Hello to all from beautiful rainy Tucson

Today is the Friday, 29th of November, the day after US Thanksgiving and the biggest shopping day for the US. All the stores are offering big discounts and opened at 5.00 AM with people lined up in the rain. We would rather sit in our warm RV and take a few days of relaxation before we head into Mexico.

We arrived in Tucson, supposedly the city in the US with, on the average, the warmest weather in the country, on Monday and it has blown and rained ever since. Weather forecasts call for temperatures up to 70 degrees but we have not seen them yet. Had a great trip most of our 3500 miles across the US after leaving the snow belt that we wrote about in our last letter. The scenery is fabulous and as you can see from the pictures we travelled the high way literally, being between 4000 to 7000 feet most of the last few days. The scenery is wonderful and even the over passes with graphic patterns and colors of turquoise, blue,and pinks They match a lot of the housing which in New Mexico and Arizona is in pastel colors and terra cotta to blend in with the soil and mountains.

Coming from the north to the south of Arizona was quite an experience with high desert (7000) ft through gradually more vegetation to pine forests where you were warned to watch for elk for about 35 miles ( we did see a couple but they had been hit by cars) to where the pine forests turned to forests of 20 foot many armed cactus to where we are now on the desert floor with many varieties of cactus and large palm trees.

We have met up with Charley and Renee, the couple we are going into Mexico with, and will be leaving for Nogales on Monday to purchase our Mexico Car insurance and tie up other odds and ends and crossing the Mexican border on Wednesday morning. Will travel 75 miles that day and spend a day or so with a lady missionary with cancer who had singlehandedly produced and mailed out over 75,000 videos. We will just be doing odd jobs there, whatever she needs done. Then on to a Baptist mission for another couple of days of odd jobs and down to Guaymas on the coast to meet with four native church pastors and see what help we can be there. From there we will head inland about 75 miles to Rancho Maranatha and will be there in the orphanage compound until the middle of January. We have no phone numbers or addresses in Mexico yet so will let you know when we do.

Going out to supper tonight with Charley and Renee as they are staying with friends and we are in an RV park about 10 miles away. Not the best park we have been in but after Flying J's and Wal Marts which are free most of the trip a park is luxury with power and water and a dumping station and at only $70.00 a week.

Will be in touch again when we know more and can find internet access.

Love to all

Larry & Shirl