Monday, April 8th – Tuesday, April 9th, 2013
Susan, a local shop owner in Santa Fe who owned a Christmas shop (I had been buying my mom ornaments as souvenirs), had recommended that we grab lunch at a place called “The Shed” where we ate vegetable enchiladas with red chile and an egg cooked over-easy on top. The food was phenomenal! We strolled around the shops on Water Street, then admired the beauty of the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi and Loretto Chapel before heading to Barrio de Analco (Santa Fe’s oldest neighborhood dating back to the Analco Indians of the 1200’s).
There we visited the Oldest House and the San Miguel Mission (built in 1626, the oldest church in the U.S.).
Some fun facts about Sante Fe:
- It’s the oldest capital city in the U.S., and was founded in 1610.
- It’s the highest capital city in the U.S. at 7,000 feet (about 2,100 meters) above sea level.
- To all those heliophiles out there, the city also sees an average of 300 (or more) days of sunshine annually.
After feeding the meter, we headed to Canyon Road to check out some art. Canyon Road is the most densely concentrated area of art galleries in the entire world. It was a bit hoity toity for my liking, but I really enjoyed all the outdoor sculpture gardens. The next spot we visited in town included a nice view of the city, called The Cross of Martyrs. It was a memorial for the 21 Franciscan priests that were killed during the 1680 Pueblo Revolt.
We meandered through a lot of shops and I bought myself a ceramic “ristra” (a string of chile peppers) for home before we left town. We grabbed coffee and checked the weather before returning to Walmart for the night. It appeared that if we stuck around Sante Fe, we would be experiencing one of the 65 sun-less days, since snow was in the forecast. We decided it was time to start making our way to the Arizona border.
I got to see my first tumbleweed first thing in the morning as it was lodged underneath our van. The only thing that even slightly resembles a tumbleweed back at home for me would be a dust bunny floating across my kitchen floor, so this was exciting to me! Hooray! New things!
We then took I-25 South back to Albuquerque, then took I-40 West towards Arizona. I appreciated the views of red cliffs, black lava formations, streams and ponds, snow on the mountains out in the distance, then… snow on the road! Snow and cold weather aren’t the first things that comes to mind when I think of Arizona however, that was what welcomed us.
We ended our journey shortly after crossing the border in Chambers, AZ where we got a room at the Days Inn. After so many nights sleeping in parking lots, a shower was much needed. Aside from our drunken neighbors, we had a relaxed stay at the hotel.
Jump Back to Part 13: Fish Protein, Pink Pelvis & More Hippies
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Start Over at Part 01: The Blue Bubble, Freebies & A Rude Awakening
Stubbs Rambles On 