True to ourselves, this winter break we went off the beaten path again and took a road trip from SFO to Alburqueque, NM.
Why? I say why not. It’s true New Mexico has amazing desert vista’s and magical adobe architecture and communities, but did you know it is also the state where Christmas is served 365 days a year. Come with me and take a road trip to New Mexico. It’s 10 days of Road Tripping, there is a lot to tell you, so be patient, it’s a long post 🙂
When you ask Google Maps for directions, it takes you through the Mojave Desert or US 40, but we had already driven through Mojave in our 2015 exploration to Sedona and Death Valley. So we decided to chart our own route – another advantage of road tripping, you make your own path. Our first stop was SFO – Palm Springs, CA. It’s a good 9 hour drive. So prepare well for it. Mother Nature accompanied us all the way with rain as the winter storm Europa made it’s way into the West. Fortunately we made it safely and took a night halt in Palm Springs. Next morning, a quick breakfast at 8.00am and off we went to Flagstaff, Az.
There is Disneyland and then there is VERMALAND… Somewhere between Palm Springs, CA and Flagstaff, AZ lies VERMALAND 🙂 This is why road trips are the best. One discovers treasures unknown.
Why Flagstaff? Because we wanted to meet Santa Claus at The North Pole Experience. Europa kept following us and as as soon as we entered Flagstaff, we were slammed with snow. Europa kept following us and as as soon as we entered Flagstaff,
The freeways were icing up and the lanes were disappearing in a white blanket of snow. It was beautifully scary. Having lived in Indiana for 13 years, we were used to snow and yet 10 years in California had pampered us. We kept our patience (fringe benefit of road tripping – teaches you to respect the road and the driver ahead of you) did not accelerate and slowly made our way safely to The Little America Hotel – the portal stop for the Santa Trolley. Thankfully we were spending the night in the same hotel, so there was no more driving in snow. After checking into the hotel, we made our way to the Trolley stop.
The elves greeted us with smiles and off we went singing and clapping into The North Pole. You have to visit this place to experience the magic and warmth. For me the best part was when my daughter refused to share the letter with me and when I asked her why. She looked at me and said; Mom, it’s between me and Santa. To see the belief in her eyes was why I came to The North Pole. I wrote a letter to Santa too 🙂 
and he granted my wish, the next day the freeways were clear, the kids played a little in the snow and off …. to our final destination, Alburqueque, New Mexico.
Through our drive out of Flagstaff, Az, we were expecting dry roads and desert vistas in New Mexico. But to our surprise, we found snow covered desert vistas in Gallup, NM too. Who knew?
The next 4 hours we all wondered and shared our own theories on why and how it snows in a dry desert place. Geography lessons at its best and before we knew it were checking into our hotel Hilton -Home2Suites, in Alburqueque, NM. The hotel is a simple, clean hotel with a very friendly staff and it had everything we needed including very comfortable beds, a good breakfast and an in -room kitchen. We arrived in Alburquque on Christmas day and it was perfect. We checked in, met family and started planning our adventures. Trip Advisor will give you plenty to do in Alburqueque. I am going to walk you down two of my favorites in the trip.
Kasha Katwe Tent Rocks, Santa Fe
The cone shaped tent rock formations as Kasha Katwe are a result of volcanic eruptions 6-7 million years ago. A closer look at the top of the tent rocks reveals a “cap” sort of structure, almost as if nature created a lid for the volcanic tent. Pretty unique cap rock formations, we had never seen them before.
After spending a good morning at the Kasha Katwe Tent Rocks, we decide to go for lunch to Santa Fe.
Santa Fe, NM:
Santa Fe, a spanish colony established in 1610 and today the capital of New Mexico boasts of Pueblo style architecture and is nation’s 3rd largest art market. True to the spanish colonial style architecture, at the heart of Santa Fe is The Plaza. We leisurely roamed the shopped and had some good Mexican food at The Cafe Plaza. Surprise at the lunch, we found The Sopapilla. Sopapilla originated in Alburqueque, NM some 200 odd years ago. It is a deep friend leavened dough that can be eaten sweet or savory. For the sweet version it is drizzled with honey or syrup.
Which other food item does the Sopapilla remind you of?
After a scrumptious lunch at Santa Fe, we decided to walk the Canyon Road, Santa Fe, NM
Mecca for art lovers, Canyon road hosts galleries of many creative souls. Beyond my price point, I basked in the glory of viewing the galleries from the distance, and then I cam across some amazing doors. Yes doors!
To see the doors of Zanzibar is a bucket list item, however at that moment, I was happy with the doors of Canyon Road, Santa Fe, NM.
Pueblo of Acomo – Sky City Cultural Center.
Once upon a time, long time ago, there were the Native Americans. The original habitants of this land. Then the modern man found them and so started their downfall, but they were strong. They survived and survived with pride. Such is the story of every tribe in the US. We were extremely fortunate and blessed to have met and seen the traditions of the Native American people – The Acomo. The Pueblo Acomo is the oldest continuously habituated Pueblo in North America. The archeologists have found evidence that confirms that the Pueblo has been habituated since 1150A.D. Sitting on top of a 356ft Mesa (Sandstone bluff,) the Pueblo is home to 250 dwellings without electricity and water. The only way to visit this place is via the Sky City Cultural Center, Before you can buy a ticket, the employees (also from Acomo tribe) ensured we put our phones and any cameras in our car. No photography is allowed on top of the Mesa. We found out later via our tour guide, this is to protect the privacy and respect the traditions of The Acomo’s. He said to protect their traditions, there is no written record. They are only passed down through teachings at the Mesa.
I discovered the essence of Feminism at the Pueblo. Acomo’s like many other natives, give the ancestral property rights to the daughters in the family. The women are the life givers and nurturer’s they say, so it is only natural that they should have the authority on the house and the property, after all they take care of it. The guide continued to explain, our women are strong. They are capable of hunting but hunting takes life away. He further explained, nature made women the giver of life, so how can the giver of life, take life away too. It would be opposite to nature, and that’s why the men hunt and women take care of the home and nurture the family.
Why can’t we the modern humans learn to keep life simple? Why must we challenge everything nature gave us and try to decipher nature’s secret code? Humbled by their survival and ashamed at our arrogance, I am thankful for the opportunity to visit their church and see their traditional dances. Watching the dancers sway to the drums of native beats, we were transported to an era centuries ago.
This hand painted piece of sandstone will be a constant reminder of the Pueblo and an era when man lived in peace, an era when man and woman were equals and an era when there was a universal balance.
Some other fun places we went to were The Sandia Peak Tramway, Boca Negra Canyon trails, River of Lights and Old Town, Alburqueque. Some pictures for you to enjoy.
River of Lights: Rated as one of the Top 15 Holiday lights in the USA.
I love christmas lights. I am more than sure that the reason sun sets early in winter is so we can enjoy the lights longer. There is something magical about seeing the brightly colored lights in the crisp winter air and walking amongst the magic makes even the grinchiest Grinch smile. It’s magic! We walked for about 90 mins and soaked in the warmth. Here are a few memories.. come relive the magic with me.
Old Town Alburqueque : Built in 1706, in the Pueblo Spanish style architecture, Old Town centers around the Plaza. We spent an entire day here gazing and shopping in the 150 unique stores. Thanks to two determined teens and a 8 year old in training, yes, we entered everyone of them. Oh, and after all that walking, treat yourself to some Froyo at Yay! Yogurt. They say No Weigh! at Yay. It’s the best. Memories of Old Town Alburqueque to bring it on your “to visit” list.
And now… before we end our stay in NM, it’s time to answer the Trivia Question:
We learn something new everyday, and at Mary and Tito’s in Alburqueque, NM – I learnt everything in New Mexico starts with Chilie. Always remember it’s Chillie in New Mexico and Chilli is Texas. Red Chillie is simply red hot Chilli peppers ground up with spices and the Green Chillie is made from the fresh green Chillie peppers before they ripen and when served together, you have Christmas. The food was super yummy and the staff was very friendly. This is a family run business and they serve with with love and pride.How is Christmas served 365 days a year in New Mexico?
If you are in a mood to spend good money for a evening full of ambience with good music and food; then I highly recommend El Patron
On the 4th day of our to be 6 day vacation, it was confirmed, that another snow storm was soon to enter the area, so we decided to leave the very next day and escape it. We had seen enough cars turned on their sides to know this was the right thing to do. Day 5 instead of exploring NM further, we escaped and were on our way to Phoenix, Az.
A 7 hour drive from Alburqueque, arrived well in time and decided to just crash in for the night. Movies and some home cooked meals made it for a perfect evening. The next day was a special one, it was New Year’s Eve. We decided to hike to “The Hole in the Rock.”
Looks daunting, but it is a very easy hike. Once in the hole we took our time to admire the beauty around us and then headed over to take a tour of Arizona State Univeristy. It’s a beautiful urban complex.
Next stop, for New Year’s eve – Pizza Place. Oh come on, you know I always find the “different” to see. I was very excited and looking forward to seeing … The Organ Stop Pizza.
You have to see this place to believe it. Combine the sophisticated notes of an organ with the informality and cozy warmth of a scrumptious pizza and you have Organ Stop Pizza. This place is awesome. The whole restaurant comes alive, it is drums, trumpets, chimes, huge pipes and many more instruments, call controlled my one maestro. I have never seen anything like it. It was the best, if you are in Phoenix, you have to go there.
An example of the brilliant music: Frozen at Organ Stop Pizza , And my favorite The Pink Panther I have quite a few pieces that I recorded during the evening of Pink Panther and Star Wars, unfortunately none of the are small enough for my tiny but mighty blogspace, so for now, I am uploading links from YouTube. I hope you enjoy it. If you want to see a real fun video with some fun observations, check out this YouTuber’s piece: Organ Stop Pizza Fun
We capped off the evening with some pool time at the hotel and nice warm meal. A moment as quintesscial and ubiquitous to the world and it happens with the simple countdown. Always amazes me!
Which place does this picture remind you off? Tahoe, CA or Arizona? Believe it or not, this is Arizona.
January 1st, 2017; We were on the road again, destination Palm Springs, CA. We were excited to meet some friends there and also because we knew we were now on our way home. Before heading home we took an extra day in Palm Springs to go meet Joshua at Joshua Tree National Parks. I have a confession to make, it is an amazing park but after Death Valley, Joshua disappointed me big time. It was now time to drive back home and we could not be happier.
The four of us, a Honda pilot and 2000+ miles of road, we were cramped and yet we had wide open spaces, for; above us were blue skies, stormy skies, rain showers and snow stoppers, deserted lands and miles to go, we talked about something, we talked about nothing, we sat silent, we made memories that we will never forget.
This trip the destination surprised us. It was not we had imagined it to be and yet it was worth it, because it made us marvel again.
So together in 20 years of marriage, we have explored – Ohio, Indiana, Illionois, Kentucky, D.C, Maryland, New York, Florida, Missourie, Maine, Minnestoa, Wisconsin, Colorado, Utah, California, Oregon, Nevada, Alaska, Arizona and in 2016, we explored The Land of the Enchanted – New Mexico. 20 states in 20 years 🙂
Where will we go next?