Day Thirty Nine – Wednesday, September 28, 2016

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

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It was time to leave San Antonio, and we were sad. Sad because we loved the Homewood Suites Hotel, loved the city of San Antonio, and loved all the people we’d had the opportunity to interact with.  Of course, the day we were leaving, we woke about 8 AM, threw open the room darkening curtains, and were greeted by a beautiful sunny day, as we looked down on the Riverwalk!  Oh well, we figured that yesterday had been such a perfect day, we probably wouldn’t be able to duplicate it, sunny skies or not!  Time to move on!

We went down to breakfast this morning, saw some of the usual characters we’d seen for the past couple of days, but not our two friends.  Really, what’s the likelihood we’ll see Hotel Friends from Trinidad and Kentucky ever again?  After another nice breakfast, we returned upstairs to get our act together, and about 10:40, I called down to the Valet to get the Sonata out of the garage.  She was waiting there for us after we checked out of the hotel, and we loaded up, and were on our way in a few minutes.

If we’d just gotten on the Interstate, Corpus Christi was just a little over 2 hours away, but as we’ve said before, it’s not always about the destination, but how you get there.  We decided to take a little detour, and visit one of the five Spanish Missions that were erected in the early 1700s, with the last one of the group being the Alamo.  They are all part of the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, and we visited the middle mission, San Jose, because it is where the Visitor’s Center is located.  After watching a 25 minute movie about the Spanish Missions, we ventured out to the actual mission.  Frankly, I think this was more what I was expecting at the Alamo, as here, the entire wall surrounding the church is still intact, and there is Indian and Administration housing still on sight.  It was a more complete view of what a mission was like, and in that way, more interesting.  The fact that this mission is still an operating Catholic Parish Church was also interesting.

After leaving the mission, we could have hopped on the Interstate, but again decided to follow advice we’d been given (Thanks Walt) and take one of the smaller roads to our destination. US 181 headed south and honestly was a much more interesting drive, with a lot of small towns along the way, and some interesting things to see.  It took about an hour longer than the Interstate probably would have, but was much more enjoyable!

Something that was with us at the mission, and we had “along for the ride” almost all the way to Corpus Christi was little bugs, that we realized were butterflies.  Once we got on US 181, they  were everywhere, and were hitting the car and splattering across the windshield!  It was almost like a scene in a Hitchcock movie, and we wondered what was up, so Susie Googled “Butterflies in South Texas”.  Turns out that we were in the middle of the annual migration from Canada to Mexico by the Monarch Butterflies!  Sorry to say, that hundreds of them will not make it this year, because they died on the grill, hood, and windshield of the car!

As we got closer to Corpus Christi, we saw something we hadn’t seen in a couple of weeks…farms!  It was back somewhere in the Midwest, before we got to the mountainous regions and places with ranches, that we’d last seen real farms.  Plowed fields, and silos, and something else…windmills by the hundreds!  Just so we know we are in Texas, there were also oil wells, and a huge ranch or two!

Last weekend, we missed the Air Show in Ocean City that takes place every year along the Boardwalk.  Well, to make up for it, as we traveled along US 181 today, we were treated to a private airshow!  We don’t know if he was learning how to fly, practicing aerobatics, or just having fun, but we enjoyed the brief show!

As we got to Corpus Christi, we also returned to something else we hadn’t been at for close to 2 months…the shore!  We left Ocean City and the Jersey Shore 2 weeks before we embarked on our Big Adventure, and until about 3 this afternoon, we hadn’t seen anything that looked like a coast!  Big power boats, sail boats, heck, even an aircraft carrier!  Not only that, but after spending weeks at elevations of 8,000 feet and above, we were back at sea level!  It was hot, and humid, and looked like we could have just as easily been in Florida, as the Gulf Coast of Texas.  It was nice to feel like we were home!!  We’re at the Best Western Marina tonight, right on the Seawall in Corpus Christi, and it’s nice to see water out our window!!

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Our View

Tonight, we did our usual trick of opening up the Apple Map on the iPads, and seeing what was in the immediate area for dinner.  After some reflection, we zeroed in on Landry’s Seafood, which we saw from our balcony, and we think we made an excellent choice!  For the second night in a row, our waiter’s name was Richard…Kismet?  We had a couple of great drinks, one of the best calamari appetizers we’ve ever had, two great seafood entrees, and split an obscene Bananas Foster dessert!!!  Can you say full???

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Landry’s from our balcony

Returning to our hotel, we ventured up to the Grandview Lounge on the 11th floor, and had a couple of Grey Goose on the rocks with a twist. Say that in NY or NJ, and they know exactly what you mean.  Everywhere else they ask, “lemon or lime?”  We enjoyed the drinks while looking over most of Corpus Christi!  A nice way to end our first night in town!

Tomorrow we get to explore Corpus Christi, see about visiting an aircraft carrier, and get ready for a cruise which sets sail in just 4 days!  This is day 7 for us in Texas and we’ve enjoyed it a lot.  From spending time with our good friends Nancy and Mike on day 1 and 2, to three lovely nights in San Antonio, we are very taken with Texas!  I guess it’s only fair, that based on it’s size, we’re spend more days in the state of Texas than any other state during our travels!  We’ve talked about it, and think that someday in the future, a Texas Exclusive Road Trip may be in our future!

See you tomorrow!!

Day Thirty Eight – Tuesday, September 27, 2016

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

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Today was our second full day in San Antonio, and honestly, this morning when we got up and discussed what we were going to do today, we were a little conflicted.  We considered getting the car out of the garage, and exploring Texas Hill Country, but since we’re only going to Corpus Christi tomorrow, which is 2-3 hours away, we thought we might head that way tomorrow, before heading to the Gulf Coast.  So ultimately, since we are staying in downtown San Antonio, we figured that San Antonio was why we decided to stay here, and that we should explore again today.  We are glad we did!

As usual, our day started with our Homewood Suites breakfast, a short visit back in the room, and then we headed out to explore the city.  When we bought our Double Decker Bus Tour of the city, the package we got came with two additions, a ticket to the Buckhorn Tavern Museum, and a San Antonio River Cruise.  We got out our San Antonio map, and walked the 5 or 6 blocks to the Buckhorn Tavern to start our day.

Albert Friedrich opened the Buckhorn Tavern in 1881, and he realized that since many folks coming off the trail didn’t have money, he’d accept horns and antlers in exchange for beer and whiskey.  Because of that, the Buckhorn Tavern contains one of the largest and most unique collections of horns and antlers in the world.  While not in it’s original location, and really more of just a tourist stop today, the Buckhorn Tavern has been a part of history.  From Teddy Roosevelt being a patron to the rumored planning of the Mexican Revolution at the bar by Pancho Villa, in its long history, it has seen it all in San Antonio!

After exchanging our vouchers for tickets, the first person we met was the Buckhorn Cowboy, who told us what we were about to see in the various museums on the property, and suggesting that going through the museum with a drink was his favorite way to see the museum!  Talking to him further, he told us he was originally from that great Cowboy Rearing state, New Jersey!  Sorry we didn’t get a picture with him, but we did take his advice and got a couple of margaritas for the tour!

The first museum on site is the Buckhorn Museum, which contains over 500 species of wildlife.  There were many displays, putting the stuffed animals in their natural habitat.  Think Museum of Natural History stuff.  Then there was a big “Side Show Exhibit”, with many items about PT Barnum and others of his ilk, as well as things you could actually participate in, like a tilting room, water running uphill, and other optical illusions.  In 2006, they added the Texas Ranger Museum to the attraction, which contains many authentic Texas Ranger artifacts, and a recreation of San Antonio at the turn of the century called, Ranger Town!

Of course, like any good tourist attraction, you exited into the gift shop!  A very nice employee started talking to us, and like everyone we’d encountered in San Antonio, was friendly and very helpful.  I’m not sure if that’s the reason or not, but I do have to report that this was the first gift shop we have been in on the trip, that Susie made substantial purchases.

After our shopping spree, we headed over to the Menger Hotel I talked about in yesterday’s blog.  Just across the street from the Alamo, the Menger Hotel was built in 1859 (just a bit more than 20 years after the famous Alamo Battle) and the famous Menger Hotel Bar was allegedly the place that Theodore Roosevelt recruited his famous Rough Riders calvary brigade!  I say “allegedly”, because they make the same claim at the Buckhorn Tavern!  Yesterday, we saw it from the outside, but today we ventured inside, and it is a beautiful hotel!

We attempted to have a drink in the Menger Hotel Bar, but unfortunately it’s a really tiny place, with but 10 seats at the bar, and they were all full.  Oh well, another day in the future perhaps.  Since we were right at the beginning of the double decker bus tour, we decided to take a ride on the upper level, see the early part of the tour again, and get off at the stop for the River Cruise.

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We had a different driver today, and the tour seemed to function much better than yesterday, and since the weather was better (still overcast, but no rain), we enjoyed it better than yesterday.   The stop for the River Cruise is on St Mary Street and Crockett Street, which is just 2 blocks from our hotel, so really in the neighborhood.  We got on the boat with our Captain/Tour Guide Mike, and he did a great job in the 35 minutes or so we were with him.  We finally saw the Riverwalk that we’d seen in all the pictures of San Antonio, and are planning to return there for dinner tonight.

After our cruise, we walked back a couple of blocks to a Walgreens we’d passed earlier to pick up a couple of items we needed.  San Antonio is very interested in maintaining what is old, and you could clearly see this, from the vintage Walgreens sign, as well as other buildings right across the street.

Then we walked home to the Homewood Suites.  It was a good day.  We walked, the humidity seemed better today (or we’d gotten a little more used to it), and we saw a lot.  Literally on every corner and every block in San Antonio there seems to be something to see, or take a picture of, or a plaque to read!  According to our iPhones, we walked a little over 2 miles today, and we’re not done yet!!

After crashing and having a Cuba Libera (Rum and Coke to you Gringos) in our room, we changed, and went downstairs for the Homewood Suites Happy Hour!  Same Drinks, different snacks tonight!  We saw our two friends from last night (the Lady from Trinidad and the Gentleman from Kentucky), but as there were no tables near each other, we just said hello.

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Tonight we decided to fly without reservations for our dinner, but knew we wanted to head back to the section of the Riverwalk we saw while on the boat cruise this afternoon.  We opened Apple Maps on my iPad, and looked for names of restaurants along the Riverwalk.  We wanted something (1) that was Mexican and (2) that was an easy walk from the hotel.  We checked out the websites of several restaurants we found, and after careful consideration, we picked the Iron Cactus!  So after having just one glass of wine each tonight, we headed out about 6:30, and we walked up St Mary Street, and went down to the Riverwalk at Crockett Street. Iron Cactus was just beyond where we got the boat this afternoon.   We went up to the Hostess Station, asked for a table, and as she had nothing outside without a wait, we said we’d go inside.  Unfortunately, the table she assigned to us was about as far back in the restaurant as you could go, so Susie went up and asked for one of the tables in a window alcove, and they moved us!  What an excellent move, because we had a great view, air conditioning, and saw so many people swatting bugs outside!!!  We also had a wonderful waiter, Richard who helped us through dinner!

Richard, Susie and the Iron Cactus

He suggested to us a special Margarita they were featuring tonight, and they were great!  He also suggested the Table Side Guacamole – 2 whole avocados, onions, peppers, tomatoes, citrus, cilantro.  He said it was excellent, and it was.  Then he told us about some of his favorite dishes on the menu, and we picked one of them, Southwest Paella.  We both decided to have it, and at Richard’s suggestion, we only got one order (so there was enough room for dessert), and it was delicious and more than enough for us!  Jumbo shrimp, mussels, bay scallops, jalapeño Texas sausage, roasted poblanos, lobster cream, and cilantro-lime rice.  Hungry yet?

Full Drinks, 1/2 Guac, and sorry, ate all the Paella and then took picture!

There was indeed room for dessert, and after Richard brought us the Dessert Tray, we decided to split Mexican Donuts!  Homemade with sweet cream filling, powdered sugar and a Kahlua fudge sauce for dipping!  Heavenly!!  I’m sorry to say that Susie and I ate the four of them, before we even remembered to take a picture, so you are just going to have to let the words paint a picture for you!

Our suggestion for you is that if you happen to be in San Antonio, and if you want to try and duplicate one of, if not the best, meal we’ve had on this trip, you get yourself to the Iron Cactus Mexican Grill and Margarita Bar (they have over 100 varieties of tequila) at 200 Riverwalk, Suite 100!  If you really want to have the best meal, served by someone who will make the meal even better, then you MUST ask for Richard!  What a great way to end our last day in San Antonio!!

After dinner we walked the Riverwalk a bit, and took some more pictures, before heading back to our hotel!

As we were walking towards home, Susie and I agreed that today was probably the most perfect day we have had at a tourist destination.  Don’t get me wrong, we’ve had some great experiences at Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Mount Rushmore, and all the other wonderful places we’ve seen, but from start to finish, today was just wonderful!  If we had to do it again, we’d stay longer in San Antonio.  Perhaps an All Texas Road Trip one year is in our future!

Tomorrow we leave San Antonio, and head to Corpus Christi on the Gulf Coast, and get nearer and nearer to the cruise, which seemed so far off, but which starts this Sunday!  We will leave San Antonio with nothing but fond thoughts of the town, the Homewood Suites by Hilton, and the people we’ve met and the experiences we’ve had!  It was a great 3 nights and one of our favorite places on Our Big Adventure!!

See you tomorrow!

PS – Walking total for the day, a little over 3 miles!

Day Thirty Seven – Monday, September 26, 2016

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

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Welcome to our first full day in San Antonio, Texas.  We woke this morning in our suite at the Homewood Suites on The Riverwalk to a cloudy and rainy day.  After getting ready, we went downstairs for a wonderful, full and enjoyable buffet breakfast.  The best of our trip so far, and perhaps a reason to stay at Homewood Suites!  The weather forecast showed for improving weather, but looks like we’ll have to wait till tomorrow for sun.  One thing we didn’t have to wait for was humidity!  Welcome back to the kind of sticky weather we had most of the summer in the New York/New Jersey area!  When we left the hotel this morning, the temperature was in the low 70s, but the humidity was up in the high 80% range!  A real change from the very low humidity we’ve experienced for weeks. Frankly, it’s been so long since we’ve felt like this, we can’t remember!  Don’t imagine it will get any better when we get to the Texas Gulf Coast, or into the Caribbean Sea during our cruise!

The view from our room this morning

We walked over to the historic Menger Hotel, where we picked up our San Antonio tour tickets.  Just across the street from the Alamo, the Menger Hotel was built in 1859 (just a bit more than 20 years after the famous Alamo Battle) and the famous Menger Hotel Bar was the place that Theodore Roosevelt recruited his famous Rough Riders calvary brigade!

Once we got the tickets, we headed over to the tour bus, and low and behold, it was obviously planned for us so that we couldn’t miss it!

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Along the tour we passed the Oldest VFW Post in America (from Veterans of the Spanish/American Bar).

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We also heard about the Scottish Rite Cathedral

And we passed the Emily Morgan Hotel.  We had no idea who Emily Morgan was, but were told that according to legend, she was captured by the Mexican Calvary in 1836, and was forced to travel with the troops of General Santa Anna.  On April 21 of that year, Santa Anna’s forces were defeated by an Army led by Sam Houston at the Battle of Jacinto in 18 minutes.  Supposedly, Santa Anna was unprepared because he was having sex with Emily!  It was also suggested that she may have been the inspiration for the song, The Yellow Rose of Texas, but historians think both suggestions are more story than history.  She had no involvement with the hotel, but it’s a good story, you must agree.

We also passed a number of old theaters, that after closing, because of changing tastes in the mid 20th Century, were resurrected by residents as performance spaces.  The Majestic, the Aztec, and the Empire are busy places, and in the sense of full disclosure, the person performing at the Empire is no relation to us, although he is from New Jersey!

The bus tour also passed the Esquire, where we ate dinner last night,

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and this place.  Have no idea of it’s name, but the guide told us it was originally a convent (see the cross) but is now a bar!

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Then it was time to explore the Alamo.  It seems that a lot of people have been somewhat disappointed by the Alamo, as it seems a lot smaller than most of us imagine.  I already knew that the John Wayne movie of the same name, was not filmed at the real Alamo, but rather a replica that was indeed bigger than the original (found this out reading a John Wayne bio), but I have to put myself in the disappointed category.  Not sure if it was because it was smaller than I thought, or because it was not in a setting that I imagined.  Having seen it in many movies, books, etc in a certain setting, it was odd to see it in the middle of a city!  San Antonio is, after all, the third largest city in Texas, and the area surrounding the Alamo was a city, with restaurants, shops, and tourist destinations.  I guess my expectations were not realistic!

After visiting the Alamo, we went over to the Shops at River Center, to see the IMAX movie, Alamo, The Price of Freedom!

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As luck would have it, we’d just missed the start of the 1 PM showing, and we had to wait till 2 PM.  Again, as luck would have it, there happened to be a Margaritaville Cafe on the River Walk in the same mall.  Guess where we ended up killing 45 minutes??  A couple of “Boat Drinks” (two 5 O’Clock Somewheres, followed by two Bahama Mamas) with Gabe the bartender, surrounded by our friend Mr. Buffet and his music, and time passed very quickly!

San Antonio seems a little empty to us, and the IMAX Theater was no different, as we were two of just 5 folks that watched the Alamo movie.  It was a very good 45 minute telling of what happened at the Alamo during the February 23rd to March 6th period of 1836, and we enjoyed it.  Just an FYI…although we were sitting just a block or so from the real Alamo, this movie was also, I believe, filmed at the same location that the John Wayne movie was shot.

We walked around the Alamo Plaza a little bit more after the movie, but the humidity had gotten to us, and we decided to walk back to our hotel and crash for a bit, with a couple of rum and cokes, in the air conditioning.

Tonight we headed downstairs about 5:30 for the Manager’s Complimentary Social (free drinks and snacks). We had a couple of glasses of white wine, and a nice conversation with a man from Kentucky and a lady from Trinidad.  One of the nice thing about the Homewood Suites is the evening social, and the ability to meet and enjoy people from different places!

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At about 6:45, we headed next door to the Westin Hotel, and the Italian restaurant,  Zocca Cuisine D’Italia, where we had a 7 PM reservation.  We had a lovely dinner, with a bottle of bubbly, a couple of great apps (sorry, we ate them before the pictures), two great pasta entrees, and dessert!

On the way home, we had a lovely walk along the River Walk back to the Homewood Suites.  It is probably the nicest it’s been all day, and we enjoyed the walk, the sights we saw, and just being out and about!

 

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Our Bedroom Window, overlooking the River Walk

Tomorrow, day two in San Antonio, and the weather forecast calls for partly cloudy skies, and a high of 79.  Let’s hope the humidity isn’t as high, but I wouldn’t count on it!  Have a good night, see you tomorrow!

Day Thirty Six – Sunday, September 25, 2016

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

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Here we are, day 4 in Texas, and it already feels like home!  Now, if we can only get resident status for tax purposes, we will be in great shape!

We started the morning in Fort Stockton, at the Best Western and our objective for the night was the Homewood Suites in San Antonio.  The day started cloudy and overcast, as we filled the car up with gas, and continued our eastward journey on Interstate 10.  I have to say one thing before going on, about Texas Interstates.  What the hell do they make the surface out of???  My God, they are the noisiest roads we have ever driven on!  The radio is up a notch or two, we have to practically yell at each other to be heard, and it constantly feels like you are driving on road that is being prepped for repaving!  Okay, moving on….

Wait..one more thing, Bed Heights.  Over the past 35 days, we have slept in dozens of hotels, and sampled lots of King Sized beds.  There seems to be a trend that the bed height is above what we use to consider a standard height bed.  I don’t know if it’s the mattress, the box spring, the frame, or all three, but some of the beds are so tall that you literally could use a step stool to get in.  Last night at the Best Western, the beds were so tall that the only way we could get in was to throw ourselves up and in.  God forbid if you roll out of one of these beds!  Now, we really move on!

The theme of the early part of our trip today on Interstate 10 was ENERGY.  We passed fields with hundreds of electrical generating windmills, oil wells pumping away on the side of the road, and high tension wires, I guess carrying that wind generated electrical energy to the cities.  An interesting mix.

The theme for the rest of the day was rain.  It started as a drizzle, went to a slow steady rain, and then the sky opened and it poured!  The combination of the rough pavement, the trucks (of which there were many), the wind, and the teaming rain just made for a wonderful drive!  In fact, at one point when I was driving, Susie had me get off at an exit in the middle of nowhere, just so we could wait it out a bit.  Our wait was long as the rain didn’t let up, but became heavier before abating a bit. We tried to check the radar, but we were of course in a 1X service area!   It was a lot of fun changing drivers in the downpour.  Shower taken for the day!

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Eventually the rain did let up for a bit, and it even almost stopped for a while, but just before we got to San Antonio, up it started again.  This time, it was joined with lightning and thunder!  Oh joy!  When we got to the hotel, and drove into the garage, the young attendant told me that they only did valet, and that it would be $27 a day.  I told him I’d gladly pay twice that, not to have to drive anymore in the rain!!

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As I said before, we are in the Homewood Suites on the Riverwalk, and it’s a very nice hotel.  It’s obviously not a new building, and after checking in, I found out that the hotel was built by converting the Historic San Antonio Drug Company Building.  The building is on the National Directory of Historic Places and the conversion was done with great care to preserve the original design of the building, including keeping the original windows.  This is the first time we are staying in a Homewood Suites, and we are very impressed by our king bed suite, and the whole hotel.  We look out on the river, and all the amenities seem to be top shelf!

Speaking of top shelf, after having a stiff drink, we started looking for a place for dinner, and found that the Esquire Tavern was just a block or so away.  The Esquire is billed as the oldest bar on the Riverwalk, having opened in 1933.  The walk only took a couple of minutes, so we made it there getting only slightly wet.  We started our dinner with two Moscow Mules, a drink we were introduced to by our friend Dennis, the bartender at the St. James Restaurant in Mineola.  These came in the traditional copper mug, and were a great way to start off dinner.  Fried pickles, a couple of great burgers, and a couple of more mules, and we were in shape to take on the night!

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Tomorrow is forecast to be cloudy with occasional rain.  Let’s hope they’re wrong, as we’d like it to be dry, if not sunny, as we explore San Antonio.  We will be here for 3 nights, so we have 2 full days to explore, and there is lots we want to see!

As they say, Remember the Alamo!

PS…Let’s Go Mets!!!!

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Day Thirty Four and Thirty Five – Friday, September 23 and Saturday September 24, 2016

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

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Susie and I woke in Nancy and Mike’s bedroom a little after 7, and decided to catch a shower before starting our day.  We exited the bedroom a little after 8, and went outside to sit in the beautiful Texas morning with Mike.  The weather was perfect, and we talked about the kind of weather, and seasons they experienced in El Paso.  Mike told us about the 9 inch snow fall they’d had last year, and about the cold mornings and warm afternoons, that were the norm for winter in El Paso.  Pretty soon Nancy joined us, and when it was established that nobody really wanted breakfast, we sat around for a couple of hours, talking.

I’m not quite sure what Nancy and Susie were talking about, but Mike and I talked a lot about the old days at WABC, and about things we both remembered happening when we worked there, and how retirement was going.  We also had lots of discussions that the 4 of us participated in, talking about kids, life expectations, travel, and just about everything that came into anyone’s mind.  Then Nancy suggested that we take a ride and let them show us around El Paso.  Sounded like a good idea, so we all grabbed what we needed, and headed out to the car.

By this time (around noon) the temperature had risen, and I’m not going to say it wasn’t hot, but the lack of humidity does make it a lot easier to take than a hot day in New York!  We drove through their part of town (they live on the West Side of El Paso), and they showed us some incredible houses, and great views.  Then we went past the University, and saw some of downtown El Paso.  The Rocky Mountains, that we drove over three weeks ago, and that have been so much a part of our travels since then, end in El Paso, and as we drove up Rim Road, around the very end of the chain, we had some great views of the city below, and views across the Rio Grand into Mexico.

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The Southern End of the Rockies

It’s amazing to be so close to Mexico, and to stop at a scenic overlook, and clearly see the tall fence that separates our country from their’s.  We also saw the Border Patrol Agent that sits there all day (and probably night) in his car, watching for folks that might be trying to get over the approx. 10 foot tall fence!  The difference between what you see on the US side of the border, and what of Mexico you can see are quite a contrast.  Big buildings, highways, and lots of cars on the US side, and small buildings and what looked liked dirt roads on the Mexican side.

After our tour, the decision was made to go out for lunch, and then to just have some sandwiches at their house for dinner.  We decided to go the PF Changs , and the four of us had a very nice meal, and of course, lots more conversation.  Then it was time to get back to the house, so that Nancy could drop of Mike and me, so she could take off with Susie.  You see, Nancy had been able to score a 4 PM appointment with her hairdresser, to get Susie a trim, and thereby solving a dilemma Susie had, about what to do about her hair on the trip.  After the girls left, Mike and I sat down in the living room, and guess what…we talked some more!  Like I said yesterday, it’s like the past 30+ years that we haven’t been in contact, hadn’t happened, and it was just two old friends talking about anything and everything!

When the girls returned (lovely hair Susie…nice job Nancy), Mike again started up the blender, and there were more margaritas on the horizon.  This time, the four of us sat in their back yard, and although it was warmer than it had been that morning, it was still a really nice late afternoon.  We sat there talking (gee…big surprise, huh?) till Mother Nature treated us to a beautiful sunset, and then Nancy decided it was time to eat.

What a great idea, to have a nice lunch and then eat a sandwich later.  Really something we should do more often. Thanks Nancy for coming up with the idea, and supplying great sandwich fixings to boot!  After dinner clean up, the four of us adjourned to their lovely living room, and the conversation continued till about 11, when we all went off to bed!

When we got up and out this morning, Mike was alone, as Nancy and Sammy had journeyed to the Dog Park, and some fun for the four legged kids, and conversation for their Moms.  No strangers to conversation, we joined Mike in the back yard, and converse we did!  When Nancy got home, she proceeded to assemble a great ham and egg breakfast for us all, and over good food, with good friends, we had more great conversation.  As our time with our friends came close to ending, we realized that it really didn’t matter if we did big things, went for a ride, or just sat around their pool.  The conversation flowed, and it was obvious the four of us were very comfortable, and frankly, that’s something that doesn’t always happen.  Susie and I are so glad that we reconnected with Nancy and Mike, so glad that they asked us to stay with them, and so happy to find that a great relationship still exists!

It was with much sadness that we left their house, and it was with lots of hugs, promises to stay in better touch with each other, and the hope of Susie and I, that our two good friends can journey to Ocean City, and be our guests at the beach next summer.  I’m sure that if this two days proved anything, next time we all get together, there will be lots of great conversation!

So off we went to Interstate 10, and the 4 hour or so trip to where we find ourselves tonight, Fort Stockton, Texas.  Our whole trip was on Interstate 10, and at first we thought we were looking at a 5 hour trip, but then realized that before we got to Fort Stockton, we passed another time zone,  Right now we are back on the Central Time, so suddenly we lost an hour of our day.  The advantage we had of gaining that hour, when we crossed into a new time zone from east to west, is evaporating as we go back east, and very quickly it was 6:30 PM!  Susie had planned to do some laundry tonight, and we were fortunate again that the facility was on our floor.  The only problem was that as the washing and drying went on, the time got later.  Our solution tonight?  Well, as the drying cycle was in progress, we ran out to a McDonalds that was down the road, and picked up Two All Beef Patties, Special Sauce, Lettuce, Cheese, Pickles, Onions, on a Sesame Seed Bun.  Yes, two Big Macs!  We wondered if anyone not our age can recite that jingle?  Not a gourmet meal, but something we haven’t had in months, that was quick, and satisfying.  Had we waited till after the clothes were dry, we probably wouldn’t have gotten to a restaurant till after 8, so this worked tonight for us!

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As I write this, it’s after 10 PM, but since we just changed from Mountain to Central time, its not that late for us.  The good news is that I’m all caught up, and back on track with the blog.  That’s good, but as we ship out on the Liberty of the Seas a week from tomorrow for 2 weeks, I realize it won’t be the last interruption of this blog before we drive back to New York.  Still haven’t figured out what I’m going to do, but fear there will be an interruption again, but as that’s still 7 days away, let’s just have fun in the present, and not worry about it.

Tomorrow we start 3 nights in San Antonio.  The River Walk, the Alamo, and a fun time for all…I hope!  See you tomorrow!

 

Day Thirty Three – Thursday, September 22, 2016

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

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If you have been following along faithfully, back on Wednesday, when I posted Day Thirty Two, I mentioned at the end of the blog, that we were staying with our friends Nancy and Mike in El Paso, Texas for the next two nights, and there might be limited internet access. Well, there was, but not like we had limited internet in Yellowstone…this time we were just having too much fun to worry about a blog. More on that later!

We woke on day 33 in Roswell, New Mexico, having not been abducted or in any way harmed by aliens. I guess it must be a lot of BS, because the only aliens we saw were pictured on the advertising signs of various businesses on the main street! We were staying in a brand new, and beautiful Comfort Suites, and although the room was lovely, the breakfast room left a lot to be desired. The chairs looked like they had been through years of service, and were covered with butter, cream cheese, and other stains we didn’t want to think about. We couldn’t help but wonder why such a beautiful, new, and generally well appointed hotel, had chairs that looked like they’d been through the mill! Oh well, perhaps they ran out of money!

The day started after leaving the hotel with a stop for at a self-service car wash, for a quick cleaning of the outside of the car (you’ll see how useless that was), and then to fill the Sonata up with gas. After those two brief stops, we were out of town, and on our way to White Sands National Monument.

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The drive was more up and down, and at one point Susie was driving and exclaimed, “Are we ever going to stop climbing?” The next thing we passed was a sign stating Elevation 8300 feet! We continued on our way, on a rather unremarkable road towards White Sands. One interesting thing was a sign we passed on Route 70. White Sands National Monument is a small part of the White Sands Missile Range, and when they do tests at the range, they close the road so no one is close to where perhaps there could be debris, should something go wrong. It is a test, after all!

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We drove a little more on 70, and came to the White Sands National Monument. We went into the Visitor’s Center, looked at the exhibits, and watched a movie. I have to say, that it was’t the best Visitor Center we’ve seen, and the bathrooms were way below the usual, US Park Services usual condition and cleanliness standards, but they did serve their purpose. Then we headed towards the 17 mile Loop Drive.

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My first disappointment, when we pulled up to the entrance station was that IT WASN’T MANNED! Damn..no one to show my Senior Pass to! The second disappointment, was the first 2 or 3 miles of the Loop. We were driving at 45 MPH through low vegetation, and although you could see that the “ground” under the vegetation was white, I thought, “Is this all there is?” Well, it turned out that it wasn’t! Very soon, we came to a sign that said Pavement Ends..drive with caution! The text thing we knew, were were driving on the sand, and it was truly a magical world we had entered!

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For folks like us from the North East, for all practical purposes, it looked like snow! So white and pristine, it looked like that first drive you take after the snow stops, and before the the beautiful white snow turns dirty and gray! Not only did it look like snow, but it was very obvious that they plow the “road” to keep it open! The thing that really didn’t track with what you were seeing, was the folks out and about were in shorts and t-shirts! Well, it may have looked like snow, but it was 94 degrees at the time, so even dressed as they were, I’m sure they were hot! Of course, you’re driving on sand, so that car wash I did in Roswell was $2.75 ill spent! Of well, who knew exactly what we were going to see?

After that it was time to head south, out of New Mexico and into the great state of Texas. We drove into it late in the afternoon of Thursday, September 22nd, and the Sonata will live in Texas till at least October 17th (I say the Sonata, because for two weeks from October 2nd till the 16th, Susie and I will be in the Caribbean on the Liberty of the Seas, but the Sonata will still be in Texas waiting for us). We exited New Mexico, after 5 nights, at Las Cruces on Interstate 25, heading to El Paso, and our friend’s Nancy and Mike’s house!

The Mike I’m talking about is Mike McKay, who was one of the last DJs on Musicradio 77, WABC in the early 80s. Mike and I worked together a lot, both doing music shows, doing field interviews (our notorious Kenny Rogers interview at the Meadowlands), and baby sitting the NY Yankees games on WABC. When the station went talk, Mike stayed on to do Staff Announcer work (commercials, promos, etc), but he had gotten in radio to be the guy on the air, and he left to pursue that. In the years since WABC, Mike, his wife Nancy, and their daughter Erin have lived the “itinerant DJ life” (Mike’s words), Working in places like Salt Lake City, Indianapolis, Detroit, as Mike plied his craft as a DJ, and 19 years ago, they landed in El Paso. He first worked at KSET-FM, and later KOFX-FM, and in 2004, Mike became a part owner and Morning Show Host on 101 Gold, just up the road in Las Cruces. That’s what he did, till he retired earlier this year.

We followed the GPS as it took us off the interstate, through commercial areas of El Paso, into their neighborhood, and I will admit that Susie and I had a little trepidation. We hadn’t seen Mike and Nancy for over 30 years, and although they had graciously insisted that we cancel our hotel reservation, and stay with them for 2 nights, we wondered how comfortable the 4 of us would be together (they probably wondered the same thing). We pulled into they driveway, got out of the car, and as we headed towards their front door, the first member of the family we met was Sammy, their adorable little dog, who had hopped out of his doggy door, and came to greet us!

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We rang the doorbell and Nancy and Mike came and greeted us. Handshakes and hugs were exchanged (Mike and I hugged, while Nancy and Susie shook hands), and they invited us inside. The first thing that happened was we got a tour of their lovely house, found out that they were giving us their bedroom for the two nights, and then Mike started the blender and whipped up frozen margaritas. This relationship showed great promise. Drinks in hand, we adjourned to their lovely backyard, which has a pool and ultimate privacy. In minutes, it was like the last 30+ plus years had not happened, and we were all much younger, having fun in their old house in Malvern, Long Island! At one point, Nancy and Mike went in separate directions to make dinner preparations, and Susie looked at me and said, “this is good…very good.”, and it was.

We had our first home cooked meal in close to 5 weeks (Filet Mignon, Twice Baked Potatoes, Broccoli, and Bernaise sauce for the steaks), and it was a wonderful night of food, conversation, and great friendship (and semi frozen Margaritas). We sat around the dining room table talking till almost midnight, when the 4 of us realized we’d better get to bed. As our heads hit the pillows, and we drifted off to sleep, we had visions of a wonderful day with Nancy and Mike. Stay tuned for Day Thirty Four, and more of our adventure in El Paso!

Day Thirty Two – Wednesday, September 21, 2016

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / 2 Comments

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Before I start out on Day 32, I need to close out Day 31. After the blog was done and posted yesterday, and we’d worked out our route for today, we turned on the TV. The TV was set to TCM and what do we come into but the middle of the great Lucy and Desi movie, The Long Long Trailer. This has been one of our favorite movies for a long time, and probably no small influence on this very trip we’re on. In fact, there have been several times, while driving up or down particularly hairy mountain roads, we have quoted some of the lines from the movie. Yes, we’ve seen it that many times! It was a real kismet moment!

So, today was museum day on our travels. We started this morning in Santa Fe with the New Mexico History Museum. This is a very nice museum that details the history of the area from way before it was a state. It speaks to what the Spaniards did to the Indian population when they first arrived, and continues through the Statehood of New Mexico. It also goes into the period of the Second World War and right up to today. A very well done and interesting look at the state’s history.

They also have a rotating series of displays, and one that I found really interesting was called Lowriders, Choppers and Hot Rods. It was a very well done exhibit and included several cars, as well as lots of pictures and video presentations.

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Then it was time for us to get out of town. As we followed our GPS friend, she took us past the Plaza and down the street we’d started and ended the tram tour on yesterday. As it was almost lunch time, I said to Susie, “If there’s a parking place, let’s stop at the French place again for lunch.” She agreed, and as we drove down the block, a pickup truck pulled out of a meter almost in front of the entrance. Another kismet moment, so we had a better lunch than we’d planned (McDonalds was on our radar), and today had a couple of wonderful crepes.

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Our destination today was Roswell, New Mexico, of UFO fame, and our second Museum of the day, The International UFO Museum and Research Center. We traveled on a mostly deserted highway, passing but a few cars in the couple of hours we were on the road. What we did see was a weather mass off to our right, that looked like a mushroom cloud to us…perhaps influenced by our travels to Los Alamos a couple of days ago!

We got to the UFO Museum about 3:30 and spent a bit more than an hour looking at the displays and reading all the material they have. Susie and I both agree, if so many people have seen or been involved with what happened here, can you really discount it? I mean, how much do we really trust the government to be honest with us? Personally, it seems rather egotistical to me to believe that on all the planets and in all the solar systems they have discovered, we are the only planet with an intelligent life form. Who really knows???

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I have to give Roswell credit, they certainly do take advantage of all that the name Roswell, New Mexico brings to mind, and truly embrace the alien presence. From Arbys to Domino Pizza, to even our hotel for the night, Comfort Suites, they all play with it, and I think it’s great!

For dinner tonight, we went right across Main Street from our hotel to Tia Juana’s Cantina and had a great meal. The most delicate, home made taco chips and addictively hot salsa, several Mango Margaritas, and then Susie and I had Mexican Flag Enchiladas…one red, one white, and one green! A great New Mexico Dinner!!

Tomorrow, after 5 nights, we leave New Mexico, and journey to the state of Texas, where we will be till before and after our 2 week cruise on the Liberty of the Seas with Kenny and Chris (the ship sails October 2nd, and returns October 16th). That means, discounting the two weeks in the Caribbean, we will be in Texas till at least October 17th. Our destination tomorrow is the city of El Paso, where we will spend two days with our friends Mike and Nancy McKay. Mike was one of the last DJs at Musicradio 77 WABC, before it became Talkradio 77. He stayed on for a short period, voicing commercials, but his real love was being a DJ, and he did that until he retired recently. Mike and Nancy have been in the Southwest for a long time, and we are really looking forward to rekindling our friendship with two folks that we haven’t seen for over 30 years! Not sure how much “blog time” I’m going to have Thursday and Friday this week, but fear not, I will keep you updated on our journey!

See you soon.

Day Thirty One – Tuesday, September 20, 2016

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / 2 Comments

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We woke this morning in Santa Fe, and split our day between Santa Fe and Taos, New Mexico.

img_2137We started off the day with a Loretto Line tour of Santa Fe in an open air tram. We were very lucky, because this tour almost didn’t happen! We left the hotel a little before 9, planning on making the 10 AM tour from Loretto Chapel. Susie had read that they started selling tickets a half hour before the tour, so after parking, we headed to the chapel. We figured we were in like flynn when we were the first people to arrive, only to have a guy from the tour company show up and tell us the 10 AM tour was all sold out! He told us to go around the corner to the front of the La Fonda Hotel, and talk to Larry on the 10:30 tour, who had lots of tickets. Well, it turned out that we got the last two seats on the 10:30 tour, and sat there and watched 10 to 15 people turned away. We were happy that we’d just made it under the wire!

Our guide Larry had only been in Santa Fe for 11 years, having come from Seattle, but had learned to love Santa Fe, and his information during the tour showed that. He started off telling us about Santa Fe, how it came to be, why here, and who were the original inhabitants. Then we were off on the tour, first seeing the Historic District of the town, where space is at a premium, and where he told us some merchants pay up to $30,000 a month in rent!

Then we drove down Canyon Road, which is the Art District of Santa Fe. Larry explained how important the art scene is to Santa Fe, and about all the great things the galleries bring to the city. While we didn’t stop, driving past all the galleries, we were able to see the amazing large scale art work, that couldn’t fit inside the galleries, which were built in old historic buildings.

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Then we were on the outskirts of town, traveled down Museum Row, and to the place the Wagon Trains on the Santa Fe trail stopped. Larry explained that most of these wagon trains were full of goods to supply the merchants of Santa Fe or to be shipped down the El Camino Real to Mexico. As such, Santa Fe was the first trade link between the US and Mexico. To commemorate the spot, there is a wonderful sculpture.

One of our last stops was at the State Capital building, which unlike every other state capital building, does not have a dome. There was a very impressive sculpture out front of the capital building, which notes every Native American tribe that is extinct.

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Having skipped breakfast, by the time the tour was over, we were hungry. Just down the street from the tour stop, in the La Fonda Hotel, was a great little place. Called the French Pastry Shop and Creperie, they had a wonderful French menu, and we decided to have lunch there. Having heard about them for years, but never having had them, Susie and I both had Croque Madame sandwiches, and they were incredible. To stay in the French mode, we finished up lunch with a couple of Eclairs! A perfect lunch!

Then it was time to head to Taos, which is about an hour and a half drive north of Santa Fe. There were two things we wanted to see, the Kit Carson House and Museum and the Taos Pueblo.

Wandering through the Kit Carson house, we couldn’t help but think of our friend Kit Carson, who died two years ago, at much too young an age. I first met Kit back in the late 80s, when as a young struggling actor, he took a job opening Rush Limbaugh’s mail at WABC to make some extra money. Kit began doing more and more for Rush, and eventually became a very necessary part of the Rush Limbaugh Show. Eventually he met his wife to be, Theresa, got married, and had two sons. We’d had many good times over the years with Kit and Theresa, and it was a very sad shock when he died two years ago. If I’m not mistaken, Kit told me that his family was slightly related to “The” Kit Carson, and I always remember him telling me that his Dad’s name was Johnny Carson! Miss you Kit!

We enjoyed watching the movie and looking at all the exhibits at the Carson house, and before we knew it, we’d spent more time there than we’d planned, and it was too late to get to the Pueblo before it closed. Susie and I agree that the Santa Fe area is indeed a place we’d like to come back to again, and spend more time, so it will definitely be on the top of our next time list!

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Tonight we spend our second night in Santa Fe, and tomorrow it’s off to Roswell, New Mexico! Hopefully we won’t be abducted by Aliens, or even someone from outer space! Wish us luck!

Day Thirty – Monday, September 19, 2016

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

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I’m going to tell you a little secret. Over the last 30 days of our trip, Susie and I have become snobs! Yes, I know it’s hard to believe, but it’s true, we like nice hotels! The Hampton Inn and Suites we were in last night is the kind of hotel that has spoiled us for the hotel we are in tonight! If you remember back a couple of weeks ago, we re-did a number of hotel reservations after a disastrous Rodeway Inn. Rodeways and Econo Lodges went bye-bye, and were replaced with Comfort Suites, Hampton Inns and Best Westerns. The one exception to that, is the hotel we are in tonight and tomorrow night, the Econo Lodge of Santa Fe, New Mexico. When we looked at the reviews for the hotel they were good, and when you consider that the two nights here are less than one night at last night’s Hampton Inn, it seemed like a no brainer. But, now we are here. Yes, the room is fine and the hotel is in a good location, but we are on the second floor and there is no elevator. There are very few lights in the room, no charging ports, and there is but one ice machine, which is also on the first floor (remember, no elevator). Not a bad hotel, but as I said up top, we have become snobs! Based on this, we just changed our accommodations in Roswell from a Rodeway Inn to a Comfort Suites…neither are run by aliens (and I mean the kind from other worlds)…we don’t think!

Today our target area was north of Santa Fe, the city of Los Alamos, New Mexico. If you remember your World War II history, you will recognize that as the home of the Manhattan Project, where they developed the atom bomb. One of our main reasons for traveling there today was the personal relationship it has to Susie. You see, during World War II, Susie’s Mom worked as a clerk typist for the government in the Woolworth Building in New York City. It was only after the bombs were dropped on Japan, that they all found out that they were working in the New York office of the Manhattan Project. She has a letter and a pin, thanking her for her service to the country, so we really wanted to see this place.

Our main stop of the day was the Bradbury Science Museum of Los Alamos. They have an extensive display about the Manhattan Project, and the continuing work at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, including two movies. We enjoyed the displays about the Manhattan Project, especially the real history displays of folks who worked there during the war. Some were scientists, some military personnel, and some were just young woman who were looking to do their part for the war effort. One young lady was a clerk typist, like Susie’s Mom, and like Susie’s Mom, knew nothing of what they were doing. Her quote was, “When asked what was being made here, the answer was, “We’re making windshield wipers for submarines.” I really had no idea what was going on here till after the bomb went off at Hiroshima.” It was a nice way to spend a couple of hours and to get a better idea of what the Manhattan Project was, how it all really came about, and the controversies.

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On our way back to Santa Fe, we made another stop, one that I remembered from my childhood trip to California. You see, in 1960 when my Mom, Dad and I traveled across the country, we did so after my Mom and Dad finished the Cincinnati Summer Opera season. At that time, New York’s Metropolitan Opera, where they were both members of the chorus, did nothing during the summer months, so members were in demand for various summer opera seasons around the country. 1960 was the first of five years my folks worked at the Cincinnati Summer Opera, and on our trip, we visited Santa Fe to see some of my folks’ fellow Met members who were working at the Santa Fe Summer Opera. On our way back from Los Alamos on US 285, there was an exit labeled Santa Fe Opera, and I had to see if it was anything like I remembered. To say that the Santa Fe that I remembered from 56 years ago is different than the current Santa Fe, would be a severe understatement. I have pictures in my mind that do not correlate with the large city Santa Fe is in 2016, and the Santa Fe Opera is no different. Turns out that since it started in 1957, there have been three Opera Houses, all at the same location, so this one dating from the 1990s would have not been one I might remember. We took the ride anyway before heading to the hotel.

Tomorrow our emphasis will be on Santa Fe, which is the second oldest city in the United States. The only one older is St Augustine, Florida, which we visited three years ago, even if all we remember is the Tini Martini Bar next to the Hilton Hotel!!

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At 7000 feet, Santa Fe is also the highest State Capital in the United States, and the model name of our son Kenny’s Hyundai! See, we have a lot of personal connections to New Mexico!

Have a good night…we will!

Day Twenty Nine – Sunday September 18, 2016

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

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After having breakfast at the Hampton Inn in Gallup, New Mexico this morning, we took care of a couple of tasks before we headed off on our way. The Sonata needed gas, and a car wash was in order too. So, after we took care of those tasks, we headed out of town. Our destination for tonight was Albuquerque, not a lot of milage today, so we had some time to explore. We decided to take a shot at Route 66 again, but this time New Mexico style!

According to Google Maps, Route 66 ran alongside Interstate 40 in Gallup, so we bypass Interstate 40, and of course went down a street that went nowhere! Unlike our original taste of Route 66 in Arizona, New Mexico doesn’t really seem to care if you find it or not! Eventually we did, and you can see from the pictures below, we did find some evidence of a different time.

We continued to follow Route 66 for some way out of town, till it dumped us on Interstate 40. At this point, we had no choice but to join the Interstate. But at several exits on the Interstate we found signs like the following, and stupidly followed them off the exit!

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I say stupidly, because there was no evidence of Route 66 once we exited the Interstate. My cousins Jeanne and Walt traveled Route 66 this past spring, and in his blog (https://adventure2016web.wordpress.com/author/adventure2016web/) Walt said that sometimes finding Route 66 took a bit of detective work. I know what he means. Twice we followed these signs off the Interstate, and the only evidence we found of Route 66 was a casino!

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At one point, getting off the Interstate we didn’t find Route 66, but we did find a Walgreens, and stopped and picked up a couple of necessary items. Susie thinks she’s getting a cold, so being safe rather than sorry, she picked up some cough syrup just in case. As she was driving at this point, she took one more try at finding Route 66, and as she said, “Third time’s a charm.” We actually found a sign directing us to Route 66, and after turning, were rewarded with a Route 66 sign!! Hallelujah!!! Of course, by this time, we were just outside Albuquerque, but we were rewarded with some neat sights.

After exploring Route 66, we turned our attention to Old Town Albuquerque, and explored some there. At that point, we’d had enough “Detective Work” for the day, and headed to our hotel. We are in a Hampton Inn and Suites tonight, and have a room that justifies the Suites part of their name!

Tonight we are going to do something really different. We’re going to the movies! There is a 24 screen movie theater just a couple of blocks from the hotel, and at 5:30 we’re going to see a movie both of us have wanted to see since we first saw the ads..SULLY. Then in honor of today being National Cheeseburger Day, we are going to do something we haven’t done for years! We’re going to Fuddruckers ! Fudds was a go-to place for the D’Elias when the kids were smaller, but since the one next to Eisenhower Park closed years ago, we haven’t been to one. And that’s what day 29 was like….

See you tomorrow!!

PS – 8:01 PM, Mountain Daylight Savings Time

The movie was wonderful!  If you haven’t seen Sully, Susie and I encourage you to go see it!  It was a little strange watching all this New York action, from a theater in New Mexico, but it’s a great movie!

And the burgers…well Fuddruckers does not disappoint!!!  Happy Cheeseburger Day!

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