By the time we get to Phoenix.... May 3

This is the first roadside service area

when entering AZ from NM on I-10.
The sharp blue sky was especially enticing.

We arrived in Phoenix and stopped first at the REI store in Tempe http://www.rei.com/ to take advantage of their annual sale and pick up some useful hiking paraphernalia.

From there we continued on to Fountain Hills to meet Buzz and Alice and get ready for our Grand Canyon adventure.

Alice was at the door to greet us when we arrived

The balcony provides a great view over the valley and back towards Phoenix to the southwest.

This is saguaro country

Buzz prepared a delicious dinner featuring pan fried fillets from his fishing trip to Naples. We were impressed with his inventive apparatus for disabling the smoke detector!

Nightfall in Scottsdale

One little, two little, three little Indians...

four little, five little, six little Indians....

(waiting for their wives at the jewelry store)

Scottsdale sculpture gallery

Quatrz of the Amethyst variety at the Arizona Mining and Minerals Museum

http://www.admmr.state.az.us/General/museum.html

Quartz (l), Malachite (r)

Assorted mineral specimens

Calcite from Brazil

This is a view skyward in the rotunda of the Arizona Capitol Museumhttp://www.lib.az.us/museum/

Rare 19th C. Navaho baskets

The colorful first governor of Arizona was George W. P. Hunt, shown here in a recreation of his office. He served seven terms during his career, earning him the sobriquet "George VII."
His hometown newspaper, the Globe Silver Bell, supported his opponent and frequently ran such comments as the following: "Two circuses are in town today, Ringling Brothers and G.W.P. Hunt. Both are complete with side shows."

Bola Tie & Turquoise

The Arizona Capitol Museum is home to the silver service that was donated to the USS Arizona by the citizens of this state in 1919. This service is comprised of 59 distinct pieces on display at the Museum. Sadly, the USS Arizona now lies at the bottom of Pearl Harbor, a memorial to the servicemen who perished aboard her during the war.

The "Great Seal of the State of Arizona" in the central hall of the Capitol with the Latin motto Ditat Deus, God Enriches. (One can hope!)

Landing in Las Cruces: April 30

From Austin to Las Cruces, we struck out west on 290 through Texas Hill Country and passed the LBJ Ranch along the banks of the Pedernales River. Continuing on I-10 through west Texas and the city of El Paso (just across the Rio Grande from the drug-war riddled Mexican town of Juarez), we ended up in Las Cruces, NM. late in the afternoon.

Peg was impressed with the wrought iron entry door to our hotel.

The historic village of Old Mesilla is close by, and we went there for a couple of meals, and for the Cinco de Mayo Fiesta. Many of the Fiesta dancers were outfitted in striking costumes.

Mesilla was a lively social center in the 1880s. People came from as far as Chihuahua and Tucson to attend bailes (dances), bullfights, cockfights and theatrical presentations. The town attracted more than its share of violence, and differences were often settled in the streets with guns. Outlaws such as Dutch Hubert, Nicolas Provencio and Billy the Kid frequented many of the bars and dances in town.

In April of 1881, Billy the Kid was tried at the Mesilla courthouse and sentenced to hang. He soon escaped from jail, but was shot to death by Lincoln County Sheriff Pat Garrett on July 14.

More Cinco de Mayo dancers

Typical fiesta fare.
These lovely girls were eager to be photographed!

Exquisite costume details
Mariachi con gusto!

The famous chile rellenos at Chopes in La Mesa

It is a pleasant drive from Mesilla to La Mesa past farms and Pecan plantations, most of them owned by Stahmanns http://www.stahmanns.com/

Our primary purpose in visiting La Mesa was to visit Chopes, a quasi-ramshackle diner serving up incredible food. We both opted for the chile rellenos. They were delicious.

The Chopes bar and dining room are in separate buildings. Tip: If you prefer smoke free and quiet dining, try the dining room, shown in the background at the far side of the parking lot.

Diners enjoy cold beer with hot chile, in large or small bottles.

Colorful ristras at the Las Cruces market

Las Cruces Colonnade

Lively quartet at the market

A monk plays solo

Hotel breakfast area

Nachos at Si Senor, with four dips!

http://www.sisenorpdx.com/index.shtml

Just north of Las Cruces is Hatch, NM, home to the world's best chile peppers. We stopped here at the Chile Fanatic to stock up on dried chiles, ristras, and salsa. Their pecans were good too!

http://www.hatchchilefest.com/

Ristras as wreaths and crosses

View towards Alamogordo from Cloudcroft.

School kids sledding at White Sands National Monument

Peg in the dunes

The visitors center

Center & Museum

Looking down the White Sands missile range

http://www.wsmr.army.mil/wsmr.asp

San Augustin pass in the Organ Mountains, east of Las Cruces

Authentic Mexican dinner at El Comedor in Mesilla with the "Christmas" treatment
(red AND green chile)

Buck Wagon in Old Mesilla