We drove through some beautiful and varied country today.  We headed south from Lake Charles along the Creole Nature Trail, which runs through a series of natural wildlife reserves along the gulf coastline. They included fresh and saltwater marshes, wooded islands, canals and lakes. At one point the road ran along a narrow dike in the middle of extensive marshlands.  It was a bird watcher's paradise. There are 312 species.  We saw mostly wading birds; herons and egrets.  We saw some rice fields, but the major crop in this area is sugar cane which is just being harvested.

Most of the time we were at sea level or below.  The houses along the southern coast were all built up on "stilts" about 8' - 12' above the ground.  One house had a sign: "Cajun High Rise".  

The Intra-coastal byway runs along the Gulf Coast.  It is a 3 000 mile waterway that extends from the Manasquan River, in New Jersey, to Brownsville, Texas.  Most of what we saw today was man made canals that provide access to the Gulf.  The waterway is used by recreational boaters, but at some points there were ports that were bustling with commercial activity.  The road crossed over the waterway several times by way of some very impressive bridges.

We arrived in New Orleans this afternoon.  Our hotel is right in the heart of the downtown area.  We are on the 41st floor and our room looks out onto the Mississippi River which is two blocks away.  We can watch the barges and other vessels as they go past.

Trip Mileage:  5159 Miles

We travelled a fair distance today and arrived in Lake Charles this afternoon.  The downtown borders on the beautiful Lake Charles.  There are some stately southern homes along the lakeshore.  Bob's Uncle Ken and Aunt Vivian lived in Lake Charles for years, so it holds some personal significance for us. This is Cajun country and we
are looking forward to sampling some of the local fare.  

For the moment, we are riveted to the T.V., watching the rescue of the Chilean miners.  

Trip Mileage:  4876 miles 

This morning we visited the University of Texas campus.  It is a beautiful.  We were impressed with the football stadium. For Canadians,  it is amazing to see such a large and impressive facility for a university team.  Football is an important sport in Texas.  We also visited the UT clocktower, which was the scene of the Texas sniper shootings in August, 1966.

We went back to 6th street this evening to take in some of the live music offerings in the many pubs.  The music spills out onto the street in a jumble of sound.  Fun.

We spent Monday exploring downtown Austin, particularly Sixth Street and the Capital area.  Sixth Street is the historic Austin main street, now a focus area for live music and unique pubs and bars.  Shops sell stickers saying "Keep Austin Weird".  

The Texas State Capital building is the largest state capital in the United States.  We were amazed at the freedom visitors are allowed to roam and explore the building as they wish.  The rotunda of the building is currently being repaired, as can be seen in the photograph above.  

We crossed the Colorado River by the Congress Avenue Bridge and walked along the Lady Bird Trail to see the Stevie Ray Vaughn tribute.  

In the afternoon we met Tony and Christine Aldrich and Tony's sister Rebecca for a few beers at the Ginger Man (known to locals as the G-Man).  It was great seeing the Aldrichs, who were in recuperation mode after a weekend spent at Austin City Limits, the annual music festival which attracted over 75,000 visitors this year.

Travel day today from San Antonio to Austin.  We'll spend three days in Austin, sampling some of the famous Austin BBQ and live music.  Today was the final day of the Austin City Limits festival.  The grand finale is tonight, with the Eagles performing.

Total mileage:  4539 miles

We travelled from San Antonio to Seguin (40 miles east of San Antonio) today to meet friends Phil and Michelle Garoni and daughters Kelsey and Karina to see the football game between Trinity University and Texas Lutheran University.  Phil and Michelle's son Kyle is an offensive guard for Trinity, located in San Antonio.  

We greatly enjoyed the game (TLU won unfortunately), and afterward we went out for a Texas dinner at Josephine's in San Antonio.  Thanks to Phil and Michelle for sharing your family day with us!

Today we did a walking tour of downtown San Antonio.  Our first stop was the Alamo, where Davy Crockett, Jim Bowie, Colonel Travis and 186 other brave men sacrificed their lives fighting for Texas Independence.  It was inspiring.  

We were impressed by the beautiful River Walk which winds through the downtown.  In the 1930's a local architect had the vision to dredge channels and  build a series of locks.  The result is a waterway lined by stunning stonework and tropical gardens.  The walkway along the edge of the water is lined with restaurants and boutiques.

San Antonio is a beautiful city and we are looking forward to more exploring tomorrow.

Today was a travel day.  We drove for seven hours from Lubbock to San Antonio. The first part of the drive was through cotton and oil fields, then we drove through an immense wind power generating area.  The wind generators stretched for miles and miles.  The second part of the day was through rolling, forested hills.  The land is arid, but there is a variety of trees:  stubby oak, juniper, and pine.  It seemed odd to see wildflowers blooming in October. There were huge ranches all through this area, all marked by attractive gates displaying their name and brand.

At Junction, we stopped for a lunch of Texas BBQ.  There were autographed pictures of Willie Nelson and Whoopie Goldberg with the restaurant's owner on the wall!

We are planning to stay in San Antonio for four nights, so we will have time to explore the many sights.  Our hotel is within walking distance of the Alamo and the Market Square.  This evening at dusk tens of thousands of small black birds called Grackles came flying into the tree tops in the streets around our hotel.  It was quite a sight and the sound of the birds was almost deafening. Bob is going to try to figure out a way to video and perhaps record the sound tomorrow evening.

Trip Mileage:  4364 miles 

As we crossed into Texas the landscape became more prosperous.  We drove through oil fields and past cattle ranches.  The major crops around Lubbock include cotton and peanuts.  Most of the crops are irrigated from groundwater.  The cotton fields were white with the cotton that is ready to be harvested.  We learned that when the cotton is ready, the fields are defoliated so all that remains are the cotton bolls.  Then they drive down the rows with a combine that combs the cotton off of the stalk.  Once the cotton is picked, the plant is dead.  New cotton plants are planted in the spring.

This evening we visited with our friends Mac and Linda McBroom, who live in Lubbock.  They gave us a tour of the city including the beautiful Texas Tech campus and the grand homes of the cattlemen, many of which have been designated as historic buildings.  We were very impressed with Lubbock. It is prosperous and growing and has a very dynamic energy.  The city planners have been thoughtful about the development of the city including bylaws about signage.  The houses and many of the larger buildings are built of brick in order to withstand tornadoes. Not only are the homes resistant to the tornadoes,  they are very attractive.  In 1970, Lubbock was hit by a huge tornado that did a tremendous amount of damage to the city.  Mac and Linda showed us the tornado shelter they have in their back yard.  

Mac and Linda treated us to  a delicious dinner at their favourite Italian restaurant.  It was great to see them and to meet their daughter and grandson. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit.

Trip Mileage:  3957 miles

We had a good view of the city of Albuquerque this morning as we drove through and it broadened our perspective.  In contrast to the 300 year old pueblos in Old Town, the downtown of the city has modern skyscrapers.  This week is the Balloonist Festival in Albuquerque.  There was a mass launch just as we were driving through and we could see hundreds of hot air balloons rising into the sky - quite a sight.

Our elevation stayed between 6 000 and 7 000 ' for most of the day.  The landscape was flat and arid with vegetation varying from cactus to forests of squat pine and cedars to grasslands. The parts of New Mexico that we have seen are not particularly prosperous. 

We turned south on the 285 at Clines Corners.   For the next 130 miles we drove through a vast expanse of grassland.  There was no sign of human settlement for mile after mile.  The only animals we saw were antelope and ravens which seem to thrive in this environment.  There were three towns marked on the map.  Two were derelict ghost towns; one was just an old empty gas station.  

Towards Roswell as we lost elevation, we could see cattle and sheep as well as irrigated fields.  According to the local Visitor's Guide, the main sectors of the economy are oil and gas exploration, agriculture and dairy and manufacturing.  Agriculture includes cattle ranches, cotton and chile farms and dairy farms.  The world's largest mozzarella cheese producing plant is at Leprino Foods, in Roswell.  This week Roswell is hosting the State Fair, so the city is bustling.

Roswell is also famous for the International UFO Museum and Research Centre.  It is a non-profit museum dedicated to exploring UFO's and extraterrestrial phenomena.  It was founded by eyewitnesses who were involved in the 1947 Roswell Incident, the crash of an alleged "flying saucer" on a ranch near town.  We spent an hour looking at the evidence and the archive of photos and eyewitness accounts.  The museum has a website, www.roswellufomuseum.com.  

The town has capitalized on the UFO/Alien theme as an attraction for tourists.  The street lights are designed to look like alien heads that glow in the dark and most of the store front displays incorporate little green men of some sort or another.  The high school team is the Rockets.
Trip Mileage:  3778 miles