DAY 19/20 - Lubbock, TX - Albuquerque, New Mexico - Grants, NM

Three weeks have past since we began our motorcycle trip which is hard to believe. When time isn't of matter there is a feeling it doesn't move, but when you want to do more in less of it, it just goes by like the wind. Our tour so far has had lots of ups and downs but we constantly are trying to improve it. There are days we all feel like killing each other and days that we enjoy one another's company to the extant of sleeping together on the same motel bed. Honestly, our vision of trip before we set out, retroactively speaking, was very different than reality as it is now. The thought of riding into the sunset with no worries is very unrealistic due to many factors which we hadn't (or didn't want to) account for. Motorcycle maintenance and experience is one the factors which causes this tour to be more difficult, but in the other hand is fundamental to our personal voyage. Time plays an important factor due to the fact that it puts constant pressure on all of us, but slowly we learn to deal with it.

We spent most of the day in Lubbock in a local motorcycle shop fixing a mechanical issue with Dovid's bike. The mechanic, a Mormon, told us about his military service and his various tours in the middle east, so we definitely had a common topic to converse about. Later on in the conversation we found out that all three of us made a big mistake while changing our engine oil. We bought from the local Walmart in Dallas 10w 40 synthetic car engine oil. We hadn't noticed the fact that is wasn't made for motorcycles so we went on with our doings. The mechanic explained to us (,and other repair shops on the way too,) that the car engine oil is bad for the motorcycle because it can cause the clutch plats to slip. So far we haven't noticed much difference but we sure will use the correct oil next time.

The ride from Lubbock west was interesting. I say that because every 20 or so miles the scenery changes. I can be cruising on my bike while surrounded by trees and greenery and then suddenly find myself in a desert land with a few shrubs on the side of the road. The whole drive I was trying to classify New Mexico in some way but the minute I catalog it in my brain as A, the view changes abruptly and I feel defeated. More than half of the ride was hot and dry and I did feel like back at home. I feel bad sometimes that we drive through small towns and don't stop to get a feel of the place. I can't blame anyone but the feeling just sticks with me. Riding in a group (as I mentioned before) can be extremely complicated, while trying to satisfy everybody's needs. The further we get on our journey I learn more things. I learned just recently that this whole area is the heart of the Native American tribes and today we hope to see a bit more of their culture in the town of Gallup.

These past two days have been more outdoorsy, we stayed one night in a state park and the other at a KOA campsite. The main difference is the quality of camp ground. While the state park provides some water and restrooms, the KOA's provide showers, pools, and even breakfast! The price per person is around the same, so for the future we know where to stay the night.

The roads down south aren't maintained as well as the ones up north, so the ride is a bit more bumpy, but so far it has not affected us nor the bikes. We arrived by dark at the second campsite and were welcomed by the owner who kindly gave us cookies. The KOA's are privately owned and to acquire a license they have a minimal amount of amenities which are decided by the organization. We pulled in a parked and noticed a huge snake right near our campsite. It looked very terrified so the owner cautiously scared it away. We got some pictures and met some other curious campers too. We were introduced to this one traveler that came all the way from Denmark to tour North America on a KLR 650. He is a lot older than us but because we both are doing the same adventure, we had a lot to talk about.

After an appetizing meal of salad and fettuccine Alfredo, we went into our tents and fell asleep. I got a few hours of rest when suddenly I heard some big booms. A few seconds later it began to pour. With no notice at all a flood of rain came down upon us and soaked my tent. Immediately Uri and I jumped out and in less than 30 seconds covered all our belongings. I have been sleeping without the external tarp because the view at night of the stars is just astonishing. Except for some cloths all our equipment stayed dry and now I plan on being more aware of the weather and prepare for it.

DAY 18/19 - Dallas, Tx - Lubbock, Texas

After a whole week of partying and touring the main cities in Texas, we packed our bikes and we were off on the road again. I noticed that as we drove more west towards Arizona the scenery changed very fast to more dull and dry land with a lot less greenery. This is the Texas I imagined. The warm air hitting your face while cruising at 75 mph and the enormous bugs that hit your arms caused the ride to be harder than expected. We have spoken to each other about taking a break between one to three in the afternoon due to the extreme heat, but all our talk doesn't cause us to change the way we ride. It is an ironic recurring phenomenon, that we sit down the night before and plan ways to improve our tour together and after the conversation we really feel that things will change. But the minute we wake up in the morning we go into auto, and do the same routine like the day before.

Uri and I were riding together from Dallas but Dovid was in Austin so we planned on was meeting in Lubbock tonight. Riding in two is a lot easier than a group. Even though we weren't experienced riders before this trip, we did know some basic formation rules on the road. However the more we ride together the better we get at staying close and cluster-like, while obeying the traffic laws. It's mind boggling how we started our bike trip almost 2000 miles away and have gone through more than 10 states and still haven't gotten across America! This country is just so big.

We stopped on the way at a historic landmark, which literally was a stone with some minimal information about the town. There was no one on the 2 lane road but us which made the ride more enjoyable, but also we felt more remote from civilization. We stopped in Seymour and walked around a bit. There is a feeling the more west we go in Texas the less people there are, and the stronger the southern accent gets. The triangle of the large cities, Houston, Dallas and Austin, gives a tourist the impression that Texas is like any other state, but the minute you head west you understand it isn't. It is the second largest state in America and the only one that had independence before the deceleration of uniting all the states. Texans are very proud of their heritage and don't mind showing it too. The Texas flag is the only one that is allowed to be set at the same height as the United States flag, and we see way more of them around here.

We arrived at Lubbock just an hour ago and are waiting for Dovid to come in. Just a few minutes ago Uri just got a call from him and had to got jump start his bike. Sounds like he has an electrical issue with it and may need to be towed. We all hope this isn't a serious issue cause even though it seems as though we have all the time in the world, we actually don't and have a very tight schedule of our travels.

We planned on camping out tonight but because of the event today we will stay at a motel to regroup and evaluate the situation and think of our further plans.

DAY 16/17 - Austin, Texas

We drove down Friday morning to Austin. They have this fun tradition of floating the river on a inner tube near San Marco. So we met up with Darrin, a close friend of Matt's, and right when we arrived we rented these tubes and floated down the river. It was real relaxing and the weather wasn't too hot, so we were happy. It was packed with people and took us more than three hours to get down, which is a really long time, but we enjoyed it a lot.

Austin is known to be hill country of Texas and the scenery sure is different than Houston or Dallas. The
terrain has more mountains and it's hard to distinguish it from any other place in the States except for the fact that it's 100 degrees every day here in the summer. Darrin took us to this local cafe which started our day perfectly. The University of Texas is the second largest university in the States and has close to 60,000 students enrolled every year. Now that school isn't in session there are a lot less people in town cause all the students are on break, but they say Austin is quite a party town anyhow.

Like any tourists we wanted to see a bit of the capital of Texas so we asked Matt to show us around. We went to this huge graffiti wall right next to the cafe, cause it has an interesting story. The Owner of the land permitted for anyone to come and spray graffiti art as a recognition that it isn't a crime. We took some pictures there and were off to see a bit of Austin. We drove around the grounds of the UT campus and then went to visit the state capital. Everything is Texas is big, the cars, food portions and especially the buildings. The architecture of the capital and the house of the representatives was quite admirable considering the fact they have session once every 2 years. We took a tour inside and got a glimpse of hour law making works in the south.

When we got back to the apartment we went to tan and chill by the pool which is part of the complex. Too bad life in Israel isn't as easy as here, but then again we are on vacation here so the grass is always greener.

We went out tonight for the last time this long weekend and had a blast. 6th street in Austin was packed for the celebrations and we really had a great time. It is a bit similar to Bourbon street in New Orleans but not as grungy and more high class to my feel.

Now back to Dallas to pack up and tomorrow morning we are off on the road again.