United States > Movie Drive-In

We leave Santa Fe and head toward Amarillo—the city from the famous song “Is This the Way to Amarillo” by Tony Christie. Because of this song, the city feels a bit magical. Our first stop is Las Vegas, New Mexico. It’s funny that there’s a city with the same name as the one in Nevada.

United States - The Cadillac Ranch is certainly strange and bizarre

The old plaza in Las Vegas looks surprisingly charming and authentic. All the facades date back to the nineteenth century. Since it’s Sunday, all the shops are closed. The restaurants are closed too. When we drive past the church, it’s quite busy. Cars are parked everywhere. Just outside the center, there’s a Mexican restaurant serving breakfast. We go inside. The restaurant is almost completely full. We have a breakfast with eggs and coffee. The next stop is Tucumcari. Tucumcari is again on the original Route 66. Near Santa Rosa, we leave the highway and follow the historic Route 66 once more. On Main Street, we see Route 66 logos everywhere. Here too, businesses have added the logo in hopes of attracting more customers. Just outside Santa Rosa, the stretch of the route ends again. We are so surprised that we realize we’ve driven several kilometers in the wrong direction while thinking we were still on Route 66. We continue on the highway to Tucumcari. In Tucumcari, mainly Main Street is supposed to be in the Route 66 style. This is disappointing—we barely see anything. Confused, we drive up and down the street. It turns out we are in the wrong place. The historic Route 66 runs parallel to the street we are on. In a Route 66-style restaurant, we have a soft drink. From Tucumcari, it’s still about a hundred kilometers to Amarillo. Just before Amarillo lies the Cadillac Ranch.

United States - Watching a movie from the car in Amarillo

Ten Cadillacs stand upright, half-buried in the sand. The cars are completely covered in graffiti. Every visitor is allowed to spray paint on the cars. It’s a strange sight, but also a typical Route 66 landmark. When we arrive at our motel, we notice at the reception that the clock is one hour ahead. In Texas, Central American Time is observed. Good to know. The center of Amarillo is disappointing. North of the railway, there are mainly neighborhoods with aging wooden houses—clearly not the best area of the city. On the other side, there are a few streets with large luxury homes. A stark contrast. We can only conclude that the song is more enjoyable than the city itself. At half past seven, we drive into the Tascosa Drive-In Movie. We park with a view of the large video screen. The film starts once it’s dark. While we wait, we drink a cola and eat nachos with cheese and chili. Around nine o’clock, it’s dark enough to start the movie War Dogs. Watching from the car, the audio comes through the car radio—very funny and typically American.