Route 66

Williams

Williams is a bit like 1960s America. The small town has been preserved in formaldehyde.
We have a drink at the legendary Cruiser's Café, another one (it's hot, we're drinking Coke Zero) in the historic district (a re-creation of the days of the westward rush), and have dinner at the Red Raven, a (really) great restaurant, the first since we got to the States.
Juliette feasts on shrimp fritters, Alice and Alexandre on a good steak, Maggy and Henri on fish (it had been a while!).

Grand Canyon Railway

To liven up the departure of the Grand Canyon Railway, which runs from Williams to the Grand Canyon, cowboys stage a shootout outdoors every morning.
We didn't take the train, but the outdoor show is free for everyone.
On top of the deafening noise of the steam engine, we get the cowboys (all to ourselves!) for a photo shoot after the train leaves.

Hackberry and Chloride

We stop at the Hackberry General Store, which looks like a 1960s museum, with photos of pin-ups in wet T-shirts posing in front of gorgeous convertibles (the 1960s were pretty cool, actually...!).
No kidding, the store is packed with old vinyl records, old posters, jukeboxes, and all kinds of merchandise with the brands of the era.

On to Chloride. We stop there because a rather artsy artist painted a huge mural on a hillside (he must have been a bit of a free spirit).
Before the walk up to the hill, we make a stop at the saloon; yes, it's still hot!
We meet a really nice couple who bought the place 9 months ago.
We chat with them while Alexandre (definitely his father's son) practices on the pinball machine, and Juliette and Alice go horseback riding on the bar stools, which have saddles.

Careful, keep those stools away from the bar: even in this ghost town, built of houses made by the artists themselves, where not a soul comes by except us, kids aren't allowed to lean on the bar!
That's when the owner tells us Chloride has often been used as a set for movies (Seven Spanish Angels) and music videos. WATCH OUT, Maggy totally loses it: right here (where Mag is posing) is where CHARLIE WINSTON shot the video for Like a Hobo!