Tombstone

Today we went to Tombstone, Arizona - the site of legends, movies, heroes, and villains of the old West. It's also one of the most touristy places I've ever seen. You have to pay to see the OK corral. For some reason, this seemed wrong to me. And of course there are an incredible number of gift shops all ready to sell you a Wyatt Earp t-shirt or OK corral shot glass. However it did have many photo ops.


I guess, by law, everything is named 'OK something.'



Actually, this window was in a beautifully decorated saloon.



For a hefty fee, these guys would drive you around town. I don't get that myself, but I loved the horses and wagon.



This trick rider was advertising a wild west show.



Ron and I had to get our picture taken with one of the locals. Actually, there were a lot of guys walking around town all dressed in appropriate garb, but we didn't know if they were posing for money and thought it was too weird to ask. We actually heard a local law enforcement officer arguing with some guys about the legality of carrying authentic guns. We didn't stick around to see how that turned out.



However, as unreal as the town appears, there is a serious side. It is hard to imagine what this old mining camp was like in its day. There are over 250 people buried in the old cemetery and it seemed like most of them died unnaturally between 1881 and 1884.



Although I'm sure the cemetery didn't look anything like this originally, it's still an impressive sight.



The newly-painted signs are supposedly true updated versions of the originals. They ran the gambit from the philosophical. . .



To the practical (shall we say?)



It was an interesting day and I came away with mixed emotions about the town. Whatever else, it is a piece of American history.