We entered Texas and saw the Lone Star.
Outside Columbus Texas, we saw the 2nd largest Live Oak tree in texas.
They never told us where the largest Live Oak tree in Texas resides.
We toured the Alamo in San Antonio, learning where Davey Crockett and Jim Bowie (and 111 others) "died for our freedom".
Downtown San Antonio has a River Walk - a pedestrian walkway on both
sides of a canal. It is dotted with restaurants and shops and
lovely landscaping with tropical plants. It turned out to be a
nice way to spend an afternoon, including stopping at an outdoor bar to
watch the 3rd place game of the World Cup (see below: "Go Portugal!").
We spent our last night in the US in Laredo, which seems to exist
solely for shopping and housing transient visitors. The
unbecomingness of this town made it easy for us to leave the
country. Crossing the border was relatively uneventful, other
than very vague information on when and where to get visas and a permit
for our car. By 9:30 on the morning of July 9, we were driving
through the deserts of north-eastern Mexico.
The landscape was stark and dry; livestock grazed by the
roadsides, sometimes tethered or watched by a herder, more times not.
Seeing the first herd of skinny goats by the roadside, we thought
they were trying to cross the road but watched as they ate the sparse
green vegetation by the roadside. Above is a photo of an old,
abandoned train station, surrounded by the Chihuahuan desert.
The visible fauna of the area consisted of horned lizards, grackles, an
occasional dead armadillo, one road-runner. Other than that, all
the animals were horses, donkeys, cows, and goats. Prickly pear
cacti and ocotillo dotted the landscape.
Oasis in the desert! The town of Cuatro Cienagas:
Oasis!!!! Our destination was Cuatro Cienagas ("Four swamps"), a
tiny town whose tourist attraction are several natural pools, lakes,
and rivers formed by underground springs in this dry desert habitat.
Above are photos of our hotel in this town, a true oasis - huge
rooms, lovely courtyard, wonderful pool with waterfall.
The Rio los Mezquites had incredibly clear water - you could easily see
the fish below. Sarah befriended a dog there - a lively
beagle-mut. It was really hot - we got up early to drive out to
the Rio and we were the only ones there. It IS in the Chihuahuan
desert. I imagine that the activity picks up as the temperature
rises and lots of people gather here to swim. But the white
gringo and gringas left before 9:00am.
Next file: driving south: Saltillo and Zacatecas
