Many Thanks

March 3, 2007
to all of you who have let us know you are enjoying the updates. I will slowly parcel out the photo compliments to Don so he will not get too excited. Last night we were without internet acess. I know, I know, you just can't imagine Don living thru that many hours and not curling into the fetal position. He made it just fine. Now time to catch-up. Tuesday was pretty much a travel day. We left Williams AZ early and it was 31 F. Since we were traveling Southeast, it gradually got warmer so that when we got to Las Cruces NM it was 71 F. Guess which I liked better! The scenery remained outstanding and we took lots of photos.
We arrived in Las Cruces just before sunset. After pretty much covering the town, we found Veterans Park. They have the only memorial to the Bataan Death March (the Hike, as the soldiers called it) in the US. They have done an amazing job. It is a beautiful park where people can walk their dogs or play with their children, yet still find a quiet place for just thinking. The walk up to the statue is filled with footprints of as many survivors as could be there to do it. The rememberance walk tells so much about what happened to the military during that time. There is also a wall with NM veterans from every US war. Just don't think of NM when you think of the US Civil War, do you? Me either.
The park ws absolutely pristine. I mean there was no litter, no spray paint on any of the structures, Just so very clean. We were both impressed. We did like Las Cruces, it is a very pretty town.
Wednesday saw us leaving in high winds headed for Lubbock TX. I mean high winds, mercy. Lucky for us it was pushing us so we got great gas milage! Before leaving NM, we stopped at the White Sands National Monument. Luckily the wind had died some or there would have been a white-out. Once you got in among the dunes, it was almost hard to realize it wasn't snow. They use a snowplow to keep the roads clear of drifting sand. Does that mean we should call it a sandplow? We have a couple of photos standing in front of the dunes for scale so you can see just how tall they are. They do a sunset walk thru the dunes most days. Too bad we couldn't be there, because it has got to be awe-inspiring. Leaving White Sands, we started across the Sacramento Mts. Guess what? Snow and cold again. I mean there are ski lodges and plenty of snow for skiing. It was beautiful since we did not have to get out in the cold!
We arrived in Lubbock around 5pm and had no trouble finding the B&B where we were staying in the Caboose. Just not that many houses around with a caboose in the back yard! It is right across from the campus of Texas Tech U. That is a lovely campus. The caboose was fun. One thing about the high winds was that it occasionally rocked the caboose. Sorta like being on a real train. We slept good. Breakfast the next morning was yummy. One of the other guests was at the table with us and was a fascinating person. He was in from the Netherlands interviewing for a professorship at TTU. (He is American working in the Netherlands right now). Maybe I will get a chance at some future time to tell you about our conversation (Consider this a warning). Another warning! I have more to say but it will have to wait, I am tired.
Have a wonderful time. Love to all.God Bless, Don & Pat