Oasis in Wallace...and cacti!

Have you ever spent the night in an urban cabin? We're not talking about a cabin in the woods, although I probably wouldn't want to be in The Cabin In The Woods and you probably wouldn't either! I highly recommend it...it's a nice change from the standard hotel. When I left Columbia Falls this morning, I had two items on the agenda to be fulfilled in the nearby town of Kalispell.  One, I figured it wouldn't hurt to get my tire pressure checked, which was conveniently done at Discount Tire. Second and very important...I really, REALLY needed a car wash! Two weeks of driving on and off road, rain and snow left a dirty film on my beloved Outback. I found a nice automatic wash, and five minutes later, my car looked great!

Today, I revisited the town of Wallace, ID to see a place that I found closed on Day Two of my current road trip.  According to their website, I KNEW the Oasis Bordello Museum would be open this time!

Not only was I the first tour customer of the day, I was the first tour customer of the new season! And, no, I didn't get a special prize for that. The Oasis Bordello was a real house of ill repute. Or, in more familiar terms, brothel or whorehouse. It finally closed for good in 1988...they just up and left. So, the current museum preserves everything the way it was. I found this place fascinating, and I asked a lot of questions....easy since I was the only person on the tour! Unfortunately, photography of the rooms wasn't allowed. But, I did get a pic of the front door complete with buzzer to let the gals know there was a customer. I also snapped the back of the building with the fire escape that was used by men who didn't want to be seen going through the front door!

In the afternoon, I crossed the border into Washington and gained an hour, so it was still morning. I spent a relaxing couple of hours walking the grounds of Spokane's Manito Park. The park has a small Japanese garden, manicured outdoor flower gardens, and my favorite, a conservatory filled with both tropical and drought hardy plants. I'm beginning to realize that I love cacti! They had many different kinds of cacti from all over the world.

Tomorrow, I have outdoor things planned, and with the return of warmer temps and sunshine, it should be a wonderful day! After experiencing mostly 30s and 40s for the past two weeks, 60s and 70s are going to feel almost hot for me! I, for one, am ready to discard the jackets!