Roswell, New Mexico

Aliens. The whole town is centered on aliens.

We had a day off in Roswell, and had a great time both nights we were there. We stayed in a university gym and weren't provided with dinner, so a bunch of us - devon, emily, lynn and I decided to go into town to find something to eat. On our journey over, we met this group of students who were trying to study for their para medicine test the next day. Instead, they ate dinner with us at applebees and told us about Roswell and the surrounding area. They were a great group of people who definitely kept the night interesting.

The next day was glorious. Through donation magic, we got a free breakfast then set out to the alien museum. After browsing the local shops for random goodies, I went to an awesome Mexican restaurant and ate way too much.

The best part of the day was X-FILES!! We saw the movie on opening night in ROSWELL!! How perfect can it get?!? All we needed was someone to tell us their abduction story. The movie itself was decent but the experience was awesome.

I want to believe.

Hereford, TX

Late post - Beef smells bad. Feed lots are about the most disgusting things I've ever encountered. Hereford, Texas is the beef capital of the world because of its feed lots, which are where cows are held in close quarters and fatened up before they are killed. When you have that many cows in one place, the whole town smells foul. You got used to it after a while though.

Funny thing is - they fed us ham in the beef capital of the world.

Cowboy Boots

We left texas today after epic steak eating (one of our riders ate 62 oz of steak in a competition) and great hospitality. On our way into New Mexico, we discovered a western wear shop that specialized in hats and boots. They were having a giant sale and I couldn't pass up the opportunity.

Route 66

Going down Route 66 has been a grand old time. The tiny towns along the way are totally like the ones in the movie cars. Some towns are so small that we roll by without noticing, which is hard on a bike since we go kind of slow.
I love seeing the old attractions that have been preserved and some new ones that have popped up. I hope more people decide to travel down route 66. It is tons of fun and the area needs a little pick-me-up.
One comment about BIKING across the country - when you bike through a place you really get to soak up the atmosphere and notice the little things. We went into Texas today and the state line transition was the most obvious. As soon as we crossed the state line there were tons of oil rigs, churches and signs in spanish and mexican restaurants. Its amazing how the culture changes so fast from state to state (especially when it comes to Texas)
I am enjoying the plains and red soil - I'm not used to that in Wisconsin or Boston