After a fun day in Santa Fe we spent the night in Albuquerque with the hopes of seeing some music – and we got lucky. We did our research and found The Launchpad had a show that included Los Ratones Atomicos and The Tewa. First band was very old school punk with lots of slam dancing. The second had an amazing guitar. We definitely found the place for us for the night.
Then for the first time on this roundtrip we woke up to warm weather! I walked around downtown and was rewarded with some awesome murals. Then we spent a lot of time driving and making random weird stops.
We stopped in Albuquerque to see the Petroglyph National Monument. You could spend a whole day hiking around and seeing the very cool symbols in the rock but we didn’t have all day so we focused on Boca Nerga, which offered the easiest access. There are about 100 petroglyphs in this fairly small space. There were created 400-700 years ago and while some symbols seems recognizable, there doesn’t seem to be a translation to them. It is amazing to think about how and why these were created and wonder what the folks who wrote them would think about them being around for so long.
We stopped in Gallup, because a waiter we had said there were good pawn shops there. Same person told us (at the very end of the meal) he wanted to go to school to become a cop but it wasn’t worth getting vaxed so he was going to look into being a flight attendant instead, although he’s never actually flown. Anyways – turns out our shopping taste is about as similar to his as our views on everything else. Neither of us wanted overpriced jewelry, a gun or video game. But interesting all the same.
Next stop, crystal and meteor shop at the side of the road. (It was a long drive, don’t judge!) Super bonus, there was a small ostrich farm next door and Heather got to feed them. That might be a once in a lifetime event for her – unless “feels like Jurassic Park” is a good thing.
Now we’re chilling in Flagstaff. Hoping to see some music tonight. Might even have dinner!
We spent the night in Tucumcari; they celebrate their piece of Route 66. We stayed at a cute retro motel, Roadrunner Lodge. Loved the kitsch and proximity to the action. Sort of missed a mini fridge. Also checked out the murals and retro signs around town. Many depict local folks or celebrate Rte 66, buffalo or the 1960s. Only sadness was the weather; it was zero degrees with wind-chill. But we’re tough.
We drove to Santa Fe and did a few super fun things. First, the Loretto Chapel with its double helix staircase. It’s very impressive. Story goes, the Loretto Chapel Nuns said a novena to St Joseph, patron of carpenters to build a staircase so that the girls could get to the balcony for the choir. (Before the nuns took over the church only men and boys were in the choir and they used a ladder. Anyway, a carpenter showed up and did the work without getting paid all 33 steps.
We popped into the New Mexico Museum of Art. (Thank you Walker Art membership with reciprocity with other galleries!) The art was great – mostly Native. I will post more pictures that explanations – because I’m gearing up to go out! But here are some faves:
- Santo Nino Faithtime – Baby Jesus with a mask on the smartphone by Arthur Lopez
- Temptations of St Anthony – religion never looked like so much fun by Luis Tapia
- Yellow Horse Dancer – full size and magical buy Armond Lara
- Zeus and Ganymede – reminds me of Kent Monkman, with shorter hair and less subtle by Delmas Howe
- La Pachuca – reminds me of Cindy Sherman, love the sassy personality by Judith Baca
We walked around and saw lots of things. Enjoyed good temperatures for the first time this trip and then made our way to Meow Wolf, which was standout awesome. It’s an interactive art experience, leaning toward almost fun house experientially. It reminded us of Sleep No More in NYC but less scary and less nudity. The premise is that the house full of people slowly became crazy or possessed and I love that it’s in the same town where the atomic bomb was built. There are a million (well hundreds) of twists and turns with the “house” that lead into a Dr. Suess meets MC Escher meets Alice in Wonderland. We crawled into a fireplace and into a refrigerator to find new worlds. In the new worlds, we found ourselves being coopted to join a group of four other visitors to turn a couch into a merry-go-round. At times it was awesome, at times a little nauseating but always awesome.
And now we’re getting out day done and dolling up for some nightlife in Albuquerque!
We checked out a little nightlife in Wichita at a karaoke bar called The Stop. It wasn’t very full but everyone was super friendly – and not in a creepy way. We shot pool with some locals and the bartender gave us a long list of things to visit. Beers were cheap. Signs around the bar with awesome and instructive. On the way out of town we did stop by the Keeper of the Plains, a 44-foot tall steel sculpture standing at the point where the Big and Little Arkansas rivers join together in downtown Wichita. It was created by Native American artist Blackbear Bosin. It is striking.
We got to recreate a few moments from the lives of the Dalton Gang, gangsters from the 1890s at the Dalton Gang Hideout in Meade, KS. They robbed banks and trains. Their sister lived in Meade. The presumption is that they hid out there, in a tunnel under the house. We didn’t hold anyone up but we did get to trek through the house, the tunnel and the outbuildings. Also there were a lot of artifacts – mostly notably the albino raccoon, aka star of my future nightmares. (Absolutely worth the $5 cover charge.)
Our scheduled stop was in Liberal KS, home of Dorothy Gale’s house from The Wizard of Oz! There are some cut-outs of the expected characters and the house does look a lot like Dorothy’s. Apparently someone just got the idea that Liberal should become the official home to Dorothy. Someone knew of a house that looked like the one from the movie; so they moved it to town and worked to make it look even more like it. Ironically, the tornado siren started blaring just as we hit town. I thought our timing might be creepy but spot on. Turns out, they were just testing. To be fair, we now know that tornados can run forever in Kansas because there is nothing to stop them!
After driving about a billion hours through Kansas, we filly blew through Oklahoma and Texas and into New Mexico!
After a few super fun days in Phoenix, we’re making our way home. This is when we’re most thankful for everything digital because we put in some long hours – especially grandpa, the driver. But we’ve had some fun along with the long drive.
We started in Sedona and everyone was a little surprised that I insisted that we go to the Chapel on the Hill there – until we got there. It’s awesome. It’s tucked into the red rock mountains. It’s the perfect place to stop and check out the scenery. Also the crucifix in the chapel is amazing. And of course there’s some family lore related to the candles in the chapel – but you have to go there to hear the story.
We had a super quick stop in Rock Creek Overlook between Sedona and Flagstaff. It’s an incredible view of the Oak Creek Canyon.
We also made a stop in Winslow, Arizona – such a fine site to see.
We had dinner in Albuquerque. We saw the area near the community college but I’d be hard pressed to say that I know Albequerque. With the university and various labs it does seem like a haven of techno-smart people in the middle of the desert. It is a gorgeous drive and fun to see the mountains all around. Driving it feels like you’re on the top of a plateau – so while it’s flat it feels high. Maybe because my ears were popping the whole time!
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