New Mexico - January 2009

I met Chrissy at the Chicago airport before our 10:30 flight. While she had a little breakfast snack, I drank a glass of wine to calm my nerves. It would be my first flight without Dan in a year. It went fairly smooth until we were arriving in ABQ. The landing was a little hairy, but soon enough we were on the ground, in our rental car, and on our way to Santa Fe!

We checked into our hotel, Hotel Plaza Real, right on the downtown Plaza and headed out in search or margaritas. The place I initially wanted to check out, The Shed, was closed between lunch and dinner so we stopped at the Blue Corn Café instead where we shared a bowl of cheesy crab dip and a few margaritas.

From there we continued to the Cowgirl BBQ and Grill. It was a sunny 55 degrees so we sat on the patio and enjoyed some porter beer. The manager/owner came out and started chatting with us about where we were from, let us know there would be a live band that night, and invited us to stop by later for a beer on her!

We finished up there and, on our way back to the room to freshen up, wandered into Del Charo. Lured by the promise of “Santa Fe’s best margaritas” we ordered two and were delighted to find that not only were they exceptionally tasty, they were served in huge martini shakers for only $6!

We decided to skip the trip back to the hotel and asked our bartender for a recommendation for dinner. He suggested the popular Tomasita’s for authentic New Mexican cuisines. The line was insane but we managed to snag a table near the bar and ordered another round of margs and our entrees. I had a combo plate of a tamale and enchilada that was okay but not the best and the margs were a bit too sicky sweet for us so we left our half-finished food and wandered back to the Cowgirl for that promised free drink.

We watched the band for a few minutes and then made our way to the pool-hall side were we danced to the jukebox and made friends with some of the locals, including a well-known Native American artist.

From there we decided one more Del Charo margarita was in order. As soon as we walked in the door, we were invited to sit with two guys from Texas who were entertaining and friendly. We finished the night chatting with them about our towns, skiing in New Mexico and the one guy’s new baby and then tottered back to our hotel around 1am.

The next morning we were a bit hungover so after we checked out we filled our bellies with carbs at Rooftop Pizza and then did some shopping around the square. I picked up some spices and chile mix at the Chile Shop and drooled over a beautiful pair of $3500 cowgirl boots at the Santa Fe Boot Co.

We drove the hour south to ABQ and then headed east to Acoma Sky City, an historic Pueblo built on the top of a mesa. But we got there too late for the last tour, so we had to content ourselves with a few pictures from afar.

We checked into the Nativo Lodge, a few minutes north of downtown ABQ and then drove to the Nob Hill area, on Route 66, for dinner. We snacked on chips and salsa and some local microbrews at the Nob Hill Bar and Grill and as we were heading in search of dinner, walked by a sushi restaurant that suddenly induced a craving in both of us. We shared a few rolls and then retreated to our hotel, still a little tired from the previous night’s adventures.

Sunday I drove Chrissy to the airport and then set out alone for Taos Pueblo, the oldest continuously inhabited dwellings in the world. Native Americans have been living here for over 1000 years and still live as their ancestors did – without running water or electricity. I wandered around, took a ton of photos, browsed the curio shops and bought some fresh baked cookies and tasty fry bread, and chatted with some residents.

On my way back to ABQ and my conference resort, I passed a winery and decided to stop for a tasting before continuing on the long but beautiful drive.

I checked into my resort, the Hyatt Tamaya and settled in for my conference. The resort was nice, but very isolated. I had to drive quite a way for my delicious dinner of tamales and enchiladas (much better than the first round at Tomasita’s) at Sadie’s. If I had the choice, I would not have stayed there as it was too far from ABQ and Taos (20 and 30 minutes, respectively) and more expensive than the average hotel I stay in at nearly $200 a night.

Overall I enjoyed my trip to New Mexico. The land near ABQ didn’t look anything like I though it would and I wasn’t a fan of the suburban sprawl around the city. But Santa Fe was a charming little place, the people were all so friendly and welcoming and the drive between there and Taos was breathtaking. I would consider coming back to revisit that area, to make a second attempt at Acoma, taste some more wine, and eat some more delicious New Mexican food.