Day 10

Woke up in a more timely fashion today and got breakfast at the hotel. The called Danlo to see how his leg was doing. He said it was doing OK, and to drop by in an hour to go up to Santa Fe.

I am so glad he felt up to going, because you could not ask for a better or more knowledgable person to have with you. (Besides the fact that it is great to spend time with him, period. ) He knew just where to go to find street parking near the very congested historic area. He led us through the warren of narrow streets right to the Plaza and the Palace of the Governors (seat of New Mexican government for hundreds of years, beginning in Spanish colonial times). He knew the history behind the lovely, historic buildings, and took us to one of the oldest churches in America. He knew just where to go to get a reasonably priced lunch in that rather expensive place. And he took us to the Georgia O'Keefe Museum.

Previously, I had only seen pictures of her work in magazines and books, and always of those huge flowers. The museum had an exhibition of her New Mexico landscapes, painted in the most vivid colors you could ever imagine. Believe me, those books and magazines do not even begin to do justice to her artwork. One painting was The One Tree, complete with the stars...Danlo and I stood there with our mouths hanging open. I need to try to find that painting somewhere on the internet and post a link...

We also drove around Santa Fe for a bit, looking at all of the mansions (some with their own private heliports ), and Danlo pointed out the turn to go up the mountain to what had been Roger Zelazny's house.

On the way back to Albuquerque instead of taking the freeway, we took a surface road called the Turquoise Trail. It led through charming old mining towns that have been taken over by artists and turned into art colonies. We stopped off at a lovely place called Madrid, where we stopped for ice cream and cold drinks at an old fashioned soda fountain. I have never had anyone mix up my root beer from scratch before. I just stood there on the front porch for a long time, soaking in the sunshine, the beauty of the mountains, the pretty town and its art galleries. (sigh)

We came back into Albuquerque from the east (a stunning way to come into town, through a gap in the Sandia Mountains, as John pointed out. ) I had mentioned that I would like to buy some New Mexican goodies to take home with me as gifts, so Danlo directed us to this great store, called the Chili Addict. That is where, besdies goodies for my friends, I found the Fist and Faith Memorial Socks.

www.chiliaddictstore.com

www.nmpinoncoffee.com

When we were finished Danlo and his Lady came to the hotel for a little while to soak in the hot tub. His poor leg definately needed that, and she had had a tough day at work and needed the relaxation, too. I stayed behind and printed out some pics for them in the room, as my ankle was still bleeding. Then it was time to say goodbye. That one just crushed me.


Day Eleven

Got up, ate breakfast, packed the Jeep, and got ready to go. There was a lost toddler at the front desk of the hotel. They had found him wandering the hallways, and had called every guest room, but no one would admit to having lost him. He was obviously terrified, and his diaper was soaked through with urine. Poor baby. I can't imagine how afraid I would have been if one of my sons had gotten lost, even for a moment or two, as a baby...

We drove through the desert on a main highway up to Colorado. It was beautiful, as nearly every part of New Mexico we had seen was.

We stopped off at Aztec Castle National Monument to visit the ruins there. People had lived at that site for about 2000 years, though the Pueblo ruins dated back to Chacoan times. The people who live there must have been tiny, as even Mr. Sunshine, age 11, had to duck to get through the doors (I had to crawl to get through some of them, and I am 5'6"). They had a reconstructed great kiva there, and that was really interesting to visit.

We then drove up to Durango, Colorado. This is my second visit to Durango, and both times I have had the same weird and overwhelming feeling I have never had any place else I have ever been -- that I have come home, that this is the place I was born to live in. We are only a couple of blocks from the train station and downtown, with a room that faces the river and its pretty biking/hiking trail. We walked downtown and ate at a good Mexican restaurant. Tomorrow is the Fourth of July and the fireworks will be over the river, right outside of our room. And we will get to ride the train through the lovely, snow crowned mountains.