I loved this little shopper in her boots.
Did you ever see a dragon fruit? Absolutely beautiful but not much flavor.
Our next adventure was to drive the Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway, an 83-mile loop that passes through Angel Fire, Eagle Nest, Red River, Taos Ski Valley and Questa, and then returns to Taos.
Our first stop was the Vietnam Veterans Memorial State Park. It was constructed from 1968-1971 and was the first major Vietnam memorial in the US. Doc and Jeanne Westphall built the chapel in honor of their son, 1st Lt. David Westphall, one of 16 Marines killed in an ambush in Con Thien, Vietnam in l968. It sits high on a hill overlooking beautiful views and was fairly recently made a State Park.
Outside the visitor's center is the Viking Surprise, a Huey aircraft that was instrumental in saving many lives. It was installed with a smoke apparatus that produced smoke from a ring of nozzles around the turbine exhaust using a reservoir of oil. Smokeships were used to provide cover for ground operations. In one battle, it had 135 bullet holes, six of which had gone through the pilot's compartment. It was repaired and returned to duty.
This is a beautiful garden and fountain honoring our Veterans.
This statue of a soldier writing home is next to the plaque below.
The chapel below displays 16 photographs of Vietnam veterans. They are displayed on a rotating basis, with David Westphall always in the center. The number 16 is in honor of the 16 Marines who died in the ambush with him.
Although it was beautiful here, it was very difficult to read the displays and see all the pictures. More than a few tears were shed by us on this visit. One quote that particularly stuck with me was:
"Vietnam is a country, not a war."
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