We drive on southwest towards El Paso, Texas. It didn't seem like a very pretty town. That may be mainly because an enthusiastic wind was stirring up the dust and a smoky pall hangs over the entire city. We did go clear down into the old town, and maybe their city planners don't believe in planting trees or building parkways with flowers or bushes in the middle? (this is desert after all). Out towards the edges of town, there are many newer corporate headquarters that do have trees and ground covers in their landscaping, but El Paso in general seems uncared for and dirty. 
After our special, quite curcuitous route through the southern edge of New Mexico, our original plan was to take Highway 10 west through Tucson, Arizona and across to San Diego, California. But, the rig is feeling more unpredictable with our recent gas pump complication and the cruise control only wants to work part of the time. That makes driving a lot more work and Gary seems to be getting lower on energy with each passing day. He lays out the atlas and draws a diagonal line northwest to Seattle, showing what would be the quickest route home. 
Driving north on Interstate 25 means we will see quite a bit more of New Mexico, which has some wonderful sights on up the road. We stop in Truth or Consequences and spend the night at Elephant Butte State Park. It is on a bluff overlooking a big reservoir of the Rio Grande and is so-o beautiful. We sleep in peace, surrounded by quiet and clean air. In the morning we take our juice and hot oatmeal out to a picnic shelter and watch the pelicans fish in the water far below. 
We continue north all day and arrive in historic old downtown Sante Fe after touring several local neighborhoods. There are old looking pueblo, territorial style buildings on every hand. Many of the new subdivisions are also built in that style in several different earth tones from pale sand to almost milk chocolate. And that seems to be the only building style the city presently allows in the older part of town as even the parking garages at first appear to be hotels or forts of some kind. The stores are full of things with silver and turquoise decorations, even on suede vests and pants. Silver and turquoise jewelry is displayed under every counter and in lots of the windows. The choice of clothing is quite elegant, satin, lace, velvet and fur drape most of the mannequins (Yen (a friend of mine from Seattle University), would love to shop here and may have already :-). 
We drive north to Taos, New Mexico. This is ancient pueblo territory, many tribes descended from the Anasazi (the cliff dwellers), live in this area, some still in the old pueblos, making their jewelry, drums, pottery and textiles in the old ways. The one in Taos has been continuously occupied for about as long as any place in the entire United States. 
The first picture is the White Sands Park Service headquarters while the second is an Indian casino in that same typical pueblo style (and it is situated up on a hill so we could get a pretty clear shot). The last two are the main parking garage and then the oldest, still standing, and the first business ever in downtown Santa Fe.