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Friday, February 27, 2009

Superstition Mountain, AZ















We spent Wednesday with Lynnette and took a beautiful drive up to Superstition Mountain. The drive reminds me of Highway 74 in California, but longer...maybe more like Rim of the World Highway going to Big Bear. It is just a gorgeous drive and populated by thousands of saguarro cacti! They stand like sentries all across the desert landscape.







The road leads up to several lakes that were formed when dams were constructed. Lynnette says the road is jammed in the summer with boaters, hikers, bikers. What makes this very interesting are the 2 one-way bridges we had to cross. Yeah, one-way! If a car is on the bridge coming toward you, you wait until it's across and then take your turn. Must be very interesting when there are lines of cars waiting. Don't know how well that would work in California where all the freeway drivers think they are special.

We ended our trip up the mountains at Tortilla Flats. Considering it was Wednesday and late for lunch, we were surprised to see a crowd. The place has a dilapilated look (on purpose) and the interior walls of the restaurant are decorated with dollar bills signed and posted by the many patrons over the years. The bar stools are either horses' tail ends or saddles. Cute! Please note the primitive facilities! Oh, and the authentic dust on the bar stools! We lost money in the jukebox (isn't it a beauty!), of course, but someone else did get it to work. The food was actually good and the atmosphere definitely fun and different.


On the trip back we stopped in a deserted mining town called Goldfield and toured an old goldmine. It was fun and interesting to learn the really hard lives miners had ... 10-12 hours down in a mine working and then 10 hours off. They got 3 candles to use while underground. Plus, they were stripsearched at the end of each shift to make sure they weren't stealing any gold... all for the sum of $3 a day!




























Saturday, February 21, 2009

New location for 2008 Trip

We have moved the blog entries and photos for last years trip to a different location. (http://travelers-5-2008.blogspot.com/) Will make it easier to concentrate on what we are doing this year.

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Chihuly in Tempe

We have had a very nice day which is surprising as it started off rainy! But, the clouds cleared and the sun shined down on us. We spent the day with my step-daughter Lynnette. We had a great lunch at Mexican place in Tempe. My first visit to Tempe and it sure is a pretty place. Lots of interesting architecture! Then we were off to the Botanical Gardens where we were in for a real treat! A display of Chihuly art glass sculpture! The various pieces are displayed mixed in with the desert flora and are just magnificent! I had seen Chihuly before (chandeliers), but was not enthralled. But seeing it outside mixed in with cacti and succulents put it in a new light. And, a lot of unusual and beautiful cacti getting ready to or already in bloom.



Friday, February 13, 2009

We're Gone

Made it out yesterday. We are parked in Mesa, AZ for a couple of weeks visiting friends, family and classmates. Great feeling to be going again! Kathleen flies to Chicago today for a baby shower for Rea and returns here on Monday.

Both houses are now officially rental units. Kathleen's Palm Desert house already has a tenant. John's is cleaned out, painted inside & out, yard spruced up and ready to be "home" to new people.



The "stuff" we had was amazing! We sold or gave away just years of things. The rest we stored or fit into our RV. Our "basement" is full. We wave good-bye to our houses and to California with no regrets and no looking back! We are finally on our way!! USA, here we come!