Long time coming

Looking at the trip I begin to see ways of mapping out where we have been and where we are going. The temperature is one distinct difference from day to day.
For myself I was blasted by the nearly 100 degree heat immediately after getting off the train in Meridian Mississippi. Following the muggy and warm weather
the south provided was eye opening. This warm and humid weather was followed quickly by a few days of heat with daily large thundershowers. This became a daily
consideration in Austin and the subsequent days. Austin itself, other than the weather, turned out to be a good choice of location. We toured museums
including the LBJ presidential library and an art museum dedicated to compulsive art (imgagine turning thousands of twist-ties into a work of art...the exhibts
were amazing to say the least). Going out that night was fun but a little dead. During college the restaurants and bars would be hopping but during the summer
it is a little more laid back. Sidenote...In the texas capital building (which of course had to be built a few feet bigger than the national capital building
just to prove a point) they had paintings of all of the former governors. Now imagine any of the paintings of politicians you've seen and that will be pretty
much how they all looked (straight faced and somber) except for one. You guessed it our very president George Dubya....i had to laugh when I saw his face
painted with what else but the traditional smirk that we have all come to know.

After being in Austin for three days we were ready to get back on the road and tackle the great western expanse which is Texas. Knowing we had nearly seven
hundred miles to cover we left quite early and made our way towards El Paso. Needless to say when one says that there is nothing in western Texas....believe
me there is NOTHING in western Texas. I was expecting to see expansive ranches with herds of cattle, but we didn't even see one animal the whole way. There
was amazing scenery, including a giant thunderstorm which we saw roll all the way across the horizon, but no signs of life. That is until we got to El
Paso. A city which appears out of the desolation and brings a new sense of what it means to be a foreigner in one's own country. At some points El Paso
is under 1/8 of a mile from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico and the town shows it. The entire evening that we were in El Paso I don't think that I saw anyone who
wasn't hispanic. Everyone spoke spanish and we frequently saw cars driving with chihuahua liscense plates (the mexican state next to el paso). It was eye
opening to see especially with the immagration discussions which are going on, it is most definitely a pertinent issue.

The next day on our way towards Phoenix Arizona it again struck me how the issues of immigration will affect us. There were hundreds of boarder patrol cars
and agents which we saw just driving from Texas through New Mexico and into Arizona, and talking to many people it sounds as if these agencies are just beggining
to bulk up. It makes me really wonder how our money and time are being spent and what good is it really doing.

The night before we entered the Phoenix city limits was spent in a tent in the town of Casa Grande. Finding a place to camp was the easy part...the harder
part was trying to stay cool enough in the well over 100 degree heat of the Arizona desert. This problem was solved when, after pitching the tent, we found
our way into town and to a movie theatre to watch "The Da Vinci Code". The movie was good although not nearly as good as the book. It did peak my interest
again in thinking about the issues raised by the movie. This will possibly be another post in a little while so stay tuned.

After surviving the heat Phoenix was our next destination. Here we found amazing hospitality and a great opportunity to rest and bike. Nate and I were
graciously offered housing by Faye Beckler(my great aunt) and Jan Wyse. We were with them four nights and five days. I have to tell you that although the
stay was amazing we brought with us some EXTREMELY hot weather. Every day which we were in Phoenix the temp. topped well over 105. Therefore all the activities
which we did were done very early in the morning and late in the evening. Although we did a LOT in phoenix i will try to outline the highlights.
During our stay we were able to bike nearly 70 miles. Ate numerous meals of various styles, mexican, chinese, pizza, and home style mid-western cuisine!
one of the highlights of the stay was sunday night when we went with Faye and Jan to the Phoenix Symphony hall to see the last showing of a ballet.
The three section performance incorporated music from Igor Strevinski, Mozart, and Tchaicophski and incredible dancing. As well while in Phoenix we were able
to catch the first game of the baseball series between the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Philadelphia Phillies. Of course I am biased but I was super stoked
that the Phillies made a come back from down 0-3 to win the game 4-3!! GO PHILS

So after traveling this far we have seen many diverse areas of the country already and met many people. It astonishes me how incredibly different the country
really is. From the bayou's of Louisiana to the expanse of Texas to the desert of Arizona. It is also amazing how similar people are from area to area.
Everywhere you go people have their lives and they like to have fun and enjoy themselves. I seemed to begin the trip feeling that when i journeyed out I would
find completely new ways of living but I haven't found that. Althouh I have been amazed to find that attitudes do change from place to place. Coming from
the north east it is easy to forget really how conjested and high paced an area I come from. People in the south and southwest really seem to live a much
more laid back life which is quite appealing to me.

At this exact moment I am riding up the mountains of northern Arizona destined this evening for the Grand Canyon. I will post again soon (I just purchased
Toshiba laptop so that should help with the continued updates). As well Check out the few new pictures that we posted (see the link to the left....
http://www.movingjourneypics.blogspot.com) sorry there aren't more but it takes quite a long time to post a lot of pics when the connection isn't great
so we will just have to wait till we get a great connection and upload a lot.

Ciao
drew