Arrival in Albuquerque

Dawn breaks over the casino

Thursday, October 10, 2013
We finally got on the road and arrived in Albuquerque last night. (Boy do I get tired of typing Albuquerque.) We crashed in a casino parking lot. I've never been fond of casinos, but now I love them.

It was a frustrating experience, trying for 2 days to get basic repairs and maintenance done at the Camping World outside of Flagstaff. Granted, some of the trouble we had was not of their making. But they aggravated it. We spent a day and a half there, with an overnight in a nearby motel. On the second day we arrived at 8 when they opened and waited for the oil change they didn't get to the day before. When I finally went out to the bay at 11:30 to see how much longer this oil change would take I found they hadn't even started. Our rig had been put in the wrong bay. It needed to be one bay over to access the bulk oil tank. But there was another rig in the way and they couldn't figure out how to get it moved out of the way. We left.

It was windy across Arizona and into New Mexico. We have tickets for the mass ascension of balloons on Saturday morning. The winds are supposed to be mild then. Balloon ascension was cancelled this morning. Balloons won't be launched with winds above 5-7mph.  Today Albuquerque had gusts up to 60 mph.

This is what an RV park should look like. This is the KOA in Bernalillo, just north of Albuquerque.  It puts KC to shame. Of course it costs almost 40% more per day than KC. But in contrast to KC the office staff is very friendly and accommodating, which doesn't cost 40% more. An employee in a golf cart meets you when you come in and guides you into your spot, which is level and well demarcated.

Friday, October 11, 2013
A beautiful day, with no wind. Tomorrow should be perfect for ballooning. Today was a reconnaissance day. We have to leave for the Park N Ride at 0400 Saturday morning to catch the shuttle to the Balloon Fiesta field, and we didn't want to try that half asleep in the cold and dark.

Stuffed Sopapilla

Chicken Enchiladas

 Lunch was at El Pinto, a well known New Mexican restaurant. The place was packed with ballooners and their fans. Licence plates were from all over the country. Ambiance wonderful, food I thought was average. Tonight will be an early one, setting the alarm for 3:30. This is retirement?

El Pinto Entrance looking out