Las Cruces NM

Since my arrival to New Mexico i noticed there is a strong traditions in architecture 

and paying attention to the details. 

My concert was at the Rio Grande theater.  

When i saw it i loved it instantly because of its folkloric style and extremely cosy feel.

The manager of the place David was very welcoming

and his crew was young and cool. We had a blast with together.

Sound check and the lights were done con gusto. Looks like ready to go ... not for the back flip.

The show was received with great enthusiasm. I felt at ease with this audience. Actually there was a Lithuanian gentleman among the audience. Gee! We are everywhere! He came and invited me to the dinner after the concert. We went to the most fancy restaurant in Mesilla (the suburb of Las Cruces) which used to be a capital of New Mexico. Previously this restaurant was a governors private residence later it was a place for political meetings between Republicans and Democrats (which sometimes ended with gun shots). Also there was a time when it was bordello. Now it is an upscale restaurant with several dining halls. One is for tourists,

another for your mother in law,

of course the bar for a ...

"special date".

and the main room which is not for the regular mortals. That's where we ate.

I haven't ate such an exquisite food in a long time. This restaurant is famous for aging their own meats and creating an incredibly sophisticated taste. The dinner was a true experience where your eyes and your taste buds are enjoying on the same level. 

  

Later we went out with my new friends from the theater to listen some bands 

and to make more friends.

I really enjoyed the intensity of my time in Las Cruces. I love my job! At end of the night i was ready to collapse and get ready for the new adventures.

Road to Las Cruces NM

I was on the road to Las Cruces. It was warm and lonely. 

Oh man, its going to be a long day.

On the way i generated some interest. "Sorry, no autographs today".

I hope that this cemetery wasn't of somebody like me.

I was loosing hope but ... all of a sudden "Hope Store". It was unbelievable. I got a few pounds of their product and went back on the road with a new energy. 

"I told no autographs!". Its so hard to be popular.

I was waiting for the driver but he never showed up. The ride wasn't that classy anyway.

As i was going up in the mountains i found real snow.  

That was only beginning. Later it got thicker. 

What about that??? Am i in New Mexico? or ... maybe i had a wrong product from that "hope store"?

On the other side  of the mountain the views were getting better and better

and the weather got warmer and warmer.  

Guess what it is ....................................................................................

 

............. it is a 

......................................... white sand 

.................................................................................. and a lot of it. 

.......... water!!! .................................

(purified and with bubbles would be better... hmmmmmm......) 

............ shade!!!

Also there was some kind of giant hippie.

As i was loosing my hope again ............................... i saw this. 

Yes! ... I am saved! Sorry stranger, now its your turn to walk. 

The travel through the desert became much easier. 

Finally i could enjoy my trip  

to Las Cruces.

The sun was going down. I knew that behind that mountain there was food, hotel and a skype session  with my girls in California. 

I was right. Las Cruces was catching the last light of the desert sunset. 

Carlsbad NM

Where is Carlsbad? 

... and my venue?

... where is John Wayne when you need him?

Finally i found it and got a really horrible room at the hotel. I couldn't take it. I decided to go back to the front desk and to "shmooze". Guess what? It worked. They gave me a suite. It was much better. Since i am an excellent cook i pampered myself  with my made raviolis, salads, 

accompanied by Bud Light and ... and 0% fat yogurts for desert.

Since i had a day off i put a lot of miles on my pajamas and ... watched 4 movies back to back without shame. Now i know who is my favorite male actor. Finally!

Next morning i had a children concert at "un-godly hour" ... 9:30 am. I woke up and ran to the kids performance. Funny but I always make it ; ) 

I didn't know what to expect from the evening concert. I asked the flag what should i do?

and the flag said ... "loose your accent first". I desperately said "but this is the only thing that i have". After a long pause flag answered me "then go to your dressing room and everything will be OK". My dressing room looked like that.

I needed some  privacy in order to change. Here felt a little uncomfortable. 

the only place i found was ...there. 

Audiences have no idea what happens in the back stages. 

Artesia NM

I really didn't want to leave for New Mexico because i was surrounded by my favorite women.

Time to pack.

My trip took 12 hours. Lots of delays. When i was making calls for the shuttle the guy next to me said "do you need a ride to your hotel". I said yes because all the shuttle was unavailable. The guy was looking very rough. Grey beard, tough face and a flannel shirt. He also didn't talk much and had a country accent. I really didn't expect such an offer from this guy. When we landed in Roswell NM the baggage was unloaded in martian style.

My ride was the brother of my new friend who looked even more rough. More flannel, more beard but very talkative and funny. So we loaded his truck with our bags and got on the road. The conversation started with lighting a cigarette in the car. I love cigarette smell. The talkative guy Tom is a Vietnam veteran . He was against the war but they drafted him. After he came back he asked if he could go back there. It was bizarre. He doesn't like killing. If he did he had nightmares but he wanted to go back anyway because of the ... adrenaline rush. That was his ultimate drug. There was nothing higher for him than war. He didn't use any other drugs until he came back. The man needed to stay high. He craved for the war and went back. Later he went to military. I became extremely interested in his stories and his perspectives. And invited them both for a beer in a very seedy bar (the only one open). I was fascinated by these two men. They were inseparable brothers and cared about most interesting stuff. The other brother is an engineer and has his own way of separating protein from the sugar in dairy products. He is going to China for 2 years to produce his product. The surprises kept coming. Their children have PhD's in middle eastern languages or music degrees from great universities. Wow! Two brothers with flannel shirts and untrimmed (one more than other) beards had two the most fascinating worlds. Maybe they were martians??? It was Roswell NM. Thanks to the failure of the shuttle. Long live failures!!!!!

Next day i rented a coolest car on this tour (pics later) and left to Artesia. Very small town but i had a great feel about it. Billy The Kid had a lady in this town and visited her often. He had to do it secretly of course because he was on the run all the time. Maybe he was hiding in my hotel?

... and maybe my room?

Everything in this town had character ... billboards too ; )

Lunch with the artist. I had him all by myself.

The Center of Performing Arts was new and very modern.

The best small venue on this tour.

I felt really good vibes there. Maybe because of Billy The Kid?