We're in Amarillo, Texas. Ever since St. Louis we've had bright clear skies and 80 degrees. We've ridden old route 66 in Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas. The speed limit is 70 to 75. We zip right along..
We had a nice leisurely lunch with Jeannine's sister in Springfield, Mo..Going through Joplin Missouri and into Oklahoma was really interesting as we went through the various Indian Reservations, the Miami, Cherokee, Sac and Fox etc.. Lots of cattle out here, I saw a huge herd of Charolais.. They are nice big white cattle that look a lot like Angus except much bigger. Another interest were the bugs. As my windshield got splattered I started to think about the statistics of the splats on my windshield.. and realized the bugs were obeying someting more like chaos theory .. These Oklahoma bugs are really well fed, let me tell you!!! We decided to stop in Tulsa, OK. for the night. Tulsa is another big city..
We went to Oklahoma City, which is 100 miles down the road. I typed IPRA (International Pro Rodeo Association) into my garmin, but it led us to their office, and not a museum or whatever. Anyway, it was right next to the stockyards, which is very definitely a blue collar section of town. Lots of cowboys!! It was passed lunchtime and right across the road was the "Cattlemen Cafe".. It was a definite hole in the wall. type place. It started in the 20's, serving cowboys "back room beverages" with meals during prohibition.
Inside was definitely older, but it turned out to be quite a large place, and packed!! I had the lunch steak with salad and baked potato for $7.99 and Jeannine had the BBQ flank steak with salad and veggies for $6.99.. They were REALLY good. The owner stopped by the table and told us that "Diner's, Drive-Ins and Dives" just finished filming a program on their cafe.. He said it woud be aired in the fall. We went across the road again to an Indian jewelry shop. They made jewelry right there. Oklahoma City is worth another visit sometime. Our next stop was Elk City on old route 66.. Its a really nice town with route 66 going through it just like in the 50's.., .
In Texas we went through McLean on old route 66. This town was sad with about every third home abandonded and only one small store that served as gas station, deli, and local teen hangout. McLean had the first "Phillips 66" gas station on route 66 back in 1922..
We've decided to spend a day in Amarillo and see the town.. The Texas panhandle is really interesting.. Another bright and sunny day!!
More later,
Harris and Jeannine
No comments:
Post a Comment