A word about the weather. We discovered that this area has what they call a "monsoon" season. In the late afternoon, clouds form, with much wind (and in the early part of the season that we are in now, not much rain.) Yesterday in St. Johns while in the library, the storm hit. Since my clothes were out drying, I quickly returned to camp. Thankfully, someone put them away. A few more tents went down. The wind made the sand feel like sandpaper against your skin. Within an hour, it was all gone and the sun shone again.
At 4, we had our own time at the city pool which was part of the city park we were tenting in. We enjoyed the water and many people showed their skills on the diving board. In the evening, the town showed an outdoor movie (American Tail) as part of America Day celebrations. Since it was shown next to our tent city, we could not sleep until it was over (10), even though we were tired. Still I played some volleyball, during that time--since biking and swimming wasn't enough exercise!
In the morning, as is the custom in St. Johns for the Fourth of July, they shot off cannons at 5 am, thirteen times. Though I was already awake and putting down my tent, each time I heard it I still jumped.
I rode with Pete (63) and Dan (58) today. We left at 6:15 for the 100 km ride to Zuni, New Mexico. I felt a little more sluggish than yesterday. That's because the wind did not help us today, didn't really hurt us either. It was another ride through open country--nothing between the two places. No steep climbs or descends, just up and down. Got to see some mesas today. We arrived in Zuni, around noon (new time; 11 Pacific time.)
Zuni is a Native American town. We are staying at the Zuni Christian Mission School, with its new building. No tent tonight. We were given a tour of the old village of Zuni (this is one oldest settlements in America.) Since they do not allow photographs, without a permit, I have no pictures of the settlement. Poverty is evident here and the Mission school seeks to provide education as a means of providing a better future.
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It's cool to see that you get some time to learn more about the places you visit. What a nice feeling it must be to be done your "work day" by noon - although you have some other practical duties afterwards. Have you been able to get some video footage of yourself biking? That would be really cool for a future slideshow!
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Hi Pastor Noordhof. I stumbled across your blog this morning after I downloaded the app. This is Amanda Turner (Muizelaar), you were our Pastor in Iron Springs :). We are continue to pray for the Sea to Sea bike tour as you travel down the highways of North America. A member of our congregation in Medicine Hat is doing the whole leg as well, Albert Cramer. Thank you for your blog, I enjoyed reading your experiences! I have been keeping up through Facebook, but now can keep up this way as well! Prayers for safety....
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