The End

Photos

Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, NM

Vets representing the Navaho Code Talkers

Number 5, really quite comfortable

Nathan!!!

Standin' on the corner

Grand Canyon

Woods overlooking Williams, AZ

Newspaper article about the storm we encountered

Ceremony for "EMG 603"

"Special Ear"

Burros at Oatman AZ

How many maps does one need???

Fresh fruit stand

Hey, dude!  What do you think a camera on a tripod means, anyway???

Oops!

View out from our hotel balcony

Day 10 HOME!!

Woke up Saturday to a beautiful day, walked the ocean front and headed to Bob Hope Airport after taking a little side trip through some neighborhoods in Beverly Hills.  Thought we saw the Beverly Hills Courthouse where OJ Simpson's trial was but turned out to be a Mormon Tabernacle!  Dropped of the rental vehicle without problems and had plenty of time to check out the airport (more boring than Rochester International!!).  Switched planes in Phoenix and got part way to MSP when the pilot came on and said that do to mechanical problems with the plane, we were headed back to Phoenix.  We figured as long as they didn't tell us to put our heads between our knees and brace for a crash, the landing gear was OK! Switched planes again and finally got to MN!  Thanks to Deb's memory, we found my car that had been parked at the airport!   Arrived home without any difficulty.  It was a great trip!  Glad you could share some of the highlights with us!  Until next time......

Day 9 Santa Monica CA pop. 87,000

I am sitting on our balcony overlooking the ocean while Deb and Karen are shopping.  Now I can write anything I want without getting their approval!!  We made it safely to the end of Route 66 at about 3:30 California time.  The trip today included a stop at a fresh fruit market and a drive through Hollywood, stopping to see the stars in the sidewalk and some other interesting things.  These three Midwest girls did pretty well manuevering in this big city and I wanted to lay on the horn just once because everyone else was but for Karen's sake didn't.  We got a great rate on an ocean view room and even got a better deal after finding a dead cockroach under the chair!  Took pictures at the end of route 66, met Dan Rice's wife and told her hi from Tatoo Man and ate  seafood at the end of the pier.  Karen tried fish tacos and I ate onions!  Walked down to the beach and watched a beautiful sunset, a great ending to a great day.  The hotel has a business room with compter but no usb port and you had to pay $0.10 a minute so again, no pictures.  Next time I will bring a laptop and won't have this problem. We leave tomorrow afernoon and get into MSP late.  Check the blog on Sunday afternoon for a final post.  Thanks for following along on this "Adventure"
P.S.   Praying for Sawyer Hanson today as he had his second surgery and wishing my parents a happy 56 th wedding anniversary.

Day 8 continued

Well, not really but it was real enough to make me scream!  A traumatic as it was, I left MN EMG 603, my favorite license plate at a new home.  It was quite a ceremony and I know it will be happier at the store where the creators of the movie "Cars" met in the barbers chair to plan the movie than in my garage covereed with dust and spider webs.  The road to Oatman AZ was a beautiful winding mountain road and once there we were greeted by the burro with a "special" ear.  A stroll down the center of town, avoiding at all costs the "Red Hat Society" ladies and the piles of burro dung and then off to California!  Driving through the Mohave Desert caused us to pause and think about what earlier travellers headed west for a better life encountered, some just left what they had and walked into the desert never to be seen again.  We found a place to stay (no computer-I am still a little miffed) and now time for bed.  Tomorrow when I call for reservations in Santa Monica, the first question will be if they have a computer to use to post picture on the blog!  Seee you soon!!

Day 8 Barstow CA pop. 21,000

I am in the depth of despair, our hotel (despite being a very nice chain hotel) doesn't have computers for patrons and the person that has the thumb print for the office computer doesn't come in until 11 p.m. & we were given a sr discount for dinner!  Had a good day starting out with a picnic breakfast on the hill surrounded by large pines overlooking Williams.  On the way out of Williams we saw a Heartland Tours bus and had to stop and see if the driver knew My friend, Joe.  Andy the driver did and there was a lady from Kasson there also.  We made excellent time today, probably due to the fact that Deb, the driver had 4+ cups of various caffinated drinks this morning.
"Cattle crossing-means go slow-that old bull-is some cows beau-Berma Shave"  Yes, we were entertained on the long, desolate roads by some vey funny signs from the past.   A stop in Seligman AZ included a stop at the Snow Cap drive in where Deb got sqiurted with yellow mustard!

Day 7 Williams AZ pop. 2,800

Well, sleeping in a TP went well, even the railroad tracks with multiple fast traveling trains did not bother us (much)!!  Once on the road again, we took a trip through the Petrified Forest and no, the trees weren't standing up right!  We also saw part of the Painted Desert. Breakfast was at Joe's and Aggies in Holbrook.  Deb rode a rabbit and Karen stood on a corner in Winslow AZ!  I wish there was a computer in this train station because I have some great pictures that would describe the day better than I ever could!  We almost ended up back in Kansas when a tornado ripped through Flagstaff AZ.  The freeway was opened by the time we came through but there were semis tipped on their side and a camper sales business was pretty much destroyed.  the sun came up and we took a side trip to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.  we got some nice pictures of the canyon as the sun was setting.  Supper was at the Pine Country Restaurant which was delicious.  Sorry about no picuters, many people have asked when they would be posted, hopely tomorrow!  Hoping to get to California tomorrow otherwise may need to get a hold of our supervisors!!   Good night from Arizona again!!