullhead City, AZ., contemplating whether to work on the Blog or not…
It’s 8:30 and Lu is in bed watching some “favorite “ TV shows, so there isn’t much of a choice, really… She likes to be horizontal when watching shows… That way she knows I’ll turn off the TV when I come to bed… You get it?
Nah, I’m kidding… Not about Lu being in bed, but about the TV…
Anyway, if I’m going to take the time to do something constructive here, I better get with it… It’s late, and we‘re moving up to Las Vegas tomorrow…
So, did I tell you that both Lu and I love our favorite bartender, Kari (at the Parrish’s Bar and Grill)… She’s the cutest thing since Hermit the Frog (or something like that), and has the personality to go with it… Not only that, but she looks a lot like Jamie Lee Curtis, and Lu wanted her hair, so, as I’ve said in a previous Blog, Kari introduces us to Ken (her hair dresser), who came to our trailer and cut both of our manes…
We showed up at Parrish’s the following day, and Kari took one look at Lu - whose hair now is really, really short - and says (so the whole bar can hear), “You need PRODUCTS girl!”
We come back for more abuse the following evening, and, as soon as Kari is done working, she sits Lu down at one of the tables and proceeds to indoctrinate her into the finer things of hair styling… Even some of the customers got involved, and Lu took it all in stride… Bravo for her!
From one mess to another:
We went SCRAMBLE golfing on Sunday (Apr. 10), at the Westwind, and had a blast… I think we were paired up in four or five foursomes, and the idea is to only use the best ball as we proceed through each hole… Could tell you more, but then I’d have to kill you, as the saying goes…
The people we met golfing are all very friendly and jovial, and I believe we’re fitting right in, so both Lu and I are looking forward to spending next Winter down here…
Talking about friendly people… We’ve been passing this elderly lady’s place, on our way to and from the pool, and noticed her rear license plate was from Everett, WA… Then one day she had backed the car up, and the front plate said: UFF DA… Of course, I had to talk to her…
Matter of fact, she stopped me and invited us over, because she had a letter from Norway she needed some translation for… We had a great time yakking about Norway, and this and that, but the funny thing is that when we stood up to leave - after an hour - she says, “My… I forgot to offer you something to eat and drink… I even have cold beer in the fridge for you!” Well… We’ll take her up on that offer when we get back…
On Tuesday (Apr. 13) we left Westwind at 8:30 in the morning… We only had about 200 miles to drive, and they were easy miles, so we took our time… Stopped at Parker and had a pretty good breakfast, and then, after a short stretch through California, we pulled into Ridgeview RV Park (on the North end of Bullhead City, AZ) a little after 1:00...
Bullhead City stretches for miles and miles along the Eastern shore of the Colorado River (which is the border between Arizona and Nevada), and the bridge across the river is located just a hop and a skip from our Park… On the Nevada side lies the City of Laughlin, which basically consists of 7 or 8 casinos that are (for the most part) connected by a Riverwalk… We’ve always liked Laughlin, and would take it over Las Vegas any time of the day… The casinos are big, yet the city is small and manageable…
The Riverwalk is about a mile long, and provides a very comfortable stroll - if you’re not out there when it’s 120 degrees…
We got ourselves situated at the Park, and then went for a taste of the slot machines…
You win some… You loose some… The main thing to remember is to use your head… If you do that, you’ll have a great time… Guaranteed!
Over to some other stuff…
To my dismay, we found our cell phone service (Verizon) here absolutely lousy, and the internet service (also Verizon) twice as bad… Seems like a place like this, with all the casinos and all the people who either live here or visits here, should have decent services, but, unfortunately, not so…
Maybe, some day, things will be better?
On our first full day here (Apr. 14) we drove ten miles back South (on Hwy 95) to check out AVI Casino and Resort… An Indian place we visited back in 2000... They have a very nice RV Park, and, to our surprise, they still have a very cheap breakfast ($6.08 for two: Eggs, bacon, hash browns, toast, and milk)…
In the evening, we went to a few casinos…
Lost some… Won some…
Became “best friends” with a very nice and cheerful couple, Bob and Jeri, whom we had drinks with at the Lodge Steakhouse…
I might’ve imbibed a little too much of the merriment, ‘cause Lu insisted on driving home, but what the hey… You only go around once, so why not enjoy it?
As I said earlier, this is our last night here in Laughlin/Bullhead City, but I’m going to cut this Blog short, because I have around 90 pictures for this segment, and somewhere around 150 pictures for the rest of the time we spent here… Since I don’t have internet service, I have to wait until tomorrow, when we get to Vegas, to upload everything, and, I think, it’ll be easier for me to split things into two Blogs… We’ll see…
Best regards from the Vagabonds…
Have a great rest of the week…
Here are the pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/YUMA%5EJ%20and%20the%20trip%20to%20BULLHEAD%20CITY%5EJ%20AZ%20%5E5APR.%2010%20-%20APR.%2014%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=92&isFromRichUpload=1
It’s 8:30 and Lu is in bed watching some “favorite “ TV shows, so there isn’t much of a choice, really… She likes to be horizontal when watching shows… That way she knows I’ll turn off the TV when I come to bed… You get it?
Nah, I’m kidding… Not about Lu being in bed, but about the TV…
Anyway, if I’m going to take the time to do something constructive here, I better get with it… It’s late, and we‘re moving up to Las Vegas tomorrow…
So, did I tell you that both Lu and I love our favorite bartender, Kari (at the Parrish’s Bar and Grill)… She’s the cutest thing since Hermit the Frog (or something like that), and has the personality to go with it… Not only that, but she looks a lot like Jamie Lee Curtis, and Lu wanted her hair, so, as I’ve said in a previous Blog, Kari introduces us to Ken (her hair dresser), who came to our trailer and cut both of our manes…
We showed up at Parrish’s the following day, and Kari took one look at Lu - whose hair now is really, really short - and says (so the whole bar can hear), “You need PRODUCTS girl!”
We come back for more abuse the following evening, and, as soon as Kari is done working, she sits Lu down at one of the tables and proceeds to indoctrinate her into the finer things of hair styling… Even some of the customers got involved, and Lu took it all in stride… Bravo for her!
From one mess to another:
We went SCRAMBLE golfing on Sunday (Apr. 10), at the Westwind, and had a blast… I think we were paired up in four or five foursomes, and the idea is to only use the best ball as we proceed through each hole… Could tell you more, but then I’d have to kill you, as the saying goes…
The people we met golfing are all very friendly and jovial, and I believe we’re fitting right in, so both Lu and I are looking forward to spending next Winter down here…
Talking about friendly people… We’ve been passing this elderly lady’s place, on our way to and from the pool, and noticed her rear license plate was from Everett, WA… Then one day she had backed the car up, and the front plate said: UFF DA… Of course, I had to talk to her…
Matter of fact, she stopped me and invited us over, because she had a letter from Norway she needed some translation for… We had a great time yakking about Norway, and this and that, but the funny thing is that when we stood up to leave - after an hour - she says, “My… I forgot to offer you something to eat and drink… I even have cold beer in the fridge for you!” Well… We’ll take her up on that offer when we get back…
On Tuesday (Apr. 13) we left Westwind at 8:30 in the morning… We only had about 200 miles to drive, and they were easy miles, so we took our time… Stopped at Parker and had a pretty good breakfast, and then, after a short stretch through California, we pulled into Ridgeview RV Park (on the North end of Bullhead City, AZ) a little after 1:00...
Bullhead City stretches for miles and miles along the Eastern shore of the Colorado River (which is the border between Arizona and Nevada), and the bridge across the river is located just a hop and a skip from our Park… On the Nevada side lies the City of Laughlin, which basically consists of 7 or 8 casinos that are (for the most part) connected by a Riverwalk… We’ve always liked Laughlin, and would take it over Las Vegas any time of the day… The casinos are big, yet the city is small and manageable…
The Riverwalk is about a mile long, and provides a very comfortable stroll - if you’re not out there when it’s 120 degrees…
We got ourselves situated at the Park, and then went for a taste of the slot machines…
You win some… You loose some… The main thing to remember is to use your head… If you do that, you’ll have a great time… Guaranteed!
Over to some other stuff…
To my dismay, we found our cell phone service (Verizon) here absolutely lousy, and the internet service (also Verizon) twice as bad… Seems like a place like this, with all the casinos and all the people who either live here or visits here, should have decent services, but, unfortunately, not so…
Maybe, some day, things will be better?
On our first full day here (Apr. 14) we drove ten miles back South (on Hwy 95) to check out AVI Casino and Resort… An Indian place we visited back in 2000... They have a very nice RV Park, and, to our surprise, they still have a very cheap breakfast ($6.08 for two: Eggs, bacon, hash browns, toast, and milk)…
In the evening, we went to a few casinos…
Lost some… Won some…
Became “best friends” with a very nice and cheerful couple, Bob and Jeri, whom we had drinks with at the Lodge Steakhouse…
I might’ve imbibed a little too much of the merriment, ‘cause Lu insisted on driving home, but what the hey… You only go around once, so why not enjoy it?
As I said earlier, this is our last night here in Laughlin/Bullhead City, but I’m going to cut this Blog short, because I have around 90 pictures for this segment, and somewhere around 150 pictures for the rest of the time we spent here… Since I don’t have internet service, I have to wait until tomorrow, when we get to Vegas, to upload everything, and, I think, it’ll be easier for me to split things into two Blogs… We’ll see…
Best regards from the Vagabonds…
Have a great rest of the week…
Here are the pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/YUMA%5EJ%20and%20the%20trip%20to%20BULLHEAD%20CITY%5EJ%20AZ%20%5E5APR.%2010%20-%20APR.%2014%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=92&isFromRichUpload=1
Saturday, April 10, 2010
YUMA & ALGODONES… Side trips, county fairs, and friendly visits (MAR. 28 - APR. 9, 2010)
Can’t believe it’s almost two weeks since I updated my Blog…
(Sorry, Gede, you’re gonna have to get used to not having my stories put you to sleep at night… There‘s still some time, though, to get weaned, since I intend to keep plugging along until we’re home)…
Let me see…
What to tell you…
We were at Yuma Lakes until April 3...
OK place, but that’s about it…
I’m almost sure I’ve told you that Yuma Lakes is located on the outskirts of hundreds (or maybe thousands) of acres of agricultural fields, so there’s a dust problem when the farmers plow and there’s a wind…
Thank goodness, we didn’t have too much wind while there, so, I guess, I can’t complain too much about that…
Actually, of the fourteen days we were at Yuma Lakes, we didn’t spend all that much time in the park itself… It seems we were always on the go to see or do things…
Yuma County Fair was happening, and we were kind of excited about going there, but it turned out it was just like any other Fair: Lots to occupy kids, but not so much for us Old-timers…
Ever since we arrived in Yuma, we’ve been pretty religious about spending our mornings in either the hot tub or pool, or both…
At Yuma Lakes they didn’t want you in there until 8 AM, but here at Westwind, we can use the “swimming holes” any time we want, so that was a deciding factor in choosing this place for ”Snow birding” next Fall…
We like to get up around 6:30 - 7:00 to wash away the night, and at that time of the morning, there are very seldom anybody else around, so we have the facilities all to ourselves… Pretty nice!
One of the pastimes here is to visit Flee Markets…
There are two…
One is fairly large, and is located West of town, and the other is humongous, and located a few miles from where we’re staying (at Westwind), in what they call the Foothills…
It takes both stamina and fortitude to walk through it all without blowing a hole in your wallet…
As I said, we moved back to Westwind on April 3, and absolutely love the place…
The people are incredibly friendly, and the Park is beautifully maintained…
The pool is of fair size, but the hot tub is the biggest one we’ve ever seen…
It’s kidney shaped, and, though I haven’t measured it, I bet it’s at least 30 feet long and about 8 feet wide…
To top that off, Westwind offers a fabulous 9-hole golf course, a Pro Shop, and a restaurant and bar, which are all factors in us choosing this place for our future Winter getaways…
On April 4, we had a 7.2 earthquake, which was something to behold… It “only” lasted 45 seconds (I hear), but it seemed like it would never end… You should’ve seen the trailer and the truck do the Boogie…
For that matter, you should’ve seen Luanne’s face (she’d been in taking a nap) when she waddled out from the bedroom, hanging on to whatever was handy… “What do I do,” she yelled, all panicky and scared to death… Macho me offered: “Hang on to your pantyhose, Baby, and ride it out!”
Hey, I figured the trailer was the best place to be, since it’s used to twists, turns, and shakes…
I was probably right, but it was quite a ride… One we’ll remember for a long, long time…
We’ve been to Los Algodones quite a few times these past few weeks…
The first time was to get our teeth cleaned…
Had an appointment at 2:00 one day, but when we got there, we found the dentist was running 3 to 4 hours late, so we rescheduled for an early appointment on the 5th.
I got the best cleaning I’ve had in many years, and it only set me back $50.00 for the two of us…
Made an appointment for next August to get a gold crown… The cost… $190.00... Can’t get that in the States for that price, that’s for sure…
Other than that, and going shopping at a brand new Walmart Supercenter (a couple of miles away from us), and at Fry’s grocery store, we’ve taken some long rides around the countryside… Took our bikes in to get them tuned up the other day, so we’re now all over the place without clanks or squeaks… It’s fairly flat around here (in the Foothills), so it’s easy riding…
What else?
Oh, yeah…
For 100 bucks, I had some little Mexicans wash and wax the trailer the other day (they tossed in washing the car)… Both vehicles needed it badly, and since I refuse to do things like that in nearly 90 degree weather, I thought it was a good deal…
So, here’s a good one:
We met the cutest little bartender at the local hangout for Snow birders…
Luanne was taken by her hair (I was taken by the whole package), and, through her, we met her hairdresser/stylist (or whatever you want to call these folks), who works at the Marine Base three days of the week… His name is Ken, and the days he’s not working at the Base, he goes around cutting people’s hair at their home… Hence, for the first time in our lives, we had a professional come to our Wagon Wheel and cut our manes… Are we catching up with the Jet set, or what?
Last Thursday (around 10:30am), our very good friend, Mavis, arrived from Arizona City (about a 3½ hr drive) for an overnight visit…
We spent a few minutes sitting around shooting the breeze, then headed over to Algodones, where she bought all kinds of medicines for her friends back home…
I tell you… Algodones would cease to exist if it wasn’t for Americans coming over the border to get their teeth fixed, get new glasses, or buy medicine…
Why does everything in the States cost so much more than here? Another conundrum, huh?
We stopped at the Quechan Casino on the way back, but didn’t win anything… Not that we expected to, you understand… But it’s fun now and again…
Anyway, when we got home we stopped at Westwind’s Restaurant and Bar for dinner and drinks…
At home, afterwards, a new friend, Earl, came by to invite us over to a party, but Mavis didn’t want to go, but said Lu and I should, so we did for about half an hour…
We’ve now met a great bunch of people around here, but don’t ask me what their names are (hopefully, that’ll change with time)… The thing is, they’re all so very, very friendly and accommodating… We even got an invitation to go golfing tomorrow morning (Sunday, 11th), at 8:30, which will be kind of challenging since neither Lu nor I have touched a golf club in more than what? four years?
Oh, well… Nothing ventured, nothing gained…
We had a great time visiting with Mavis after we got home… Always nice to see dear friends, that’s for sure…
She left yesterday morning after we had a wonderful farewell breakfast at the Daybreaker restaurant (up the street)…
I think that’s all I have to tell you for now…
Like I said up at the top, I’m planning to keep the Blog up until we get home, so check back again one of these days to see if I’ve gotten the lead out and posted some new stuff…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/YUMA%20%5E0%20ALGODONES%e2%80%a6%20Side%20trips%5EJ%20county%20fairs%5EJ%20and%20friendly%20visits%20%5E5MAR.%2028%20-%20APR.%209%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=56&isFromRichUpload=1
(Sorry, Gede, you’re gonna have to get used to not having my stories put you to sleep at night… There‘s still some time, though, to get weaned, since I intend to keep plugging along until we’re home)…
Let me see…
What to tell you…
We were at Yuma Lakes until April 3...
OK place, but that’s about it…
I’m almost sure I’ve told you that Yuma Lakes is located on the outskirts of hundreds (or maybe thousands) of acres of agricultural fields, so there’s a dust problem when the farmers plow and there’s a wind…
Thank goodness, we didn’t have too much wind while there, so, I guess, I can’t complain too much about that…
Actually, of the fourteen days we were at Yuma Lakes, we didn’t spend all that much time in the park itself… It seems we were always on the go to see or do things…
Yuma County Fair was happening, and we were kind of excited about going there, but it turned out it was just like any other Fair: Lots to occupy kids, but not so much for us Old-timers…
Ever since we arrived in Yuma, we’ve been pretty religious about spending our mornings in either the hot tub or pool, or both…
At Yuma Lakes they didn’t want you in there until 8 AM, but here at Westwind, we can use the “swimming holes” any time we want, so that was a deciding factor in choosing this place for ”Snow birding” next Fall…
We like to get up around 6:30 - 7:00 to wash away the night, and at that time of the morning, there are very seldom anybody else around, so we have the facilities all to ourselves… Pretty nice!
One of the pastimes here is to visit Flee Markets…
There are two…
One is fairly large, and is located West of town, and the other is humongous, and located a few miles from where we’re staying (at Westwind), in what they call the Foothills…
It takes both stamina and fortitude to walk through it all without blowing a hole in your wallet…
As I said, we moved back to Westwind on April 3, and absolutely love the place…
The people are incredibly friendly, and the Park is beautifully maintained…
The pool is of fair size, but the hot tub is the biggest one we’ve ever seen…
It’s kidney shaped, and, though I haven’t measured it, I bet it’s at least 30 feet long and about 8 feet wide…
To top that off, Westwind offers a fabulous 9-hole golf course, a Pro Shop, and a restaurant and bar, which are all factors in us choosing this place for our future Winter getaways…
On April 4, we had a 7.2 earthquake, which was something to behold… It “only” lasted 45 seconds (I hear), but it seemed like it would never end… You should’ve seen the trailer and the truck do the Boogie…
For that matter, you should’ve seen Luanne’s face (she’d been in taking a nap) when she waddled out from the bedroom, hanging on to whatever was handy… “What do I do,” she yelled, all panicky and scared to death… Macho me offered: “Hang on to your pantyhose, Baby, and ride it out!”
Hey, I figured the trailer was the best place to be, since it’s used to twists, turns, and shakes…
I was probably right, but it was quite a ride… One we’ll remember for a long, long time…
We’ve been to Los Algodones quite a few times these past few weeks…
The first time was to get our teeth cleaned…
Had an appointment at 2:00 one day, but when we got there, we found the dentist was running 3 to 4 hours late, so we rescheduled for an early appointment on the 5th.
I got the best cleaning I’ve had in many years, and it only set me back $50.00 for the two of us…
Made an appointment for next August to get a gold crown… The cost… $190.00... Can’t get that in the States for that price, that’s for sure…
Other than that, and going shopping at a brand new Walmart Supercenter (a couple of miles away from us), and at Fry’s grocery store, we’ve taken some long rides around the countryside… Took our bikes in to get them tuned up the other day, so we’re now all over the place without clanks or squeaks… It’s fairly flat around here (in the Foothills), so it’s easy riding…
What else?
Oh, yeah…
For 100 bucks, I had some little Mexicans wash and wax the trailer the other day (they tossed in washing the car)… Both vehicles needed it badly, and since I refuse to do things like that in nearly 90 degree weather, I thought it was a good deal…
So, here’s a good one:
We met the cutest little bartender at the local hangout for Snow birders…
Luanne was taken by her hair (I was taken by the whole package), and, through her, we met her hairdresser/stylist (or whatever you want to call these folks), who works at the Marine Base three days of the week… His name is Ken, and the days he’s not working at the Base, he goes around cutting people’s hair at their home… Hence, for the first time in our lives, we had a professional come to our Wagon Wheel and cut our manes… Are we catching up with the Jet set, or what?
Last Thursday (around 10:30am), our very good friend, Mavis, arrived from Arizona City (about a 3½ hr drive) for an overnight visit…
We spent a few minutes sitting around shooting the breeze, then headed over to Algodones, where she bought all kinds of medicines for her friends back home…
I tell you… Algodones would cease to exist if it wasn’t for Americans coming over the border to get their teeth fixed, get new glasses, or buy medicine…
Why does everything in the States cost so much more than here? Another conundrum, huh?
We stopped at the Quechan Casino on the way back, but didn’t win anything… Not that we expected to, you understand… But it’s fun now and again…
Anyway, when we got home we stopped at Westwind’s Restaurant and Bar for dinner and drinks…
At home, afterwards, a new friend, Earl, came by to invite us over to a party, but Mavis didn’t want to go, but said Lu and I should, so we did for about half an hour…
We’ve now met a great bunch of people around here, but don’t ask me what their names are (hopefully, that’ll change with time)… The thing is, they’re all so very, very friendly and accommodating… We even got an invitation to go golfing tomorrow morning (Sunday, 11th), at 8:30, which will be kind of challenging since neither Lu nor I have touched a golf club in more than what? four years?
Oh, well… Nothing ventured, nothing gained…
We had a great time visiting with Mavis after we got home… Always nice to see dear friends, that’s for sure…
She left yesterday morning after we had a wonderful farewell breakfast at the Daybreaker restaurant (up the street)…
I think that’s all I have to tell you for now…
Like I said up at the top, I’m planning to keep the Blog up until we get home, so check back again one of these days to see if I’ve gotten the lead out and posted some new stuff…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/YUMA%20%5E0%20ALGODONES%e2%80%a6%20Side%20trips%5EJ%20county%20fairs%5EJ%20and%20friendly%20visits%20%5E5MAR.%2028%20-%20APR.%209%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=56&isFromRichUpload=1
Sunday, March 28, 2010
A trip to EL CENTRO, CA, and the 2010 YUMA AIR SHOW (MAR. 26 & 27, 2010)
We were going to take it easy today (Mar. 26), but before the morning was into its prime, we buckled up and headed for El Centro, in California…
There’s a Costco there, and, evidently, our brains told us we needed a Costco fix…
It’s a 140-mile round trip, so we must’ve needed a fix pretty bad, huh?
Anyway, it was a nice ride, which took us through The Imperial Dunes Recreation Area…
A humongous sandbox where hundreds of four-wheelers gather to eat dust and sand… Must be fun…
We visited El Centro in 2000, but it seemed much smaller then…
Don’t know how many inhabitants there are, but it sure is a big town now, with huge boulevards leading to who knows where, and homes and businesses all over the place…
We had Jill take us straight to the Holy Grail (Costco)...
Oh… Backtrack…
I did tell you about Jack’s sex change, didn‘t I?
Our GPS has now gone from Molly to Jack to Jill in a matter of 9 months, and, hopefully, this’ll be the end of it… Those little people inside that gadget has ticked me off to no end over these months, but they are (for the most part) invaluable to our travels, so we put up with their idiosyncrasies and hope for the best…
My next item of importance, though, is to upgrade the little suckers, so, maybe, that‘ll get both them and me on the same track…
Only time will tell…
I had my tires rotated at Costco (actually, that was the reason we went there in the first place… Yeah, right!), and we shopped for food and got new thongs for the both of us… Lu got a new bathing suit, and I bought ink cartridges for my printer… That’s about it… Oh… Almost forgot… We had Polish Sausages for lunch… Yum, yum…
Yesterday brought the Yuma Air Show into the area…
We took off around 9:30...
After jockeying around to find a parking spot, we pulled in behind a young couple, and,
as we both climbed out of our respective cars, I put on the Coast Guard cap Nephew Mike, gave me...
Walking to the gate, they both looked at my cap and smiled, nodding their heads, saying "hello,"
which, of course, Luanne and I returned...
Nothing more was said, and we went our own ways as soon as we got through the gate...
We hadn't walked very far, however, before we noticed they were heading straight for us again...
The girl (or should I say woman) stretched out her hand, and in it were four tickets, which she explained
were tickets to get into the VIP section of the Air Show...
Since they saw my cap - they explained - and since the guy was in the Coast Guard, we were more than
welcome to join them...
Nothing else was said, except that they'd gotten the tickets from a friend of his brother (or something
like that), so, of course, we thanked them, and went our separate ways again...
At the VIP entrance (a huge area enclosed by chain link fences, right in front of the tarmac and the announcer) they took our tickets, gave us wrist bands, and we were allowed to enter...
Two long tables (probably at least 24 ft long) were set up with catered food of all kinds, and there were
soft drinks, water, and even a keg of beer, but the best part were the chairs...
Not having to stand for hours on end, is a blessing to us old folks, you know...
Anyway... Long story short...
After an hour or so, the couple happened to come by, and we struck up a conversation...
Of course, they were curious about where I'd served in the Coast Guard, and, even though I was tempted
to lie a little, I told them I'd gotten the cap from Mike...
Told them he was down in Lockport, Louisiana, and they said they were on their way there, to Eric’s new station, which I believe he said was on the North side of Lake Pontchartrain (not the Post where Mike is)...
Anyway, I dropped Mike’s name, and the guy asked me if Mike had served on the "Hamilton," in San Diego...
Can you believe that?
He then told me that Mike had been his commanding officer back when...
Is that fluky, or what?
Small world, huh?
Their names are Eric and Amy Pruitt, and we can’t begin to say how much we appreciate their kindness... Thank you, guys!
Needless to say, due to Eric and Amy, we had a fantastic experience…
We got fed very well…
We loved the show (but had troubles with the camera, which, for some reason, didn’t want to focus when planes flew by, so there’s not very many good pictures of that)…
And we found some new friends…
What more could you ask for?
That’s all for to today… Here are some of the pictures we did take:
http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/A%20trip%20to%20EL%20CENTRO%5EJ%20CA%5EJ%20and%20the%202010%20YUMA%20AIR%20SHOW%20%5E5MAR.%2026%20%5E0%2027%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=80&isFromRichUpload=1
There’s a Costco there, and, evidently, our brains told us we needed a Costco fix…
It’s a 140-mile round trip, so we must’ve needed a fix pretty bad, huh?
Anyway, it was a nice ride, which took us through The Imperial Dunes Recreation Area…
A humongous sandbox where hundreds of four-wheelers gather to eat dust and sand… Must be fun…
We visited El Centro in 2000, but it seemed much smaller then…
Don’t know how many inhabitants there are, but it sure is a big town now, with huge boulevards leading to who knows where, and homes and businesses all over the place…
We had Jill take us straight to the Holy Grail (Costco)...
Oh… Backtrack…
I did tell you about Jack’s sex change, didn‘t I?
Our GPS has now gone from Molly to Jack to Jill in a matter of 9 months, and, hopefully, this’ll be the end of it… Those little people inside that gadget has ticked me off to no end over these months, but they are (for the most part) invaluable to our travels, so we put up with their idiosyncrasies and hope for the best…
My next item of importance, though, is to upgrade the little suckers, so, maybe, that‘ll get both them and me on the same track…
Only time will tell…
I had my tires rotated at Costco (actually, that was the reason we went there in the first place… Yeah, right!), and we shopped for food and got new thongs for the both of us… Lu got a new bathing suit, and I bought ink cartridges for my printer… That’s about it… Oh… Almost forgot… We had Polish Sausages for lunch… Yum, yum…
Yesterday brought the Yuma Air Show into the area…
We took off around 9:30...
After jockeying around to find a parking spot, we pulled in behind a young couple, and,
as we both climbed out of our respective cars, I put on the Coast Guard cap Nephew Mike, gave me...
Walking to the gate, they both looked at my cap and smiled, nodding their heads, saying "hello,"
which, of course, Luanne and I returned...
Nothing more was said, and we went our own ways as soon as we got through the gate...
We hadn't walked very far, however, before we noticed they were heading straight for us again...
The girl (or should I say woman) stretched out her hand, and in it were four tickets, which she explained
were tickets to get into the VIP section of the Air Show...
Since they saw my cap - they explained - and since the guy was in the Coast Guard, we were more than
welcome to join them...
Nothing else was said, except that they'd gotten the tickets from a friend of his brother (or something
like that), so, of course, we thanked them, and went our separate ways again...
At the VIP entrance (a huge area enclosed by chain link fences, right in front of the tarmac and the announcer) they took our tickets, gave us wrist bands, and we were allowed to enter...
Two long tables (probably at least 24 ft long) were set up with catered food of all kinds, and there were
soft drinks, water, and even a keg of beer, but the best part were the chairs...
Not having to stand for hours on end, is a blessing to us old folks, you know...
Anyway... Long story short...
After an hour or so, the couple happened to come by, and we struck up a conversation...
Of course, they were curious about where I'd served in the Coast Guard, and, even though I was tempted
to lie a little, I told them I'd gotten the cap from Mike...
Told them he was down in Lockport, Louisiana, and they said they were on their way there, to Eric’s new station, which I believe he said was on the North side of Lake Pontchartrain (not the Post where Mike is)...
Anyway, I dropped Mike’s name, and the guy asked me if Mike had served on the "Hamilton," in San Diego...
Can you believe that?
He then told me that Mike had been his commanding officer back when...
Is that fluky, or what?
Small world, huh?
Their names are Eric and Amy Pruitt, and we can’t begin to say how much we appreciate their kindness... Thank you, guys!
Needless to say, due to Eric and Amy, we had a fantastic experience…
We got fed very well…
We loved the show (but had troubles with the camera, which, for some reason, didn’t want to focus when planes flew by, so there’s not very many good pictures of that)…
And we found some new friends…
What more could you ask for?
That’s all for to today… Here are some of the pictures we did take:
http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/A%20trip%20to%20EL%20CENTRO%5EJ%20CA%5EJ%20and%20the%202010%20YUMA%20AIR%20SHOW%20%5E5MAR.%2026%20%5E0%2027%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=80&isFromRichUpload=1
Thursday, March 25, 2010
YUMA, ARIZONA, AND LOS ALGODONES, MEXICO (from MAR. 18 to 25, 2010)
Well, guess it’s time to update the Blog again…
Let’s see… Where did I leave off…
Believe it’s been about a week… Nice break!
As I’ve said, there isn’t all that much to write about once you’re in a place like this, because you get into somewhat of a routine, where you tend to do the same things over and over:
Like hitting the hot tub and the pool first thing in the morning - before the “Chicken Coup” invades for their morning exercises…
You go shopping at Walmart for food (or whatever), or you spend half a day browsing one of many “flea markets” where you can buy everything from needles to haystacks…
You lay out in the sun (just long enough not to burn), then spend half an hour “cooling” off in the pool, yapping up a storm with people you meet…
Some times you take a drive in and around the neighborhood, just to check things out, and some times you luck out and find new things to do or see…
We’ve visited the old Yuma prison as well as the Pea Patch, and we’ve taken a trip into Los Algodones, Mexico (only about 40 minutes away)…
We’ve stopped by the roadway just to watch migrant Mexican workers pick lettuce, cabbage, and all kinds of other crops…
Totally amazing how they can handle working in such hot weather day in and day out - from dawn to dusk - and, probably, not at a very decent wage…
We moved (after our five days at Westwind RV and Golf Resort) to Yuma Lakes Resort for a fourteen night stay, after which, we’ll go back to Westwind again for a ten night stand…
I told you (some time back) that we had trouble with the hot water tank, and, sure enough, last Friday, it bit the dust…
Funny way it did it, too… Must’ve been a short, ’cause the electric breaker went off, and when I tried to turn it back on, there was a puff, and, all of a sudden, the alarm of the car next door started bleeping… The people came out and couldn’t figure out the problem… Sensitive thing, huh?
Of course, I didn’t tell them…
We spent some time locating a repair service, and when we finally did, we couldn’t get them to come to our site before yesterday, and yesterday we had dental appointments at 2:00, in Algodones, so there was the potential for a small conflict, but it was avoided… The repair guy finished up just in time for us to hightail it down to Mexico…
We got to our appointment with 5 minutes to spare, only to find six other customers waiting in line…
The dentist was hours delayed…
We mulled it over for a bit, then made arrangements to come back at ten o’clock, Monday, April 5...
Spent a couple of hours strolling through the town, which is nothing but a Super Flee Market, where you get bombarded by hawkers, selling everything you can buy across the border, but with the exotic twist of having to bargain in broken Spanish…
There must be a hundred dentists (and the same amount of drugstores) across the Mexican border…
Why, you ask… Well, prices are just a fraction of what we pay at home, so this is definitely a draw for us living in the U.S…
I think, though, that OUR biggest draw to this place are the Shrimp Tacos… They’re fabulous, and they’re served at a “hotdog” stand (sorry, can’t call it anything else) on a busy corner…
The waiting line is always long, but always worth the wait…
We had our first ones here in 2000, and, Luanne just told me, she saw an add that they’re celebrating their tenth anniversary… There’s a reason for them staying in business this long…
Needless to say, we had two of them yesterday, and that took care of our dinner for last night…
Unfortunately, I’ve had to spend some time working on our taxes, which only means we’re closing in on the end of our trip…
Sad but true…
Well, that’s about all for now… Just an update to let you know we’re still breathing, still having fun, and still have a bit over a month left before we get home…
Y’all have a great day, and keep an eye out for us on my Blog…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/YUMA%5EJ%20ARIZONA%5EJ%20AND%20LOS%20ALGODONES%5EJ%20MEXICO%20%5E5from%20MAR.%2018%20to%2025%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=74&isFromRichUpload=1
Let’s see… Where did I leave off…
Believe it’s been about a week… Nice break!
As I’ve said, there isn’t all that much to write about once you’re in a place like this, because you get into somewhat of a routine, where you tend to do the same things over and over:
Like hitting the hot tub and the pool first thing in the morning - before the “Chicken Coup” invades for their morning exercises…
You go shopping at Walmart for food (or whatever), or you spend half a day browsing one of many “flea markets” where you can buy everything from needles to haystacks…
You lay out in the sun (just long enough not to burn), then spend half an hour “cooling” off in the pool, yapping up a storm with people you meet…
Some times you take a drive in and around the neighborhood, just to check things out, and some times you luck out and find new things to do or see…
We’ve visited the old Yuma prison as well as the Pea Patch, and we’ve taken a trip into Los Algodones, Mexico (only about 40 minutes away)…
We’ve stopped by the roadway just to watch migrant Mexican workers pick lettuce, cabbage, and all kinds of other crops…
Totally amazing how they can handle working in such hot weather day in and day out - from dawn to dusk - and, probably, not at a very decent wage…
We moved (after our five days at Westwind RV and Golf Resort) to Yuma Lakes Resort for a fourteen night stay, after which, we’ll go back to Westwind again for a ten night stand…
I told you (some time back) that we had trouble with the hot water tank, and, sure enough, last Friday, it bit the dust…
Funny way it did it, too… Must’ve been a short, ’cause the electric breaker went off, and when I tried to turn it back on, there was a puff, and, all of a sudden, the alarm of the car next door started bleeping… The people came out and couldn’t figure out the problem… Sensitive thing, huh?
Of course, I didn’t tell them…
We spent some time locating a repair service, and when we finally did, we couldn’t get them to come to our site before yesterday, and yesterday we had dental appointments at 2:00, in Algodones, so there was the potential for a small conflict, but it was avoided… The repair guy finished up just in time for us to hightail it down to Mexico…
We got to our appointment with 5 minutes to spare, only to find six other customers waiting in line…
The dentist was hours delayed…
We mulled it over for a bit, then made arrangements to come back at ten o’clock, Monday, April 5...
Spent a couple of hours strolling through the town, which is nothing but a Super Flee Market, where you get bombarded by hawkers, selling everything you can buy across the border, but with the exotic twist of having to bargain in broken Spanish…
There must be a hundred dentists (and the same amount of drugstores) across the Mexican border…
Why, you ask… Well, prices are just a fraction of what we pay at home, so this is definitely a draw for us living in the U.S…
I think, though, that OUR biggest draw to this place are the Shrimp Tacos… They’re fabulous, and they’re served at a “hotdog” stand (sorry, can’t call it anything else) on a busy corner…
The waiting line is always long, but always worth the wait…
We had our first ones here in 2000, and, Luanne just told me, she saw an add that they’re celebrating their tenth anniversary… There’s a reason for them staying in business this long…
Needless to say, we had two of them yesterday, and that took care of our dinner for last night…
Unfortunately, I’ve had to spend some time working on our taxes, which only means we’re closing in on the end of our trip…
Sad but true…
Well, that’s about all for now… Just an update to let you know we’re still breathing, still having fun, and still have a bit over a month left before we get home…
Y’all have a great day, and keep an eye out for us on my Blog…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/YUMA%5EJ%20ARIZONA%5EJ%20AND%20LOS%20ALGODONES%5EJ%20MEXICO%20%5E5from%20MAR.%2018%20to%2025%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=74&isFromRichUpload=1
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
YUMA, AZ (MAR. 16 & 17, 2010)
Went to the pool (yesterday morning, Mar, 16) with the intent of going for some laps, but, unfortunately, I was a bit late…
A pod of ladies were in the process of doing water aerobics, so I relegated myself to the Hot tub - which is huge!
Found out the ladies (or anybody, really) has the pool set aside from 8 to 10,
so no need to hang around after I started steaming…
Went RV Park-hunting after I cooled down…
We’ve decided that Yuma is the place we want to spend our Winters, at least for the next few years…
We’ve done research, and found this area to have the warmest temps from about November to April, and we like it down here, so there you go…
The only problem is to find a decent place, with activities we’d be inclined to partake in… Hence, Park-hunting…
Actually, we absolutely love the place we‘re in, the “Westwind RV and Golf Resort,” and, so far, have not been able to find another place that compares (and we‘ve been to a dozen so far, I think)…
They have a full-time restaurant, and the Cheers Bar is located right next to the Pro Shop for the 9-hole Golf Course, which is immaculate…
Of course, there are more arts and crafts areas than you can shake a stick at (there’s even a wood shop!), and the Recreation Hall is huge enough to sport Live Entertainment from some of America’s known and unknown acts…
What more could you ask for?
So far, our stay here (two nights out of five) have been blessed with day-temps in the 80s, and nights in the high 50s… No complaints!
By the way, since we made reservations long ago (and didn’t know what we’d “run” into here), we’re moving to Yuma Lakes next Saturday for a two-week stay, and then on to Bullhead City and Laughlin for a couple of weeks before heading home…
After some soul-searching and deliberation of pros and cons, we’ve decided to make this (Westwind Resort) our Winter home-away-from-home, starting next November (more than likely)… That should get us away from the cold and snow for a few years anyway…
Enough of that…
I’m not going to elaborate too much on what we’re doing here, because the topic will more than likely be about spending time in and around the pool…
We both have appointments with a dentist, in Los Algodones, Mexico, to get our teeth cleaned, so we’ll be going there at least a couple of times over the next few weeks… Other than that, there’s no real plan, so I’m letting you know now that, henceforth (at least while we’re in Yuma) there might be some small installments on my Blog from time to time, but I’m going on “vacation” for a while, so check back, but don’t expect too much…
Sorry, but we haven’t taken too many pictures lately, so there’s not much to look at…
We did take some of the agricultural fields as we drove over to Yuma Lakes, but I’m not sure they show the immensity of the area… No wonder they call this place the vegetable garden of the U.S.
Unbelievable how big they are…
Well, that’s it for now…
To all, thank you very much for following us, and please don’t get discouraged if you don’t see an update on my Blog for a bit… I’m sure the writing-bug will catch up with me sooner than later, and you’ll get your doze of ho-hum again…
Until then, take care…
Here are the few pix we’ve taken while in Yuma: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/YUMA%5EJ%20AZ%20%5E5MAR.%2016%20%5E0%2017%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=17&isFromRichUpload=1
A pod of ladies were in the process of doing water aerobics, so I relegated myself to the Hot tub - which is huge!
Found out the ladies (or anybody, really) has the pool set aside from 8 to 10,
so no need to hang around after I started steaming…
Went RV Park-hunting after I cooled down…
We’ve decided that Yuma is the place we want to spend our Winters, at least for the next few years…
We’ve done research, and found this area to have the warmest temps from about November to April, and we like it down here, so there you go…
The only problem is to find a decent place, with activities we’d be inclined to partake in… Hence, Park-hunting…
Actually, we absolutely love the place we‘re in, the “Westwind RV and Golf Resort,” and, so far, have not been able to find another place that compares (and we‘ve been to a dozen so far, I think)…
They have a full-time restaurant, and the Cheers Bar is located right next to the Pro Shop for the 9-hole Golf Course, which is immaculate…
Of course, there are more arts and crafts areas than you can shake a stick at (there’s even a wood shop!), and the Recreation Hall is huge enough to sport Live Entertainment from some of America’s known and unknown acts…
What more could you ask for?
So far, our stay here (two nights out of five) have been blessed with day-temps in the 80s, and nights in the high 50s… No complaints!
By the way, since we made reservations long ago (and didn’t know what we’d “run” into here), we’re moving to Yuma Lakes next Saturday for a two-week stay, and then on to Bullhead City and Laughlin for a couple of weeks before heading home…
After some soul-searching and deliberation of pros and cons, we’ve decided to make this (Westwind Resort) our Winter home-away-from-home, starting next November (more than likely)… That should get us away from the cold and snow for a few years anyway…
Enough of that…
I’m not going to elaborate too much on what we’re doing here, because the topic will more than likely be about spending time in and around the pool…
We both have appointments with a dentist, in Los Algodones, Mexico, to get our teeth cleaned, so we’ll be going there at least a couple of times over the next few weeks… Other than that, there’s no real plan, so I’m letting you know now that, henceforth (at least while we’re in Yuma) there might be some small installments on my Blog from time to time, but I’m going on “vacation” for a while, so check back, but don’t expect too much…
Sorry, but we haven’t taken too many pictures lately, so there’s not much to look at…
We did take some of the agricultural fields as we drove over to Yuma Lakes, but I’m not sure they show the immensity of the area… No wonder they call this place the vegetable garden of the U.S.
Unbelievable how big they are…
Well, that’s it for now…
To all, thank you very much for following us, and please don’t get discouraged if you don’t see an update on my Blog for a bit… I’m sure the writing-bug will catch up with me sooner than later, and you’ll get your doze of ho-hum again…
Until then, take care…
Here are the few pix we’ve taken while in Yuma: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/YUMA%5EJ%20AZ%20%5E5MAR.%2016%20%5E0%2017%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=17&isFromRichUpload=1
Monday, March 15, 2010
SIERRA VISTA, and from BENSON to YUMA, AZ (MAR. 14 & 15, 2010)
Mar. 14...
Didn’t have too much on the agenda today, so we did a load of laundry while pondering what to do…
The truck needed an oil change, so we finally decided to forego another trip into Tucson, and, instead, get that done (even though we would’ve loved to have another stab at this great city)…
Because Benson‘s Walmart didn‘t have a “Tire and Lube Center,“ we had to drive over to Sierra Vista (about 30 miles West of Benson)…
NOTE: There’s a military base around here somewhere, ‘cause we ran into a fair share of guys (and gals) with military haircuts and demeanor (did I cover myself?), and some of the people we talked to had that special military way of talking…
You know: Yes, Sir… No, Sir… Ma’am… That kind of crap… (you know what I mean)… Hell, the last time I was addressed as Sir was when I gave this guy a few bucks for parking my car in a sleazy part of some town somewhere (I didn’t like it then, and I just can’t get used to it… Even though I got my car back)…
No matter… We hightailed it to Sierra Vista, and then spent the next two hours waiting around… There’s only so much you can see and do at a Walmart, so the time spent went excruciatingly slow, but we managed… Read that as: The BOSS didn‘t spend too much out of the ordinary, so we got out of there without going broke… There’s something to be said about that…
Filled the truck up on the way home (cost me an arm and a leg, and half a mortgage, but we‘re good to go in the morning…
Stopped by our favorite watering hole (The Arena Bar, on the outskirts of Benson), and watched a couple of cowpokes practice roping a few cows from our window seats, while nourishing some refreshments…
Now tell me - honestly - where can you find another bar like that?
Don’t we live a charmed life?
Mar. 15...
Another blue sky… Another wonderful morning…
Up at 7:00, and on the road a little after 8:00...
All went quite well until we were stopped by a “pissant” officer (of the State Patrol type)…
Evidently, I didn’t “move over” to the left lane, when I passed him, but, obviously, he didn’t have much to do this morning, so he set his sights on innocent “foreign” travelers (I am Norwegian… OK?!)…
Now… He did have his Christmas Tree Lights going, but the guy he had stopped (before me) was pulling out and was long gone by the time I caught up with the Trooper and his flashing lights, and…
Wait for this…
There was a semi truck in the left lane beside me, so I couldn’t move over…
We spent about 15 - 20 minutes (at the side of the road) while waiting for him to go back to his vehicle, and come back with the verdict…
NOT GUILTY!
Of course, he didn’t quite think I was innocent, so he gave me a Warning Ticket…
Life in Arizona is so unfair for us foreigners!
Wonder if illegal Mexicans cause that kind of reaction?
Probably not… But who knows?
As a result of this mishandling of personal rights, we were about 20 minutes late for our meeting with our wonderful friend, Mavis Fey, which was to take place at the Iron Skillet (Exit 200 off I-10)...
Since she’s such a good personage, she forgave us, and even bought us breakfast, which was totally uncalled for, but tremendously appreciated…
We‘ll make up for it when you come to Yuma for a visit… OK?
After getting our bellies saturated, and bidding Mavis “adjø” (Norwegian for adjø… Learn it, or die!)
we headed West on I-8...
I programmed “Jack” last night to take us to the address of our new RV Park (the Westwind), in Yuma…
I didn’t check with any of our paper maps, because, as soon as I put the address in, he came right up with “Drive to… etc… etc…”
Figured he had it down pat…
WRONG!
When we got to Yuma, he had us leave I-8 at Exit 2 (that‘s 2 miles from the California border), then one turn after another lead us into the toolies…
When we finally arrived at the place he thought was our RV Park, we were, in fact, in the middle of the
“American Lettuce Basket” (look at the pictures)…
We headed South (BIG mistake!), thinking we’d be able to make a left (back to the freeway), but the lettuce fields (or whatever they were) were so huge, and there were no cross streets for miles, so it seemed like we were half way to Belize before we could finally turn…
Please remember I’m hauling a 30-foot trailer behind me, so it’s not all that easy to make a turn, if you know what I‘m saying…
Well, long story short… We spent at least an hour, and drove probably more than 30 extra miles, because “Jack” had fun steering us astray…
I was not pleased, and Luanne must’ve been more so, because she yelled at me when I vented my frustration in a not-so-gentlemanly-way…
We had a quiet time (while I contemplated my outburst - and hers), and then I spoke out loud: “That bastard is done for! He’s gonna be a girl from now on! Good bye Jack! Hello Molly!”
Lu called the RV Park and got directions…
Found I-8, and headed back East to Exit 12, and entered a fine-looking RV Park, where we’ll spend the next five nights…
Everything we could possibly want for in recreation is here… Swimming Pool… Hot tub… Library… Shuffle Board… Cafeteria… Bar…
Oh, I could go on, but I’ll let the pictures tell the story as the days go by… How’s that?
Will say that we met some very friendly people already, and Luanne is absolutely giddy with delight of finding a place like this right off the bat…
That’s it for tonight…
We have a bunch of things to do and see around here in the next four weeks (among them is a visit to the dentist for some cleaning), so we’ll see how the Blog comes into play… Not going to promise an update every night, but we’ll see…
Until we meet again, then… Safe travels to all…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/SIERRA%20VISTA%5EJ%20and%20from%20BENSON%20to%20YUMA%5EJ%20AZ%20%5E5MAR.%2014%20%5E0%2015%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=67&isFromRichUpload=1
Didn’t have too much on the agenda today, so we did a load of laundry while pondering what to do…
The truck needed an oil change, so we finally decided to forego another trip into Tucson, and, instead, get that done (even though we would’ve loved to have another stab at this great city)…
Because Benson‘s Walmart didn‘t have a “Tire and Lube Center,“ we had to drive over to Sierra Vista (about 30 miles West of Benson)…
NOTE: There’s a military base around here somewhere, ‘cause we ran into a fair share of guys (and gals) with military haircuts and demeanor (did I cover myself?), and some of the people we talked to had that special military way of talking…
You know: Yes, Sir… No, Sir… Ma’am… That kind of crap… (you know what I mean)… Hell, the last time I was addressed as Sir was when I gave this guy a few bucks for parking my car in a sleazy part of some town somewhere (I didn’t like it then, and I just can’t get used to it… Even though I got my car back)…
No matter… We hightailed it to Sierra Vista, and then spent the next two hours waiting around… There’s only so much you can see and do at a Walmart, so the time spent went excruciatingly slow, but we managed… Read that as: The BOSS didn‘t spend too much out of the ordinary, so we got out of there without going broke… There’s something to be said about that…
Filled the truck up on the way home (cost me an arm and a leg, and half a mortgage, but we‘re good to go in the morning…
Stopped by our favorite watering hole (The Arena Bar, on the outskirts of Benson), and watched a couple of cowpokes practice roping a few cows from our window seats, while nourishing some refreshments…
Now tell me - honestly - where can you find another bar like that?
Don’t we live a charmed life?
Mar. 15...
Another blue sky… Another wonderful morning…
Up at 7:00, and on the road a little after 8:00...
All went quite well until we were stopped by a “pissant” officer (of the State Patrol type)…
Evidently, I didn’t “move over” to the left lane, when I passed him, but, obviously, he didn’t have much to do this morning, so he set his sights on innocent “foreign” travelers (I am Norwegian… OK?!)…
Now… He did have his Christmas Tree Lights going, but the guy he had stopped (before me) was pulling out and was long gone by the time I caught up with the Trooper and his flashing lights, and…
Wait for this…
There was a semi truck in the left lane beside me, so I couldn’t move over…
We spent about 15 - 20 minutes (at the side of the road) while waiting for him to go back to his vehicle, and come back with the verdict…
NOT GUILTY!
Of course, he didn’t quite think I was innocent, so he gave me a Warning Ticket…
Life in Arizona is so unfair for us foreigners!
Wonder if illegal Mexicans cause that kind of reaction?
Probably not… But who knows?
As a result of this mishandling of personal rights, we were about 20 minutes late for our meeting with our wonderful friend, Mavis Fey, which was to take place at the Iron Skillet (Exit 200 off I-10)...
Since she’s such a good personage, she forgave us, and even bought us breakfast, which was totally uncalled for, but tremendously appreciated…
We‘ll make up for it when you come to Yuma for a visit… OK?
After getting our bellies saturated, and bidding Mavis “adjø” (Norwegian for adjø… Learn it, or die!)
we headed West on I-8...
I programmed “Jack” last night to take us to the address of our new RV Park (the Westwind), in Yuma…
I didn’t check with any of our paper maps, because, as soon as I put the address in, he came right up with “Drive to… etc… etc…”
Figured he had it down pat…
WRONG!
When we got to Yuma, he had us leave I-8 at Exit 2 (that‘s 2 miles from the California border), then one turn after another lead us into the toolies…
When we finally arrived at the place he thought was our RV Park, we were, in fact, in the middle of the
“American Lettuce Basket” (look at the pictures)…
We headed South (BIG mistake!), thinking we’d be able to make a left (back to the freeway), but the lettuce fields (or whatever they were) were so huge, and there were no cross streets for miles, so it seemed like we were half way to Belize before we could finally turn…
Please remember I’m hauling a 30-foot trailer behind me, so it’s not all that easy to make a turn, if you know what I‘m saying…
Well, long story short… We spent at least an hour, and drove probably more than 30 extra miles, because “Jack” had fun steering us astray…
I was not pleased, and Luanne must’ve been more so, because she yelled at me when I vented my frustration in a not-so-gentlemanly-way…
We had a quiet time (while I contemplated my outburst - and hers), and then I spoke out loud: “That bastard is done for! He’s gonna be a girl from now on! Good bye Jack! Hello Molly!”
Lu called the RV Park and got directions…
Found I-8, and headed back East to Exit 12, and entered a fine-looking RV Park, where we’ll spend the next five nights…
Everything we could possibly want for in recreation is here… Swimming Pool… Hot tub… Library… Shuffle Board… Cafeteria… Bar…
Oh, I could go on, but I’ll let the pictures tell the story as the days go by… How’s that?
Will say that we met some very friendly people already, and Luanne is absolutely giddy with delight of finding a place like this right off the bat…
That’s it for tonight…
We have a bunch of things to do and see around here in the next four weeks (among them is a visit to the dentist for some cleaning), so we’ll see how the Blog comes into play… Not going to promise an update every night, but we’ll see…
Until we meet again, then… Safe travels to all…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/SIERRA%20VISTA%5EJ%20and%20from%20BENSON%20to%20YUMA%5EJ%20AZ%20%5E5MAR.%2014%20%5E0%2015%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=67&isFromRichUpload=1
Saturday, March 13, 2010
TUCSON, ARIZONA (MAR. 13, 2010)
Since it was “only” about 40-some miles, we decided (at 9:00AM) to take a drive into Tucson, and - let me tell you - we found a new favorite place!
The City is nestled between the Tucson and the Santa Catalina Mountains, and it’s idyllic, beautiful, and all those great words that describes peace and quiet…
Not knowing what to do and what to see, we asked “Jack” to take us to a Visitors Center, which he gladly did (now that we have an understanding - See previous Blogs), and that happened to land us smack in the middle of an incredible complex called the Convention and Visitors Bureau…
Please see pictures, because it is very tastefully done, and very colorful…
Found out there are all kinds of things to see and do in town (and the surrounding area) all year round, but there were several things going on this weekend, which we thought we’d take a look at, and, so, we started out by visiting The Old Town Artisans Plaza…
Very unique in that you walk in at any one of the four corners (it takes up a whole block), and then stroll through shops, boutiques, and art galleries by interconnected doors… In other words, you don’t have to go outdoors at all, unless you want to sit and relax in the inner courtyard, where you’ll find the Cocina Restaurant…
We were told there were going to be Aztec entertainers at noon, 2:00, and 4:00, so, since we had a lot of time on our hands, we decided to drive down to San Xavier del Bac Mission, a Mission that goes way back to when those Spaniards were running things around here…
We had no idea we would run right into the 28th Annual “WA:K POWWOW”
(a conglomeration of Indian Tribes from all over the Nation), which was to take place at the “back” lot of the Mission, starting a half hour after we arrived…
We’ve never been to a powwow, so we had no idea of what to expect, but we thought, what the hey, and paid the $3 for parking, and the $18 to get in…
Not going to say anything other than we had a fabulous time; we had two home-made beef tacos each, which an older Indian lady took ten minutes to make from scratch (and it was the best tacos I‘ve ever had), and we watched a most vibrant and colorful pageant saturated in tradition and history…
Look at the pictures, and you’ll see what I mean…
We didn’t leave until after 3:00, when we scooted back to Old Town Artisans - to catch the Aztecs - and to have dinner at the Cocina Restaurant…
We got ourselves a table out in the courtyard, and, for about half an hour, we listened to Tom Short play fabulous Jazz and Blues on his guitar… He was so good, I broke down and got his CD…
After dinner we went home via a quick trip to Costco, where Lu needed to get a couple of slabs of ham…
Don’t know why she had to go to Costco for that, but mine is not to question why… Etcetera…
Stopped by the Arena Bar (in Benson) for a nightcap, then home to get this Blog and pictures posted, so we can start all over again tomorrow…
Don’t actually know if we’re heading back to Tucson tomorrow (‘cause Lu’s in bed), but we talked about it earlier, so there’s a chance we’ll make a return trip…
There’s a Jazz Festival up in some canyon, and all sorts of other things (like a movie lot - where a lot of Westerns were shot), but who knows, we’ll see tomorrow…
Until then, then…
Take a look at today’s pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/TUCSON%5EJ%20ARIZONA%20%5E5MAR.%2013%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=166&isFromRichUpload=1
The City is nestled between the Tucson and the Santa Catalina Mountains, and it’s idyllic, beautiful, and all those great words that describes peace and quiet…
Not knowing what to do and what to see, we asked “Jack” to take us to a Visitors Center, which he gladly did (now that we have an understanding - See previous Blogs), and that happened to land us smack in the middle of an incredible complex called the Convention and Visitors Bureau…
Please see pictures, because it is very tastefully done, and very colorful…
Found out there are all kinds of things to see and do in town (and the surrounding area) all year round, but there were several things going on this weekend, which we thought we’d take a look at, and, so, we started out by visiting The Old Town Artisans Plaza…
Very unique in that you walk in at any one of the four corners (it takes up a whole block), and then stroll through shops, boutiques, and art galleries by interconnected doors… In other words, you don’t have to go outdoors at all, unless you want to sit and relax in the inner courtyard, where you’ll find the Cocina Restaurant…
We were told there were going to be Aztec entertainers at noon, 2:00, and 4:00, so, since we had a lot of time on our hands, we decided to drive down to San Xavier del Bac Mission, a Mission that goes way back to when those Spaniards were running things around here…
We had no idea we would run right into the 28th Annual “WA:K POWWOW”
(a conglomeration of Indian Tribes from all over the Nation), which was to take place at the “back” lot of the Mission, starting a half hour after we arrived…
We’ve never been to a powwow, so we had no idea of what to expect, but we thought, what the hey, and paid the $3 for parking, and the $18 to get in…
Not going to say anything other than we had a fabulous time; we had two home-made beef tacos each, which an older Indian lady took ten minutes to make from scratch (and it was the best tacos I‘ve ever had), and we watched a most vibrant and colorful pageant saturated in tradition and history…
Look at the pictures, and you’ll see what I mean…
We didn’t leave until after 3:00, when we scooted back to Old Town Artisans - to catch the Aztecs - and to have dinner at the Cocina Restaurant…
We got ourselves a table out in the courtyard, and, for about half an hour, we listened to Tom Short play fabulous Jazz and Blues on his guitar… He was so good, I broke down and got his CD…
After dinner we went home via a quick trip to Costco, where Lu needed to get a couple of slabs of ham…
Don’t know why she had to go to Costco for that, but mine is not to question why… Etcetera…
Stopped by the Arena Bar (in Benson) for a nightcap, then home to get this Blog and pictures posted, so we can start all over again tomorrow…
Don’t actually know if we’re heading back to Tucson tomorrow (‘cause Lu’s in bed), but we talked about it earlier, so there’s a chance we’ll make a return trip…
There’s a Jazz Festival up in some canyon, and all sorts of other things (like a movie lot - where a lot of Westerns were shot), but who knows, we’ll see tomorrow…
Until then, then…
Take a look at today’s pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/TUCSON%5EJ%20ARIZONA%20%5E5MAR.%2013%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=166&isFromRichUpload=1
Friday, March 12, 2010
COCHISE STRONGHOLD, CHIRICAHUA NATIONAL MONUMENT, FORT BOWIE NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE (MAR 12, 2010)
Very tired after a long day (somewhere close to 9 hours and about 220 miles of travel), so this Blog is going to be fairly short…
I’m taking some time now, while I’m waiting for my photos to upload, to give you a brief update on some of the stuff we did today…
Maybe some of it will interest you?
Took well over 300 pictures, but cut them down to 182, which is still a lot to look at, but I just couldn‘t see dropping any more than that…
I added text to quite a few of them, so you should have no problem figuring out what you’re seeing…
You can get an idea of how vast this territory is by looking at the map (the first picture)… It literally takes hours and hours to drive the “short” distance we did today, and when you take into account stopping and hiking, you soon have a full day on your hand…
I took quite a few pictures of plaques (posted here, there, and everywhere) at the sites we visited… They’re a great source of information, and they help me remember whatever I need to remember, if I ever should need it…
I hope that information will help you as well…
I think both Luanne and I got the most pleasure of visiting the Stronghold of the Apache Chief, Cochise, and Fort Bowie, but the Chiricahua National Monument is totally awesome also… Mother Nature has been very busy here, and it’s a must-see if you’re ever in this area…
We had a spectacular day today, by the way… No wind, clear, blue skies, and an abundance of sun… It looks like the weather is finally going to straighten up and behave for the foreseeable future, and it’s about time… We need to get some tan before venturing back to the Northwest…
My pictures just finished uploading, and I’m going to end this mess and go to bed… Later, Y’all…….
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/COCHISE%20STRONGHOLD%5EJ%20CHIRICAHUA%20NATIONAL%20MONUMENT%5EJ%20FORT%20BOWIE%20NATIONAL%20HISTORIC%20SITE%20%5E5MAR%2012%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=182&isFromRichUpload=1
I’m taking some time now, while I’m waiting for my photos to upload, to give you a brief update on some of the stuff we did today…
Maybe some of it will interest you?
Took well over 300 pictures, but cut them down to 182, which is still a lot to look at, but I just couldn‘t see dropping any more than that…
I added text to quite a few of them, so you should have no problem figuring out what you’re seeing…
You can get an idea of how vast this territory is by looking at the map (the first picture)… It literally takes hours and hours to drive the “short” distance we did today, and when you take into account stopping and hiking, you soon have a full day on your hand…
I took quite a few pictures of plaques (posted here, there, and everywhere) at the sites we visited… They’re a great source of information, and they help me remember whatever I need to remember, if I ever should need it…
I hope that information will help you as well…
I think both Luanne and I got the most pleasure of visiting the Stronghold of the Apache Chief, Cochise, and Fort Bowie, but the Chiricahua National Monument is totally awesome also… Mother Nature has been very busy here, and it’s a must-see if you’re ever in this area…
We had a spectacular day today, by the way… No wind, clear, blue skies, and an abundance of sun… It looks like the weather is finally going to straighten up and behave for the foreseeable future, and it’s about time… We need to get some tan before venturing back to the Northwest…
My pictures just finished uploading, and I’m going to end this mess and go to bed… Later, Y’all…….
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/COCHISE%20STRONGHOLD%5EJ%20CHIRICAHUA%20NATIONAL%20MONUMENT%5EJ%20FORT%20BOWIE%20NATIONAL%20HISTORIC%20SITE%20%5E5MAR%2012%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=182&isFromRichUpload=1
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
BENSON, TOMBSTONE & BISBEE, AZ (MAR. 10, 2010)
As you probably know, this area literally bristles with Old West history, and should I take the time to write about all of it, I’d be here ‘till Doomsday, and that’s only if a gaggle of historians did the research for me, ’cause I sure don’t know much about any of it, except for maybe some highlights here and there…
Guess what I’m saying is that I don’t want to add my meager scribbles (about the cowboy era) to the millions of volumes already on the shelves…
Did that make sense?
What it boils down to is that I’m trying get out of writing a long and tedious essay, so, then, in the interest of brevity here on the Blog, I took a slug of pictures, which, hopefully, will give you a feel for “things” from days of yore, and, maybe, guide you in your own exploration of interesting facts about some of the historic characters and the times they lived…
Can you see yourself a hundred-and-some years ago, riding into Tombstone (on an incredibly hot day in August), bellying up to the bar, next to Wyatt Earp and his brothers, at the Bird Cage Theatre, of course, since that was one of their favorite hangouts, or sitting down at the table (in the basement) playing a hand of poker with Doc Holiday?
Since you’re dreaming, why not picture yourself being an eyewitness to the gunfight at the OK Corral… Can you smell the gunpowder?
How about spending months and months, year in and year out, in the Queen copper mines of Bisbee, at an elevation of 5,300 feet… Wow, what hardship that must’ve been…
There are so many stories here…
Some are true…
A lot are fictitious…
Some are a little of both, but embellished to no end, just for the literary market, so legends will live on forever…
I’ve only touched on the “cowboy” side of things today, but I’ll give equal time to the Indians later - once we venture over to check out Fort Bowie…
Have you heard of Cochise and Geronimo, the Buffalo Soldiers, and the Indian Wars?
Our learning curve was enticed the last time we were here, and we hope to refresh some of those numb brain cells in a day or so…
So, without further ado, I leave you to your own exploration… Have fun…
Here are today’s crop: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/BENSON%5EJ%20TOMBSTONE%20%5E0%20BISBEE%5EJ%20AZ%20%5E5MAR.%2010%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=118&isFromRichUpload=1
Guess what I’m saying is that I don’t want to add my meager scribbles (about the cowboy era) to the millions of volumes already on the shelves…
Did that make sense?
What it boils down to is that I’m trying get out of writing a long and tedious essay, so, then, in the interest of brevity here on the Blog, I took a slug of pictures, which, hopefully, will give you a feel for “things” from days of yore, and, maybe, guide you in your own exploration of interesting facts about some of the historic characters and the times they lived…
Can you see yourself a hundred-and-some years ago, riding into Tombstone (on an incredibly hot day in August), bellying up to the bar, next to Wyatt Earp and his brothers, at the Bird Cage Theatre, of course, since that was one of their favorite hangouts, or sitting down at the table (in the basement) playing a hand of poker with Doc Holiday?
Since you’re dreaming, why not picture yourself being an eyewitness to the gunfight at the OK Corral… Can you smell the gunpowder?
How about spending months and months, year in and year out, in the Queen copper mines of Bisbee, at an elevation of 5,300 feet… Wow, what hardship that must’ve been…
There are so many stories here…
Some are true…
A lot are fictitious…
Some are a little of both, but embellished to no end, just for the literary market, so legends will live on forever…
I’ve only touched on the “cowboy” side of things today, but I’ll give equal time to the Indians later - once we venture over to check out Fort Bowie…
Have you heard of Cochise and Geronimo, the Buffalo Soldiers, and the Indian Wars?
Our learning curve was enticed the last time we were here, and we hope to refresh some of those numb brain cells in a day or so…
So, without further ado, I leave you to your own exploration… Have fun…
Here are today’s crop: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/BENSON%5EJ%20TOMBSTONE%20%5E0%20BISBEE%5EJ%20AZ%20%5E5MAR.%2010%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=118&isFromRichUpload=1
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
LAS CRUCES, NM to BENSON, AZ (MAR. 9, 2010)
For some ungodly reason Luanne got out of bed before 6:00 this morning, but she had second thoughts five minutes later, when she plumped back into bed, turned on the light to read, and was asked (very gently by yours truly) what the heck she was doing bouncing all over the place…
She didn’t take lightly to that, and got back up…
Well… My beauty sleep was shot, as you can imagine, so I crawled out of the sack myself…
Maybe because I wasn’t quite awake and didn’t fully understand what she’d said, I peaked out (as I came to the door to the “head”), and found her standing at the kitchen sink - with her back to me…
Unfortunately, I asked again (in a most gentle and unobtrusive way, you understand) what she was thinking getting up at this time of the night…
When she slowly turned my way (dead giveaway), I knew I was in trouble… Those warm, blue eyes had turned arctic, and (being the diplomat I am) I piled into the bathroom before I could hear what she said…
Moments later, however, she yells that the heater is not working, and the propane tank is probably empty…
I’m standing here stark-raving “nekked” woman! Whazza matter with you?
Go and turn the switch to the other tank yourself!
Needless to say, we had a quiet (and peaceful) road trip today…
Thought I’d share that little episode with you to let you know that we do have “spats” from time to time, but doesn’t that make life interesting?
Now… Over to something dramatic…
I mentioned, yesterday, that I might carry out a sex-change operation on “Jack” and bring “Molly” back, because he became deaf-mute on me again, and would not acknowledge anything I tried to do to make him speak…
Well, last night, I took him into the trailer (to program him for our trip today), and when I placed him in his cradle (in the truck) this morning, he started singing like a damn canary…
Can you believe that?
Amazing what a little “tough love” will get you, huh?
How and why the sudden (and unexpected) turn-around happened is beyond me, but I have a sneaking suspicion… I’m just saying…
Wow! This issue of my Blog has become a little on the weird side, huh? Sorry about that…
Guess today’s travel wasn’t very exciting, and I don’t have much to add to the description I “planted” on the pictures, so there you go… Time to write silly stuff…
Anyway, as you can see by the headline, we made it to Benson, Arizona… All on Interstate 10...
Stopped in Deming (at a Denny’s) for breakfast, and then, at a Rest Area, just a few miles from Benson, because Lu had to get rid of some water… Hey! When you gotta go, you gotta go!
And, besides, after this morning’s debacle, I wasn’t about to mention we were within minutes of our destination… I know my place in the hierarchy…
So, we got settled… Took a nap, and went out to get propane, order medicine at Walmart, and stopped at the local wet-spot for some thirst quenchers…
A note about the weather:
We were lucky today… Had clear, blue, skies and no wind all the way here.
Right after our nap, however, huge, black clouds rolled in from the West, along with strong winds that sent dust flying everywhere… Then came torrential rain, but it only lasted a short while, and they’re saying tomorrow will be great, so we’ll see…
I’m done for today, and don’t know when I’ll get back to the Blog…
Probably be a couple of days, because this is one of our all-time favorite places, with a lot of history from the “cowboy” era, and we plan to do and see a lot this coming week…
Just about every day I do put notes on my Facebook, so, if you don’t see any action here, you might want to check there…
Take care until next time…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/LAS%20CRUCES%5EJ%20NM%20to%20BENSON%5EJ%20AZ%20%5E5MAR.%209%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=57&isFromRichUpload=1
She didn’t take lightly to that, and got back up…
Well… My beauty sleep was shot, as you can imagine, so I crawled out of the sack myself…
Maybe because I wasn’t quite awake and didn’t fully understand what she’d said, I peaked out (as I came to the door to the “head”), and found her standing at the kitchen sink - with her back to me…
Unfortunately, I asked again (in a most gentle and unobtrusive way, you understand) what she was thinking getting up at this time of the night…
When she slowly turned my way (dead giveaway), I knew I was in trouble… Those warm, blue eyes had turned arctic, and (being the diplomat I am) I piled into the bathroom before I could hear what she said…
Moments later, however, she yells that the heater is not working, and the propane tank is probably empty…
I’m standing here stark-raving “nekked” woman! Whazza matter with you?
Go and turn the switch to the other tank yourself!
Needless to say, we had a quiet (and peaceful) road trip today…
Thought I’d share that little episode with you to let you know that we do have “spats” from time to time, but doesn’t that make life interesting?
Now… Over to something dramatic…
I mentioned, yesterday, that I might carry out a sex-change operation on “Jack” and bring “Molly” back, because he became deaf-mute on me again, and would not acknowledge anything I tried to do to make him speak…
Well, last night, I took him into the trailer (to program him for our trip today), and when I placed him in his cradle (in the truck) this morning, he started singing like a damn canary…
Can you believe that?
Amazing what a little “tough love” will get you, huh?
How and why the sudden (and unexpected) turn-around happened is beyond me, but I have a sneaking suspicion… I’m just saying…
Wow! This issue of my Blog has become a little on the weird side, huh? Sorry about that…
Guess today’s travel wasn’t very exciting, and I don’t have much to add to the description I “planted” on the pictures, so there you go… Time to write silly stuff…
Anyway, as you can see by the headline, we made it to Benson, Arizona… All on Interstate 10...
Stopped in Deming (at a Denny’s) for breakfast, and then, at a Rest Area, just a few miles from Benson, because Lu had to get rid of some water… Hey! When you gotta go, you gotta go!
And, besides, after this morning’s debacle, I wasn’t about to mention we were within minutes of our destination… I know my place in the hierarchy…
So, we got settled… Took a nap, and went out to get propane, order medicine at Walmart, and stopped at the local wet-spot for some thirst quenchers…
A note about the weather:
We were lucky today… Had clear, blue, skies and no wind all the way here.
Right after our nap, however, huge, black clouds rolled in from the West, along with strong winds that sent dust flying everywhere… Then came torrential rain, but it only lasted a short while, and they’re saying tomorrow will be great, so we’ll see…
I’m done for today, and don’t know when I’ll get back to the Blog…
Probably be a couple of days, because this is one of our all-time favorite places, with a lot of history from the “cowboy” era, and we plan to do and see a lot this coming week…
Just about every day I do put notes on my Facebook, so, if you don’t see any action here, you might want to check there…
Take care until next time…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/LAS%20CRUCES%5EJ%20NM%20to%20BENSON%5EJ%20AZ%20%5E5MAR.%209%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=57&isFromRichUpload=1
Monday, March 8, 2010
Architectural Gems found in LAS CRUCES & OLD MESILLA, N.M. (MAR. 8, 2010)
We got up early, mainly because we were used to the old time zone, but also because I needed to get printer ink (in order to get the check book and bank statements taken care of), so off to Walmart I went…
Programmed my good friend “Jack” and he gave me directions to a Supercenter about 3.5 miles away…
Got there, only to find they’d run out of my type…
Reprogrammed “Jack,” and he took me to another Supercenter, only a mile from the trailer… Now, why didn’t he get me there first? Conundrum…
Anyway, no ink there either…
Guide me home “Jack“…
You wouldn’t believe the route he took me… In and around neighborhoods, at least 3 miles out of my way, and to top it off, the jerk quit speaking to me before I got to our RV Park, so, of course, I didn’t pay attention (since I was used to hearing his warnings), and drove right on by…
Realized what I’d done a mile down the road… Made a U-turn, and am now in the progress of debating whether I should perform a sex-change operation on the little turd…
Maybe get Molly back?
My word, I do go on, don’t I?
Long story short: Called ahead to a couple of places (why didn’t I think about that before?), fetched my Better Half, and picked up the ink cartridge at a Office Max…
It was blowing very hard this morning (all day, actually), so, once we’d gotten the ink, we decided to take a short drive around some of the neighborhoods in Mesilla, on the way home… Took lots of pictures of wonderful Southwest Architecture…
Have to apologize for the lack of diversity in our pictures this time, but that’s because this “Adobe” design turns me on… Almost makes me want to start designing again…
Oh, well… got home and ended up taking a nap before taking off to check out the Historic District of Las Cruces… Then back to Old Mesilla again (which certainly rates among one of our favorite spots), where we strolled from shop to shop, and even found a couple of small gifts for some special people…
The evening was still early, and, since I’ve been on the vocal side about not having had a Texas steak in Texas for a few days, the Boss allowed me to take her to the “Texas Roadhouse“ (read that as STEAKHOUSE), where we indulged in some of the most fabulous animal protein we’ve ever had…
Which, of course, could only come from an authentic Texas restaurant in New Mexico…
Well stuffed, we headed home for a last night in Las Cruces…
We’re heading into Arizona tomorrow morning, and should be in Benson around 1:00, or 2:00, where we’ll be staying 6 nights, I believe (have to check the itinerary)…
Until further notice, then, we’re gone…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/Architectural%20Gems%20found%20in%20LAS%20CRUCES%20%5E0%20OLD%20MESILLA%5EJ%20N.M.%20%5E5MAR.%208%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=42&isFromRichUpload=1
Programmed my good friend “Jack” and he gave me directions to a Supercenter about 3.5 miles away…
Got there, only to find they’d run out of my type…
Reprogrammed “Jack,” and he took me to another Supercenter, only a mile from the trailer… Now, why didn’t he get me there first? Conundrum…
Anyway, no ink there either…
Guide me home “Jack“…
You wouldn’t believe the route he took me… In and around neighborhoods, at least 3 miles out of my way, and to top it off, the jerk quit speaking to me before I got to our RV Park, so, of course, I didn’t pay attention (since I was used to hearing his warnings), and drove right on by…
Realized what I’d done a mile down the road… Made a U-turn, and am now in the progress of debating whether I should perform a sex-change operation on the little turd…
Maybe get Molly back?
My word, I do go on, don’t I?
Long story short: Called ahead to a couple of places (why didn’t I think about that before?), fetched my Better Half, and picked up the ink cartridge at a Office Max…
It was blowing very hard this morning (all day, actually), so, once we’d gotten the ink, we decided to take a short drive around some of the neighborhoods in Mesilla, on the way home… Took lots of pictures of wonderful Southwest Architecture…
Have to apologize for the lack of diversity in our pictures this time, but that’s because this “Adobe” design turns me on… Almost makes me want to start designing again…
Oh, well… got home and ended up taking a nap before taking off to check out the Historic District of Las Cruces… Then back to Old Mesilla again (which certainly rates among one of our favorite spots), where we strolled from shop to shop, and even found a couple of small gifts for some special people…
The evening was still early, and, since I’ve been on the vocal side about not having had a Texas steak in Texas for a few days, the Boss allowed me to take her to the “Texas Roadhouse“ (read that as STEAKHOUSE), where we indulged in some of the most fabulous animal protein we’ve ever had…
Which, of course, could only come from an authentic Texas restaurant in New Mexico…
Well stuffed, we headed home for a last night in Las Cruces…
We’re heading into Arizona tomorrow morning, and should be in Benson around 1:00, or 2:00, where we’ll be staying 6 nights, I believe (have to check the itinerary)…
Until further notice, then, we’re gone…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/Architectural%20Gems%20found%20in%20LAS%20CRUCES%20%5E0%20OLD%20MESILLA%5EJ%20N.M.%20%5E5MAR.%208%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=42&isFromRichUpload=1
Sunday, March 7, 2010
FORT STOCKTON, TX. to LAS CRUCES, N.M. (MAR. 7, 2010)
We had another 300-miler ahead of us today, so we were out of Fort Stockton by 7:45...
Talking about Ft. Stockton, here’s an interesting tidbit I found out yesterday:
The town is sitting at 3,000 feet above sea level…
That, in itself, may not turn you on, but for me, driving from sea level (in Rockport) to here, it was an eye-opener… You see, I had no idea we climbed that high, because it’s so gradual, you think you’re driving on the flat the whole way… I thought we’d climbed a couple of hundred feet, or so… But 3,000! No way!
Now, wasn’t that interesting?
Anyway…
Today (except for the long drive), there really isn’t much to comment on…
The trip was uneventful, and almost as boring as spending a full day in Fort Stockton (with the exception of finally driving in, over, and around some real mountains… Even though they’re as bald as a baby’s derrière)…
As you can see from the pictures, there’s no real change in the landscape, until you get to the mountains, and once over them, you’re back to wide open spaces, which - oddly enough - reminds you of the Arizona desert…
We got into some traffic in El Paso, but nothing hair-raising… Got a few pictures of Juarez, Mexico, which we could see across the Rio Grande River (the border between the U.S. and Mexico)…
Amazing to look right and see prosperity, then look left and find poverty and squalor…
From El Paso it only took a little over half an hour to drive up to Las Cruces, where “Jack” almost sent us on a wild goose chase, but, thanks to the observant driver of our little convoy (does one vehicle and one trailer constitute a convoy), we managed to avoid that traumatic event, and arrived at Coachlight RV Park safe and sound…
It seems that this park spares no expense, because we were greeted by a Welcoming Committee just as we’d gotten ourselves situated…
As we always do when we arrive at a place, we spend a few restful minutes (letting the road dust settle, so to speak), and go over some of the info we have, so we can plan on what to do and see…
Well, when we opened the door (to a wonderful 75 degree warmth, I might add), we were met by an incredibly colorful rooster standing a half dozen feet away… Looking at us and making sure we were comfortable, I’m sure… Got his welcoming act on a digital image, and added that to this day’s pictures…
We’re only staying here two nights, so we took a quick trip into town - just to familiarize ourselves - and then drove to Old Mesilla (part of Las Cruces, and one of the oldest settlements in the U.S. - sometime in 1598, I believe), where we strolled around the square… We caught the end of Sunday’s “Arts and Crafts Fair,” and then had Taco dinners at “La Posta de Mesilla,” the same restaurant, and the same FABULOUS food we remember we had ten years ago…
Can’t get more authentic Mexican food than that, unless, of course, you’re in Mexico…
Well, that’s it for tonight… Getting late, and tomorrow is another day, so, until then…
Bye for now…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/FORT%20STOCKTON%5EJ%20TX.%20to%20LAS%20CRUCES%5EJ%20N.M.%20%5E5MAR.%207%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=80&isFromRichUpload=1
Talking about Ft. Stockton, here’s an interesting tidbit I found out yesterday:
The town is sitting at 3,000 feet above sea level…
That, in itself, may not turn you on, but for me, driving from sea level (in Rockport) to here, it was an eye-opener… You see, I had no idea we climbed that high, because it’s so gradual, you think you’re driving on the flat the whole way… I thought we’d climbed a couple of hundred feet, or so… But 3,000! No way!
Now, wasn’t that interesting?
Anyway…
Today (except for the long drive), there really isn’t much to comment on…
The trip was uneventful, and almost as boring as spending a full day in Fort Stockton (with the exception of finally driving in, over, and around some real mountains… Even though they’re as bald as a baby’s derrière)…
As you can see from the pictures, there’s no real change in the landscape, until you get to the mountains, and once over them, you’re back to wide open spaces, which - oddly enough - reminds you of the Arizona desert…
We got into some traffic in El Paso, but nothing hair-raising… Got a few pictures of Juarez, Mexico, which we could see across the Rio Grande River (the border between the U.S. and Mexico)…
Amazing to look right and see prosperity, then look left and find poverty and squalor…
From El Paso it only took a little over half an hour to drive up to Las Cruces, where “Jack” almost sent us on a wild goose chase, but, thanks to the observant driver of our little convoy (does one vehicle and one trailer constitute a convoy), we managed to avoid that traumatic event, and arrived at Coachlight RV Park safe and sound…
It seems that this park spares no expense, because we were greeted by a Welcoming Committee just as we’d gotten ourselves situated…
As we always do when we arrive at a place, we spend a few restful minutes (letting the road dust settle, so to speak), and go over some of the info we have, so we can plan on what to do and see…
Well, when we opened the door (to a wonderful 75 degree warmth, I might add), we were met by an incredibly colorful rooster standing a half dozen feet away… Looking at us and making sure we were comfortable, I’m sure… Got his welcoming act on a digital image, and added that to this day’s pictures…
We’re only staying here two nights, so we took a quick trip into town - just to familiarize ourselves - and then drove to Old Mesilla (part of Las Cruces, and one of the oldest settlements in the U.S. - sometime in 1598, I believe), where we strolled around the square… We caught the end of Sunday’s “Arts and Crafts Fair,” and then had Taco dinners at “La Posta de Mesilla,” the same restaurant, and the same FABULOUS food we remember we had ten years ago…
Can’t get more authentic Mexican food than that, unless, of course, you’re in Mexico…
Well, that’s it for tonight… Getting late, and tomorrow is another day, so, until then…
Bye for now…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/FORT%20STOCKTON%5EJ%20TX.%20to%20LAS%20CRUCES%5EJ%20N.M.%20%5E5MAR.%207%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=80&isFromRichUpload=1
Saturday, March 6, 2010
FORT STOCKTON, TEXAS (MAR. 6. 2010)
What to do when you’re in a sandbox…
That was the dilemma this morning, and we solved it by staying in bed a bit longer than usual…
Found my monthly bank statements were on-line, so I figured I’d spend some “quality” time with that before noon, but, when I went to print out the statements, there was a message on the printer saying I had neglected to heed four (count them: 4) other warnings about running out of ink…
Well, cheeeeeezzzz…
These electronic devices are beginning to scare me!
Next, they’ll tell me I forgot to wipe…
Ugh… That’s too much of an image…
Lu gave me permission to go and find a printer cartridge at Walmart (very convenient, since she was going to color her hair), so that’s what I did…
Of course, Walmart (the smallest Walmart we’ve ever been to) didn’t have the cartridge I needed, and having investigated numerous other “suggestions” (for where I might find the elusive container), I came up empty, and headed home…
Too soon!
I opened the door to our fine abode, and found a strange phenomenon:
Sitting on the sofa was a bizarre-looking woman with some kind of wrapper covering her upper body… There was a profusion of copper-colored hair on top of her head (last I heard, she was going “Dirty Blond”), and I took a double-take…
Well, of course, after some close scrutiny, I finally recognized her as my dearly beloved, and apologized for whatever shock and awe I may have showed…
Peace is paramount in a trailer of a mere 200-plus square feet!
Since “nothing” had worked out for us (so far) today, we decided to go for a sightseeing tour of this Godforsaken place…
Found the town to be larger than what we’d anticipated (there are just over 7,000 souls calling this home), but didn’t find more than a dozen homes larger than a stamp… Nah, that’s not fair… Most of the houses were probably 600 square feet (at least!)…
We found a huge (and I mean HUGE) town park… Swimming pool, Barbecues, and all…
There are a profusion of Mexican restaurants, and quite a few gas stations, but not much else…
Oh… Almost forgot… There’s the Historic Fort… Took us five minutes to take pictures and learn everything there’s to know about it…
Sorry… (Probably stepping on footsies here, but…) That’s all the info I have about this dirt pile…
After our outing, we took a long siesta (gotta talk the local lingo here, you know)… Reading chapter after chapter of our respective books… Snoozing in-between… And overall taking it easy the rest of the day, getting ready for tomorrow…
Can’t wait to head on out of here tomorrow morning, actually… Hopefully, to an exciting Las Cruces, New Mexico…
As you can probably guess, we’re spending the evening on the computer, and watching TV…
Time to stop this madness, and publish the Blog and pictures, which you can find here: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/FORT%20STOCKTON%5EJ%20TEXAS%20%5E5MAR.%206.%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=31&isFromRichUpload=1
That was the dilemma this morning, and we solved it by staying in bed a bit longer than usual…
Found my monthly bank statements were on-line, so I figured I’d spend some “quality” time with that before noon, but, when I went to print out the statements, there was a message on the printer saying I had neglected to heed four (count them: 4) other warnings about running out of ink…
Well, cheeeeeezzzz…
These electronic devices are beginning to scare me!
Next, they’ll tell me I forgot to wipe…
Ugh… That’s too much of an image…
Lu gave me permission to go and find a printer cartridge at Walmart (very convenient, since she was going to color her hair), so that’s what I did…
Of course, Walmart (the smallest Walmart we’ve ever been to) didn’t have the cartridge I needed, and having investigated numerous other “suggestions” (for where I might find the elusive container), I came up empty, and headed home…
Too soon!
I opened the door to our fine abode, and found a strange phenomenon:
Sitting on the sofa was a bizarre-looking woman with some kind of wrapper covering her upper body… There was a profusion of copper-colored hair on top of her head (last I heard, she was going “Dirty Blond”), and I took a double-take…
Well, of course, after some close scrutiny, I finally recognized her as my dearly beloved, and apologized for whatever shock and awe I may have showed…
Peace is paramount in a trailer of a mere 200-plus square feet!
Since “nothing” had worked out for us (so far) today, we decided to go for a sightseeing tour of this Godforsaken place…
Found the town to be larger than what we’d anticipated (there are just over 7,000 souls calling this home), but didn’t find more than a dozen homes larger than a stamp… Nah, that’s not fair… Most of the houses were probably 600 square feet (at least!)…
We found a huge (and I mean HUGE) town park… Swimming pool, Barbecues, and all…
There are a profusion of Mexican restaurants, and quite a few gas stations, but not much else…
Oh… Almost forgot… There’s the Historic Fort… Took us five minutes to take pictures and learn everything there’s to know about it…
Sorry… (Probably stepping on footsies here, but…) That’s all the info I have about this dirt pile…
After our outing, we took a long siesta (gotta talk the local lingo here, you know)… Reading chapter after chapter of our respective books… Snoozing in-between… And overall taking it easy the rest of the day, getting ready for tomorrow…
Can’t wait to head on out of here tomorrow morning, actually… Hopefully, to an exciting Las Cruces, New Mexico…
As you can probably guess, we’re spending the evening on the computer, and watching TV…
Time to stop this madness, and publish the Blog and pictures, which you can find here: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/FORT%20STOCKTON%5EJ%20TEXAS%20%5E5MAR.%206.%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=31&isFromRichUpload=1
Friday, March 5, 2010
THE ALAMO, RIVERWALK, and off to FORT STOCKTON, TX (MAR. 4 & 5, 2010)
Mar. 4...
It’s wonderful waking up to sunshine every day… Kind of gets your day going at the right beat, if you get my drift…
Oh, the wind is still persistent, and it’s still cool in the AM, but one has to take the good with the bad, I say…
We left at 8:00AM, having plans to “take in” the Alamo, and not much else today, but we found there really isn’t all that much to look at (and absorb) once you’ve walked in and around the ruins, and listened to the narrations of well versed guides…
Very interesting stuff if you’re into American Frontier History, and, especially, if you’re curious about the Texas connection… Actually, if you are, you should read James Michener‘s “TEXAS” (a very good chronicle of the early days in Texas)…
I took some pictures of plaques (placed strategically around the compound), which describes the history of the fighting here, and with that, I leave you to do your own research…
As I said, once you’ve spent a couple of hours soaking in the ambiance of this battlefield, you’re pretty much looking for a way out… And, for us, that what as easy as stepping across the street, walking down a few steps, and finding ourselves in the middle of the Riverwalk…
This place is amazing… No, really! It has everything… You don’t have to try very hard to find a place for peace and quiet, or, if you choose, find hubbub in the congregation of partygoers…
There are every conceivable eatery - from fine restaurants (playing Wolfgang or Ludwig, or some other classic dudes), to rowdy canteens with mariachi bands belching out foot stomping castanet music…
We heard the Walk is about three miles long, but they’re adding to it, and it sounds like it’ll be about 13 miles when all is said and done… Well, good for them, I say… The attraction is certainly a tourist trap, but well worth coming to San Antonio to experience…
Had lunch at “The Texas Republic,” and then headed home, thinking the almost five hours we’d spent today was enough, but, lo and behold, around 4:30, after resting our weary bones, and finding not having anything to do, we jumped in the truck and went back to the Riverwalk…
Yes, we strolled almost the whole thing once again… Amazing how many people show up after work!
It was crowded, but still fun…
Stopped at Joe’s Crab Shack before finally calling it a day…
Mar. 5...
Up early (very overcast, but not too cold), and got under way at 7:50...
Not much to talk about, really… Just a long and boring drive through the heart of Texas…
Got caught in rush hour traffic, on the South side of San Antonio, and that slowed the progress down some for about half an hour, but it eased soon after we hit I-10, so can’t complain too much…
My goodness gracious, but Texas is huge!
I believe I saw a sign, at the border with Louisiana, showing Mile Post 800-something (on Interstate 10)… Since the East-West mile posts start at the Western borders of each State, that means there’s a distance from New Mexico to Louisiana of 800-something miles…
That’s a long way, folks… Especially, if you take into consideration that Washington State is about 275 miles from the Canadian border to Oregon… Guess they’re right when they say EVERYTHING IS BIG IN TEXAS…
The terrain we drove through today ran from flat to hilly to flat… And that’s about all you can say about that…
We saw a few cows (no longhorns), and some sheep, and we passed through some “communes” which made you wonder what the heck they were thinking settling down in places like that…
The map showed a few “wide-spots” in the road between San Antonio and Fort Stockton, and since we filled up the truck yesterday, we thought we’d be good for the whole trip, but the map doesn’t show you that those “wide-spots” don’t all have gasoline for sale… My fuel gauge has been on the blink for a good while now, so I’ve had to rely on the odometer to figure out fuel mileage… Well, that’s all good and well when you’re driving on flat ground without hauling a 30-foot fully loaded trailer behind you, but today we were up and down hills (even had a headwind for a good spell), and to top that off, the “wide-spots” we were counting on for fuel were miles and miles apart, and, of course, the last one we thought would save us didn’t have any gas stations at all…
The gas gauge was stationary well below E(empty), and we had about 350 miles on the tank, with still almost 50 miles to go…
What could you do besides crossing fingers and toes… And keep on trucking…
That must’ve helped, because a mere 20 miles from Ft. Stockton, we spotted a lone station with a Diesel sign showing… Got gouged for $3.09/gal… Almost 50 cents per gallon more than most other places we’ve come across… Oh, well… When you gotta have it you gotta have it…
Anyway, that was the most traumatic experience we encountered today, so, I suppose, we’re doing OK…
Found a sand trap of an RV Park (Parkview RV Park), on the Southeastern outskirts of Fort Stockton, and had the trailer hooked up by 3:15... Laid down for a bit, then took a drive around town (if you want to call it that) to get the lay of the land, so to speak…
I can tell you this, what we saw of this town, makes us wonder where we got our information when we booked the reservation… We didn’t notice anything worth talking about, but we’ll give it another try tomorrow, since we have two nights here…
With that, I’ll bid you all a good night…
Maybe I’ll be able to add something worth while tomorrow?
Here are the latest pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/THE%20ALAMO%5EJ%20RIVERWALK%5EJ%20and%20off%20to%20FORT%20STOCKTON%5EJ%20TX%20%5E5MAR.%204%20%5E0%205%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=54&isFromRichUpload=1
It’s wonderful waking up to sunshine every day… Kind of gets your day going at the right beat, if you get my drift…
Oh, the wind is still persistent, and it’s still cool in the AM, but one has to take the good with the bad, I say…
We left at 8:00AM, having plans to “take in” the Alamo, and not much else today, but we found there really isn’t all that much to look at (and absorb) once you’ve walked in and around the ruins, and listened to the narrations of well versed guides…
Very interesting stuff if you’re into American Frontier History, and, especially, if you’re curious about the Texas connection… Actually, if you are, you should read James Michener‘s “TEXAS” (a very good chronicle of the early days in Texas)…
I took some pictures of plaques (placed strategically around the compound), which describes the history of the fighting here, and with that, I leave you to do your own research…
As I said, once you’ve spent a couple of hours soaking in the ambiance of this battlefield, you’re pretty much looking for a way out… And, for us, that what as easy as stepping across the street, walking down a few steps, and finding ourselves in the middle of the Riverwalk…
This place is amazing… No, really! It has everything… You don’t have to try very hard to find a place for peace and quiet, or, if you choose, find hubbub in the congregation of partygoers…
There are every conceivable eatery - from fine restaurants (playing Wolfgang or Ludwig, or some other classic dudes), to rowdy canteens with mariachi bands belching out foot stomping castanet music…
We heard the Walk is about three miles long, but they’re adding to it, and it sounds like it’ll be about 13 miles when all is said and done… Well, good for them, I say… The attraction is certainly a tourist trap, but well worth coming to San Antonio to experience…
Had lunch at “The Texas Republic,” and then headed home, thinking the almost five hours we’d spent today was enough, but, lo and behold, around 4:30, after resting our weary bones, and finding not having anything to do, we jumped in the truck and went back to the Riverwalk…
Yes, we strolled almost the whole thing once again… Amazing how many people show up after work!
It was crowded, but still fun…
Stopped at Joe’s Crab Shack before finally calling it a day…
Mar. 5...
Up early (very overcast, but not too cold), and got under way at 7:50...
Not much to talk about, really… Just a long and boring drive through the heart of Texas…
Got caught in rush hour traffic, on the South side of San Antonio, and that slowed the progress down some for about half an hour, but it eased soon after we hit I-10, so can’t complain too much…
My goodness gracious, but Texas is huge!
I believe I saw a sign, at the border with Louisiana, showing Mile Post 800-something (on Interstate 10)… Since the East-West mile posts start at the Western borders of each State, that means there’s a distance from New Mexico to Louisiana of 800-something miles…
That’s a long way, folks… Especially, if you take into consideration that Washington State is about 275 miles from the Canadian border to Oregon… Guess they’re right when they say EVERYTHING IS BIG IN TEXAS…
The terrain we drove through today ran from flat to hilly to flat… And that’s about all you can say about that…
We saw a few cows (no longhorns), and some sheep, and we passed through some “communes” which made you wonder what the heck they were thinking settling down in places like that…
The map showed a few “wide-spots” in the road between San Antonio and Fort Stockton, and since we filled up the truck yesterday, we thought we’d be good for the whole trip, but the map doesn’t show you that those “wide-spots” don’t all have gasoline for sale… My fuel gauge has been on the blink for a good while now, so I’ve had to rely on the odometer to figure out fuel mileage… Well, that’s all good and well when you’re driving on flat ground without hauling a 30-foot fully loaded trailer behind you, but today we were up and down hills (even had a headwind for a good spell), and to top that off, the “wide-spots” we were counting on for fuel were miles and miles apart, and, of course, the last one we thought would save us didn’t have any gas stations at all…
The gas gauge was stationary well below E(empty), and we had about 350 miles on the tank, with still almost 50 miles to go…
What could you do besides crossing fingers and toes… And keep on trucking…
That must’ve helped, because a mere 20 miles from Ft. Stockton, we spotted a lone station with a Diesel sign showing… Got gouged for $3.09/gal… Almost 50 cents per gallon more than most other places we’ve come across… Oh, well… When you gotta have it you gotta have it…
Anyway, that was the most traumatic experience we encountered today, so, I suppose, we’re doing OK…
Found a sand trap of an RV Park (Parkview RV Park), on the Southeastern outskirts of Fort Stockton, and had the trailer hooked up by 3:15... Laid down for a bit, then took a drive around town (if you want to call it that) to get the lay of the land, so to speak…
I can tell you this, what we saw of this town, makes us wonder where we got our information when we booked the reservation… We didn’t notice anything worth talking about, but we’ll give it another try tomorrow, since we have two nights here…
With that, I’ll bid you all a good night…
Maybe I’ll be able to add something worth while tomorrow?
Here are the latest pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/THE%20ALAMO%5EJ%20RIVERWALK%5EJ%20and%20off%20to%20FORT%20STOCKTON%5EJ%20TX%20%5E5MAR.%204%20%5E0%205%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=54&isFromRichUpload=1
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS (MAR. 3, 2010)
Another sunny day! Oh, I like this…
Now, having said that… I would like it to be just a bit warmer in the morning so Lu doesn’t have to turn the furnace on…
We decided to hang around this morning, and go into town a bit later in the day, since I had to catch up on some writing, and Lu had some washing to do…
Got done with our chores around 11:00, and since that was still a bit early, we took a trip up to Walmart (only about 4 miles up the road), and got an armful of fruit: Bananas, apples, pears… You name it, we can now start our own fruit stand!
Home for a little R and R, then off to the big city to see what it had to offer…
It’s really nice to be so close to “things” here (only about 15 minutes away from where we’re staying)… Dropped the truck off at a parking garage, and then proceeded to “take in” the Riverwalk Mall and, of course, the walk around the San Antonio River, as well…
Totally amazing what they’ve done to this area…
I mean… Just look at the pictures…
It’s absolutely a wonderful place to spend any kind of time - from minutes to hours… And that’s what we did…
I think we walked both sides of the river at least twice, and I’m not sure we caught everything… Guess we have to go back tomorrow?
Again, we found a Joe’s Crab Shack, and had dinner there…
Can you believe it, salads for both of us… Lu chomped down on some chicken fare, while I devoured some green stuff with crab in it…
Most delicious, and truly stuffed tourists!
Got out of there around 7:00, which was probably beyond Lu’s bedtime, but live dangerously, I say…
Anyway, that was the end of a pretty nice day in San Antonio, and tomorrow we’ll more than likely repeat some of the Riverwalk experience, but also spend some time trying to understand why Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett gave their lives at the Alamo… Should be interesting!
Here are today’s pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/SAN%20ANTONIO%5EJ%20TEXAS%20%5E5MAR.%203%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=72&isFromRichUpload=1
Now, having said that… I would like it to be just a bit warmer in the morning so Lu doesn’t have to turn the furnace on…
We decided to hang around this morning, and go into town a bit later in the day, since I had to catch up on some writing, and Lu had some washing to do…
Got done with our chores around 11:00, and since that was still a bit early, we took a trip up to Walmart (only about 4 miles up the road), and got an armful of fruit: Bananas, apples, pears… You name it, we can now start our own fruit stand!
Home for a little R and R, then off to the big city to see what it had to offer…
It’s really nice to be so close to “things” here (only about 15 minutes away from where we’re staying)… Dropped the truck off at a parking garage, and then proceeded to “take in” the Riverwalk Mall and, of course, the walk around the San Antonio River, as well…
Totally amazing what they’ve done to this area…
I mean… Just look at the pictures…
It’s absolutely a wonderful place to spend any kind of time - from minutes to hours… And that’s what we did…
I think we walked both sides of the river at least twice, and I’m not sure we caught everything… Guess we have to go back tomorrow?
Again, we found a Joe’s Crab Shack, and had dinner there…
Can you believe it, salads for both of us… Lu chomped down on some chicken fare, while I devoured some green stuff with crab in it…
Most delicious, and truly stuffed tourists!
Got out of there around 7:00, which was probably beyond Lu’s bedtime, but live dangerously, I say…
Anyway, that was the end of a pretty nice day in San Antonio, and tomorrow we’ll more than likely repeat some of the Riverwalk experience, but also spend some time trying to understand why Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett gave their lives at the Alamo… Should be interesting!
Here are today’s pictures: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/SAN%20ANTONIO%5EJ%20TEXAS%20%5E5MAR.%203%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=72&isFromRichUpload=1
Last days in PORT ARANSAS and ROCKPORT… Off to SAN ANTONIO, TX (FEB. 28 to MAR.2, 2010)
Feb. 28...
Oh, how we’ve waited for these sunny days…
We’ve had quite a few of them lately, and we certainly count our blessings…
Spent the morning getting the pictures organized, and writing three Blogs…
Too bad the internet and cell phone services were so dreadful down here, because (other than that) we really enjoyed our week-long stay…
Had to stand in one place, and not move a muscle, while talking on the phone, otherwise we’d loose the signal (some times we lost it anyway), and it took 10 to 15 minutes just to log on to the internet, so I was not a very happy camper…
But… It’s all in the rear view mirror now, and we move on…
Found out we can’t spend too much time at Erik’s (when we get to Phoenix, AZ), since we can’t park on the street (in front of his house) for more than a couple of nights, so we spent some time reshuffling our schedule and made a couple of reservations, which will take us through March, and well into April…
Went into Fulton and had dinner at the Pickled Pelican, then watched the closing ceremonies of the Olympics…
Mar. 1...
It rained overnight, but woke to clear, blue skies, so that was OK…
Luanne cleaned house, and managed to get pissed off about it, but that was soon forgotten when we drove out to Port Aransas, for a last stab at the beach…
We parked the truck on the beach (so it blocked the fairly strong wind), and enjoyed a couple of hours of solitude and at peace with the world…
On our way home we stopped at a fish shack and bought 2 pounds of prawns, which we’ll have for dinner once we’re in San Antonio…
Took a short nap, then headed over to Key Allegro to have dinner at the Paradise Key Restaurant… And that took care of the last day in Rockport and the Gulf Coast…
Mar. 2...
Another sunny morning, but very cool… Gonna be nice to get into some warmer weather, which it should be once we drive into the interior of the state…
Left our RV Park at 9:00, and drove through some incredibly vast stretches of farmland… Lu saw a sign showing a small farm of 1,100 acres for sale, if anyone’s interested… Didn’t get the price, but it shows everything is big in Texas…
The closer we got to San Antonio, the taller the trees became, and, to our amazement, we found ourselves driving up and down some hilly terrain (of course, these undulations are bunny hills compared to the ones in the West, but it was a nice change of scenery anyway)…
Arrived at Brauning Lake RV Resort, just about ten miles South of San Antonio, on Highway 37, at noon…
Very nice place with concrete pads, and drive-through spaces (so, no backing), which always makes for a good day for Lu…
Got everything hooked up…
Rested for about half an hour, and then headed into town to find Costco… Haven’t been to a Costco since Fort Lauderdale, and we were going through withdrawals…
Saw the “Quarry Market” (a huge shopping center Lu had read about) as we drove by, on our way to Costco, and, of course, we had to go back there on our way home…
Wouldn’t you know it, there was a Joe’s Crab Shack nestled in among all the buildings…
Had to stop there, of course… They have the best Happy Hours around!
We celebrated the end our day with the prawns we got yesterday… Oh, were they ever good!
And now I’m up to date, and so are you…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/Last%20days%20in%20PORT%20ARANSAS%20and%20ROCKPORT%e2%80%a6%20Off%20to%20SAN%20ANTONIO%5EJ%20TX%20%5E5FEB.%2028%20to%20MAR.2%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=39&isFromRichUpload=1
Oh, how we’ve waited for these sunny days…
We’ve had quite a few of them lately, and we certainly count our blessings…
Spent the morning getting the pictures organized, and writing three Blogs…
Too bad the internet and cell phone services were so dreadful down here, because (other than that) we really enjoyed our week-long stay…
Had to stand in one place, and not move a muscle, while talking on the phone, otherwise we’d loose the signal (some times we lost it anyway), and it took 10 to 15 minutes just to log on to the internet, so I was not a very happy camper…
But… It’s all in the rear view mirror now, and we move on…
Found out we can’t spend too much time at Erik’s (when we get to Phoenix, AZ), since we can’t park on the street (in front of his house) for more than a couple of nights, so we spent some time reshuffling our schedule and made a couple of reservations, which will take us through March, and well into April…
Went into Fulton and had dinner at the Pickled Pelican, then watched the closing ceremonies of the Olympics…
Mar. 1...
It rained overnight, but woke to clear, blue skies, so that was OK…
Luanne cleaned house, and managed to get pissed off about it, but that was soon forgotten when we drove out to Port Aransas, for a last stab at the beach…
We parked the truck on the beach (so it blocked the fairly strong wind), and enjoyed a couple of hours of solitude and at peace with the world…
On our way home we stopped at a fish shack and bought 2 pounds of prawns, which we’ll have for dinner once we’re in San Antonio…
Took a short nap, then headed over to Key Allegro to have dinner at the Paradise Key Restaurant… And that took care of the last day in Rockport and the Gulf Coast…
Mar. 2...
Another sunny morning, but very cool… Gonna be nice to get into some warmer weather, which it should be once we drive into the interior of the state…
Left our RV Park at 9:00, and drove through some incredibly vast stretches of farmland… Lu saw a sign showing a small farm of 1,100 acres for sale, if anyone’s interested… Didn’t get the price, but it shows everything is big in Texas…
The closer we got to San Antonio, the taller the trees became, and, to our amazement, we found ourselves driving up and down some hilly terrain (of course, these undulations are bunny hills compared to the ones in the West, but it was a nice change of scenery anyway)…
Arrived at Brauning Lake RV Resort, just about ten miles South of San Antonio, on Highway 37, at noon…
Very nice place with concrete pads, and drive-through spaces (so, no backing), which always makes for a good day for Lu…
Got everything hooked up…
Rested for about half an hour, and then headed into town to find Costco… Haven’t been to a Costco since Fort Lauderdale, and we were going through withdrawals…
Saw the “Quarry Market” (a huge shopping center Lu had read about) as we drove by, on our way to Costco, and, of course, we had to go back there on our way home…
Wouldn’t you know it, there was a Joe’s Crab Shack nestled in among all the buildings…
Had to stop there, of course… They have the best Happy Hours around!
We celebrated the end our day with the prawns we got yesterday… Oh, were they ever good!
And now I’m up to date, and so are you…
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/Last%20days%20in%20PORT%20ARANSAS%20and%20ROCKPORT%e2%80%a6%20Off%20to%20SAN%20ANTONIO%5EJ%20TX%20%5E5FEB.%2028%20to%20MAR.2%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=39&isFromRichUpload=1
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
ROCKPORT, FULTON & PORT ARANSAS (FEB. 26, & 27, 2010)
Feb. 26...
Got to dress in shorts and T-shirt for the first time in months, folks!
Nice to be able to shed long pants and socks…
Now, if the weather will only stay this way… That is the question…
Very windy today, so we spent the morning working on the Blog and pictures, and then went to the Club House where we played a couple of games of pool… Browsed through the exchange “library,” where I found a couple of books of interest…
Took a trip down to Walmart, for some juicy steaks, and then to a local fish market (down on the docks), where we picked up a pound of prawns…
Drove around the waterfront and took pictures before heading home for a nap… Drove over to Key Allegro in the afternoon, and had a couple of drinks at the Paradise Key Bar & Restaurant …
Home for a superb dinner!
Feb. 27...
Slept in until 9:00, but then hustled and headed over to Port Aransas Beach, where we spent four (or was it five?) wonderful hours licking up the sun…
No wonder we love it here… Fabulous place!
Stopped, on the way home, and bought two pounds of prawns, then visited the local watering hole to quench some pent-up thirst from a day in the sun and sand…
Found our way home, where we devoured the prawns for dinner…
All in all, I’d say this was a perfect day!
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/ROCKPORT%5EJ%20FULTON%20%5E0%20PORT%20ARANSAS%20%5E5FEB.%2026%5EJ%20%5E0%2027%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=47&isFromRichUpload=1
Got to dress in shorts and T-shirt for the first time in months, folks!
Nice to be able to shed long pants and socks…
Now, if the weather will only stay this way… That is the question…
Very windy today, so we spent the morning working on the Blog and pictures, and then went to the Club House where we played a couple of games of pool… Browsed through the exchange “library,” where I found a couple of books of interest…
Took a trip down to Walmart, for some juicy steaks, and then to a local fish market (down on the docks), where we picked up a pound of prawns…
Drove around the waterfront and took pictures before heading home for a nap… Drove over to Key Allegro in the afternoon, and had a couple of drinks at the Paradise Key Bar & Restaurant …
Home for a superb dinner!
Feb. 27...
Slept in until 9:00, but then hustled and headed over to Port Aransas Beach, where we spent four (or was it five?) wonderful hours licking up the sun…
No wonder we love it here… Fabulous place!
Stopped, on the way home, and bought two pounds of prawns, then visited the local watering hole to quench some pent-up thirst from a day in the sun and sand…
Found our way home, where we devoured the prawns for dinner…
All in all, I’d say this was a perfect day!
PICTURES: http://cid-44d18849bf3983e9.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/ROCKPORT%5EJ%20FULTON%20%5E0%20PORT%20ARANSAS%20%5E5FEB.%2026%5EJ%20%5E0%2027%5EJ%202010%5E6?nl=1&uc=47&isFromRichUpload=1
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