Jolly Rogers: Las Cruces, New Mexico

On Saturday Ted went to a gun club north of the campground to shoot skeet. He has not had a lot of opportunity to use his golf clubs or to shoot this trip. He said he had a good time then jumped in the pool as soon as he got home.

After dinner, we found church with no problem and instead of a mariachi band we had an accordion and a guitar. We’re getting pretty good at the half English/half Spanish Mass. Afterwards we drove west to the Route 66 casino. Suffice to say we transferred our winnings from Sandia Casino to this one.

Sunday we went to the Balloon Fiesta Museum. Albuquerque’s claim to fame is its yearly Balloon Festival in October. It is in its 37th year. There are lots of displays featuring balloons, baskets, gear to inflate them, the French start to ballooning, etc. Ted and I both used a video game to attempt to land a balloon on a target. I got a 50% score, Ted got 60%. The problem is you can’t steer. You can give propane to go up and vent it to come down but the winds blow it and the skill is in learning at what level the winds will take you where you want to go.

We learned that during WWII the Japanese launched 9,000 balloons carrying bombs that drifted along the jet stream into the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia. Because the jet stream only worked this way in the winter, the bombs were ineffective because of the damp, wet terrain they fell in. One family that found a bomb during a picnic was killed. The farthest east a balloon was found was Farmington Hills, MI which is a suburb of Detroit. Neither of us had ever heard of this. Thank goodness it wasn’t effective.

The next day we drove to Las Cruces, NM. We arrived safely and got settled in a great park. We have a lovely, spacious spot. We went to do our Wal-Mart run but only to buy meat, produce and bread. I’m determined to empty the pantry. Next door was a Furr’s Buffet. This is a restaurant that we patronize in the Rio Grande Valley. They advertised a senior lunch for $5.79 including drink. Since it was 3 p.m. and we hadn’t eaten yet, we decided to eat before we shopped. I did a couple loads of laundry in the evening and then it started to rain.

There was lots of standing water in the morning so our trip to the New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum was in jeopardy. We were told it would be too muddy. So we went to the historic town of Mesilla. This city was the largest stop between San Antonio and San Diego east to west and Santa Fe and Chihuahua north to south along the Camino Real. The $10 million Gadsden Purchase in 1854 from Mexico included this strip and established the southern boundary of the U.S.

San Albino Church was established around 1850 and last year was declared a Basilica. It is the main focus on the plaza. It still operates as a parish church.

The Maurin Building is the oldest documented brick structure in New Mexico. The bricks were made in a kiln belonging to Maurin. Inside, the original hand-hewn vigas support the low, irregular ceiling.

La Posta is a 70 year old restaurant in what was the original post office circa 1850. It was fascinating to roam around inside. We had to decide if we wanted to eat here or at the Double Eagle which was once the Governor’s Residence.

We opted for the Double Eagle so we could see the ballroom dining area with a 24 carat gold leaf ceiling along with crystal chandeliers and antiques. These areas were French in decor and contrasted with the Spanish courtyard with fountain that we sat in.

We also saw the building which was the courthouse where Billy the Kid was tried and convicted of murder. He escaped before he could be hung only to be killed later by Pat Garrett. Also in Mesilla is the former home of Sam and Roy Bean. In 1864 a Marshall’s Deed was filed confiscating the property because of their complicity in the Confederate cause. Roy went on to become the Hanging Judge Roy Bean of Langtry, TX.

Next we went to Veteran’s Park. We were astounded at what we found. A semi-circle wall displays a plaque for every war starting with the Revolutionary War 1775 to the Gulf War 1991. A large plaque explains what led up to the war, the battles and the outcome. It was American History 101 in a few meaningful paragraphs. The first three plaques explained the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 and the Mexican War. Starting with the fourth, the Civil War, everyone who served from the state of New Mexico is listed. If they were killed, captured or are missing, that is also listed. It continues around in the same fashion. WWII and Viet Nam list the most servicemen.

Also in the park is the Bataan Death March Monument. New Mexico had a disproportionate amount of residents victimized by this terrible event in history. Every county in the state had sons affected. The bronze statue of three servicemen helping each other along has lots of footprints in the rear to represent all those that were forced on the march. In front of the statue are actual footprints of some of the survivors. It was a very powerful visit.