New Mexico Thanksgiving

When we discovered that it would be too expensive to go home for Thanksgiving, having waited too long to try to purchase airfare, Stephen mentioned that perhaps we could do an overnight trip somewhere we hadn't yet explored. Then my Mom's cousin Marge, who lives in Denver, wrote that she and her husband would be in Santa Fe for the holiday and kindly invited us to join them for dinner! What luck to have family nearby on our first Thanksgiving in ABQ. Dinner plans were made, but Stephen and I hadn't had time to come up with any other ideas. We have been so busy getting ready to close on the house and planning the move! So on Thanksgiving morning, Stephen went on the internet, and within a half hour he had a proposal ready. He found an available room at the oldest hotel in Taos, right on the plaza. He suggested we drive the scenic route to Santa Fe, and then after dinner head up to Taos and spend Friday exploring new territory. So that's what we did.

Stephen works for a company that is developing high-tech alternatives to spark plugs. The company owns several vehicles that they use for testing. During this vacation, one of the company cars needed to have some miles put on a new set of plugs to get data for the tests. So Stephen nobly offered to take care of it, and we set off for our little vacation in a 5-series BMW. Ah, the sacrifices Stephen is willing to make for his job!

Instead of driving straight up the highway, we veered off to the West and made a loop, going through the Carson National Forest, past the Bandalier National Monument, through Los Alamos, and coming into Santa Fe from the Northwest. The route took us through some majestic mountain scenery. I have heard from several people that they missed the greens of New York and New England when they visited New Mexico, but I find the color palette of the mountains and desert to be so rich that I am mesmerized by the beauty. I can see why artists such as Georgia O'Keefe wanted to stay here to paint. The range of reds, orange, yellow, tan, and brown in the land and rocks, and the subtle pastel greens of the sand, rocks, lichen, sagebrush, and pine trees create an amazing array of hues.

Dinner was at Ristra in Santa Fe. The restaurant is in a Victorian era adobe house, and the cuisine is French fusion. Our waiter was a delight, gracefully dealing with a party of six including one vegan and two gluten-free diners on Thanksgiving day. I couldn't remember whether I had met Marge when I was a child, but we think this might be the first time we had met in person. I had heard many stories about her from my mother who was her childhood friend and her closest cousin in age. Marge and her friend Priscilla are both retired music teachers, so we had a lot in common, and the husbands are all science-oriented guys who seemed to find plenty to talk about as well. It was a lovely dinner with delicious food and excellent company.

It was getting dark by the time we left Santa Fe, so we didn't get to enjoy the scenery on the way but fortunately it isn't a long drive to Taos. We had been relying on Stephen's phone for GPS however, and the battery died soon after we left the restaurant. We had the address of the hotel and we knew that it's on the plaza, so once we got into Taos we watched for signs to the historic district and found the place without a hitch! The Hotel La Fonda de Taos was renovated in 1998, but there has been some kind of hotel on the site since 1820. Our room was tiny but incredibly charming with Southwest decor and a view of the plaza.

On Friday morning we sat by the fireplace with our coffee and enjoyed the ambiance. We walked down the plaza for an excellent breakfast at Graham's Grill, where Stephen was able to get eggs benedict while I had the vegan breakfast special of grilled veggies and tofu with a side of fresh fruit. Then we walked around the plaza and visited the shops and galleries.

On the way to Taos, we had seen a visitor center for the Rio Grande Gorge. This seemed like a good place to find a short hike with interesting scenery, so we stopped to ask the ranger for guidance. He directed us to the Vista Verde trail head a few miles off the main road. We still aren't sure what the difference is between a gorge and a canyon, but this mile-long trail affords spectacular views of the cliffs and river. The rock here seems to be mostly volcanic, unlike the sandstone cliffs we had driven past farther West and South.

When we finished our hike it was mid-afternoon and we had consumed our water and granola bars, so we headed back in the direction of ABQ, stopping at a diner in Espanola for a late lunch. The diner was kind of old and seedy-looking, but we had delicious New Mexican food with leftovers to take home. The Hispanic waitress seemed slightly amused at some of my questions ("What's a tamale?") but she was cheerful as she patiently answered.

It certainly was a different and non-traditional Thanksgiving, but we had a great time. I missed seeing the family and taking part in the traditional rituals, and I definitely missed my mother-in-law's vegan stuffing and my mother's apple pie! But I know I will get to go to NY for Christmas and that's only a few weeks away. In the meantime, we should be moving into our new house! So we had a fabulous little vacation and there's lots to look forward to.

Get Your Kicks on Route 66

Are you humming the song yet? No? Then I recommend you go on itunes and download a couple of versions, listen to them, and come back to read the rest of this post!

Historic Route 66 goes right through Albuquerque where it becomes Central Ave. On the East side of the city, there is a stretch of 66 that Stephen loves. You can still see many of the original buildings although they have been repurposed. There are boutiques, restaurants, cafes, antique stores, art studios, tattoo parlors, smoke shops, a comic book store, and more. There is a metal arch over the street with neon lights in geometric patterns. One of Stephen's favorite restaurants is here, so today after church we took a walk around the neighborhood and then celebrated Stephen's birthday with lunch at Yanni's. Stephen had crabcakes eggs benedict, ("spectacular!") and I had a grilled portabella and tabouli ("delicious!").

Snow!

Walking back to the apartment from the gym this morning, I was admiring the mountain, the top of which was just covered by a puffy white cloud. After a moment, I realized that it looked different from usual and I thought I might be looking at snow! We had a cold snap, and it was 32 degrees at the apartment with a forecast high of 43. It had rained in the city the previous day, perhaps a quarter of an inch or less, and the parking lot was still damp. When Stephen got up I asked him to look out the kitchen window, and he agreed that there was snow high on the mountain.

You may wonder why we were at all interested in snow, since we both expressed satisfaction in leaving that aspect of NY in NY. But we are fascinated by this new landscape, and don't know quite what to expect from the changing seasons. So by late morning we bundled up and headed out with the 4-wheel drive Enerpulse truck to see if we could reach the peak of the mountain.

Here's where we first encountered a touch of the white stuff.

Stephen was aware of a road that went up the mountain, having discovered it while motorcycling during the summer, but he had turned back when the pavement ended because the Harley is difficult to ride on dirt roads.






I had to take a photo of snow on cactus!

The farther we went up the road the snowier it got, and soon Stephen had the truck in 4-wheel drive. We did see several other trucks exploring and we pulled over to let a couple of them pass us. The road goes by the trail head to Sandia Cave, a site we intend to explore one day, but the trail is far too treacherous to attempt in snow and we were both wearing sneakers (our boots are still in Schuylerville). We did catch a glimpse of a cave from the road and it made us both want to check it out on a nicer day.

I started to get nervous about the conditions as the road became a series of switchbacks, many next to steep drop-offs. Stephen said the driving was fine. Actually, I think he said it was "fun."

At 10,000 feet, the temperature was 10 degrees and the trees were covered in frost and snow.

Here are some views from the peak.

Driving down was less scary, and when we got to the bottom of the mountain, it was 40 degrees. We had a delicious hot lunch at the Greenside Cafe in Cedar Crest and then went for a walk near what we hope will soon be our new house. We were happy to note that there was NO snow in that neighborhood!

A Quick Trip to NY

I didn't post last weekend because I made a quick trip to NY to visit family and friends. I was frustrated waiting for the ABQ school system to process my application to substitute teach, and didn't have any private lessons scheduled for a few days, so last Thursday morning I suddenly decided to see whether it would be possible to get flights at a not-too-ridiculous price and use my down time to go see the folks at home. There are no direct flights from ABQ to Albany at any time, but I usually choose only one layover, and to stick with one airline for the entire trip. But by stringing together three flights each way on a variety of airlines, I was able to book flights on Saturday and Wednesday.

The company where Stephen works is very close to the airport, and I knew that when their employees fly, they leave their cars in the Enerpulse parking lot and walk to the airport. So at lunchtime on Friday, Stephen took a few minutes to show me how it's done. You simply cross the street, walk through a parking lot between two warehouses, up an embankment, through the desert, over the fence, through the airport parking lot and parking garage, up two escalators, and voila -- you are at the ticket counter. It takes 10 minutes if you don't have any luggage. I was a little nervous about accomplishing this alone in the dark on Saturday morning, but Stephen assured me that the parking lots are lit up, there's a security guard on duty at the warehouses, and the desert part is next to the parking area for the shuttle buses which is also lighted.

My first flight on Saturday was delayed, but left me just enough time in the Dallas/Ft.Worth airport to find my gate and visit the ladies room. The rest of the trip was uneventful, and my family picked me up at the Albany airport. I had traveled light, and it was 50 degrees in ABQ when I left, but Mom had foreseen this and brought an extra jacket to the airport. Dad had visited my house in Schuylerville earlier in the day, turning up the heat and leaving food in the 'fridge. What a lovely welcome!

I had such a nice visit for the next three days! I went to church, walked with my Mom, went out to dinner with my folks and brother, had lunch with my mother-in-law, a Saratoga walk and dinner at Karavali with a friend, and was able to visit school and say hi to my former colleagues and students. I did not appreciate the cold temperatures, cloudy skies, and the fact that I was too late to see any pretty foliage. But otherwise, it was an excellent visit.

My trip back was complicated by the fact that the first flight was delayed past any hope of making my connection. At Albany airport, they gave me a whole new itinerary that added three hours to my total travel time, but did get me back to ABQ with just enough time to shower and change before my scheduled piano lesson. Upon arrival at the apartment, though, I had an email from my student's mom cancelling because the poor little guy had broken his finger. So I was able to finally rest. I had been going for fifteen hours at that point, so I was glad for the break.

While I was in NY, the ABQ school system did finally schedule me for the substitute teaching orientation, and shortly after I got back, the flute teacher I'll be filling in for at the music studio decided that she will start her maternity leave on Monday. So happily, I returned to be busy and hopefully productive.

Buying a House

We made an offer on a house in the neighborhood we like the best, and the offer was accepted! Now we're going through the process of house buying, which is a lengthy and complicated one. This house was built in 1978 but has been well-maintained. It has the big garage that Stephen wanted, and the guest room and guest bathroom that I wanted. It has plenty of space (in order to get the big garage, we had to either get a big house or build a garage) including a lovely music room. It is a one story stucco building with a patio across the back. There are trees and plants already on the property and room to put in some raised beds for vegetables.