Graham Central Station, Las Cruces, NM
September 18, 2005
Graham’s Central Station
http://www.grahamcentralstationlascruces.com/clubs.html
505 South Main Street
Las Cruces, NM 88001
505-524-9131
After dinner, we headed off for some dancing at a 4 room bar called “Graham’s Central Station”, which unfortunately had all the music I don’t really care for in all four rooms. Country and Western in the main room, hip hop in the next largest room, latino is the smaller dance room, and karaoke, which occasionally had a good song, in the bar room. My friends I went with … they had fun … that’s all that mattered. I had fun as far as people watching go - though no songs to enchant me to dance. I hung out in the Hip hop room with my friend who was dancing up a storm. There was an attractive lot later in the evening, can’t say much for the earlier hours, but if its your venue … then its the place to be in Las Cruces - apparently one of the only large dance clubs in the area. Very friendly and hospital staff - and if the music was better, I’d give it a 4 star rating. Good shooters, good drinks. Rated 2 star out of 5. Visited 9/16/05.
iAndele! Mexican Restaurant (Old Mesilla, NM)
September 15, 2005
iAndele!
Authentic Mexican Food in Historic Old Mesilla
2184 Avenida de Mesilla
505.526.9631
Me, Liz, and Claire went through the hidden passage to the back patio courtyard for some lunch. Good assortment of salsas to go with our chips, I ordered a margarita - but it was different than the average margarita - not made with tequila, but rather agave wine. It was tasty nonetheless. Dining on the taco platter - I was amazed and content with what was brought to me. Pecan ice cream and yummy honey filled sopapillas made me a happy camper. Rating: 4 stars out of 5. (visited 9/5/05)
Stahmann’s Pecans (Mesilla, NM)
September 15, 2005
A definite stopoff on the I-10 corridor through New Mexico by Las Cruces ….
Stahmanns Country Store
on the Historic Old Mesilla plaza
www.stahmanns.com
(505)528-6840
Of course exploring around the Old Historic Mesilla plaza, had to stop by and visit the famous Stahmann’s Pecan orchard country store - one of the only two retail outlets for the world’s largest family owned pecan orchard. Indulged in the free samples of all of their spiced and candied pecans, mixes, and brittles … mmmmmm …. yummy! These fantastic creations come from a 4,000 acre pecan tree farm in the fertile Mesilla Valley that was planted by Deane Stahmann 70 years ago. Every year, they produce over 8 million pounds of premium pecans making them the largest family owned pecan orchard in the world. Rated: 4 stars out of 5. (visited 9/15/05) I of course left with a tin of their famous pecan brittle, some navajo print bandanas that were only 79 cents each, and a smile.
Manitou Cliff Dwellings (Manitou Springs, Colorado)
September 5, 2005
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Manitou Cliff Dwellings http://www.cliffdwellingsmuseum.com/
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Pecos Ruins, New Mexico
September 4, 2005
Pueblo Ruins National Historical Park
Pueblo, New Mexico
(505) 757-6414×1
www.nps.gov/peco
Pecos National Historical Park
P. O. Box 418
Pecos, NM 87552
This awesome National Historical Park preserves 12,000 years of North and Central American History with its famous “Ruins” site and museum that saves the ancient Pueblo of Pecos, two Spanish Colonial Missions, Santa Fe Trail sites, 20th century ranch history of Forked Lightning Ranch, and the site of the Civil War Battle of Glorieta Pass. The site includes a wonderful visitor center with exhibits, dioramas, gift shop, and a historical film, and a self-guiding trail through the Pueblo and ruins. If passing through on I-25, this is a must-see rest stop. For a affordable $3 you get to visit this site as well as another just down the highway. Rated: 4 stars out of 5 possible.
“Pecos Pueblo is congregated on a high and narrow hill … It has the greatest and best buildings of these provinces and is mostly thickly settled … it is enclosed and protected by a wall … and by tiers of walkways which look out on the countryside. ” ~Baltazar de Obregon, 1594
Abandoned Missle Silos outside Roswell, New Mexico
September 4, 2005
Just roughly a block north of the Roswell UFO Crash site is an abandoned missile silo I have yet to explore. But very similar to the ones I explored thoroughly in Junior High and High School. We used to climb down the stairs into the multiple levels and play standing in awe at the immense size of this structure underground, tossing rocks down into the silos waiting to hear the echo of the rock hitting bottom or water. We used to shoot bottle rockets down into them and set off fireworks within. In High school, I used to throw bonfire parties in the control room deep within the earth - it was fantastic. Of course, these days, I don’t know the legality of this land - since many of them have been bought up by private citizens and converted into homes, I once thought it was BLM land (Bureau of Land Management) since it was once Government land. There are no signs stating whether or not its legal or illegal to enter. I didn’t want to take a chance and didn’t have a proper light source with me, so I did not venture down within. But I wish I did … because I would love to have the photos. Maybe someday I’ll figure it out.
 The enormous missle silo doors where the missle would fire out of ©2005 Technogypsie.com, click photo for larger view |
Photo and journal entry from visiting the Roswell UFO Crash Site … (Roswell, NM)
September 4, 2005
Tuesday, 30 August 2005
Roswell, New Mexico
| After Bottomless Lakes State Park, me and my sister tried to check out the Alien Resistance headquarters to see what it was all about, but it was closed. I dropped her off at home and headed out on Hwy 285 North. Enroute, I stopped at the Capital Mexican Restaurant for a fix of those sopapilla you stuff with honey that I can’t find in Mexican restaurants anywhere else outside of New Mexico. Though I wonder if Sopapillas are a version of Indian Fry Bread? Heading North, I stopped off on Bitter Root road and Hwy 285 and turned down the dirt road to look over the area of the famous Roswell UFO crash. Of course, nothing can be seen there outside the sign, but interesting field trip of its own as I spotted a Roadrunner, Jackrabbits, and many cows. |
Bottomless Lakes State Park (Roswell, NM)
September 3, 2005
Tuesday, 30 August 2005 - Part I
Roswell, New Mexico
Bottomless Lakes State Park
Roswell, New Mexico
Bordered by High Red Bluffs the seven small lakes at the park were formed when circulating water dissolved gypsum and salt deposits in underlying rock formations creating a network of underground cavities. The roofs of some of those caverns collapsed under their own weight and the resulting sink holes filled with water. Some of the lakes are stocked with trout and swimming is permitted in Lea Lake. There are also hiking trails, visitor center displays, and skin diving opportunities. ~(Highway Marker) A place of my past where I used to swim, took scuba lessons from my older brother, almost fell off a cliff, speargunned a rattlesnake that I became attached to by a cord, rock collected, swam in all the other lakes before it became a state park, and wandered out into the brushlands with friends and girlfriends to party during high school. The lakes seem Bottomless as you can never see their bottoms, even while scuba diving until you reach great depths. Refreshing and cool - a fantastic oasis in the middle of the New Mexico desert. Bottomless Lakes will forever be in my heart … 5 stars out of 5.
 Highway marker sign for Bottomless Lakes State Park  Cliffs above the lake, where I almost fell in high school but was saved by a fireman ©2005 Technogypsie.com, click photo for larger view |
 One of the smaller lakes by the visitor center, where we used to cliff dive into before it was a park  More of the smaller lakes ©2005 Technogypsie.com, click photo for larger view |
The Golden Pass, Switzerland
September 1, 2005
The journey from Interlaken to Lucerne is very, very scenic. Green fields ring with the sound of cowbells unexpectedly, mountains stand on the edges of lakes, casting perfect reflections. The Golden Pass is just awesome. A small village stands on the banks of Lake Thun, and a winding road follows the edge of the lake, as do the train tracks. I’m going to buy a summer house there.. if I can’t afford one in Gimmelwald or Lauterbrunnen.
Gimmelwald
September 1, 2005
Last year, while travelling in Switzerland, my travel companion and I reached the high, hillside town of Murren late in the afternoon.. must have been 4.30 p.m. or so. The fog had cleared up considerably in Murren to we could see a bit more of it. Anyway it turned out that accommodation was way too expensive in Murren (40 francs a night!) so we trekked down to a tiny village called Gimmelwald. It was a beautiful trek.. flowers carpeted the mountainside as we passed it. I picked a tiny bouquet for myself, gosh I could lift myself out of the depths of despair just thinking about those flowers.
We were checked in at this very cozy, totally friendly raucus place called the Mountain Hostel (it’s pretty famous) by 6 p.m. it’s run by a lady called Petra. She’s nice and friendly if she knows you I suppose. She didn’t talk to us much. She had lovely flower pots all around the hostel.. they looked like logs split in half, laid sideways and the inside scooped out to make way for the earth to put the flowers in. Bright red flowers. The place was getting too pretty to comprehend.
I couldn’t see much from the girls’ dorm window upstairs coz of the fog but i thought I caught a glimpse of a yawningly huge valley right there.. I kept wishing the fog would clear up. I got my wish about half an hour later. Vinay and I were just strolling out around the village, and the fog just moved out from the valley, and simply took our breath away. Now that’s what I’d call a view to *DIE* for.. and we didn’t even get to see the whole of it.. the upper bits of the fog were still there, so we couldn’t see the peaks.. just the huge huge valley below us. Lauterbrunnen was visible in the distance, way way below.
