Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Day 10: Santa Fe to Holbrook, AZ

Last we met, it was Sunday night, and there was a strange dog lurking outside our vantent. Well, that black and white dog was totally adorable. It had a collar, so we knew he belonged to someone, but he stayed at our camp site all night. He just curled up right outside our screen. We named him "Scraps."

When I got up to pee at 5 am, he was still there and escorted me to the bathroom, where he waited outside to escort me back. When I came out of the bathroom, he came running up to me. So cute. When I veered left to avoid stepping on him, he went the same way and sat down. He wasn't going to leave until I petted him. I put my hand out, and he licked it and then put his head up under it to tell me he was ready for his petting. I petted his little head briefly, and we walked back to the campsite. He curled right back up under our picnic table and went to sleep. Unfortunately, when I woke up on Monday morning, Scraps was gone. :( *sigh*

Here's how we're living.



Pathetic, ain't it? We're having a great time, though! For those who haven't heard the story, we've brought a futon mattress, sheets, pillows, blankets, and a comforter for car camping. When we can/must, it's wonderful! Comfy, private, cheap, simple. Perfect.

Well, that night in Santa Fe was great. The morning? Not so much. At 8:03 am, crews began doing construction on the KOA campsite's sewer system. Beep, beep, beep, beep. Why can't they drive in circles? Must they continually back up? You'd think there was some kind of contest to see how annoying they could be. At least it got us up and around...sort of.


We headed to downtown Santa Fe, which also has its own weird things.


After milling around the square downtown for a while, we decided it was time to get some lunch. We checked our tour books for Santa Fe, and they sent us to this place, known for its Frito Pie.


This restaurant has been on the square for over 100 years. The current owners are Greek, so there are some interesting Greek options on the menu. Our waitress was a hilarious lady from New Jersey who called everyone "Honey" or "Sweetie." When we sat down, she made sure to tell Dave that they had milkshakes and Coconut Cream Pie. I asked her if she'd met him before, and she said, "I could just tell. I've been doing this a long time." Dang.

Dave ordered the Greek Spaghetti which had large tubular pasta, ground lamb, and feta cheese with a side of garlic Texas toast. It was wonderful!


I did not see the Frito Pie on the menu, so I asked for it. She left to find out if it was possible, and after some arguing, debating, and run-around, the waitress finally came back to me and said she could make it happen. For the washed masses, Frito Pie is, traditionally, a snack bag of Fritos opened on the top and filled with chili and cheese. So good. Obviously, this place wasn't going to give me a bag of Fritos, but what I received was still amazing!


The chili was made with big chunks of carne asada and hot peppers. It was wonderful, but at times it was so spicy, I could barely keep from crying.

Dave went on to order the coconut cream pie with real whipped cream, and I ordered a chocolate malt shake that was to die for.

We walked around a bit and came upon the New Mexico Museum of Art. Most of the buildings in the downtown area are in the old adobe pueblo style, and this museum was no exception.




We weren't the only people taking pictures of it either. I saw another guy out there with his camera and tripod, but when I asked him what the building was, he had no idea.

We moved on the heart of the historic downtown area: the Palace of the Governors.


The building had been there since the early 17th century and had been occupied by Mexican, Spanish, and American governors until the mid-20th century. Cool!

Outside, on the front porch of the patio, native American artists lined up with their handmade jewelry and trinkets for sale. Apparently, this was how the porch was used hundreds of years ago, so it is now a deal between the New Mexican government and the native American community that artists who are a part of a particular organization can sell their wares here each day.



The building itself is now a museum of New Mexican history.

Here's a view of one of the town square's corners showing the architecture common in this area and the whole city of Santa Fe.



This AMAZING...trickle of water? That's the Santa Fe River.


I kid you not. You couldn't fill a glass from there, I swear. Wow. The things that pass for a river these days!

Before heading out of Santa Fe, a city we didn't plan to spend more than an hour in, we went to what Dave keeps calling "The Oldest House in the World." Unfortunately, it is just the oldest house in the US.


Why the word "oldest" is in quotation marks on this sign, I don't know. Is the Santa Fe Historical Foundation being ironic?



It's pretty impressive to think that the oldest house in the US is NOT in Massachusetts or Virginia.



We then ran up the street to the Loretto Chapel, which is supposed to have a staircase that makes two 360-degree turns but has no external supports. Tiny nuns used to go up and down those stairs, but we can't anymore. EXPECIALLY because we didn't even get into this joint. Apparently, it closed at 4:15 in order to have some private event at 5. Dang.




From Santa Fe, we headed west to Arizona. Along the way, we saw amazing landscapes.


That's right. It's 75 in Arizona, my babies. They just throw caution to the wind here!




We learned the awful truth about leperchauns and that pot of gold.


We saw billboards for this temple of lunacy, so many that we just had to go there. It was on the historic Route 66, which, at this junction, was a temple to neon and cheesy themed crap. It was wonderful!



This place had its own restaurant and separate bar as well as a huge gift shop dedicated to itself and Rte. 66. We didn't want to leave!

But we did. We kept going west until we came to a crappy KOA in Holbrook, AZ, which is just east of Flagstaff and west of the Painted Desert.

And so did end Monday, June 22, 2009. Stay tuned for the Painted Desert and the Petrified Forest.

6 comments:

  1. Kerry,
    I am really enjoying your photos and commentary. You are having a fabulous time even in KOA. Amazing!
    Love,
    Mary

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  2. Ok that rainbow photo is hilarious.
    AND that tent thing is so cool! I've never seen one of those!

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  3. I want to stay at the El Rancho now! You guys sound like you are having a blast!

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  4. I think you two should put all this into a book. With all these pictures. You two could also make your living doing this. You could even travel overseas doing this. You really have a knack for writing. I love your writngs and stories. I can't get enough of your daily travels. Have fun and I can't wait for more to come. :)

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  5. I was going to ask if you guys got to see the staircase. That was memorable for me, though I was only 15 when I visited Santa Fe.

    The culinary photos are making me hungry!
    A.B.

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