New Blogger Blues and Navajo Hogan at Spider Camp Ground

I am a new blogger!  I am learning to be a better blogger.  I am reading, studying and trying diligently to create a blog that is worth reading.  With that said I will share my blogging frustrations.  Grrrr!

I am not a good photographer, and have been relying on my phone as a camera. The weather has not been so hot the last few days, rain mud, and rain and mud.  However, we were camped in Canyon De Chelly which is perhaps the most spectacular place for blogfodder, and I lost all my photos due to no cell towers in range, and no pictures stuck.  Sad for me because,  literally everywhere ones gaze falls is a unique and interesting point for  "the blog," or in other words, blogfodder.   Isn't that a great word?  I made that up and will have y'all know that if you ever hear that anywhere in the blogosphere, that it was stolen from me!  OK, the point is, I need to work on taking my own photos, and posting them for your viewing pleasure, and because a picture paints a thousand words.
Also, I am mindful of copyright laws and fair use considerations, and I don't want anybody swiping my new word, or my photos.  I am working on all these blogging glitches!


What I must overcome is that I lost all the photos that I took at Canyon De Chelly and now my post will be text heavy!  I will describe for you a few of the things you won't see on the website linked below.

A professional photographers look at Canyon De Chelly http://www.americansouthwest.net/arizona/canyon_de_chelly/national_monument.html

Lance and I were camped in the private campground on tribal ground, the Spider Rock Campground.  It was an atypical camping place, unlike anything I have ever experienced and how I wish you could see what we saw while we were there.

The campground proprietor, Howard. a really nice Navajo man of about 60, rents out hogans for an authentic Navajo experience!  We met folks, Jim and Jan that rented a medium size hogan,at $41.00 per night.  They gave us a tour and I will describe it, since my photos didn't make it!  It was one small, circular room, about 10 feet in diameter with an add on cubical  entryway, about 2 feet by 4 feet, with a door that looked like it had been salvaged in 1958.  The door fit poorly and allowed for skylight around the edges, and that is a plus, since there are no windows.There was no lock on the door, just a hasp and eye hook.  Jan noted that it could be locked from the outside only, the same way that one would lock up the shed in the backyard!  She was a good sport!

The floor was made of compacted dirt, the bed was a 3/4 size roll away frame with a foamy for a mattress. There was a well weathered apple crate turned on it's side used for a night stand, and it even had a dime store oil lamp sitting precariously on the top, or was it the end.  At any rate, there was a doily under the lamp.  There was also three peg hooks beside the door to hang your coats.  And the best part was a tiny, black, cast iron stove with the door remove, or perhaps it had fallen off  the same way that the front left leg had done, only it had been replaced with an oil can.  

Jan had zipped together their sleeping bags and carefully spread them out on the foam rubber mattress, but they still hung over the sides and grazed the dirt.  There was a small floor mat beside the bed.  Jan also placed two plastic wine glasses on the top of the stove, with a park brochure as a coaster. The duffle bags holding Jan and Jim's gear were sitting one atop the other on a spindly chair with peeling paint, and a partial seat, perfect for holding the luggage.

 All the walls were made of cedar boards, placed vertically with red mud caked and daubed in the cracks.  It looked like it needed to be attended to often to keep the mud in place and the hogan cozy.  The roof was a sheet of corrugated aluminum with a foot of dirt on it.  Weeds, brown from last years' summer sun, were still upright, adorning the roof and adding to the thatchy, rustic feel of the place.  There was a hole in the middle of the roof to let the stove pipe out and the sunlight in.

The bathrooms were actually out houses made from scrap lumber that had been nicely grayed by the elements.  The walls held out neither wind nor rain, and the maze-like configuration of the entrance made doors unnecessary.    Hand lettered signs and posters bore instructions about the do's and don'ts to ensure the user has a good outhouse experience.  A pitcher of water was available to assist in the flushing action of the porta potty that was repurposed to a simple outhouse stool.  (The ladies room is the only one I have personal knowledge of. I assume the mens was in worse condition, for obvious reasons.)

Jan and Jim were a lot of fun.  We went hiking with them along the rim trail and spent several hours scanning the red rock cliffs, all 700 vertical feet of them, with binoculars, looking for ancient dwellings perched along the ledges and in the cracks.  I surely hope that they contact us, Jan and Jim, I mean, because we would like to keep in touch with them.  They made noise about visiting us in Ecuador next year.  I gave them our blog info and contact numbers so we will see if they are serious. Jan and Jim! If you read this, contact me!  They left early the next morning and I wonder how they fared in  their hogan...and if they stayed dry in the rain storm that pelted the campground.

Attn:  Does anyone have a photo of a hogan from Spider Rock Campground?  If you would be willing to share I would love to post it!



 

Gumbo on our Gumbo!

We spent the night on Navajo tribal land in Canyon De Chelly, and it poured rain, delaying our progress by one day while we waited for things to dry  out. We were fearful that we would get stuck in this red slimy gumbo. But as things turned out, this is just part of living in an RV, and we are well on our way today. Hallelujah!

Bad Weather and Rough Roads!

Will our rig ever be clean again?

We ran into some bad weather and horrendous roads, road construction, gravel, between Chinle, Arizona heading north to Cortez. Colorado near the Four Corners area. I could cry about the mess we have to clean up with our truck and Little House! We're going to have to find a truck stop with a U-do carwash.

Tubac, An Artist's Paradise

South of Tucson, but not quite to Nogales is a great little town called Tubac.  We spent an afternoon in the touristy part of Tubac, where there are dozens of beautiful little shops of brightly colored adobe and plaster, full of fine arts, jewelry and handmade items of every description.  These were not handicraft items that Grandmothers make out of plastic and yarn, but were excellent works offine art!  Little cantinas, bistros, and tea shops were interspersed in the nooks and crannies in case you wanted to stay all day.  

We were there on a Thursday and the whole place was preparing for the weekend, there was some kind of sidewalk event at hand and everyone was buzzing with busyness, getting ready for the onslaught of tourists and artsy folk. 

The paintings in the Southwest have a different look than where I come from in Washington.  They are more colorful somehow.  Realism doesn’t seem to be the look that is trendy right now, but a bolder, more surreal look seems to be the style. 

Acrylic paints are widely used because of the shockingly vibrant colors that can be easily achieved and boldness not found in water colors.  There’s nothing subtle about the art in Tubac.  A common subject for paintings would be faces-slapping oranges and sulky purples in desert landscapes.  Western art is also a common theme and seems to be popular (but not the Fredrick Remington variety) and has a zesty modern art, American Indian flavor.  It is a visual feast that makes your eyes weary and yearning for more.

A stand out and unique art form that was well represented there was metal stamped art, frames, lamp shades, table tops and you name it!  I like the sheet metal lampshades with patterns of holes punched in them.  They shimmer and sparkle as though they were studded with Swarovski crystals, but they are simply a little bulb mounted in the back.  It is the greatest stuff.  I wish I could have bought something, but my Little House cannot hold any more ‘things’ regardless of how great they are.  I have learned that I don’t have to own something to love and enjoy it.  The memory is enough. 

An Update of the Whispering Palms RV park in Tucson

A quick update after leaving the Whispering Palms RV Park in Tucson.  We will definitely be back in the fall and stay with Anna and Rick again at the WP RV Park.  The management makes this place superb!  We had everything we needed as far as hook-ups go, and we also had a tree and were near the pool.  The place is clean as a pin, and the laundry facility was clean and in excellent repair, and reasonably priced. I mentioned once but will say again; we ate grapefruits right off the tree here!   We enjoyed the neighborhood, and local vendors, restaurants and etc!  We give this place and A-1 and had the time of our lives.  I will continue to blog about the food, vendors and experiences in Tucson because we did so much, at so many places, and had a ball!  See my April posts.  They are all about Tucson.  www.whisperingpalmsrvpark.com/

Tanque Verde Swap Meep - the Biggest in Arizona

What is going on here?

Lance and I were at the laundromat doing chores (not every minute of retirement is nirvana,) and found a local newspaper, a small weekly rag that promote local events, and found there is a colossal flea market known as The Tanque Verde (green tank) Swap Meet that we just had to go to see.

 After driving a few short minutes southwest for a few miles we found what is likely the biggest swap meet in Arizona.  Before our gaping eyes we saw hundreds of booths full of  worthless bobbles, gadgets and gismos, food items, yards sale leftovers, hot dogs, tacos, snow cones, made in China bric- a-brac, leather boots, western hats, baseball caps, tarot cards, antiques, cheapo  Mexican souvenirs,  discount tires,  expensive tires, appliances, leather sofas, rocks and polished stones, Elvis and Marilyn stuff, graphic tees by the millions, rice water, lemonade and beer, cider, coca cola, athletic shoes and sandals with tire tread soles,bras, 8 track tapes, jumping beans, key chains, gold chains, black velvet paintings, posters, metal art, woven rugs, hair pieces, back packs, fanny packs, tools, car parts, hub caps, DVD's, CD's, LP's, HD's, but no CPC's or LSD.  It is a family swap meet after all.  

 I undoubtedly missed some things, but I was distracted by the terrible singers that were performing on the stage near the food court.  It didn't matter how bad they were, because the buzzing of the gigantic speakers muffled out their voices.  I was hoping to hear a mariachi band or two, but no, just amateur hopefuls twanging away their fifteen minutes of fame.  It was great!

I asked about how the swap meet came to be.  In 1975 a college student

had an idea to get together a few individuals with stuff and have a multi vendor yard sale/swap meet in a vacant lot.  It worked and grew to dozens of vendors.  Whole families gravitated to the idea and soon were making their living hawking all their wares.  Tucson folks were literally flocking to the flea market/swap meet.  Then, a problem happened with city zoning laws or other such red tape, and ruined it all.  The college guy, by this time had employed his mom, his sister and other relatives to help him organize and operate the enterprise, and felt so responsible for these hundreds of families that would lose their livelihood that he found several acres, purchased them with his own money and opened up the biggest, baddest, bawdiest swap meet in Arizona.  His persistence paid off and it is a spectacle today, 24/7.

A high light of the day at the flea market was the 40 cent churros.  My friend Susan asked about churros, so possibly others need to become acquainted with this yummy Mexican confection!

  A churro (fritter in spanish) is a common treat at fairs, rodeos, circuses, anywhere there is a crowd and a Mexican vendor.  They are about a foot long column of deep fried pancake batter with ribs running lengthwise. They are rolled in cinnamon sugar and wrapped in a piece of waxed paper.  They are screaming delicious and for 40 cents I would have liked to eat 3 of them; but alas, I simply could not bear the guilt of it!

A Weekend with Pablo Picasso

Check out this website!  Please!  This is a professional review of a terrific show!  http://tucson.com/entertainment/review-a-weekend-with-pablo-picasso/article_e8e3fcc2-1e4d-55cd-897a-dbfa8b8863f0.html

It was a Sunday matinee and we were there, soaking up the efforts of the Arizona Theater Company who hosted this fabulous, broadway worthy show. The theater was a delight, the weather was coolish, and every detail of this fine theater production was fantastic!  The actor Hebert Siquenza out picassoed Picasso!  And he was also an excellent artist and could recreate Picasso's paintings in a convincing way!  

The theater allows for discount tickets if you arrive near the beginning of the performance and if they are not sold out, they offer the empty seats for better than half price.  We sat on the front row, up close and personal, and had $60.00 seats for the matinee, for a piddling $24.00 each!  What a killer deal that was!