MUSEUMS AND TALL TEXANS!

Greetings, dear reader!

Welcome back to the Route 66 tour! As the bus departs, I would ask that everyone remain in their seat, unless several passengers want to incite a hula hoop contest or burst into a twist marathon! All others please remain seated. :-)

As we continue our tour of the Route 66 Museum, we walk inside to find a counter with a friendly, smiling woman welcoming us and inviting us to take as many pictures as we'd like! REALLY?! WOOHOO! Cameras OUT! Flashes synchronized! For a mere $3.00 per person fee all of this nostalgia can be ours!

The first thing you see is an old map of Route 66...I so wanted to tear it off the wall!



And then this hi-tech lighted version. Very cool...

And then THIS: A map with postmarks of every single town on Route 66! I thought this would make a fab background for ATCs, collages, etc. I just couldn't resist (again "resisting" the urge to rip it off the wall)

Then a mock up of an old garage. There was a story about these particular gas station owners...and how they came to build the first gas station along the route...

THE gas and air pumps used at said station. Just amazing. There were collages of workers who were building the road itself...and stories of the Great Depression and how the building of the road became a "saving the farm" scenario for many of the workers. I took a picture but it didn't come out. :-(

I also took several pictures of vintage cars in their appropriate "eras" but alas, the only one that came out was this one. . . it happened to be my favorite! I am such a flower child!

There were so many more treasures in the museum...but we have, in the words of Robert Frost, "Miles to go before we sleep" so on to Amarillo!

This was the first indicator that we had reached our destination...we were absolutely exhausted from the road, so decided to stay in a hotel instead of looking for a campground. We were right down the road from the big Texan...

The Big Texan has been a "standard" on Route 66...billboards along the way boast a 72 oz (DO YOU REALIZE THAT IS 6 POUNDS?!?!) steak...if you eat it all, it's free! Nothing in me wanted to even LOOK AT that much meat on a platter! I'd rather see the steak "on hoof" thank you!

And tomorrow, we will! Longhorn steers and the Little Grand Canyon are our next stop...meanwhile, let's all go get breakfast at the Big Texan!

See you tomorrow!
Paula Clare

HOME AGAIN, HOME AGAIN (RE-ENTRY INTO THE REAL WORLD)

Greetings, dear reader!

We're back from our 2 week jaunt and OH MY GOODNESS! Isn't it hard to come home again after having been gone so long? At least, it is for ME! I never realize how much I miss "home" until I'm back in our little 750 sq. feet of bliss. :-)

One thing I must tell you, gentle reader: This country, the United States, is SO beautiful! I could spend the rest of my days just flitting from place to place within our borders and be perfectly content. Although we are not an ancient country, we are most definitely a DIVERSE one! In our short two weeks I've seen:

deserts blooming
rugged mountains
vast plains
jagged peaks
rolling hills
sand, clay, dirt
sudden thunderstorms
gentle breezes
howling winds
extreme heat
extreme cold
marvels, both natural and man made

Truly incredible. In the next several posts I'll be sharing with you some of the photos taken while meandering over the countryside. I hope you enjoy!

Here is the first installment...as you know, our meager beginnings took us to Route 66 in Missouri...and SINCE we were in Missouri, we HAD to stop by and see the grandbaby...of COURSE!



Our first stop along the way...



Helping the grandson get his Jeep running...



Apparently high gear is the ONLY gear for this boy! Bud and his mom try to keep up with him...to no avail!

I catch him long enough for a photo...and then we're off to a fave restaurant for dinner:



Ocean Zen! Really FABulous atmosphere and WONDERFUL food!



Next post: More photos of our travels AND the little camping album I started!

Hugs and kisses,
Paula Clare