Back in the USA!

I had always heard good things about Bisbee; so, because we were in this territory, we decided to spend the night here.  We viewed the copper mines, roamed around the town a bit and ended up at a dog-friendly saloon, The Grand Hotel, where we enjoyed a margarita to celebrate crossing the border without a hassle.  The bartender and his girlfriend were particularly nice to us and regaled us with stories of Bisbee.  Everyone we met today seemed very, very happy to live here.

Bisbee is a very artsy town carved into the mountainside.
It reminded us alot of Colorado silver mining towns.

After Bisbee, we drove through the Sonoita wine country in southern Arizona to meet up with an old friend of Jim's from the Cellar Door Days.  The desert in this area is blooming like crazy.  We did buy one local wine to save for a special occasion, but no time today for wine tasting.

We stopped to see San Xavier Mission del Bac on the way up to Tucson.  It was built in the late 1700s and is filled with original mural paintings and statues.

One of the many altars inside

The native population here is known as
Tohono O'odham (Desert People).

Traditional home of the Tohono O'odham

Good reminder

John Meek was about 15 years older than Jim when he frequented the Cellar Door, where Jim worked as a waiter.  At the time he was Communications Director for the Democratic National Committee and later went on to found an international public relations firm.  He is a long time friend of The Mitchell Trio, Starland Vocal Band and John Denver.  He is an ex-Marine, author and serious mountain climber.

John lives in Green Valley, south of Tucson, in a beautiful southwest community.  Jim and he had a grand time sharing stories.  John has had a rough year, combatting the effects of an auto immune disease which caused a mild stroke.  He hasn't lost his sense of humor or his ability to wow the crowd.  I so enjoyed meeting him!

We checked into the dog-friendly La Quinta Hotel in Tucson and it was so nice and relaxing, we decided to stay two nights and just unwind before hitting the road again.

Boo was not allowed in the swimming pool
area so we tied him up right outside.  However,
he was not happy with this and wanted to be
with us.

Sooooo-I sat with him right outside the gate to the pool, of course!

On the way north, we stopped at Casa Grande National Monument.  Here, we viewed the ruins of a community of 13th century Hohokum natives.  Casa Grande refers to the largest structure, below-big house.

Since we have traveled the Tucson-Albuquerque-Denver route many, many times, we decided to take one of our favorite highways, 191, up through Arizona and Utah through the Navajo Nation in northeastern Arizona.

The new Navajo Nation Museum in Window Rock

A traditional hogan

The entrance to the museum, where there is an impressive
art collection, a photographic documentary exhibit and a
display about the Navajo Code Talkers.  The complexity of
the Navajo language enabled a small group of native men
to create codes to outfox the Japanese during World War II
and helped to win the war.  It was only during the Reagan
administration that this operation was declassified.

A display about the Trail of Tears, the forced relocation of
native americans during the 1830s brought tears to our
eyes.  Many died of starvation or disease.  The Navajo were
forced to march from Arizona to Bosque Redondo in eastern
New Mexico at gunpoint.  This is an embarrassing part
of our history and is truly an American holocaust.

Sisters

Brothers

Chief Manuelito

One of the famous code talkers

It rained like crazy for the next two days, but the rain did not diminish the beauty of this land.

Bluff, Utah Trading Post

After 7 days of traveling, it was a relief to reach Jason's house in Longmont and meet his wonderful new companion, Jack.  So far, he and Boo seem to be sharing the space well and enjoying each other's company.