Rollin, Rollin, Rollin....

It's late afternoon on Friday and, as the wind is whipping up a dust storm outside, we're relaxing in our cozy little Airbnb bungalow in southeastern New Mexico in a tiny town called San Miguel just south of Las Cruces, New Mexico.  The bungalow is a charming rock cottage, (next to the main home - an old adobe) which the owner has remodeled and decorated with antiques and charming collectibles.  She's stocked it full of treats. books, movies and every creature-comfort imaginable. Without a trailer, Airbnb is definitely the way to travel - we're convinced!

Our cozy bungalow in San Miguel

Breakfast nook

Earlier this week, we were able to spend two lovely days in Sedona - the first day we hiked along Oak Creek Canyon, relaxed, listened to the rushing stream, and then we walked to uptown Sedona to explore the galleries and shops (7 miles total for the day). The art on display throughout the town is spectacular!  The second day there, we stretched our legs and hiked up the Munz Wagon Trail (5 miles round trip) to the top of the canyon and ate our picnic lunch while viewing the red rock pinnacles and canyon walls.  We both agreed it was a great hike and it provided us the exercise and natural beauty we so badly craved. The weather was fairly hot (85 degrees), but not too hot to get out and explore.

Oak Creek rushes by

Fanciful meditation rock art near the river

A new acquaintance

Munz Wagon Trail vista

In Sedona, we ended up eating our dinners at the Wildflower restaurant in uptown and we recommend it highly to visitors, since they serve natural/organic meals and the food is quite reasonable (under $10 per person) - not to mention the wonderful view of the red cliffs from their patio at dusk.

Dining room with a view

Today we shopped the farmers' market in Las Cruces and toured old Mesilla - originally, one of the largest original New Mexico towns (it's just south of Las Cruces). It reminded us of Baja, with its tiny shops, cathedral, and restaurants encircling the town plaza. It's very quiet and authentic here and the residents welcome visitors.

Grateful Dead...grateful us

Old adobe in Mesilla

Tree sculpture or bad hair day?

Gateway to heaven?

Here are some of our brief impressions:

• Sedona is rich in natural beauty, art, nice restaurants, interesting hikes, and friendly people. It also offers numerous "mystical" therapies for those so inclined. But we were saddened by the fact that the National Forest Service and Arizona State Park Service have been unable to fully protect the area from population encroachment - the hills are filled with new homes, and pink and  yellow jeeps race madly up and down the dirt roads throughout the area (the result - lots of noise and dust). This buildup and frenetic activity is clearly great for some, but for us, we are very thankful that many other areas of similar natural beauty have been better protected.

• Mesilla - built in the 1800's, the town retains much of its original character and charm.  The people are very friendly and the shops interesting with a variety of native American and Mexican collectibles. The restaurant food, however, (from our standards) was fairly bland and uninteresting.  But, it's a simple place and for that reason we really liked it.

The wind is continuing to build and we need to get ready to leave early tomorrow morning for our drive to Austin.  Hopefuly, they don't close the road.