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Judy's ankle - more than two weeks after the incident.
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Heading for the border
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That's good to know . . . .
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First time, we paid to park on the US side and walked into Mexico
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Then we found out we could have parked here - two blocks closer
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Subsequent trips in, we drove through this unmanned nada gate . . .
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And now we quickly learn to read street signs in Spanish
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We'd been given some landmarks - this was one of them
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That's our dentist - Dr Veronica Hernandez
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The dental assistant - never did hear her name - is the rest of the office staff
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Some things are universal . . .
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We queue up for US customs along the border fence, decorated largely with ads
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There are vendors along the queue offering water and also some unidentified things
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Having just come from the dentist, we weren't much interested in chewing . . .
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Means either "stop" or "not soprano" . . . .
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The official border marker . . .
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It's much more complicated getting OUT of Mexico than it is getting IN
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Isn't that a given?
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And five miles inside the border, another checkpoint for the Border Patrol
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The restored train depot at Campo CA is the entrance to the train museum
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There's a bunch of old railroad stuff sitting around . . .
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That's Robin, the station master, sets the mood . . and sells the tickets
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Waiting for the train . . . .
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All Aboard!
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The train was still somewhat decorated from their Polar Express season . . .
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The train ride was about 10 miles, through some alledged farmland . . .
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The Homeland Security folks are beefing up the border . . .
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Kind of unhospitable land around here
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About as far as we could go - the light at the end of the tunnel is Mexico
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We're not sure what keeps folks from just walking thru the tunnel and under the border
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Looking back to see if we were looking ahead to see if . . . .
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The border fence crosses the ridge and is being improved
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Unlike in Nevada, the ranches here are actually agricultural enterprises . . .
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Every train ride allows two folks to pay extra to ride in the locomotive (and blow the whistle)
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The musuem has several steam locomotives, none currently operational
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There are a few rail cars you can tour, including this one-time private car
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Inside a caboose . . .
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This guy knew almost everything about the steam locomotive, and was willing to explain it all
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The Museum had to retire engine 2353 in 2000 when the boiler cracked . . .
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They say it will cost a half-million dollars to fabricate a new boiler for this locomotive. Donations welcome
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Probably the best-restored car we saw was this old mail car . . .
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The mechanism on the mail car for picking up the mail is interesting.
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That's the train that currently runs the tours.
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In the RV Park. Unfortunately, the migration was in October. We'd like to see it . . .
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Our next door neighbor grabbed all the rays he could . . .
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Judy liked this twin pine along the road to Mexico
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It's hard to imagine folks wanted to settle here way back when
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Remarkably complex geology formed these rocky hills over about 150 million years
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There's granite boulders and sandstone and limestone and all mixed together
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Most of the granite shows signs of water erosion, from back when this was all under the sea
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We think that's an aquaduct . . .
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The Otay Lakes are popular for fishing
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Some days we also saw rowing sculls practicing on the lake
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We suspect there's another lake behind that excessively decorated dam
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Cool graphics on the shuttle bus to the Chula Vista Nature Center
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The Nature Center is mostly fish and birds.
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We love aquariums.
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This Moray Eel is one of the largest we've seen
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Two spectacular Pacific Lobsters that won't ever see a pot . . .
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A touch pond is always popular - this one has skates and rays
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Forget the glass - don't touch the sharks!
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Great graphics . . .
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That's one ginormous iguana
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Owls are such fascinating birds . . .
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This fellow wasn't officially part of the exhibit - he just hung around outside the cages
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This structure houses the endangered Clapper Rail, whose habitat is depleted by 90%
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He's hand-feeding the birds live crickets. Birds love it. Crickets . . . not so much
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The crickets would head for the brush, and the birds would follow . . .
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Marvelous mural . . .
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Bald eagles are always impressive.
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The lady said most birds have no sense of smell. Never knew that . . .
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The owl drew a crowd
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The eyes have it . . .
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Those are all walking stick insects - never actually saw them before
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Many snakes are very beautiful
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A shed snake skin - almost like glass
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Finally, some impressive mistletoe colonies in the RV park