Copper Canyon Trip Friday

This morning we had another great breakfast and everyone was ecstatic because they were able to connect with the rest of the world from the lobby. Our bus took us to the old Casas Grandes where Paquime the ruins and museum are located. The town site had a square and an old church, but the money was at the museum, so that's where we headed.

Carlos started giving us a very interesting lecture about the ruins, but we who wanted to take pictures took off and did exactly that. One lady from Australia said, "I can Google this!"  

The pictures above are two views of the same thing. The bird (top right) is in both pictures. I think he liked getting his picture taken. Part of the ruins look like mud with vertical lines; that part is original. Any stone work is done to hold the original stuff together and preserve it. I don't know if they have treated the old stuff to keep it from melting in the elements or not.

The last picture is a bit of poetic license. I took the shot from inside the museum through a window. The area was a courtyard. My regrets: I didn't take pictures of any pottery, nor did I buy any. What I saw just didn't grab me.

Back on the bus, we headed for the border and Agua Prieta where we would eat lunch. It was a hair-raising ride through a mountain pass on a two lane road full of semis. Before we entered this stretch, Carlos told us that just six miles away was Flowing Wells, NM. They are building a road that way so traffic would not have to suffer this horrendous bit of highway. Lunch was good, but I tasted the fruit-flavored water and asked immediately for bottled water. I suspect that was my downfall, because Saturday morning I awoke with Montezuma's Revenge or a severe intestinal flu. Back to the trip: crossing the borders, both Mexican and American was relatively easy and we were soon on our way to Tucson via Bisbee and Tombstone. 

Karen picked me up at the hotel, and Marilyn and Maria followed us home so that my two new friends could spend the night, because hotel rooms were scarce. We had fun drinking wine and showing Karen our new treasures. I hadn't seen the pretties that Marilyn and Maria acquired at the museum and was green with envy. The next morning I'd be green for another reason.

Reflections: it was a great trip meeting new people and seeing the sights that I always wanted to. Need to learn more about tours. Thirty-seven people on one bus is probably seventeen too many. More breaks are necessary if you're going to cover long distances. All in all. I'm glad I did it!