From warm desert to snowy desert

We spent several hours of our last day in Tucson at the Aviation museum:  for once Bob got to choose!  En route we drove across the local air force base, past literally thousands of planes in neat rows.  Next was the plane graveyard where  broken, crashed and obsolete aircraft, civil and military, have their final resting ground. It makes for a bizarre sight.

The museum was interesting, even for me, with little knowledge of such things.  The juxtaposition of huge craft right next to tiny machines and the first planes next to the fairly recent couldn't help but leave an impression.  A couple of old Air Force 1's were also on view.

Freight carrier for space programme

Our last stop before handing back our hire car was the old Spanish mission of San Javier el Bac.  The buildings have been in a continuous state of conservation/restoration almost since they were built by the Jesuit missionaries in the 1700's.  There is still a congregation of local native americans but , as we went on a Sunday, there were hundreds of visitors, both tourists and pilgrims.  As mass was in progress we couldn't go into the church but we looked around the museum and climbed a mound nearby which has a shrine.

There are very few other buildings round the mission complex so it is possible to imagine what it was like in the past.

Today we were up at 5 to catch a flight to Alberquerque.  From there we were taken to Santa Fe in a minibus- the only passengers.  Imperceptibly we climbed over 2,000 ft finding snow on the grass and vegetation just outside the city.  It's 7,000ft approx above sea level and -once again- our arrival has coincided with the first cold spell of this winter.....The high today has been just above freezing.

We've never seen an American city like this....all low level, mostly adobe buildings.  It has many art galleries and sales rooms making it the 3rd biggest art market in North America.  We've already seen some beautiful paintings, pottery, statues and jewellery.