Roswell - In search of a UFO

When we were heading home through New Mexico we found out that our credit card was compromised, and we had to wait for a new one to be sent to us. Low and behold, it happened near Roswell, New Mexico - home of the great 1947 UFO Incident. Who wouldn't want to stop here! Ha

I've always told Bob that I knew if a UFO landed in our yard and the aliens asked him if he wanted to go for a ride I'd be standing there waving good bye. I'm so glad we don't live in Roswell, because he would have hopped right on. At least in 1947. Maybe.

Is it true? Did one of these guys get left behind?

Bob checked things out very carefully, but I pulled him away and offered him something better.

There was a bakery across the street, and Bob has a sweet tooth. We bought some of these goodies and headed on our way. Just the two of us!

We have one more place to show you before we reach home, so stay alert!

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White Sands National Monument and Missile Range

We couldn't drive past this missile range because Bob loves space, and everything space related, so we parked our camper and headed out to see what they had to offer.

On our way to the missile range we stopped at White Sands National Monument.

It almost looks like snow when you see the white sands from a distance. It's actually a gypsum field, and it's the largest gypsum field in the world.

You can sled on snow, and you can sled on white sand too, so they sell and rent sleds at the visitor's center to use here. No, we didn't try it, but it did look like fun!

Bob hiked to the top of a dune and he had a great view of the San Andrea Mountains behind him. We were here a few years ago and saw many stealth bombers streaking across the sky, but this time we didn't see any.  Huge disappointment.

This is a very pretty area. The sands are so white, and the mountains in the distance look beautiful.

They plow the roads every day because the sand, like snow, drifts.

Our next stop was the White Sands Missile Range.

There were displays of rockets for Bob to study. He loves this stuff.

They also had displays of other interesting things, like a space shuttle made of cardboard tubes and styrafoam cups. The shuttle was made by reporters who were waiting for the shuttle to land and got a little bored.

This Darth Vader helmet was given to the Missile Range by Ben Burtt of Lucas Films. Ben visited the range twice in 1978 to record sounds of missiles being test fired, and he used some of these sounds in Star Wars, for which he won an Academy Award.

This Saturn V rocket had it's own building and we were in there a long time.  sigh

The outside exhibit was filled with good stuff, but there was a storm brewing, and we got out of there fast!

Next stop? Wait until you see it!

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Santa Fe

When we left Albuquerque we decided to head home, but we also agreed to stop at any place that interested us. Santa Fe wasn't far from Albuquerque, so we took a day trip to see what we could find there.

If you like chili peppers this is the place to come. They sell them everywhere, and when you order your food you have your choice of red (hot) or green (very hot). Too bad I like mine mild, very mild!

Santa Fe has a very pretty Old Town, so we stopped for lunch and a walk through the plaza.

There were food vendors on each corner of the plaza, and it looked like a good place to have lunch. Bob likes his chili peppers, and he had a tamale, which he loved. Me, not so much. There were vendors for people like me too, and they left the peppers off or only put a few on.

Of course there were people selling their jewelry and art and I found a pair of earrings for Jaime. The artist asked where we were from and she asked us to send her granddaughter a postcard from our home area. She's putting the postcards in a fishbowl, and when the little girl turns 16 she'll pull a postcard from the fishbowl and visit the city selected.  What a great idea!

This new hotel was built in the old adobe style, and I thought it was beautiful.

The church at the end of the street is The Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi, which was built in 1869.

I forget who this Indian is, but I liked his statue, so here he is for you to see.

We walked to a section of Santa Fe that is well known for its arts and artists. Some of the homes were very beautiful, and I really liked this house with its very own bee hive oven. What fun!

We enjoyed looking at the sculptures and blankets displayed, but we didn't buy anything. Sometimes window shopping is best, especially when everything is way over your budget!!

Next stop: White Sands Missile Range

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The Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

We stayed at a campground run by the Isleta Indian tribe, and the campground was located near a commuter rail stop.  The railroad ran a special train for the Balloon Fiesta so we didn't have to drive our hulking truck into the city. Perfect!

The crowd was huge, but there were so many balloons to see that even Bob, our crowd hater, didn't mind it.

Of course they offered balloon rides, but that's definitely not on my bucket list!

We walked through the grounds to see the balloons, their baskets, and pilots. They lay their balloons on the ground, fill them with enough hot air to inflate them, and wait until it's their turn for launch.

Most of the pilots and their helpers were very friendly and they answered questions from everyone.

This guy's holding on to the handle that controls the gas to heat the air in his balloon. When he pulls on the handle flames shoot out and the air in the balloon heats up.

The Fiesta is very well organized. The men in striped shirts, who are called zebras, tell the balloon pilots when it's their turn to launch, and they keep spectators a safe distance away.

There were over 500 balloons launched, and they were so beautiful. I took many, many pictures and I'll post just a few of my favorites for you to see. 

This stagecoach balloon, sponsored by Wells Fargo, had a hard time the day we were there.  One of the helpers told us that it has to be a very calm day to launch this huge balloon.  We did see it in the sky on TV the next day.

These balloons were a crowd favorite, and everyone loved when the mommy and daddy balloons "kissed"!

This is another balloon that has to wait for a calm day to launch, but who can resist a cute Holstein?

They start launching the balloons shortly before sunrise and by noontime they're all down and being trucked away to get ready for the evening launch.   

We had a great time at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, but it's time to move on. Next stop: Santa Fe.

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