On to Tucson!
We arrived in San Antonio to bright sunshine and warm temperatures and headed for our favorite lunch spot, Schilo's German Deli. After lunch, we headed for the riverwalk, explored the shops, and took a ride on a tour boat. As always, the riverwalk and downtown area were beautifully decorated for the holiday season; unfortunately, we arrived too late in the month for the luminaries and Christmas pageant. Our friends Tom and Janet Parcenue graciously included us in their holiday plans, and we spent Christmas Eve and day with them and their friends. We always enjoy visiting San Antonio, so many places to see and things to do; but since we have a 
commitment in Tucson, we left on the 26th and took the highway to Del Rio, Langtry, and eventually to spend two nights in Alpine, Texas. We stopped in Langtry to visit the home of Judge Roy Bean and were impressed with the history of the area - although seeing the place makes you wonder why in the world people ever came here (its pretty desolate). The state visitor center has restored many of the original buildings, including the combination saloon and courthouse known as the "Jersey Lilly". Back on the road to Alpine, I noticed in the rear view mirror what looked like black leaves scattering behind the Jeep as I drove. Since there weren't any trees within 100 miles, I pulled over to check and found that the left rear tire of the Jeep was a bit "low" on air. Since we were well out of the range 
of any cell phone service, I pulled out the jack & changed the tire. Fortunately, because there is little weight on the rear of the Jeep, the rim wasn't damaged. Continuing on the Alpine, we discovered a wonderful little town that the local tourism office advertises as the "Taos of Texas". While that may be a bit of a stretch, we found shops, friendly people, and great restaurants, including a real treasure, the Edelweiss Restaurant and Brewery, (www.edelweissbrewery.com), located in a restored 1880s hotel . The owner/brewmeister still has a heavy German accent and offers a variety of locally brewed beers, and the food was wonderful - try the Jaeger Schnitzel and Bavarian pancakes, they're incredible. After a side trip to Ft. Stockton for a replacement tire (strange, they couldn't repair the old one), we were off to Las Cruces, NM. One of our favorite restaurants, La Posta, is located close by the the town of La Mesilla, and old stage stop and plaza. First opened in 1939, La Posta was once featured in Life magazine and manages to transform simple enchiladas and salsa into something magnificent (www.laposta-de-mesilla.com). Try my favorite, the stacked green enchiladas with a fried egg, or Brenda's the chile rellenos - everything is excellent and the prices are very reasonable. Hmmm...notice how much of our travel experience revolves around food. Anyway
, the next day we were off for Tucson. On the way we stopped at the Texas Canyon rest area for lunch, one of our favorite spots, even if it is on an interstate. This area was used as a filming location for westerns in the 1930s and 40s and looks like the opening scenes of the old Lone Ranger TV series. We arrived in our current location, the Rincon East RV Resort in Tucson, where we connected with our Dayton friends Kirk and Sue Burmeister who are former residents and are were visiting their children. We made the obligatory trip to Pinacle Peak, a western steakhouse that features a 32-ounce Porterhouse....see, here we go again with the food. Oh well, we'll be here for another month or so and will try and do a better job of keeping this site current.
We arrived in San Antonio to bright sunshine and warm temperatures and headed for our favorite lunch spot, Schilo's German Deli. After lunch, we headed for the riverwalk, explored the shops, and took a ride on a tour boat. As always, the riverwalk and downtown area were beautifully decorated for the holiday season; unfortunately, we arrived too late in the month for the luminaries and Christmas pageant. Our friends Tom and Janet Parcenue graciously included us in their holiday plans, and we spent Christmas Eve and day with them and their friends. We always enjoy visiting San Antonio, so many places to see and things to do; but since we have a 
commitment in Tucson, we left on the 26th and took the highway to Del Rio, Langtry, and eventually to spend two nights in Alpine, Texas. We stopped in Langtry to visit the home of Judge Roy Bean and were impressed with the history of the area - although seeing the place makes you wonder why in the world people ever came here (its pretty desolate). The state visitor center has restored many of the original buildings, including the combination saloon and courthouse known as the "Jersey Lilly". Back on the road to Alpine, I noticed in the rear view mirror what looked like black leaves scattering behind the Jeep as I drove. Since there weren't any trees within 100 miles, I pulled over to check and found that the left rear tire of the Jeep was a bit "low" on air. Since we were well out of the range 
of any cell phone service, I pulled out the jack & changed the tire. Fortunately, because there is little weight on the rear of the Jeep, the rim wasn't damaged. Continuing on the Alpine, we discovered a wonderful little town that the local tourism office advertises as the "Taos of Texas". While that may be a bit of a stretch, we found shops, friendly people, and great restaurants, including a real treasure, the Edelweiss Restaurant and Brewery, (www.edelweissbrewery.com), located in a restored 1880s hotel . The owner/brewmeister still has a heavy German accent and offers a variety of locally brewed beers, and the food was wonderful - try the Jaeger Schnitzel and Bavarian pancakes, they're incredible. After a side trip to Ft. Stockton for a replacement tire (strange, they couldn't repair the old one), we were off to Las Cruces, NM. One of our favorite restaurants, La Posta, is located close by the the town of La Mesilla, and old stage stop and plaza. First opened in 1939, La Posta was once featured in Life magazine and manages to transform simple enchiladas and salsa into something magnificent (www.laposta-de-mesilla.com). Try my favorite, the stacked green enchiladas with a fried egg, or Brenda's the chile rellenos - everything is excellent and the prices are very reasonable. Hmmm...notice how much of our travel experience revolves around food. Anyway
, the next day we were off for Tucson. On the way we stopped at the Texas Canyon rest area for lunch, one of our favorite spots, even if it is on an interstate. This area was used as a filming location for westerns in the 1930s and 40s and looks like the opening scenes of the old Lone Ranger TV series. We arrived in our current location, the Rincon East RV Resort in Tucson, where we connected with our Dayton friends Kirk and Sue Burmeister who are former residents and are were visiting their children. We made the obligatory trip to Pinacle Peak, a western steakhouse that features a 32-ounce Porterhouse....see, here we go again with the food. Oh well, we'll be here for another month or so and will try and do a better job of keeping this site current.
