Sun City AZ

We stopped here on our way back to Indio, CA to visit with Al & Doris good friends we met years ago when we were just starting out. We stayed at the Paradise RV Park in Sun City. It is an Encore park well laid out and really very nice. Al came over and helped Dick get the connection from the motorhome and our car wired correctly so now we have lights when we tow.

We joined Al & Doris for a concert in the park and a picnic. The Navy Band Sea Chanters is the US Navy Band’s official chorus. They performed a variety of music ranging from traditional choral music, including sea chanteys and patriotic music to opera, Broadway, and contemporary music. 

Doris and I.

When the sun went down it turned cool I was glad I grabbed the blanket from the car.

It was one of the best concerts we have been to.

The next day we drove over to their home and Doris fixed a great lunch and then off we went to the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix. The museum was founded by Robert Ulrich former CEO and Chairman of the Target Corporation. The collection includes over 15,000 instruments from nearly 200 countries and territory's and the largest museum of its type in the world.

The Teak sandstone on the exterior was imported from India.

We entered not knowing what to expect, we picked up wireless headsets and a map and were told that there would be a demonstration of the the Decap Organ in the Mechanical Music Gallery which features instruments that play on their own.

When you walked up to a display or a monitor your headset would come on and you would hear an explanation of what you were viewing or the music from the instrument. Where it came from or how it was made.

They have a Conservation Lab and you can watch them work on instruments that are being restored.

The Artists Gallery featured instruments, video concert footage, photographs, performance outfits, and other items linked to world renowned musicians and music innovators. Each small area or stage would have a song from the artist or a video of the concert.

Also on the ground level they have the Experience Gallery the most unique gallery I have seen. You can actually play what ever instrument that is here.

Al trying out this instrument

And we all had fun with this one.

Doris with her turn

I had fun on this one.

Dick with his friend.

They had guitars, ukuleles and other instruments that you could play.

The upper level housed the Geographical Galleries, musical instruments and music from all the countries in the world. The videos were of musicians playing songs from that country and in some cases using the instruments that came from that country. 

Ireland.

England.

The last gallery was titled Special Displays highlighting iconic American manufacturers. Martin Trumpets.

Steinway & Sons, D’Addario & Co and of course Fender Musical Instruments.

We did not have the time to stop and look at everything and listen to all of the videos so another trip to the Musical Instrument Museum will have to be planned when we are again in the neighborhood.

Mesilla, NM

We got a recommendation from a friend about this town very near Las Cruces and in my plans for heading back to CA I found my notes from them and decided we needed to spend 2 days and visit this town and eat lunch at La Posta which came highly recommended.

We got a very early start from Fort Stockton and when the sun came up it was gorgeous.

Mesilla is a very old quaint town. Soldiers raised the US flag in this plaza 11/16/ 1854 marking the signing of the Gadsden Purchase.

The Butterfield Overland Trail came through here 1858 – 1861 it was the forerunner for the Pony Express. They were going to bring the railroad through here but the town didn’t want it so Las Cruces became the more important city and this town remained the quiet little town.

Lunch at La Posta was excellent. The restaurant is laid out in small rooms each decorated a little bit different.

The salsa was the best we have ever had and we ended up buying some to bring home.  

We had a great day in Mesilla so if you are ever in Las Cruces take a little time and visit here you won’t regret it.

Texas and Back

Nacogdoches is a very pretty town, a college town with the Sam Houston State University in the center of it. The Visitor Center is downtown on Main Street.

 

Thomas Rusk Statue.

A new sculpture was dedicated while we were here.

On Valentines day we took off and drove up to Kilgore and toured the East Texas Oil Museum

Interesting layout in the museum. Old trucks,

old cars,

Step into a full-scale town of stores, people, animals, and machinery.

We stopped in at the General Store went to the Drugstore where they have this juke box.

Rutted streets

At the Barbershop you can listen to the news of a new gusher.

There is a theatre where you can watch historical footage of the boom period and what it feels like when you get a blowout gusher. We took an “elevator ride to the center of the earth to where the oil deposits lie”.

Mural of a city block in town that was wall to wall oil rigs.

Today that city block is a park with the replicas of some of the oil rigs.

We left Nacogdoches on Friday 2/22 for Temple TX and the Elks Club. From Temple we took Highway 190 to I-10 near Fort Stockton. No traffic on Saturday nice highway and interesting to be driving across Texas and seeing something other than trucks and freeway. We stayed the night in Fort Stockton at the Eagles.

Next stop Las Cruces, NM

Lake Medina TT & San Antonio

There is no lake at Lake Medina because of the drought in West TX. The ranger told us to see any water besides the creek running through the dry lake bottom is at the dam at the end of the lake. It is 60 feet below what it should be.

On one of our walks Dick took this picture of these strange vines that look more like tree limbs.

One of the reasons we enjoy this park is the deer that are everywhere.

I put out some bird feeders and the deer thought we had put them out for them.

Dick went to see if they would be scared off and they were not.

I of course had to try it too.

I learned this year at my 50th high school reunion that Mike DeBusk lives in San Antonio. I called and we made a date, he and Terri came and picked us up and we drove into town. First stop was The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Little Flower.

 

Wonderful old Catholic Church. None of our pictures did it justice.

Next was lunch at Mi Tierra what wonderful food it was some of the best Mexican food we have had.

Terri & Mike

Our last stop was the SAS Shoe Factory. They still make the children’s shoes by hand.

They have a display of old cars and farm equipment then inside there is rows and rows of shoes.

We had a great day with Mike & Terri.

Next stop is Nacogdoches and the Foretravel Factory. 

Trip to Texas

We left Oregon on Jan 5th and headed south on 101. First night was spent at the Eureka Elks. Next stop was the Napa Elks where we stayed 2 nights and visited the downtown area the next day. There are a number of murals and sculptures around town.

We found out that Napa was the birthplace of the Loudspeaker and Magnavox.

After lunch we came across this interesting place that was quickly filling up with kids. An outdoor skating rink.

Next stop was San Luis Obispo Elks for 1 night then on to Indian Waters in Indio where we stopped for 2 weeks.

I volunteered for the Humana Challenge and I had a great time.

Went to dinner with friends at Sloan’s

Marla & Dick                                 Mel & Phyllis

Rockey & Ken                                              Ken & Judy.

As you can see Dick was playing with feature on his phone that stitches 2 pictures together.

It was take a clown to dinner night and this clown was eating at the next table.

After 2 weeks we were ready to start our trip to Texas destination the Foretravel Factory in Nacogdoches. We planned stops in Casa Grande, AZ, Las Cruces, NM, Medina Lake TT in TX.