Day 18 - Texan Lhasa

Today has been a joy. Work up well after 09:00, a slow buffet breakfast with the paper, back to bed for the best part of 2 hours TV, skype with home, and an afternoon of route planning and equipment checks. My legs feel noticeably better for it. And with 4 hard days in the desert, then a 4 day slog on to Houston up next I didn't feel remotely guilty.

The only trip outside was to pick up the bike, from the very decent blokes at Crazy Cyclery. They've done a cracking full service on the girl and she seems to be riding very well. On route to the bike shop, I took a detour through the University of Texas in El Paso (UTEP) grounds, confirming two things.

Juarez from Wimp's Hill

Juarez really is just at the end of the campus: Campus, I-10 Freeway, Rio Grande and then Mexico. At the end of each avenue the sprawl of Juarez sits framed by the manicured lawns, flower beds, and buildings of the campus. Peaceful picture perfect US university life in the foreground, narco-city warzone in the background. I guess you would just get used to it, but I found it strange to say the least.

After reading up about Juarez, the original plan to go and get a Mexican stamp in the passport "for a laugh" was shelved. I was going to go and take pictures of the border, but as I couldn't see a fence when I got near the I-10 I rather chickened out of hanging out under the freeway, and went and had more sushi. Later internet research confirmed there is a fence, and hence was just being a wimp.

Internet research also confirmed a hunch. Yesterday's post stated the university architecture was Hispanic, because I'd assumed my original observation was a rather obnoxious frequent travellers thought. I just presumed the buildings were all Mayan/Mexican inspired,  and the striking similarity to Tibetan architecture was simply a coincidence that only Himalayan obsessed oddballs like myself would notice.

Turns out I was spot on, the entire university is modelled on Tibetan (well Bhutanese technically, but will save you the boring academic differences) structures. Apparently it was on the whim of the first Chancellor's wife. With the bleached mountains in the background, squint and you really could be Lhasa. Mexico, Tibet, and Texas all in one. El Paso is a funky little city, no doubt.

I'm heading into proper bush for the next 4 days odd, so posts may become more intermittent. That said I thought that before and was emailing from a Starbucks in a casino within 3 hours, so who knows.

Route - El Paso - Mostly in my room, giving my body a rest from the elements, not least my right ear. As I've been riding East for the whole trip, the sun starts the day square in my face then rolls round the right side of my body, and I'm usually into a town by the time it's square on my back. As a result the right side of my face is very weather beaten, and my right ear is a very noticeably browner than my left ear. Browner and peeling.

Breakfast - Cherrios, fruit salad and bagels and peanut butter from the hotel buffet.
Lunch - Skipped. Breakfast was late and big, although did have a latte and frozen yogurt from the Tea House mid-afternoon.
Supper - Same as lunch yesterday. Mirai Japanese Canteen. Better second time round. Washed down with a rather mediocre Rasberry smoothie.
Sushi, bagels, frozen yogurt, latte, and a smoothie. Have fully satisfied my rather pampered city boy tastes and feel fortified and ready to face BBQ, Denny's and truckers country again.