Woken up at 6am by an almighty crashing sound that shook the building. - it was the garbage lorry.Rick said this happened about 2am when we were staying at Motel Carolyn. Rick nearly ran Robert over, who was videoing behind our car, as he reversed when we set off for the Amarillo Harley Davidson shop.They all seemed to be coping so well with the jet lag; Alun was full of beans as he is used to travelling.Robert was trying to encourage me to buy a sexy Harley top (one with cut outs down the side) but I settled for a conventional black tee-shirt. Got some money out from the drive-in ATM.Left Amarillo at 10.05.I am so pleased that we decided to do it by car and I am sure the others are finding it useful to have a support car for their luggage and the wonderful Tom Tom for destinations.We drove past loads of flat, windy plains with the occasional cattle ranch and windmill farm.This was more like the typical Texas countryside that I had imagined, not so built up as Dallas.I now understand GPS.We stopped at the Midpoint Café in Adrian where we had a warm welcome. Fran, the owner was still excited from a previous visit from Ewan McGregor who had stopped there with a film crew whilst making a Route 66 documentary.Fran said he sat and chatted with her and asked her lots of relevant questions and he was so, so handsome and lovely.It was warming up a little but there was still that icy wind coming down from Canada.When we set out to do Route 66 I didn't really understand what it was all about but it is becoming clearer each day.Route 66 opened in 1926 to link Chicago with Los Angeles and as a result gas stations, diners, motels and other services sprung up on the way.Over the years the road was replaced but some of the original features are still to be seen.It's strange how they don't have a temperature gauge in the car especially with the way it can change dramatically as it did yesterday. Next stop was Glenrio - a Ghost Town and the "First & Last Motel in Texas".Glenrio was a great hit with Martin and Peter who eagerly investigated the abandoned motel rooms., There was a 1950 - 60's record player in one of the rooms. We were now in New Mexico and 7 hours behind GMT.As we approached Tucumcari the sky became a deeper, more translucent cobalt blue.There were many signs along the road requesting you to report drunk drivers.Pink soil again.We stopped to refuel and an old lady with a shopping trolley asked me if I had any empty guns and seemed quite upset when I said no. Tucumcari is the town of 2000 motel rooms, the cheapest of which I saw was the Palamino Motel at 19.99 dollars a night. The Main Street in Tucumcari with the Royal Pallacio, Cactus, Palomino and Blue Swallow Motels was the highlight of the day for Rick and myself as there was a sense of the atmosphere of the 50 and 60's. We also visited the local museum and the thing made the biggest impression on me was the iron lung.I am feeling really old now as I seem to remember it was something to do with people who had polio. Alun played "Green Onions" on an old pump organ they had there. Haven't seen a train today but the railway lines appear to run parallel to the Highway - haven't seen any passenger trains, only freight.We passed miles and miles of plains and I wonder what would happen if you broke down as there was no mobile phone signal for hours on end.We could see snow in the distance.Stopped at a diner in Santa Rosa for lunch, there wasn't much that was gluten free so I had a Margarita and pinched a few of Rick's chips. Slept for quite a while afterwards. We stayed at a fantastic, quaint motel in Santa Fe called the El Rey Inn. It was really cosy and pretty with a strong Mexican influence. We all made for the outdoor spa followed by G & T's at the Wood-Roe's super room (3 beds) where we sorted out the next day's itinerary.Then it was off to the Mexican for our evening meal. Highlight of the day for Robert was the mid way café as this was the first real Route 66 stop.For Pete, Alun, Peter and Martin the highlight was the ride into Santa Fe.They were relaxed, the scenery was now hilly and green and there was a long stretch of road in front.