Friday, March 03, 2006

 

Return to Quartzsite

I drove to Quartzsite Wed morning to meet my neighbors from Mt. Vernon who are now in Quartzsite with their 5th wheel RV. We met at Mark's Family Diner for lunch, then went to Desert Oasis Books but it was closed for cleaning! So, off to where there were still a few vendors set up. I bought one book from one & some T-shirts from another. Many of these are enclosed in a tent like cover but some are just outside with their wares setup on tables set on the desert floor. Most things acquire a heavy covering of dust. Some things are wrapped in plastic to protect them from the dust. Here is an example of one of those outdoor vendors, with my neighbors shopping:
Quartzsite outdoor marketplace 1

This is a closer view of two of those tables. I think the things here are glass:
Quartzsite outdoor marketplace 2

There are a lot of homemade craft items sold there, some with prices that I feel are too high. Years ago a friend told me an artist might as well not sell a painting for $600 as not sell it for $6. But I am not usually willing to offer a way lower price that I might be willing to pay, so don't buy much of this type of thing:
Quartzsite outdoor marketplace 3

We had ice cream deserts at Dairy Queen in the afternoon and then went to Silly Al's Pizza for an early dinner. I bought a medium which fed me two dinners. I headed back to Yuma before 18:00 and arrived at the RV just after dark at 19:10. Huggy was glad to see me, knowing she would get her special food!

Thursday I finally went back to the Arizona Marketplace. It has grown larger each year. I thought about going on Tuesday but they are only open Thursday through Sunday. These vendors are under a metal roof which keeps the sun away but it is fairly open so the breeze blows through helping to make it more comfortable. The products sold here are generally of a higher quality those most sold in Quartzsite. Prices are very good and it is a fun place to go browsing. I bought two pair of shorts for me, some T-shirts and of course books. I also found a place where I couldn't pass up an ice cream cone! Here is a view looking down one of the covered vendor areas. There are about eight of these and this photo shows only about half of this one:
Arizona marketplace 1

Here is one of at least three book sellers there. This one is for sale! I think the owner, a retired teacher, wants to fully retire now. Most used bookstores now sell paperback books at half their retail prices. The three I visited here ranged from $2 each to individual prices but the ones I bought were $2.50 each:
Arizona marketplace 2

I left about 15:30 (most places close at 16:00) and drove to Walmart for some shopping before stopping at the Zodiak Internet Cafe for my daily mocha. Here is a photo of the counter area at Zodiak with today's barista:
Zodiak barista
They have six PCs hard wired to their router plus they have WiFi this year for customers with their own laptops. The PC areas are to the right of this photo and along the wall on the right side, plus along the front wall, behind where I stood to take the photo.

After the mocha I went on home for pizza for dinner & to watch the DVD movie I bought at Walmart, "Walk The Line" about June Carter & Johnny Cash. So far this morning I have washed clothes again using that clothesline thing, moved photos into Photoshop Album, reduced them in size to transfer to Flickr and written this. I still have my paper journal to do. It doesn't seem possible that I have been in Yuma almost a month but I do leave on Monday after one month.

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Comments:
Thanks for sharing with us Dick, I am enjoying this very much. I have to say
I grow more eager to begin my journey into that type of life the more you share
with us.

Where does your travels take you next? How long do you stay away from your home
at a time? How far do you travel away from your home, How far have you ever
traveled from your home? Is it o-kay if I ask these type of questions?
 
What did you think of Walk the Line? It's only out in cinemas over here and I haven't gotten to see it yet.

Great photos btw and I *love* Dairy Queen.
 
That place reminds me of Pike Place Market.
We are experiencing nice weather today. 60 degrees and sunny, but not for long. No dafodils or tulips in the fields yet.
I have some friends from Twisp that are RV'ing east of Phoenix for a few months.
 
Ms. Vickie - Monday morning I leave Yuma to head toward Tucson, a part of Arizona we've not yet visited. I prefer to drive less than 200 miles a day so will stop in the Gila Bend area that night then go on to Tucson Tue. This trip will be about four months long by the time I get home in early May. I started it two months ago today. In the summer we usually take a one month trip in the Northwest.

Right now I am 1657 miles into the trip. When I leave Mon to go back east I'll go another 300 or a bit more so probably nearly 2000 miles from home. That will be the farthest away this time. In 2004 we went to Albuquerque, NM which is farther east but also farther north so I'd guess it was about the same distance from home. One of the hardest things for me to get done is the routine servicing on the rig - lube, oil & filter changes. It is harder when you live in it and don't know the service places around you like you do at home. Your questions are fine.

Clare - I enjoyed "Walk The Line." I think we all know a bit about Johnny & June Cash but this brings out a lot more. Did you see the movie, "Ray" about Ray Charles? There were some real similarities in their lives. I paid about three times as much to buy the movie as it would have cost to see it in a theater but I think I will watch it again & show it to others. Next week I will buy the new Harry Potter film when it comes out on DVD.

Phyllis - Pike Place Market is somewhat like Arizona Marketplace but as I remember the prices there are not very low. There are some real bargains here in cost. Q is more like a giant yard sale.
 
I enjoyed "Walk the Line." I learned some things about Johnny Cash that I didn't know. I'm anxious to get the new Harry Potter when it comes out. I am a huge fan.
 
More great pictures Dick, thank you for sharing your journies with us! And I haven't been to D.Q. for YEARS for ice cream, YUM!
 
What wonderful photos, Dick. The Arizona Marketplace looks very similar to the bigger markets we have here ... I guess they are the same the world over !!! I bet I could've found heaps of bargains there !!! I'm loving reading, and seeing, about your travels. Hope you are having a great weekend. Take care, Meow
 
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