The neon lights at the Blue Swallow Motel do indeed work!
The swallow flashes on and off at a slow pace - very cool! They also have lights along the roof line of all the rooms and a swallow above every garage. Truly a lovely spot. Kevin and Nancy are great people, and I sat with them over coffee this morning and chatted about Tucumcari, the Motel and life in general. They also have a golden retriever, Bessie, who claimed me as we sat outside. I stopped petting her at one point, and she turned to look at me with baleful eyes, and plopped her head on my lap saying "please don't stop!" Too cute.
I hit the road about 10:30 and had a relatively easy drive to Gallup. Of course the road work followed me, even though it is Sunday! (I forgot to say it was with me yesterday, as well) Stuff on the side of the road is OK, but when they shut down a lane, or both lanes and put you on the shoulder, then I object!
That was about it, though, and it was over in about 10 minutes, so I guess I can't complain. I'm sure those guys are getting overtime for working Sunday!
I arrived at the El Rancho Hotel about 3:00, got checked in and went to see the room. This is an old hangout of "the stars" apparently. I would say the 30's and 40's mostly. The lobby is very full of heavy wood furniture in the old western feel, with a lot of Native American accents thrown in. Reminds me of John Wayne, who is one of the people who stayed here a lot. Bette Davis, Lauren Bacall, Lucille Ball are others. My room is the Gregory Peck room. It has a very "lodgy" feel to it, with a great fireplace at one end, and deer heads on the beams. I can feel how elite it may have been once, but now all it feels is dingy and sad. Which is too bad. The rooms are OK, but small and cramped, and you can literally have one foot in the shower and the other out the door in the room, with one hand on the sink and the other on the toilet. Interesting gymnastics await the morning shower!
Oh yes - you can only use the wi-fi connection in the lobby, and the password is FF928F6DFFC959F4E4BF37B988 if that gives you any idea about the place! Plus, there is only one outlet in the room - uh-oh - all of my things need recharging! Plus it has a phone, but no cord to the jack! The guy at the desk tells me they're having problems with the phone lines. Duh! But, still, it is kind of cool, and they have awesome Indian jewelry, which I am going to go take a look at on the way to dinner. And it is only for one night, and then I am on the final leg home.
Tomorrow - Goodyear, AZ and my family!!!
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