A grand ol' time.

Not in my wildest dreams did I expect to encounter the number of adventures and first time experiences that I have thus far in my trip. Its been great to see and compare different cities as they are often much different than my preconceptions and almost always vary greatly from one another. Phoenix, which is near Chandler Arizona where I stayed with my friend Merlyn and her husband Jason, for example, was larger and less densely populated than I had previously believed. Nonetheless, both Phoenix and Chandler were a whole lot of fun. Not only because of the fun things I got to do, but because I got to do them with Merlyn, who I hadn’t seen in ages and who I already miss after only having left two days ago.
Leaving Arizona was interesting as it may potentially have been the last stop where I have somebody to visit, although I do have family in South Carolina and Michigan, which I will see if I travel through either of the two states. Not only has the comfort of familiar faces disappeared, but the towns of Arizona, New Mexico and Texas that I have since visited are much smaller and spread apart than those of the beginning of my travels. Their desolate feeling and striking difference in culture from what I am accustom makes them very intimidating, but still, enjoyable.
Tombstone, El Paso, and Las Cruces are all three towns that I have passed through that are in very close proximity to the U.S.-Mexico border and so twice, I have passed through border control. The second occasion, though, was absolutely unexpected. As I was passing through an inspection station North of El Paso, I was given the third degree by the border patrol and was then asked to get out of my car while a search dog inspected my car. I was the only person at the station, so as you might imagine, I was terrified. Luckily, I was still able to enjoy the rest of my day and am now safe in Roswell, New Mexico, where I will be searching for aliens tomorrow. If I disappear, aliens will have most likely abducted me, and in that case, I will have chosen to stay with them. It’s sort of my dream, I think.

Highlights:


Chandler, AZ. Appletinis/Happy House with Mer before the game.

Chase Field, AZ. White Sox vs. the Diamondbacks. Sox 0-2. Merlyn scored us some free tickets to the game, which was my first major league baseball game!

The Grand Canyon-Southern rim. An absolutely amazing experience that words cannot even come close to describing. Because of the elevation, breathing is more difficult along the canyon, but still, the air felt like the freshest I have ever inhaled.

Papago Park, AZ. The first picture is of Hole in A Rock, which we were able to climb up and view a perfect view of Phoenix. Evidence suggests that early Native Americans used the holes in the rock and the sun to track the solstices. Neat, ay? The second, of one a group of ponds in the park and also home to many, many different species of birds.

After the park, we found the tastiest frozen yogurt shop. Customers get to first self serve their yogurt with plenty of choices in flavors and then choose from whatever toppings they want. You name it, they probably have it! Desserts are then paid for by the ounce. Seriously, best idea ever.

Boothill Graveyard, Tombstone, AZ. The cemetery is the burial ground for hundreds of individuals of the "West" who died of various causes such as being hanged, dieing of disease, accidental deaths and disease, all of which lacked the funds for a memorial service.

In a sense it is neat to visit the cemetery, but it is also upsetting that the bodies of these deceased individuals are being used as a means to attract tourists to Tombstone and ultimately, make money. The attraction completely robs the people of any sort of agency.

Downtown Tombstone, AZ. Here, people ride around on horses, walk around in old Western attire and occasionally break out in gunfight (planned, of course).

Big Nose Saloon, Tombstone, AZ. I stopped in an old fashion saloon for lunch. Being the only one not wearing a cowboy hat and boots, I stuck out like a sore thumb (to say the least). Then, a country performer took the stage and the crowd roared with excitement. Awkward, but honestly, a ton of fun and great food!

Las Cruces, NM. Only the beginning of horizontal streetlights. I am noticing them everywhere throughout NM and Texas too.

Highway 180 from Las Cruces to Carlsbad. This picture is worth enlarging. If you do, you will notice the hundreds of cows basically piled on top of one another in a much too small cow pen. Seeing multiple living situations such as this one for cows throughout NM was quite moving for me. Since I have been on my road trip, I have begun losing sight as to why I chose to be a vegetarian and have consumed meat on a few occurrences (finding suitable food is more difficult on the road). Seeing this; however, is enough to remind me of why it is important to not consume meat (or at least make efforts to prevent these sort of living environments). Not OK, not OK at all.

Highway 180 to Carlsbad. What felt like a never-ending stretch of road (120miles) after having the search dog check my car at the border inspection. I'm running out of CD's and the only radio stations throughout this area are religious or in Spanish.

Guadalupe Mountains National Park, TX. I did not have time to hike because I was in a rush to get to the Carlsbad Caverns, but still, they was nice to admire from afar.

Carlsbad Caverns, NM Believe it or not, the land that the Caverns now sit on was once a reef. When water dried and uplifting occurred, the Guadalupe Mountains formed above while limestone and water droplets formed the unique shapes and textures in the caverns below. The formations are still developing today, but at a much slow rate since the area is now a desert.

I think it is neat that they created restrooms down below in the caverns.