WRAP UP

The New Mexico vacation --- one I’ll never forget --- was truly one of the all time greatest!! On the way home Brenda asked me what I liked the best. I couldn’t name any one thing at first; the best way to do it, I thought, was to list all the highlights and see if anything came out on top.

First, was the Shamrock, Texas event staying at the Irish Inn in time to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Many of the townspeople make reservations at the hotel to stay there for the weekend so it was a big festivity that we just happened in on. Thank goodness for the noise maker we always carry to sleep by. Brenda really loved her early morning swim there in the heated pool.

Then there was the Santa Fe experience: the wonderful hotel we splurged on; the plaza with the vendors; the quaint architecture; the mass at the old church; the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum; the beautiful mountains; the excellent food, and on and on. One negative was the high altitude and my breathlessness, but that was minor.

Taos was not so great for me, but Brenda loved the shopping time for the kids. There were some cute, unusual shops, but I just never got into it. (Very atypical for me). The bridge over the gorge was truly magnificent, and I’m so sorry that the pictures didn’t turn out. And the drive to and from Taos was really the most scenic of the whole trip.

Then Truth or Consequences with all of its pampering hot springs and massages --- that was great also. And here I was able to do what I like doing every spring break: thaw out my body in the warm sun and replenish my depleted supply of endorphins. Brenda really enjoyed the springs (she is very much a water person, she says).

The last highlight was our stay with Margie and Steve and their lovely daughters. Brenda says I left something out of the description of our visit: it begins with happy and ends with hour, I think. It was all great, though, and we enjoyed that very much.

I can’t really call the police stop a highlight, but it was certainly memorable!

All in all, I can’t rank the high points. For me the best three were Santa Fe, T or C, and Tyler, Texas. I think Brenda would add Taos and make that four, but however we do it, this trip was one of the best!!!