Airport Patdowns and Full Body Screenings

First off, let me tell you that I don’t like to fly anymore.

I used to enjoy traveling by commercial air carriers, but that was before the airlines started charging for every little thing that used to be included in the price of a ticket.

A passenger gets scanned.
TSA photo

I enjoyed those days when my friends or family waved me goodbye from just outside the doorway to the tunnel passageway to the airplane, then directly walking onto the aircraft and being warmly greeted. Once airborne I felt welcome when the stewardess asked if I wanted a pillow, maybe a blanket, or a magazine to read. How about a cup of coffee? Maybe a cocktail?

I remember when flying was a pleasurable experience. Yes, I know those days are long gone, as are some of my favorite airlines, such as PanAm, TWA, PSA and Western. The stewardess is now an overworked flight attendant, friends and family can’t walk with you past the airport ticket counter, and once airborne, food service is lousy or nonexistent. A package of peanuts? That will be fifty cents, please.

Yes, I know about terrorists, the vicious, cold-blooded attack our nation received on 9/11, the shoe and underwear bombers and the continued threats our nation and our commercial airplanes receive. I fully realize we are at war.

And just when I think things can’t get more uncomfortable for passengers, it does.

Now there’s the choice from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to either be screened by full-body imaging technology or allowing a patdown from a TSA agent that includes an agent’s hands moving along a woman’s breasts and inside thighs to the crotch area, male or female. Don’t touch my junk, buddy.

I’ll repeat myself: I know we are at war and that extremists are trying to kill us.

The public hears that full body screens are necessary to detect hidden weapons and explosive devices. That advanced imaging technology is safe, and that should a passenger choose to have a patdown instead of being exposed to imaging radiation, that such patdowns are impersonal, professional and quick. Do it to be patriotic, we’re told.

But I’ve had enough. Walking through a metal detector is acceptable to me. Taking my shoes off is OK. Having an agent take a metal detector wand and move it all around my body is fine. But I’ve drawn the line on this new stuff.

I’ve decided that if I can’t drive my car, take a train or even ride a bus, I’m not going. Period. I’ve had it. I’ll use Skype to see and talk with associates around the West or use web conferencing software for meetings.

Being able to take a Southwest flight lasting a few hours (I think it is the best airline going these days) to Denver, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Kansas City or Seattle, spending the weekend playing tourist, then flying back on another two- to four-hour flight is not worth the aggravation to me.

What did people do before commercial aviation? They included extra time for their trips. Remember, Hollywood was built by moguls and stars taking the Super Chief or the City of Los Angeles or the Golden State Limited between New York and Los Angeles via Chicago. Meals were excellent, beds were comfortable and you made new friends over cocktails in the lounge.

I’ve decided my parents were right: Getting there is half the fun. I want to see the West by looking out a window, seeing what I’ve been missing, seeing new things, and I don’t mean looking down from 36,000 feet.

My decision works for me. I’m not asking you to stop flying. But really, what’s your hurry?

New! Exploring the West’s Scenic Highways




The view from
the Environmental Camps at
Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park.
Photo by Stan Russell

 

With our November 2010 issue we’re starting “Scenic Drives” – a new section for OldWestNewWest.com Travel & History Magazine, and you told us it’s a feature you really want to see.

Our first Scenic Drive is an overview of central California’s Big Sur Coastline, Highway 1 between Monterey and San Simeon, home of Hearst Castle You can read our story by clicking here.

The Big Sur Coast is one of our favorite drives in the West, right up there in our top five excursions to take. The scenery is breathtaking. You drive along a two-lane highway squeezed in between the vast Pacific Ocean and the rugged Big Sur rocks and canyons.

When you go, you’ll see windswept cypress trees, fog-shrouded cliffs, rugged canyons, towering redwoods, sea birds, sea lions, and maybe even a whale migrating along the coast.

Plan on at least five hours to drive along Highway 1, because you’ll want to stop and take plenty of photos, breathe clean, salty air, and see vistas like nowhere else.

California’s Big Sur Coast is only the first of many scenic highways we’ll be bringing you in the months ahead. We’ll be offering scenic travel drives in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, and all the states west of the Mississippi River.

The West is one of the biggest, most spectacular geographic settings in the world, and it’s right in our own backyard.

Be sure to check back with us frequently, because we’ll be bringing you the best of the West’s highways every month. And drop us a line if you have a scenic drive you want us to feature!

Exploring the Mother Road, Route 66, and Del’s: Part Two



Del's Restaurant - you can't miss it.

 No longer a part of the United States Highway System, Route 66 today is a highway of legend. During its short lifetime Route 66 was the popular path westward from Chicago to Los Angeles, winding its way through seven states.

In 1985 it was decommissioned, bypassed by the faster, straighter, wider Interstate 40 and other concrete highways. Portions remain however, and tourists and fans will find those bits and pieces if they look for the Historic Route 66 designation.

Reflecting the public’s demand for nostalgia and perhaps a yearning for calmer times, many of the old Route 66 towns have embraced the new version of Route 66; some more than others.


No eating counter, all tables at Del's

 One of those towns trying to cling to its highway history is Tucumcari, New Mexico, where earlier this summer I stopped to explore the legend. Besides, it was past lunchtime and I was hungry. And I wanted something other than fast-food blah.

So I stopped at Del’s Restaurant in Tucumcari, where the sign said it had been around since 1956. You can’t miss the sign; there’s a big cow on top.

I walked inside, and instantly felt as if I’d stepped back a few decades. A slower, nicer time when people actually chatted with each other, shared local news and baseball scores over pie and coffee.

I asked my server if the original owner was still around, but she told me no. Maybe Del sold out and moved to Oregon, maybe he went to the big restaurant in the sky. She wasn’t sure. Would I care to see a menu?

“Sure,” I said, asking who now owns Del’s.

“Two sisters, Yvonne and Yvette,” she said smiling. “Would you like something to drink?”

“Coffee,” I answered. “Black.”

Left by myself to study the menu, I felt as if the fare was right from a 1950s diner. Chicken fried steak, tuna melt, liver and onions, roast beef and gravy. Some Hispanic items as well. Carne Asada, stuffed sopaipillas, quesadillas. Hummm. Nope, has to be a hamburger. That’s the real test of any highway restaurant. So that’s what I ordered.

There’s no eating counter and stools at Del’s. All round wooden tables with chairs in three cozy rooms, and lot’s of memorabilia to enjoy. I’m seated in the back room, where an old player piano stands in the corner, a do-not-touch sign on the music stand. Near the checkout counter there’s a small gift shop, with everything touristy from postcards to t-shirts.

Within 10 minutes, my hamburger is served. All the ingredients are there – crisp lettuce, thinly-sliced white onion, a generous slice of fresh tomato, pickles – and spread on one side of the toasted bun, a smear of mayonnaise. On the table, bottles of catsup and mustard. The gastronomic jewel on the center of the bun, however, catches my eye. A beef patty obviously formed by human hands.

Now you may say a hand-formed patty is insignificant, but think about it. The patty was not one of those machine-formed patties you find at every fast food chain in the West, or across the nation, for that matter.

Back in the kitchen, the cook took a chunk of ground beef, placed it in the center of his or her palm, then flattened and formed it into a thing of culinary beauty, just like the way they did in the 1950s. It was irregular in shape, but just round enough so it would fit on the bun.

Plopped on the grill, it sizzled and cooked until it was exactly the way I wanted it when my server had asked, “How do you want it cooked?”

“Medium rare,” I said.

Tasty, very tasty. So were the French fries – more like steak fries, actually. Thick, crisp, hot and not greasy. I placed a big squirt of catsup on my plate so I could dip my fries into it, and so the meal was perfect. American diner food at its best.

I had stopped in after the lunch crowd, but it was obvious from the friendly banter among those present that folks new each other.

After finishing the last bite of my hamburger, I asked for the check and thanked my server, who had diligently checked in on me a few times, saying “How’s everything? Can I get you anything else? A piece of fresh pie?”
No, but thanks, I said. Everything was great.

Burger, coffee and tip came to about seven bucks. Not bad. For that price, not only did I get a good, leisurely meal, but a chance to revisit a calmer, gentler time that can still be found in the West, if you just get off the Interstate.

Give it a try next time you’re driving across this wonderful country.

Exploring the Mother Road, Route 66

The main drag, Tucumcari Street,
noon on a Saturday in June.

Author John Steinbeck called it the “Mother Road,” and while Route 66 no longer is part of the interstate highway system it remains a highway of legend and dreams and a very big part of the West.

Earlier this summer I took one of my seasonal drives through the West, I-40 to be exact. I like I-40, because it’s pretty straight, and going through parts of Arizona and New Mexico (weather permitting) legally I can drive at 75 miles per hour. Stops basically are for gasoline and a restroom.

So I’m buzzing along in cruise control mode through New Mexico, being passed by a lot of cars (and even 18-wheelers), when I see the sign for Tucumcari. A little bell goes off in my brain. Tucumcari. Route 66. The Mother Road. Why not stop?

Tucumcari (pronounced TOO-kum-kair-ee) is one of those names that’s hard to forget. Little word games to play. Sounds like…two can carry…carry what? Two can carry a bag of potatoes easier than one can. The toucan carried a piece of fruit out the window. Anyway, Tucumcari is a name that can be fun, especially when you’re driving by yourself with nothing to do.

It’s also a town on the old Route 66 road. Many Route 66 towns were bypassed when the interstate was built, but several have used the popularity of Route 66 by nostalgia seekers as way to attract tourist dollars.

Amarillo, Texas and Elk City, Oklahoma are two cities in the West that have embraced Route 66, its history – and the tourists. Elk City, by the way, is home to the National Route 66 Museum.

So, here I was pulling off I-40 to go visit the toucan – I mean Tucumcari.

I pulled off at Exit 332 – with two huge truck stops on either side beckoning me to stop for relatively cheap gasoline – and head into town. After a couple of stop lights, there it is. The ghost of Route 66.

I’m at the corner of 1st Street and Tucumcari Street. I decide to drive West. I’m looking, but all I see are empty shops and businesses, some run down, and some in need of being torn down. Maybe I went the wrong way. I head east. Much of the same.

Tucumcari is in very sad shape. Maybe it’s the lousy economy right now. Maybe it’s because nobody pulls off I-40 except to get gas at the big truck stops. Maybe it’s both.

I’m in a hurry, but maybe too big a hurry. I look at my watch and figure, hey, slow down a bit. Look around. There are some classic Route 66 businesses in Tucumcari, such as the Blue Swallow Motel and Del’s Restaurant.

While staying overnight is not in my plans, I figure I have time to get a nice lunch at Del’s, walk inside and actually sit down at a table. Maybe meet some people.

The first thing I see is the big sign out front that reaches maybe twenty feet into the sky. On the top is a giant white and brick-red colored heiffer standing nobly above the words, “Del’s Restaurant / Since 1956.”

I pull into a parking space in front of the restaurant, turn off the ignition, and step out of the car. Man, it’s hot, maybe in the 90s. I walk inside. Suddenly, I step back decades to maybe a nicer time, definitely a slower time. The aromas coming from the kitchen are wonderful.

Next: The best hamburger in a long time

Three Museum Treats Waiting for You

If you plan on visiting California, New Mexico, or Oklahoma in the near future, three of the West’s great museums – the Autry National Center, the New Mexico History Museum, and the National Cowboy Museum – are presenting outstanding exhibits that you really should try to go see.

Here’s a quick overview of each to tantalize you into traveling.

The Autry National Center in Los Angeles is offering The Art of Native American Basketry: A Living Tradition, running through May 30, 2010. More than 250 hand-crafted baskets from more than 100 cultures, arranged in 11 geographic regions, are on display, offering a unique view of how Native Americans designed and used baskets in their daily lives.

On view are a variety of sizes and shapes, ranging from small Pomo feather baskets crafted for sale to tourists, to enormous Apache olla baskets that were used for storing large quantities of seeds.

The exhibit’s objects are selected from the nearly 14,000 baskets found in the Southwest Museum of the American Indian’s unique collection, which many experts judge to be one of the world’s premier holdings of Native American baskets To the right is a photo of a Pomo-feathered basket from the early 20th century, from the Edwin Greble Collection. Photo by Susan Einstein.

The exhibition can be seen at the Autry’s Museum of the American West in Griffith Park.

Both the Southwest Museum and the Museum of the American West are part of the Autry National Center, an intercultural organization dedicated to expanding the public’s understanding of the many diverse peoples of the American West.

For museum hours of operation, admission prices and directions, visit the Web site at http://www.autrynationalcenter.org/.

The New Mexico History Museum in Santa Fe, N.M. is presenting Santa Fe Found: Fragments of Time: The archaeological and historic roots of America’s oldest capital city; this exhibit runs through May 21, 2011, so you have more time to plug it into your travel plans than the other two exhibits I have for you.

The exhibit presents more than 160 artifacts from the 17th-century, selected from roughly 90,000 objects that were unearthed from four historic sites during a two-year dig at 113 Lincoln Ave., the location of the New Mexico History Museum, which opened in May 2009.

“This exhibition [gives] visitors a broad perspective of the settling of Santa Fe and the web of cultural influences the Spanish brought with them,” Josef Diaz co-curator of the New Mexico History Museum/Palace of the Governors, said in a press release. “The founding of Santa Fe is a big and complex story to tell, and this show will offer a glimpse of different aspects of Spanish colonial life, from the domestic to the economic to the political and religious." To the right is a photo of a gold earring that was recovered from a 17th-century deposit found below the north wall of the Palace Print Shop during excavation. Photo by Blair Clark, N.M. Department of Cultural Affairs.

According to the museum, the exhibit includes “…Spanish majolica, blue-and-white Mexican pottery modeled on examples from the Ming Dynasty in China, colorful Mexican pottery and Pueblo pottery. Also found were tobacco pipes, gold earrings, gunflints and arrowheads.”

Most amazing to me, you’ll even see a few small pieces of delicate Ming vases, most likely that reached Spain’s colony of Santa Fe after leaving China on board a Spanish galleon, arriving at Mexico after months at sea, then traveling across the frontier by caravan up El Camino Real. The bumpy journey north would have taken at least six months.

For museum hours of operation, admission prices and directions, visit the Web site at http://www.nmhistorymuseum.org/.

The National Cowboy Museum in Oklahoma City, Okla. Is showcasing The Guitar: Art, Artists and Artisans, now through May 9, 2010.

According to the museum’s release, “Included in the exhibition are approximately 50 guitars worth millions, from top entertainers – recording artists whose image and career is tied closely to this instrument. These notable artists include Garth Brooks, Vince Gill, Toby Keith, Lynn Anderson, Brooks & Dunn, Eddy Arnold and Marty Robbins.”

The guitars also span more than 150 years of history. There’s even a C.F. Martin, circa 1845, which had been lavishly ornamented and presented to Benito Pablo Juárez, President of Mexico.

Also on display for guitar music fans is a collection of 12 guitars covered with Swarovski crystals that make up a guitar chandelier designed by Dallas, Texas artist Amanda Dunbar of Dunbar Studios. To the right is a photo of the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 Signature Artist Series made by Gibson in honor of 'The King of Rock and Roll.' Photo courtesy of the Dickinson Research Center.

For museum hours of operation, admission prices and directions, visit the Web site at http://www.nationalcowboymuseum.org/.

I love today’s American West museums because they are so far removed from the stogy, static museums I remember visiting as a boy. Today’s museums are geared to delivering a unique experience for visitors. Curators and boards of directors are really beginning to understand that the public wants more, and better exhibits deliver more.

If you haven’t been to a museum that focuses on the American West, do yourself a favor and go visit one. Drop me an email after you do. Tell me where you went, what you liked, and what you didn’t like. I’ll include some of them in a future report.

And if you want to discover places in the West to visit, explore, go camping, hiking or sightseeing, visit OldWestNewWest.com Travel & History Magazine at http://www.oldwestnewwest.com/ for some ideas.