Early on Wednesday, the 14th January, an excited group of adventurers met at the Calgary airport for a flight to Denver, Colorado to begin an 18 – day ‘trip of a lifetime’, hosted by Anita Dyck and Val Umscheid of Kaleidoscope Travel & Cruise. The group arrived in Denver at 9:15 am, and was met by a private motor coach, which was waiting to transport us to Colorado Springs to begin the 13-day land portion of this unique vacation. After checking into the hotel, and enjoying lunch, we were joined by a local guide, and we proceeded to tour this lovely city, nestled in the foothills of the Rockies. Our tour included a visit to the Air Force Academy and the incredible Cadet Chapel, which has 17 spires and houses a Protestant Church, a Catholic Chapel and a Jewish Synagogue. We also toured through the Garden of the Gods, at the foot of the Pikes Peak (14,000ft), and marveled at the unique red rock formations, which make up this city park. 
Later in the evening we all join our fellow travelers, at a champagne reception at our hotel presented by Kaleidoscope Travel & Cruise. We also celebrated the 9th anniversary of Gordon and Myrna Johnson, a couple, who were with the group. The next morning we started our day with a visit to Royal Gorge Bridge Park, which at 1,053 feet is the world’s highest suspension bridge. It crosses the massive granite Royal Gorge as well as the raging Arkansas River. Everyone was thrilled by the ride down to the bottom of the gorge in an open air ‘tram’. Next we descended the 1,000 feet mineshaft to the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine. Visiting this authentic 1891 Gold Mine is like being on location with the Discovery or History Channels. It was a fascinating, educational, and a unique adventure thoroughly enjoyed by everyone. We ended our day with a visit to Cripple Creek, a town with a ‘rich’ gold mining history. We also tried our luck at the many casinos, but although we had no big winners (some losers!), we did have lots of fun.
The following day we enjoyed a visit to the Pro-Rodeo Hall of Fame, located adjacent to the National Headquarters of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. This the only heritage center in the world devoted exclusively to professional rodeo. We also explored Old Colorado City – once the centre of gambling dens and houses of ill repute. Established in 1859, it is the oldest established city in the Pikes Peak Region and is now a treasured National Historic District.
After lunch we traveled on to Santa Fe – like very few places, present day Santa Fe is a living link to its past. A picturesque 400-year old village, the area’s Native American culture goes back thousands of years. We enjoyed our evening meal at the Cowgirl Hall of Fame Restaurant. 
The following morning it was all aboard the Santa Fe Southern Railway. Charming vintage cars journeyed through beautiful high desert scenery on a 4-hour round trip from the historic depot in Santa Fe to Lamy, a sleepy little village 18 miles southeast of Santa Fe. The afternoon was spent exploring Santa Fe a city of museums, some of the finest of their kind anywhere. The Loreto Chapel with the miraculous staircase was a highlight for everyone.
We continued south to Las Cruces, with the promise of another exciting day ahead! A visit to the acclaimed New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum was planned. The museum celebrates the 3,000-year agricultural story of New Mexico – from the first farmers in their rustic pit houses more than 1,200 years ago to the modern-day technology which is helping to make New Mexico a leader in the dairy industry. It was a fascinating day. That evening we took a ‘ghost tour’ of the Old Mesilla Plaza, with tales of Billy the Kid and other notorious characters of the old west. Our evening meal was enjoyed at a Mexican restaurant housed in what was once a home of the one of the richest families in New Mexico.
What a fabulous day awaited us next! We left Las Cruces bright and early and traveled east to Roswell, New Mexico (alien landing?). On our way we spent time at the White Sands National Monument. 
Here, great wave-like dunes of gypsum sand have engulfed 275 square miles of desert and have created the world’s largest gypsum dune field. The brilliant white dunes are ever changing, growing, cresting, then slumping, but always advancing. It is truly a magnificent sight! We continued on through the mountains in which Billy the Kid hid from Pat Garret – arriving in Roswell in time to spend time at the Roswell International UFO Museum & Research Center. Before exploring the center, we spent some time in the company of the president of the museum, whose father had been the army spokesman at the time of the incident. She certainly gave us all a great deal of food for thought!
The following day we journeyed to Pecos, Texas, and en route we descended 750 feet to the Big Room in the Carlsbad Caverns – “the 8th wonder of the world”. >
While many caves are formed by underground rivers, Carlsbad Caverns was created by a unique combination of erosion and land convulsions a million years ago, which resulted in several enormous crevices – rooms large enough to fit 14 football fields – and massive crystal formations. Stalactites, stalagmites, columns, draperies, drip pools, and much, much more! The whole area is a sight to behold. We spent the night in the town of Pecos, which claims to have held the very first rodeo ever!
After a nights rest, we departed for San Antonio, Texas arriving later in the afternoon. That evening we attended the Imax production of ‘The Alamo’. A wonderful movie, depicting the 13 day siege of 2,000 Mexicans, in which, 189 heroes offered their lives to insure the freedom of Texas.
Next, a fun and informative day began with a tour of this beautiful city. San Antonio captures the spirit of Texas. The city has retained its sense of history and tradition, while carefully blending in cosmopolitan progress. We lunched aboard a barge sailing slowly down the San Antonio River viewing the famous Riverwalk. 
The afternoon was free to explore more of the area and to visit ‘The Alamo’, which was within walking distance of our hotel.
The following day we drove into the country and visited a wildlife ranch – we were able to enjoy some ‘different’ species up close and personal. It was truly a memorable stay in this city so full of history, and with a very special ‘ambience’.
A unique and awsome experience was planned for the following day with a tour to the world famous King Ranch. Founded in 1853 by Captain Richard King, the King Ranch sprawls across 825,000 acres of South Texas with land that varies from fertile black farmland to low-lying coastal marshes to mesquite infested pastures that mark the beginning of the great Texas brush country. Once a dusty outpost on the road between the settlements of Corpus Christi and Brownsville, the King Ranch is one of the largest working ranches in the United States today and is continuing to advance cattle ranching and preserve the legacy begun by Captain King. 
King Ranch is more than a cattle ranch. Today’s King Ranch has diversified and grown into a major agribusiness corporation, with interests in cattle ranching and feedlot operations, farming (cotton, grain, sugar cane), citrus groves, commodity marketing and processing, and recreational hunting. We were served a BBQ lunch at the cowboy camp (still in use), during the 7 hour agricultural tour, specifically designed for our group. Once again – a very fascinating day. We continued on to Corpus Christi to stay overnight.
And now we traveled north to Galveston, Texas where another adventure awaited us. During the evening we had lots of fun at a ‘Bon Voyage’ card party with our fellow travelers, before we continued on to the “Fun from Texas” cruise.
On January 26th we boarded the Carnival Fun Ship Celebration for a 5-day ‘Fun from Texas’ cruise. The ship set sail at 4:00 pm and the eating frenzy began! We spent the first day at sea exploring the ship. >
Some of us lounged by the pool on the lido deck, some indulged at the spa and all of us enjoyed the superb food in the dining room.
Our first stop was the beautiful island of Cozumel, Mexico. Again the group enjoyed their own special plans. Some took a submarine 100ft below the ocean’s surface and explored the wonders of Chankanaab, part of the world’s second largest reef, Mexico. Others swam with the dolphins – WOW. And, some chose to shop, or just enjoyed exploring this lovely island.
Calica was the port the following day, and again different choices were made. Some especially enjoyed a visit to the Mayan ruins. Others snorkeled, some shopped, and all enjoyed the lovely weather. We were hearing tales of nasty cold temperatures back home – which made us appreciate our surrounding so much more!
And now the ‘Celebration’ turned north and sailed back to Galveston, Texas. Last minute shopping was done at the duty free shops on board, and some tried their luck in the casino, and everyone watched the final evening show in the Astoria Lounge. 
Another anniversary was celebrated in our group. Betty and Lloyd Armstrong – congratulations on 52 years together. A delicious cake made for the occasion, was enjoyed by all.
On January 31, 2004 we disembarked the Celebration and journeyed to Houston for our flight back home – each of us having made new friends, renewed old friendships, and all with very special tales and memories of our ‘TEXAS BOUND’ tour.