New Mexico

We are currently in Santa Fe, on the way to Colorado Springs.

Last time we blogged, we were driving from New Orleans to Austin Texas. On the way from New Orleans we drove through Charles Street, one of the more affluent areas, and then through the Ninth Ward, the area worst hit by Katrina. This was a very eery experience, as it was basically flattened, and still shows the signs of damage. Not many people have moved back, but there are signs of new growth. We also visited the unique graveyards (oh no, we're turning into Steve and Bev!), which appeared in the film 'EasyRider'. Driving through Louisiana took us through the swamps by the gulf of Mexico, and slowly as we drove through Texas, the Cactus then started to appear, as well as an Armadillo.

Austin Texas was a one night stop over (we are driving 5-8hr days), and unexpectedly beautiful, although i don't know what i had imagined. We had a dilemma though. Every direction we took out of the city led us into Texas! So drove through Texas some more, and all in all in took us 2 days to get across the State and up to New Mexico. Its almost like it is its own Republic here within the U.S.

We are gradually climbing higher and higher in altitude, without even realizing. I think we got up to 4000ft last night in Carlsbad. We then descended again dramatically into a cavern, at the Carlsbad Caverns National Park. They were breathtaking. I have never been in a cave so high, or deep underground, and never new anything like it existed.

We drove towards Santa Fe via Roswell, New Mexico, which is basically a shrine to UFOs and the paranormal, very strange, but it made me feel like Mulder from the X-files, so all good.

This trip is like picking up a copy of National Geographic. Such a wide diversity in the landscape. Santa Fe is at 7000ft, and that is where we stop for the night, before setting off to Colorado Springs and Denver on Saturday night. Santa Fe is very Spanish in style, and i can't wait to see the city in daylight. There's a little bit of snow on the ground, but the days are sunny and not too cold. Will get a bit chilly towards Denver maybe, but at least we have the correct gear with us to keep out the cold!

Rockies here we come!