As we start to head for Minnesota, we decided to spend some time in Amarillo. Here we are at “home” at A OK Camper Park.

We had to stop at a route 66 iconic restaurant after we got to Amarillo.

The 72 oz. (4.5 lb) steak is free if you can eat it and the sides in an hour or less. We didn’t try!

While sampling our flights, we started chatting with a gentleman. He was traveling from Boston to LA. I kept staring at him and finally told him he looked very familiar. He admitted he is an actor, named Dennis Pietrantonio. He told us about some of the movies he has been in: Grown Ups 2, The Equalizer, Patriots Day, Daddy’s Home 2 and many more. This October, his film “Defending Jacob” will come out. I know I’ve read that book and can’t wait to see the movie.

On Sunday afternoon, we drove to 6th Street, part of the historic Route 66 district. It was fun to see some of the old signs and have a beer along the route, people watching for a while.

On Monday, we visited the Jack Sisemore’s RV Museum. There were some really old RV’s and some from the 70’s. It was neat to see how much could be included into the very smaller RV’s. We wondered if we would have enjoyed this lifestyle as much, if we had started it 50 years earlier. Somehow, I think those “campers” thought they were living in the lap of luxury.

One of the funniest things, that we saw in many of the trailers, was the small bathroom. The toilet and the sink were actually in the shower stall. And we thought we have a small bathroom…

On Tuesday, I had a long overdue appointment to get something done with my hair. Dave waited patiently for me, then we hopped in the truck and drove to the town of Canyon, to tour the Panhandle-Plains Museum on the grounds of West Texas A & M. This was one of the most comprehensive and well done museums we have seen. Some of the features included Indians of the Texas panhandle, the beginning of ranching and the American cowboy, an early rural village, windmills and the early petroleum industry.

We had about an hour to kill before our evening plans so stopped in at another local microbrewery. We had an unusual blend of beer and hot peppers. It was surprisingly very good!

We had evening plans to meet an old friend of mine, Wanda Garcia and her husband Fred. We met 45 years ago because our first husbands were friends and we hung out a lot together in the early days of our marriages, while our babies were very little. We had not seen each other since our youngest children were infants, but time fell away and we had an awesome evening.

On May 3, we drove to Lubbock to see the Buddy Holly museum. Wow, I liked his music but was really impressed to learn that he toured the US, Great Britain and Australia, as well as recording at his studio in New Mexico, all in 18 months. Many of his innovations are still used today, such as a lead-in guitar string, artist with rights to his own music and also usinng unusual instruments to create different sounds.

The plaza across the street from the museum is dedicated to Buddy.

Across the street was a neat brewery.

On a warm, sunny day, we took the bike out and rode to Palo Duro Canyon State Park. This is the second biggest canyon, second only to The Grand Canyon.

My oldest grandson, Kyle, attended his first prom. We were not there to see him but Angie posted some neat pictures.

On our last Sunday in Amarillo, Wanda and Fred invited us to go to church with them and then to “the cheapest place in Amarillo” for lunch. They lead us back to their house for a delicious grilled lunch. We spent a delightful afternoon with them and will sure miss them.

On Tuesday, May 7, we headed out for our last field trip in Texas. We went to the Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument, where the Native Americans found the best flint for making tools. This was really interesting.

After touring the visitor center and speaking with the ranger on duty, we ate a picnic lunch and toured some more outside. This was neat because they had many of the beautiful flowers that I love, labelled.

We debated heading further toward the monument but the ranger came out and warned us of a severe storm heading our way. Decision made — time to head for home!