It’s a New Day

It’s a New Dawn, It’s a New Day ….and I’m feeling Good!  (Ms. Nina)

We’ve scored another year on this earth.  This globe circumnavigated the sun for the 4.5 billionth time, and I guess we all have to party like it’s 1999!  But, I’m getting way ahead of myself on this narrative.  (It’s a New Day)

Santa Fe

We left ABQ in the rearview mirror and headed North to even colder climes.  Our first stop was a bike shop for minor but necessary repairs and an Indian Vegan Cafe.  That combo pretty much set the scene for our short visit to the country’s oldest, continuous Capitol – Santa Fe.  The suburbs of Santa Fe, Meh!  Take it or leave it, preferably leave it!  Like any other modern suburbia, the subs are congested with stacked strip malls of chain stores and fast-food restaurants.  Not worth the visit.  However, Old Town Santa Fe leaves one with an entirely different perspective. 

Around 1610, Santa Fe was designated as the provincial Capital for Spain’s New Mexico territories.  As it evolved, eventually into a US State Capitol, the town also evolved into any common-looking western town.  Even though it was serviced by the famed Atchinson, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway importing new interests, in the early 1900s, city officials established stringent architectural ordinances to mark Santa Fe as a unique cultural heritage site to draw external investments.  The city required all new buildings to be built in the “Spanish Pueblo Revival” or “Spanish Territorial” adobe-looking structures for which Santa Fe is famed.  The pink adobe (stucco) buildings with exposed beams forming “Portales,” or large, covered porches, establish Downtown Santa Fe as distinctive and unique. 

‘Just Stunning’

The effect is stunning and alluring, particularly at night, with the town square alighted with Christmas colors.  We spent two days mesmerized by all we saw while meandering the Calles and squares, and in and amongst the numerous artist shops, museums (Georgia O’Keeffe and New Mexico Museum of Art), and inevitable Chinese imported New Mexico goods boutiques.  It was an exciting and inspirational visit.  But, when it was time to leave, we were happy to leave the cold winds behind and the constant use of our heater at night.  Santa Fe is a definite ‘must return,’ and Taos, which we did not see, is a definite ‘Must See’ for future visits. 

UFOs in our Midst

About 250 miles further south in New Mexico is an entirely different scene.  We left behind the high plains desert and mountains and entered the deserted flatlands of farmlands, ranches, UFOs, and the famed town of Roswell, NM.  No RV trip is complete until you’ve communed with the Aliens of Roswell (fortunately, they’re plastic) and the UFO museum on Main Street.  After the short stint reviewing the town’s history with its ‘out of this world’ relationship, we naturally sat down at a Mexican and Chinese food buffet!  It’s the best of a strange and quirky town and a breakfast at the famed ‘Cowboy’ Cafe just tops it off. 

The museum did well in presenting the bizarre events on Foster’s Ranch, enough to make one ‘Believe,’ or almost.  But, you have to admit, there’s a lot of strangeness amongst those events.  A notable mention to the Roswell Trailer Village RV Park, they just got it right.

Carlsbad

Next, we traveled from the otherworldly origins of Roswell to the underworld origins of our own subterranean mysteries; our next stop, 119 miles to the south, Carlsbad Caverns.  Our Christmas gift to ourselves was to explore the geological delights of time and waters and minerals as they formed a playground of reflective pools, ornate stalactite ceilings, and fields of stalagmites within the Byzantine passages a mile below the surface.   Gifts of experience always beat out material presents, and this adventure was proof of the sentiment.  But, spending Christmas Eve evening in a dry, dusty, and windy RV park was a bit surreal.  Being miles from a ‘White Christmas’ was one of the themes of this trip, and that’s what we got. 

Texas is huge, not quite the size of Alaska, but still, it’s enormous.  It takes two days to drive across it without falling into the eyes glazed over, chin-drooling, mind-numbing, stupor of a 12- 16 hour drive-day.  As we had to cross Texas to get to our next destination, we stopped halfway at the Goodfellow AFB Recreation RV Camp in San Angelo, Tx.  The day off was a well-needed ‘Rest Day’ from the back-to-back explorations of previous weeks.  Unfortunately, we broke the mechanism for our only Slide-out along the way.  Until we could find repairs, it would have to stay closed.  The RV was getting smaller with every day and every bump along the way.  

And this old world is a new world.

And a bold world.

Enjoy the pics

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Read the previous blog, Link Here

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