We stayed in Tucson a couple of extra days since it was a very nice campground. Tuesday I spent the whole afternoon getting my hair cut and colored while John hung out at the RV park, rode his bike and computered. On Wednesday we rode our bikes to a shopping area in downtown Tucson - about a 16 mile round trip ride. 4th Avenue borders on the university campus so we saw lots of tattoo parlors, new age shops and coffee cafes.
We departed Tucson late morning and as we were leaving the congestion of the city, we saw this beautiful white Spanish Mission just off the highway. It is called the Mission San Xavier Del Bac and is located on the Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation. It was built in 1783-1797 by Franciscan missionaries and today is still run by them as a church and school.
Called the "White Dove of the Desert" the inside is sometimes referred to as the Sistine Chapel of the Southwest. The exterior is all white with domes, carvings, arches and flying buttresses. The inside has many paintings, murals and frescos while the altar and apses are covered in gold leaf. The gardens are typical desert designs with lots of cacti and other desert plants. It was very pretty -- an unusual stop and well worth our time there.
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