We started the day at the Carlsbad Caverns... 750 feet underground.
It took us two and a half hours to walk through the entire series of caves, and it was kind of like walking on mars. Nothing is familiar. The only way to convince yourself it's of this planet is to try to see things in the structures. You know, "that one looks like jabba the hut," etc. 
But really, it was very cool. Very, very cool. I got vertigo a couple of times and when looking into the 'bottomless pit' I think my life flashed before my eyes. It was perfect.After a scenic drive through a barren desert,
northwest-ish, we were suddenly winding beside mountains at 6,000 feet elevation. From (-)750 feet to 6,000 feet in a matter of minutes - that's pretty enchanting. 
Also, there are a lot of dogs that ride freely in the back of pick-up trucks here, 
but today we saw a dog pacing on the top of the truck bed, barking at nothing, and it was slightly unnerving. So I took a photo! We also saw a pistachio farm with a giant pistachio out front - so I took a photo!And then there was Roswell. Oh, Roswell.
They've really made it a point to capitalize on the alien thing...obviously. We went to the UFO museum - probably the most ridiculous, poorly planned out museum I've ever seen, 
but it was only $5 so it was well worth the experience. Hilarious. Really. And kind of interesting, too, actually. The parts that weren't hilarious were interesting. Was there a cover up? Probably. Was it an alien space craft? Um... I don't really think so. But that's just me. Most of the shops in the area were named with some kind of Alien pun in mind. Classy! Westbound,
we wound through a few more mountains, a bit more desert, and through an 
Apache reservation (wasn't quite what I was expecting.. I couldn't tell it was a reservation until I saw the Casino I just kind of got sad). So much to take in for one day and it was only half over.
We stopped at the White Sands National Monument - this is a MUST SEE at sunset. I couldn't believe it was America. It was the most AMAZING, strange, breathtaking place I've seen in a very, very long time. The sand looks like snow, and the dunes go on for miles. 
Surrounded by red mountains, that turn black against the sunset, the sky just turns pink. Pink against blue against yellow against the most pristine white. We ran up and down the dunes, made sand angels, did cartwheels. And it was so quiet we could hear each other perfectly from the tops of our three very distant dunes. That was kind of weird, but also really awesome. I can't recommend this place more. I really can't. And then, to finish up the day, we drive to a little town called Truth or Consequences.
New Mexico, I love you. This town was named after the TV show way back when. Shout out to Devin for recommending it. We found this little Inn called Blackstone Hotsprings that's supposed to be for couples, I guess (i mean it IS adorable).. but that's okay we slipped a third person in and they were nice about it. This place has a super deep tub and the water streaming into it is DIRECTLY from the hot springs that this town is known for. The water comes flowing into the tub, waterfall fashion, at 106 degrees. It is SO nice. Probably the perfect way to end a seriously productive day. And with that I'm exhausted.
Oh yeah, and the stars out here are incredible. INCREDIBLE.
"Land of Enchantment," I believe you.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment