Tombstone, Arizona

October 26, 1881, gunshots rang out, men lay dead and the O.K. Corral was forever known as the famous Old West shootout.

Today, gunslinging characters slowly swagger down the boot-worn wooden sidewalks of Tombstone, Arizona. Tipped cowboy hats and plenty of gun twirling make this old Western town come alive, along with women dressed in frilly dancehall costumes saying howdy to the tourists.

Known in the 1880s for prosperous silver and gold mines, Tombstone is now a tourist attraction that brings you back into the era. Locals reenact as miners with hard hats and large picks carried over the shoulder. Saloons with original bar rails and bullet holes in ceilings, as well as nightly ghost tours to the cemetery and other places around town where dead spirits are known to appear, are part of the town character.

We had lunch at Six Gun City, and sitting under the covered patio, ordered burgers and fries while watching a gun reenactment show. Entertaining how the law and gunslingers settled disputes. The characters exchanged a barrage of accusations and threats as loud gunshots rang out. A different type of judicial system!