Around Santa Fe

Tuesday, June 9 – It was really great to not have to pack up the car this morning. We had breakfast at Tecolote Café, a hole-in-the-wall place that is famous for great breakfasts. To demonstrate the level of class in the parking lot of the café, we were parked next to a truck with an owner that got a bit creative when he lost his antenna.

We spent most of the morning at the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, where we took a docent tour. Afterward, when we were walking around town, we bumped into this really great marimba band on the grounds of the St. Francis Cathedral . There was a good crowd around and they were selling CDs. Then we noticed a little commotion going on, and the guys started a little conference while they were still playing. It turns out that they didn’t have the right kind of permit, so the cops were kicking them out.



Next stop, the Five and Dime, the alleged home of the "famous” Frito Pie. Chili, cheese and Fritos, mixed together and served right in the Fritos bag.

This place was featured in a Frugal Traveler video on NYTimes.com.

No, we didn’t actually get a Frito Pie, since our name was on a waiting list at a great restaurant for lunch, so instead Sandy tried on a pink tiara cowboy hat – a fitting outfit for the snack bar at the Five and Dime.

Lunch was fantastic. We ate at Café Pasqual’s, which had come recommended from several sources, and it didn’t disappoint. We sat at the communal table, and got lucky by sitting next to a couple that has been coming to Santa Fe since 1988 and now have a second home here. They gave us some great advice on things to see and do, which led Sandy to a great jeweler to do one of her favorite types of shopping. I also went to some rug stores, but didn’t make a purchase. Yet.

Also at their recommendation, we went to the Loretto Chapel to see the Miraculous Staircase. No one thought a staircase to the choir loft could be built in the tight space in this small church. This famous staircase, built in 1878, appears to have had some divine intervention, since a mysterious carpenter finished the staircase and then disappeared without taking any pay, it has two 360 degree turns, and it has no supports to hold it up. It is pretty amazing.

Finally, we took a self-guided New Deal Art Legacy Tour, which features several locations around town with artwork created by artists hired by the US Government in the 1930s under the WPA.

A little creepy

Monday, June 8 - When walking home after dinner, we came across a locked alley/courtyard next to a store with these for sale... A cow's skull can be yours for only $45! Do you think one of these will go with the decor in a New York City apartment?

Arriving in Santa Fe

Monday, June 8 - Today was a pretty low-key day with an easy drive. A nice break after a couple of busy days. Even when just arriving in Santa Fe, you can tell that it has a great vibe to it. It's a stop on the old Route 66, and every other storefront in the center of town is an art gallery. We had dinner at La Plazuela at the La Fonda hotel on the plaza. Another location for some great margaritas...

There was a lot going on around the plaza, and there was a crowd in the center listening to musicians with some cute kids dancing. St. Francis Cathedral is at the end of San Francisco Street a couple of blocks off the plaza.

San Francisco de Asis

Monday, June 8 - On our way out of town, we stopped at Ranchos de Taos to see the mission church San Francisco de Asis, which is one of the oldest churches in the country. It was finished in 1815 and is made of real adobe - none of the "fake" stucco stuff you see on modern buildings - and it has to be re-plastered every year because it cracks and flakes off with the weather. They are actually in the process of replastering it with the mud and straw mixture now, which was really interesting to see.

The church has been the subject of many artists, including Georgia O'Keeffe and Ansel Adams. The back of the church is what you see first from the road, and is really striking.

Around Taos

Monday, June 8 - Taos is a really great town. We had a really relaxing few hours today before getting back in the car for the 1.5 hour drive to Santa Fe. First off, the Taos Inn is great. Our room was really comfortable, and it was right off a courtyard with a fountain. The town plaza was just a couple of blocks away, so we walked over and had great lunch at the Bent Street Deli and Cafe sitting outside. The cafe was on the corner of a pedestrian street with a bunch of shops. There was also a pretty creative sign to prevent kids from playing in a fountain.

Historic Taos Inn

Sunday, June 7 – We ended the day by arriving at another historic hotel, the Taos Inn. After unloading, we went straight to the patio of their Adobe Bar to have one of their “legendary” margaritas.

Entering New Mexico

Sunday, June 7 – We had a nice drive today from Durango to Taos, NM, and crossing a state line and seeing the state’s “welcome” sign is always a highlight. We were counting the miles, anticipating its approach with camera ready, and then there was… NOTHING. We saw the back of the “Welcome to Colorado” sign, but no New Mexico sign. Highway US-64 is pretty weak. This picture shows where the sign should have been, so you can see the landscape. (It’s not a desert in northern New Mexico.) Fortunately, I snapped a New Mexico sign when we were at the Four Corners, so merge these two pictures in your mind.

(Sorry, no photoshopping going on tonight.) You'd think New Mexico would rather have a nice welcome sign on this beautiful green road, instead of at the bleak scene by the Four Corners.

As we got closer to Taos, we crossed the Rio Grande River Gorge. We got out of the car to take a look from the bridge. (Don’t worry, there was a safe place to park on the other side of the bridge.) It was REALLY windy out there. We saw a woman have her husband take a picture of her getting windblown, so we thought we’d reenact her photo ourselves.

Wearing my Twitter Shirt

Sunday, June 7 - Just thought this was appropriate given the blogging and tweeting that was happening while driving today.

Laundry Day in Durango

Sunday, June 7 – After being on the road for a week, reality inevitably sets in as the dirty laundry piles up. So, we made an early morning trip to a Durango laundromat. Three loads. We then had another great breakfast at Carver Bakery and Brewing Co. Yes, you read that correctly. No beer was sampled at breakfast. Promise.

We stayed two nights at the historic, Victorian Strater Hotel right on Main Avenue, a couple of blocks from the train station. We highly recommend it. It added a great authenticity to the whole experience. There was even a horse and a mule out front this morning. We chatted with the owner for a bit, and he said that they are working animals. He just brings them downtown once in a while, since he sometimes gets a free beer out of it.

Pit Stop in Silverton

Saturday, June 6 – After the 3-1/2 hour ride on the train from Durango, we had about two hours of free time in the old mining town of Silverton, which now has a year-round permanent population of about 400. For lunch we stopped at Grumpy’s Saloon in the Grand Imperial Hotel, which was complete with the man playing old sing-a-long classics on the tinny piano. In the video, make sure not to miss the guy in the red jacket at the bar who, out of the blue, just started playing his harmonica along with the piano. Also note the fine artwork on the walls.



And, talk about a literal 4-way stop, right behind the hotel…