This week Bill decided he wanted pictures of the missions in El Paso. I decided I wanted
a break from the heat in Ruidoso. Perfect compromise.
We raced across Arizona and New Mexico to get to Mesilla, just south of Las Cruces. We
wanted to have lunch at La Posta, a charming old restaurant that just celebrated its 65th anniversary in the same location
just off the town square. Unfortunately, it is closed on Monday. There is no shortage of good places to eat in
Mesilla, however, so we didn't starve.
We got an even earlier break from the heat than we had anticipated as Monday was the coldest
temperature for that day in El Paso since 1905. Bill had on shorts and was cold!
The missions are on the east side of town. As we went out I-10, we saw a sign for the
Mission Trail and turned south. Couldn't find another sign, a clue to where we were supposed to go, or anyone who spoke
English. Between I-10 and the Rio Grande here, the legal address may be Texas but in every other way, it is Mexico.
We did get some help and were only a few blocks from the San Elizario mission which was originally a presidio chapel.
It is the oldest and the only one established by early Spanish explorers. The other two were founded by refugees from
New Mexico's Pueblo Revolt in the late 1600's.
El Paso has made several attempts to capitalize on the tourist value of these sites but not
totally successfully. They are working churches so the missions themselves receive no government funds. Better
signage would help a lot.
The Ysleta mission is on an Indian reservation. This tribe is the one that first sued
the state of Texas to have a casino. They must not be too successful as it is closed two full days a week.
We visited the old Sunnyland race track that was built in the 1940's. It has undergone
a dramatic transformation. It now houses a high-end casino and there is evidence of new money all around the track.
As we left town the next morning we made two good stops. We went onto Fort Bliss by the
Pershing gate. There are several blocks of old stately houses here that face the parade field. These are some
of the oldest but best-preserved officers' quarters that we have seen still in use. At the end of the parade field is
a recreated fort and a museum preserving Fort Bliss' colorful history.
A little further up the highway is the Border Patrol Museum. We stopped here and found
what we had hoped to see--a memorial to fallen officers. A college friend's son died while serving as a Border Patrol
inspector. In addition to his picture and biography, we saw the bulletin from his funeral where Attorney General Janet
Reno was one of the speakers.
On the way to Ruidoso we stopped at a pistachio "ranch" and a winery. We stopped at a
couple of wineries this time. New Mexico wines are pretty good.
Ruidoso was also having record cool temperatures so Bill was "way too cool." But it is
a lovely town. The Mescalero Apache there are building a big new resort to replace the Inn of the Mountain Gods that
has been popular with Texans and other visitors for many years. The old hotel is closed now, but the new one will open
in April 2005. Wintertime skiing is replaced this time of year by horseracing on the weekends.
On the way home we drove by White Sands National Monument, always an interesting sight, and
through White Sands Missile Range which was quiet. Some days the road shuts for an hour if there is a missile being tested.
We made it back to La Posta for lunch on Wednesday--it was open--hooray!--and headed back to
Tucson to sweat out the rest of the summer.
(Bill and Kay Wehunt reside in Tucson but you are likely
to run into them anywhere in the world. They are consummate travelers. We shared a two week tour with them of Eastern Europe.)
