DAY 117- Ashville & Great Smokey Mountains…

After getting settled in my hotel in Asheville, NC, I opted to stay close for dinner.  I went to a place nearby called Fatz.  It’s a local chain restaurant that was started in a renovated peach shed in 1988 by some friends and now is a southern chain that has 48 restaurants.  It was packed as it should be on a Friday night.  I sat at an open spot at the bar between two guys. 

It ended up being three guys and myself chatting and hanging out; one worked at a tire store, another worked for a utility company, and another was retired, I think.  The tire store guy was a regular and it was funny because I had a roll and silverware while he was being ignored.  The utility guy who we ended up calling Mr. Glitters, because he came in with glitter on his face from being in the toy section of Kmart (ahh-haa!), and myself were giving the tire guy all kinds of a hard time about the pitfalls and pluses of being a regular.  Meanwhile, the retired guy was talking about feeding his kids and grandkids, which happen to be living with him.  The retired guy was buying all of us rounds of drinks and they were all telling me about the Asheville area and North Carolina.  They were also all razing me about if Utah would allowed plural husbands for me because they wouldn’t mind be a candidate.  It was a fun time.  Mr. Tire guy told me to come back and spend more than just one day.  He would be here for me to find when I came back this way.

Photo- Biltmore Village.

The next morning, I was on my way to the Biltmore Village and hoping to take a peek at the Biltmore.  The Biltmore was the largest privately owned home and was built by the George Washington Vanderbilt II between 1889 and 1895.  It’s still owned by the Vanderbilt family and is quite the tourist attraction in the area.  It’s also about a $50 fee just to walk in the door and then you can shop or walk through parts of the gilded house and HUGE garden area.  It sounded like it could take hours and sounded very expensive which wasn’t on my agenda for the day.  I put this on my list of come back and see later.

I did however take a bit of time to visit the nearby Biltmore Village which is a quaint little shopping upscale shopping village near the Biltmore.  In fact, the village was built by the Vanderbilt’s for the employees of the Biltmore Estate.  The village covers about a five block city area.  There’s little cottage like houses which contain various shops and restaurants.  There are cute little street lamps, brick sidewalks, trolley tourist cars, and horse drawn carriages too.  There’s also a Catholic Church that takes up a large corner area.  I wandered around the area with plenty of free parking (something Helen, GA could learn here).  The place was packed with all kinds of holiday shoppers. 

Photo- The outside of the glass art shop in Biltmore Village.

There were some wonderful shops.  My favorite was a shop that had blown glass art.  Some of the round glass balls looked like they had flower blossoms inside.  Another shop that I thought was fun was a Christmas Store with all kinds of thing Christmas.  In fact, I got a kick out of a tree that was self-flocking  with little white pebble-like beads that would shoot out from the top of the tree and be caught on the tree or by a round green saucer at the bottom of the tree.  Sorry, I didn’t venture a look on the price tag on this one.  I know all of you want one of these for Christmas. J     

Photo- In the River Arts Area of Asheville, NC.

Next, I drove over to the River Arts area in Asheville and on the way I tried to take a peek at the Biltmore but the trees surrounding it are like a full forest.  I drove along the river and down by the railroad tracks for a bit.  Then off to the side there is an area that has old brick warehouse buildings.  This is the river Arts area of Asheville.  I guess I was hoping for more.  It was just one large warehouse row with artists’ studios inside and a large graveled parking lot out front.  I explored a few studio areas and there was some wonderful art but there wasn’t much else out that way.  They needed a restaurant or a coffee shop or something out there.  At one end of the warehouse row, there was a large antique store.  I drove back to the interstate and headed west towards the Great Smokey Mountains National Park which I had planned to visit for most of the day.

Photo- The Blue Ridge Parkway.

From Asheville I headed west and then south to Maggie Valley.  I stopped for a quick lunch at a fast food chain restaurant called Bojangles which is a bit like a KFC but very southern type touches.  You could order dirty rice as a side and it appeared that everything on the menu had a Cajun version to it.  Next, I headed west to Soco Gap and turned onto the Blue Ridge Parkway.  The Blue Ridge Parkway runs along the spine of the Smokey Mountains and there are some amazing views but I will warn you there are some steep and curvy areas of road.  But with these views it very worth it.  Thankfully, there was no snow yet or this section would have been closed.  The elevation of the road runs between 5000 to 6000 ft. and closes in the winter quite often.

Photo- One of several views along the Blue Ridge Highway.

Next, I took a right hand turn onto Hwy 441 and was at the Oconaluftee Visitor’s Center for the Great Smokey Mountains National Park.  I turned in and went into the center.  It was packed and there were tons of people sitting listening to some live Christmas music being played by local people.  People were singing along with the music.  I talked to a parks employee and every Saturday before Christmas they have this event.  All of the musicians are locals and it’s like what they call a “front porch” session.  They all just show up and they go around and have each musician pick a Christmas song that they would like to play.  One of the guys on a banjo played “Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer” which had everyone laughing by the end of the tune.  I sat down and enjoyed singing along for a while.  It was a very festive atmosphere.  People and musicians would come and go. 

Photo- Some southern Christmas FUN at the visitor's center.

After a while, I got up to go see the park but first I went through the museum part of the visitor’s center.  It told the history of the park and how it was finally made a national park in 1934.  The museum told the story of how the roads were built for the park with the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corp.) during the Great Depression.  The museum talked about the culture and the life in the area but what got me most was there was a HUGE fake pig hanging in an area.  It was a strange site to see at a National Park Visitor’s Center.   

Photos- The Great Smokey Mountains!

Next, I drove through the park and stopped here and there to take pictures.  It was rather cold and very windy day.  I was a bit disappointed that the road to Clingman’s Dome was closed for the season. At 6643 ft., Clingman’s Dome is the highest point east of the Mississippi.  There were quite a few roads to trail heads that were closed in the park.  I just stopped here and there; deciding not to do any hiking today.  Eventually, I got to the other side of the park and the Sugarlands Visitor’s Center where I stopped to use the restrooms.  I also got a bumper sticker and a couple of postcards too.

Then, I was off heading north through the crowded town of Gatlinburg.  It was stop and go traffic coming out of the park and I was so glad that I decided to drive into the park from the south.  From there, I took some back roads and worked my way up to I-40.  On I-40, I headed west to Knoxville, TN where I would stay the night.  The sun was going down and it was starting to rain so I slowed down and took my time.  It was dark when I finally got checked into my hotel for the night.

DAY 100- Sunrise and Never a Sailor…

I got up early in my north Padre Island hotel to watch my first sunrise over the Gulf of Mexico.  It was something unique having never saw a sunrise over an ocean area.  Living in the west, I had seen sunsets over the ocean.  It was still dark out when I was putting my shoes on but the sun was rising steadily as I walked out to the beach with my camera.  I wanted to capture the moments.  I wasn’t the only one out there.  There was another gal in a cowboy boots and hat with a fancy camera.  I said hi and she walked away from me.  Okay, maybe not a morning person that talks; oh, well.  I just watched and enjoyed the silence as the sun rose.  It was beautiful and I’m glad that a friend had suggested that I do it.

Photos- Of the sunrise I watched over the Gulf of Mexico.

Later on, I was heading south on Padre Island for the Padre Island National Seashore which is part of the National Park system.  I got to use my annual parks pass again; bonus!  I’m always amazed at how many National Parks or Landmarks that I just stumble across and am able to use this pass.  It’s the best investment that I could have done during this adventure.

I drove to the visitor’s center after showing my annual pass at the entrance gate.  I walked into the visitor’s center and there was a group with a national parks employee going through a display of unique things that people had picked up along the beach.  I joined in with listening.  The coolest thing I thought that was on the display table looked like a piece of petrified wood but it wasn’t.  It was fused sand from a lightning bolt that had struck the beach.  You could see where seashells were captured in the fused sand.  All kinds of things wash up onto the shore of Padre Island because of its circular coastline and the ocean currents there are thing that come from Cuba, the Caribbean and South America; most of the items on the display table were seed pods, nuts, or coral.  

I walked around the visitor’s center a little more.  They had samples of the Kemp turtles that had been almost extinct but with help from programs and local support they’ve been assisted in the protection of their birthing places and releasing them afterwards the numbers are slowly rising.  They had one of the large Kemp turtles on display but I guess that currently they were releasing smaller ones in the early, early mornings at this time of year. 

Photo- Butterflies and flowers on the way to the beach.

I went out towards the beach area.  On the way, I saw a grouping of yellow wild flowers where there were quite a few monarch butterflies landing and flying around.  I stopped and watched for a bit.  While watching I also saw a small sand crab run across the sand and into a hole.  I walked along the beach for a while.  Down a little ways there was a father and son fishing along the beach area.  I watched them for a bit and then continued walking down the beach.  I saw all kinds of birds and a couple of Portuguese-Man-O-Wars that had washed up on shore.  The day before near the hotel beach I had seen a jelly fish washed up on shore. 

Photos- Father and son fishing on the beach and their catch of the day.

I must have walked a couple of miles and decided to turn around.  The father and son were collecting their gear and as I got closer I could see a line full of fish that had been caught.  I commented on their catch and the father said that it was just the first catch of the day.  There was a campsite nearby where I guess they were staying.  I wished him a good day and continued on.  I went into the gift shop and looked around for a bit.  Then, I figured it was time to head north to Corpus Christi for my next planned visit of the day.

I followed the Google directions to the USS Lexington Museum which is in a bay area near downtown Corpus Christi.  The USS Lexington War Ship is an actual warship that has been permanently made into a museum.  I paid my entrance fee and got a token for the parking lot across the street.  I hung out looking at displays in the Hanger Bay #2 area while I waited for the next film to start in about 10 minutes.  There were a couple of restored planes, some airplane motors that were on display; along with some game like things to interact with.  When they opened the theater a few minutes later, I took the 3D glasses and found a seat.

Photo- The outside of the USS Lexington from the shore.

The movie was focused on air races and restored planes.  It had some cool effects with the 3D.  A row back a woman said she thought that the movie would be about ships since we were on a ship.  Her husband nicely told her that it was an air carrier ship and that’s why the movie was about planes.  Oh, she said.  She still sounded a bit disappointed.  I just chuckled a bit.

Photo- Inside the USS Lexington in the Bay #4 area.

I next went on one of the four other tours where you go through parts of the ship.  I did the #2 Tour which was the officers’ quarters, a Pearl Harbor Exhibit, and anchor equipment.  I climbed in and around and up into the upper deck areas of the ship.  It was like chutes and ladders with a bit of a maze thrown in.  I was finding it fun and I looked out at the outside windows as I went along.  Next, I did the #1 Tour which was the flight deck.  I went up and out onto the open area where they had old restore airplanes, anti-aircraft guns, the plank, and the navigation bridge area.  It was all pretty fun and I was having fun going through rounded doorways and up and down the stairs that were like ladders.  I did Tour #3 which was the combat ready rooms, the library, and the Captain’s Cabin.  I was amazed at how much room the Captain of the ship was given.

Photos- Stairs and doorways in the USS Lexington.

Then, I thought I’ll do the last of the tours I hadn’t done which was #4.  This tour was the lower decks where the engine room, sick bay, dental clinic, crew’s galley, a POW Exhibit, and a Chapel was.  I climbed down to the lower deck and started to look at some of the crews small areas where they would sleep.  Yikes, these were rather small and cramped.  I went by the barber’s chair area.  I then started going through some of heating and cooling equipment that was on the ship; that was rather cool because I used to be a secretary in this line of business.  Then it was an exhibit on Pearl Harbor Exhibit.  It was about this time that I really started to feel claustrophobic. 

Next, I walked into the sick room area and I could feel the sweat just dropping down my forehead.  I was starting to have a hard time breathing.  I sat down for a bit and put my head between my legs because I was getting light headed.  Oh no!  I might be leaving something behind in the sick room if I didn’t get out of here soon.  My stomach was starting to act up too.  I started to look for a way out.  Shortly after this I ran into a young married couple that had been in the theater the same time as me.  I asked if they knew where the exit was because I was starting to get claustrophic.   They helped me out and then led me over to one of the wide door bay areas when we reached the main floor.  They were both very sweet and asked if they could help or get me anything.  They encouraged me to sit down.  I sat down and just took large breaths of fresh air.  Well, I guess I’ll never be a sailor!

I left the ship shortly after I managed to feel normal again.   I was back in my car and heading north to Bay City which was a halfway stopping point between Corpus Christi and Galveston, TX.  As I drove north the sun started to set behind me and the moon was starting to rise in front of me.  This moon was HUGE and kind of a yellow orange.  It reminded me of the moon in that late 1980’s movie called Moonstruck in which Cher and Nicholas Cage starred.  It was HUGE and I sometimes found it hard to keep my eye one the road because I was watching the moon.

It was as I got to Bay City that I discovered I didn’t have the paper of which hotel I would be staying at for the night.  Ooops!  I pulled into a McDonald’s hoping that they had free Wi-Fi.  Nope!  I drove around and then saw a Chili’s and I thought I would ask there while I grabbed a quick bite to eat.  I just realized I never ate any lunch and I was surviving on a Bit of Honey bar that I bought at the National Park Visitors Center earlier.  I asked the server if she knew of any places with Wi-Fi nearby.  Nope!  Okay, this was not good. 

I looked through my phone when I remembered that I had called hotels.com earlier in the week when I made an error on an on-line booking.  I found the number and rather quickly found out which hotel I would be staying at, the address, and the phone number.  I was back in business.  Yeah!

DAY 99- Missions and on to the Beach...

I totally decided not to visit the Alamo while I was in San Antonio.  From what I heard it was expensive and you couldn’t touch or really look at anything in particular.  It was being treated as too much of a Shrine and I’ve seen enough of those plus, I still had three other Missions in the area that I could visit for free and be able to take pictures of.  So I packed up my car and headed to the first one of the three which was Mission Concepcion.

Photo- The outside of the church at Mission Concepcion.

There was only one other car and myself there at 10AM.  The church was open and I walked around and read all of the historical signage.  The inside of the church I thought was very beautiful.  There was a couple of people in a closed off section doing some masonry repairs/ restoration.  It was just a nice peaceful quiet area to be.

Photo- Repairs being done at Mission Concepcion.

Photo- The beautiful interior of Mission Concepcion church.

Next, I followed the signs to go to Mission Espada.  There I was greeted by a docent that gave me some extra literature about this mission in particular.  Then, she even offered to explain the statues in the church if I would like when I got over to the church area.  I thanked her and said that I would love to have her do that.  She was just so helpful and it was such a pleasure to have someone like her on duty at the mission.

Photo- The church at Mission Espada.

I waved at her as I got over to the church area.  She explained how this church was not what was originally designed for the area.  They had footings laid out for a larger church but it never happened.  There were a lot of issues with maintaining a constant Indian population for labor at this mission.  She also pointed out the door frame of this church.  It was rather Moorish in nature.  The story goes that the original mason got involved with a married lady and had to flee quite quickly leaving the work unfinished.  The underlings were left to finish the work and it’s believed that they tried as best they could but didn’t really know what they were doing and thus there are some “errors” with the door area. 

She went into the church with me and explained about the St. Francis statue that was in the middle was the oldest statue of the mission and that the gold leafing was what they discovered as they were restoring the statue.  The Jesus statue was made of corn husks and the Mary statue was only half that tall and was designed to be carried during festivals.  She also explained about how the window at the rear of the church was designed to shine sun on the St. Francis statue on October 4^th which is a special day in the Catholic Church.  I forgot which one and I’m not up on my Catholic holidays.  But it was all very interesting.

The docent left me in the church, inviting me to take pictures and to come over to visitor’s center.  She said she would be back by the entrance if I had any further questions that I had.  I thanked her for her time and took several pictures of the inside of this church. Then, I went over to check out the visitor’s center.  There was an older gentleman in a cowboy being the docent in there.  There was a puzzle of the door way of the church that you were invited to play with.  He told another story about the doorway of the church. 

Then the gentleman docent went on to explain the building that houses the visitor’s center which use to be used as a local Catholic school for the area.  They had photos and areas that were left like it originally would have been when it was used as a school.  There also was a different room that housed museum information.  What I found particularly interesting was that branding of cattle came from the King of Spain.  If the cow wasn’t branded then it was considered the King’s property.  This encouraged owners to brand their cattle.  One of the oldest brands that are still registered to this day is the Mission’s brand.  The docent also went on to point out how the term Maverick came into use.  There was a guy that moved into the territory after King of Spain lost power in the area.  This guy whose name was Maverick was quick to claim any of the unmarked cattle were his.  There by any of the unmarked cattle were called mavericks; kind of some fun history there.

Next, I headed to the Mission Espada.  I was walking along taking pictures when out of the blue walks Nanette the same national park employee that gave the tour yesterday.  She said I recognize you from yesterday.  I had asked a couple of questions during the tour yesterday and another afterwards.  I guess I might have been memorable.  I ended up talking with her for a while.  It was just myself and maybe one other couple on the grounds of this mission.  It was rather fun talking with her and I explained what I was doing with my road trip.  She thought that was neat and mentioned that she wanted to try to explore more of Texas with her husband when they could because Texas had a lot to offer.  She wanted to do Stay-cations.  I thought that was a wonderful idea and thinking more people should really try to do that.

After talking with Nanette I went through the museum part of the mission and then ended up talking with an older gentleman docent who happened to be a member of the mission parish.  He explained how they were fixing the church which was leaning very badly.  He also pointed out another structure on the property that was a house that was made from the original stones from the mission.  Quite a few of the stones ended up being used for that and that’s why some of the missions are not as well restored as they could be because a lot of these stones were spread all over the area being used for other houses and buildings.

Next, I found myself driving south towards Corpus Christi.  I would be spending the night in a hotel on the north side of Padre Island which is just over a couple of bridges from Corpus Christi.  I managed to find my hotel quite easily which surprised me because there were so many bridges that I went over and over that I was afraid it would be complicated to find.

Quickly after getting checked in I threw on some sandals and I was out walking along the beach area of the Gulf of Mexico.  It’s the first time I had ever seen or been on the Gulf of Mexico.  I thought that was kind of cool; another first.  The sun was just starting to set and I kind of just hung out and watched it set as I walked up and then back down the beach about 2 miles in all.   It was very pretty and I got to watch the moon rise.  There were a couple of surfers out which surprised me because there really wasn’t much for waves at all.  One of them did manage to get up on a wave for a short little bit but most of the waves were just too small to do anything with.  I talked with a local couple that was seated along the wall.  They said they saw people all the time attempting to make something out of these small waves.  Some of the best competitive surfers they said came from the Corpus Christi area because if they could make something of smaller waves they could really make something out of the larger ones.  I wouldn’t know but it kind of made sense.

Photo- Watching the sunset to the west on water that was to the east.  An interesting sight.

Next, it was dinner time and I asked the girl at the counter where there was a locals place to go.  She told me Scuttlebutts and gave me a copy of their menu.  It had a lot of variety and was nearby.  Why not.  I washed the sand off my feet, changed into blue jeans, and I was off.  As I went down there was a guy in the elevator that I said hi to and then went out to my car.  I drove past the restaurant the first time and had to turn around.  This area reminded me of Utah in that you have to do a "U" turn to get any where.

I go into the pretty full restaurant and try to find a sit at the bar.  Whose at the bar but the guy that I said Hi to in the elevator at my hotel.  He pulls up a bar chair next to him and invites me to sit next to him.  He's a marathon organizer from near the Orlando, FL area.  On the other side I have a small plane pilot from San Antonio.  There's two different basketballs games on the TVs and then there's an old Bruce Lee movie in the middle of it all.  The three of us are laughing at the Bruce Lee movie; talk about BAD acting.  It was fun.

I order some Happy Hour appetizers for dinner and ordered a draft beer that was on Happy Hour special.  The pilot guy leaves wishing me luck on my road trip and I ended up talking with the other guy.  He ends up paying for my dinner and asks if I want to hit a nearby bar.  Sure, I say.  I follow him to a place not far from our hotel called The Office.  It was a nice little local bar and I had to laugh because the pilot guy was there playing pool with another guy.  I said hi and he teased me about stalking him.  I gave him a hug and we finally introduced ourselves his name was Ben.  He also teased me about still hanging out with the guy I met in an elevator and warned me to be careful.  He was sweet.

I sat down with Mr. Elevator guy and I had another beer while he had wine and we just chatted.  He bought another round of drinks and we continued to chat.  I finally bought another round and we continued to chat.  As he finished his glass of wine, he said he was going back to the hotel bar at our hotel to finish up the night.  He asked if I wanted to join him.  I told him I might after I finish this beer which was only half full.  But I knew that the hotel bar would be closed and he was basically calling it quits for the night.  I thanked him for my dinner and all of the beers.  I finished my beer after a while and went back to the hotel for the night.

DAY 98- San Antonio, TX...

I woke up to a thick fog.  At first I could barely see the interstate that was running along outside of my window.  Later it became lighter out and I could see the interstate but the tall downtown buildings were lost in the fog.  I turned on the local news and they were showing accidents and backed up traffic all around the area.  I had considered a morning bike ride but I didn’t think it would be safe now.

Photo- A foggy morning in San Antonio, TX.

I went down for the grab and go breakfast at the Red Roof Inn where I was staying.  A muffin, some orange juice, a coffee and US Today paper, I was back up in my room.  I figured I would just wait out this fog thing.  The weatherman said it would clear as it warmed up during the day.  It was supposed to rain later that night and bring in a slight cold front.  The temperatures would be in the upper 60’s; sounded pretty good to me.

A while later, I found myself at the yellow trolley stop a half block away sitting on one of two benches.  There were two black guys there that were sitting on the bench not waiting for a trolley but taking a work break from the auto repair just down the street. I talked with them for a bit while I waited.  As the trolley (which was a regular bus) came I wished them a good day.  I rode the trolley over to the San Antonio Market Square stop.

Photo- Outside at the Market Square in San Antonio.

San Antonio’s Market Square is a colorful walking mall area where there are a lot of Mexican goods for sale.  It has a very festive air and there’s a whole variety of things to look at.  It was rather fun window shopping.  I walked around for a little bit and then decided to get lunch.

Photo- Inside the Mi Tierra's Cafe and Bakery.

I went to Mi Tierra’s Café and Bakery that says it’s always open.  I walked in and was enveloped by some wonderful smells.  Upfront, there’s a glass enclosed counter where there’s a whole selection of mouthwatering freshly baked goods.  Yummy!  I went up to the hostess stand and she started to take me back.  “Where would you like to sit?” she asked me.  She asked if I would like to sit at the counter or a table.  I said whichever is more interesting.  She gave me a perplexed look.  I asked about the covered patio area and she happily sat me out there; looking a bit relieved to be rid of me.

Chips and salsa were brought to the table and I ordered one of the specials of the day just picking something at random.  Their prices were very reasonable.  A very hot plate was served with a cheese enchilada, Spanish rice, a covered container of warm tortillas (corn and flour), and a huge chicken leg.  It was all tasty.  While I was enjoying my lunch, a table of Latino men were sitting and chatting in Spanish.  It was someone’s birthday and one of them was getting a hard time.  A short bit later a trio of guitar players showed up at their table along with a group of restaurant employees.  It was birthday song time; all sang in Spanish.  The birthday boy was turning all shades of red.  It was so cute.

After lunch I walked around the Market Square a bit more.  I went in a few shops and was tempted to try on some of the cute colorful clothes but I didn’t have the room in my car; so I thought I better not.  I caught the yellow trolley back to my hotel where I jumped in my car and drove to one of the Mission Churches in the area.  There are four of them in the area and they are a National Park.  There are guided tours that they do at a few of them and I thought it might be interesting to catch one of these.  So with my Google directions in hand I wandered south through San Antonio.  I went south on St. Mary’s which changed names twice before I came to the San Jose Mission and it’s visitor center. 

The tour was given by a National Park’s employee named Nanette.  She was a cute native Texan gal with an amazing unique southern drawl that almost had a hint of Spanish accent.  It was just amazing listening to her as she gave the tour.  She talked about the history of the Mission San Jose and pointed out the different areas along the way.  We got to see the “apartments” where up to 20 Indians would live.  It made my Salt Lake City one bedroom apartment look like the lap of luxury compared to these two linked rooms; one of which had a fireplace where cooking was done. 

Photo- The cute Nanette with the wonderful Texas drawl accent.

Photo- The outside of the little "apartments" that line the outside wall of the San Jose Mission.

Nanette talked about what was expected of the mission Indians and what an average day for them would have been like during this time frame.  Most of their life was centered around the church.  They would get up and attend church in the morning; go back to their “apartments” for breakfast and then report to whatever work area they were expected.  Then, at the height of the day would be siesta time.  Then after their nap they would be expected to attend church again.  Then, it would be dinner and they had free time in the evening time.

Photo- The Famous Rose window.

During the tour, we steadily worked our way over to the church part of the mission where she ended her tour.  She told of two different legends regarding a Rose window on the side of the church and said we could decide which one was true.  The actual church was not part of the National Park.  Though, it was open to the public.  It’s an active parish church and run by the San Antonio Diocese. 

Photos- San Jose Mission Church, outside and inside.

After that I wondered around taking pictures and reading some of the displayed signs.  It was all very fascinating.  I walked over to the milling area which was just outside the wall areas.  It was the miller’s day off but normally they would have someone that would be operating the mill.  It was the only one of the four missions that had a working mill.  Most of the missions had been somewhat restored in the 1930’s.  It was while viewing this that I had this kitten rubbing up against me and getting all friendly.  It was a sweet thing but I wasn’t taking it home if that was what it was hoping for.

I headed back to the hotel where I did a quick shower and change before going over to the River Walk Area.  I got some change at the front desk just in case I decided to take the trolley back after dinner.  I walked over the 6 or 7 blocks to the River Walk taking a bit of a different route now that I was getting to know the area.  I walked along almost all of the River Walk area trying to decide where I wanted to eat dinner.  I went by almost every restaurant; checking quite a few menus.  I must have walked about 2 miles in all; nothing seemed to be sparking my interest.

Photo- Lighted carriages you can rent in the River Walk area.

Great deals of the restaurants along the River Walk are Tex Mex, Italian, and BBQ.  I finally decided to turn around and go back to the Waxy O’Connor Irish Pub.  They had a lamb stew that sounded rather good and it did turn out to go very well with a draft of Blue Moon.  I was enjoying the outdoor table until rain started to sprinkle just a bit.  I asked the server to move in and finished my meal indoors while watching a bit of Monday night football.  The rain started to come down a little harder and I ordered another beer in hopes of waiting out the rain.  It finally calmed down and I walked back to my hotel.

Photo- One of the restaurant areas along the River Walk.

 

DAY 89- El Paso & Carlsbad Caverns...

The day didn't start out good.  My stomach rejected breakfast shortly after coming back up to the room.  I had a headache and I still had a 5 hour drive planned to get to my next hotel room for the night.  I swung by a nearby Wal-Mart for some Tums and then swung by a gas station where I amazingly paid less than $3 per gallon of gas.  I started the drive to El Paso, TX which is only about an hour’s drive southeast from Las Cruces. 

About 40 miles down the road the traffic started to pick up.  I entered into Texas with the sign “Drive Friendly the Texas Way”.  I was within a few miles of El Paso, TX.  The speed limit dropped from 75mph to 60mph.  I took the exit for the downtown area of El Paso.  I had about 1.5 hour to spend before I needed to be back on the road. 

Photos- Downtown El Paso.

I drove by the visitor’s center but didn’t see a place to park.  I drove around the block and managed to find the closest parking spot along the street.  The meter wasn’t taking any money and it only listed certain days for free.  I moved my car up two stalls and tried another meter; and found the same thing again.  I just figured I would take the chance of a ticket and walked to the visitor’s center.  I walked in and asked the gal at the center about the meter.  She said that she thought that it was free today and that if the meter wasn’t taking money that it probably was a free day.

I then told her that I only had short time to spend in El Paso and asked what she would recommend as a quick sightseeing thing in the area.  She suggested the historical tour of downtown.  I immediately crossed the street and started following the brochure.  But then I got side tracked and found myself about 2 blocks from the Mexican border and in a part of the downtown area that was filled with all kinds of shopping activity. 

Photo- Spanish section of downtown El Paso,
they've got Elvis inviting you to sell your gold!

It was like being in Mexico; everything was in Spanish and everyone was speaking Spanish.  Women had suitcases that they were pulling along with them as they were shopping.  I was trying to figure out if it was because they were buying so much that it was easier to get it home or if it was a case where they had walked over the border and were on their way to somewhere else for the night; naïve of me I know.  But it was all very interesting people watching and they didn’t even seem to mind or notice me walking along in the area.  There were some good prices on some of the stuff; I will say that.

Photo- Spanish section of El Paso's downtown, a hive of activity
with a Mexican singers moving along.

I walked down one side of the street and about half a block before I got to the border I turned around.    There was a solid line of cars with Mexican plates and some Texas plates too out on the road.  I walked back to the historical part of the downtown which seemed bland compared to what I had just seen.  I decided it was time to get back on the road.

Amid the El Paso traffic, I managed to find the exit I needed for the highway 62/ 180 that would take me to Carlsbad Caverns.  I drove east out of El Paso through a fair amount of heavy traffic.  Before I knew it, I was climbing out of the El Paso area and heading further east into a rocky layered terrain with curvy roads.  It looked like hills that had been lined with different colors; almost like sand art.  Then, I turned north after a while and got to a large flat area where there were mountains towering off in the distance.  The general direction of the road started towards those mountains and I kept on seeing a sign for a Guadalupe Mountains National Park.  Another national park?  I was already planning on going to Carlsbad Caverns National Park but I might be able to hit two in one day?  Bonus!  I thought to myself as I continued to drive north towards the mountains.

Photo- El Capitan in the Guadalope Mountains National Park in Texas.

Then as I got closer I noticed this amazing cliff face of one of the mountains.  This turned out to be the El Capitan and the Guadalupe peaks surrounding it.  It was amazing and I pulled over into a picnic parking area off to the side of the road to take a couple of photos.  Wow!  I drove a little bit further and around a bend where there were layered rock areas that the highway cut right through.  Shortly after that, I stopped at the visitor’s center of the Guadalupe Mountains National Park. 

I talked to a gal behind the counter and it turned out that there were mainly just hiking trails in this national park.  It was all roads accessing trailheads from the outside of the park but there were no actual roads that went through the park area.  It was very non-developed and in the natural state of how it was years ago which was wonderful but bad for me when I just wanted a quick look through.  I had to make it to Carlsbad Caverns before the 3:30PM deadline.  Nope, I would have to save this park for another day in the future sometime.

Photo- The scenery climbing up on way to Carlsbad Cavern's Visitors Center.

I jumped back in my car and headed north.  About another 35 miles down the road I came to sign for the turn off for the Carlsbad Caverns.  Yes!  It was 2:40PM and I would arrive before the 3:30PM last chance to head into the caverns.  I quickly drove the last 7 miles up winding roads to the visitor’s center that is situated at the top of a mountain.  I changed shoes to something with a gripping sole because caves can be wet and slippery.  Then, I grabbed my National Parks Pass and headed in.  I got a ticket for the cave, paid for a recommended audio tour player, and got in line for the elevator.

Photo- The red number tells you how far down you are.
I couldn't pay much attention on the way down
but was thankful on the way up that the number was getting smaller!

The elevator goes 750 ft. down to the cave.  This I had not known ahead of time and that was a good thing.  I was a bit concerned about my still uneasy stomach and the elevator’s descent but my stomach was fine; it was my ears that kept popping as we went down in the elevator.  The elevator has red numbers that show every 50ft down or up inside.  It was a very smooth elevator ride.  We arrived at a small waiting room at the bottom with a line of people waiting to come up; and there are circular rotating push through doors on each side of the room.  They had to install these doors to help ensure the proper air circulation was maintained to help conserve the caverns.

The cavern was a very wet humid type of environment, and it was HUGE.  There was a map that showed a 1.2 mile walk along the outer edges of the “Big Room” part of the cave.  I started on the path; stopping and taking pictures and listening to the audio as I saw numbers to enter for it.  You could take pictures of the inside of the cave all you wanted to though they did ask that you be considerate of others while taking pictures.  I waited till a couple had some distance in front of me and then I played with several different settings on my camera to try to figure out what would work best.  There wasn’t much lighting and what there was of lighting was focused on playing up certain parts of the cave.  I wouldn’t know if any of these would turn out for sure until they were downloaded into my computer later. 

Photos- A few of the pictures that turned out of the interior of Carlsbad Caverns.

The audio went on to give a description of the size of the cave and it was giving a comparative of a couple of football fields that could be covered over with the estimated amount of water to fill the cavern.  The ceiling looked to be about 50 or 60 feet above me in some places and here I had been concerned about being claustrophobic in the cavern.  There was more than enough room.  I stayed on the well fenced path area and didn’t touch any of the insides of the cavern as instructed by the elevator attendant. 

I found it very interesting that we as visitors leave something behind that needs to be continually cleaned by national parks employees… It’s lint!  I thought it would be something on our shoes or perhaps Carbon dioxide that we left in the cave but lint?  They said that the environment was similar to being in a wet dryer and that is when the dryer forms/collects most of the lint in its cycle.  You learn something new every day!  I did manage to make the full 1.2 miles around the “Big Room” of the cavern 15 minutes before the last elevator heads up to the top the last time of the day. 

Next, I ventured into the gift shop and of course purchased a couple of postcards and a bumper sticker.  I looked at the shirts but none of them appealed to me; in fact, I thought some of them were rather creepy looking.  Also, I was a little unnerved because they had a mechanical bat toy flying around in the gift shop area.   I didn’t stay long and out onto the 7 mile descent I went to the main highway I had come on.  I still had another 54 miles to drive to get to Roswell where I staying for the night.  And thus, I was driving towards one of the premiere UFO Capitals of the world as the sun was setting.  I was really hoping that I didn’t get abducted along the way.