This past weekend+ was spent visiting my sister in southwest Texas and sightseeing in New Mexico.  El Paso is close enough to Carlsbad Caverns National Park to pay a visit.  The cave part was pretty cool, but the other attraction -- the 400,000 bats that emerge each night -- didn't happen because of the rain.  The next day we drove up to Albuquerque and stopped at White Sands National Monument and Three Rivers Petroglyph Site on the way.  After spending a day in Santa Fe and Albuquerque, we flew home.  Short, but good, trip. 

Pictures:

[gallery /img/2010/07/p0724102148.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0724102148-150x150.jpg:::West Texas is flat.  Very much so.:::/img/2010/07/p0724131510.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0724131510-150x150.jpg:::A "Texas Edition" pickup truck.  Texas has its own version of everything.:::/img/2010/07/p0724135139.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0724135139-150x150.jpg:::Carlsbad Caverns - These are the bats we would've seen if it didn't rain.:::/img/2010/07/p0724144912.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0724144912-150x150.jpg:::Carlsbad Caverns - Stalactites hanging from the ceiling.:::/img/2010/07/p0724150658.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0724150658-150x150.jpg:::Carlsbad Caverns - A stalactite that looks like a bee's nest.:::/img/2010/07/p0724150728.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0724150728-150x150.jpg:::Carlsbad Caverns - Giant stalagmites on the floor of the caves.:::/img/2010/07/p0724163329.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0724163329-150x150.jpg:::Carlsbad Caverns - A giant green beetle with a finger for reference.:::/img/2010/07/p0725155543.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0725155543-150x150.jpg:::White Sands - "What should we call this place?"  "How about White Sands?"  "Sounds good.":::/img/2010/07/p0725155732.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0725155732-150x150.jpg:::White Sands - Wildlife in the form of a darkling beetle.:::/img/2010/07/p0725155824.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0725155824-150x150.jpg:::White Sands - A lizard poses while I shimmy on my hands and knees to get closer.:::/img/2010/07/p0725160039.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0725160039-150x150.jpg:::White Sands - A sign encouraged me to walk barefoot.  I gladly complied.:::/img/2010/07/p0725171117.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0725171117-150x150.jpg:::White Sands - Probably my favorite picture of Wendy, ever.:::/img/2010/07/p0725171204.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0725171204-150x150.jpg:::White Sands - Our car is about to get rained on.:::/img/2010/07/p0725171710.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0725171710-150x150.jpg:::White Sands - Wendy's sand angel.:::/img/2010/07/p0725193312.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0725193312-150x150.jpg:::Three Rivers - A very detailed geometric petroglyph.:::/img/2010/07/p0725193512.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0725193512-150x150.jpg:::Three Rivers - Oh, ya know, just some 1000-year-old rock carvings.  No biggie.:::/img/2010/07/p0726115559.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0726115559-150x150.jpg:::Santa Fe - A woman with cheetah pants.  Insert joke about slang names for older women chasing younger men.:::/img/2010/07/p0726115939.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0726115939-150x150.jpg:::Santa Fe - One of the many adobe structures.:::/img/2010/07/p0726120317.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0726120317-150x150.jpg:::Santa Fe - A sculpture with some hieroglyphics.:::/img/2010/07/p0726165023.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0726165023-150x150.jpg:::Albuquerque - An old church in the Old Town.:::/img/2010/07/p0726165131.jpg:::/img/2010/07/p0726165131-150x150.jpg:::Albuquerque - A flower after the rain.:::]

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