A long, though not necessarily restful night sleep. We finally hauled out at 7 AM and had a leisurely morning with breakfast, a nice little walk in the lovely Flagstaff temperature, about 75 degrees. The breakfast room was filled with tourists from Germany ready for a day at the Grand Canyon. Not for us today.
We loaded up the car, filled up our water bottles, put more ice in the cooler, and we were off again.
To the East of Flagstaff, we could see many of the volcanic cones from their active time many thousands of years ago. Mt Humphreys, the tallest peak in Arizona is an extinct volcano. Interstate 40 parallels the main train line through this part of the country. There were trains near us for hours, no box cars to be seen now as the trains are loaded with containers. Often there would be dozens of Amazon containers. How retail and transportation have changed.
A funny feature in our new car gives us a warning that police had been seen up ahead and asked us to confirm if they were still there. They usually were.
As we drove across Arizona and into New Mexico, the temperature steadily rose. It was over 100 by the time we reached Albuquerque. The heat is so dry and oppressive. We were happy to have good air conditioning in our car and in our hotel. As we descended into the valley with this major city, we could see the Sandia Crest rising on the eastern side of the city. We were headed to Rio Rancho NM, a suburb of Albuquerque, to spend time with Patti’s roommate from seminary in the early 1980's. It was so nice to see Tomi and her husband, Hank. They have lived New Mexico for a long time. It had been two years since we last visited them and were glad to have time with them.
We had dinner at a local Vietnamese restaurant and enjoyed catching up with these dear old friends. Then, we went over to their house and hung out for a bit. When it’s possible to get to New Mexico, we love spending time here. They both have the biggest hearts, especially for rescue animals. Right now they’re down to only one cat and four dogs. All of them special needs and take a lot of loving. We appreciate so much those who will go the extra mile for these animals.
Back to the hotel and a chance to watch a little basketball on TV. It’s fun to be out on the road, but it’s also exhausting. Thank heavens for good air conditioning.
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