The drive was nice as the road was very quiet, but the towns we passed through were a little disappointing. The trail is supposed to be littered with artists studios and boutiques selling jewellery and such but we saw none of it. Perhaps because it is the off season but maybe because once again my expectations of a place were way too high; even during the summer I imagine that the junk and trashy neighbourhoods still exist. The views were amazing however, and even though the terrain is totally different than I am used to, in it’s own way it is very beautiful. I prefer somewhere more green but I can understand why people choose to live in this area.
At the end of the trail we arrived in Santa Fe which is a very upscale city – way outside our budget on all fronts. It was fun to wander around the city though, and after stopping at the visitor center we parked and walked to the plaza area which is kind of the center of the old town. There are lots of boutique type stores selling everything Indian, especially jewellery which I spent some time looking at but the prices were way too steep for us.
The architecture in this part of the states is also very different from anywhere I’ve been so far, everything is the same colour – sand. All the houses along the trail, and the buildings in the city itself are all quite square with flat rooves and no colour. Well I guess brown/beige is a colour, but there’s no Colour!
We ate at a restaurant recommended by the visitor center lady that is apparently a local hangout. It was Mexican but not really. I had bean burritos and Mike had enchiladas. We both had the red and green chilli, which is what New Mexico cuisine is known for, but our food came with garlic bread? I asked my favourite little Mexican chicky about the combination and she told me we were eating at a fake Mexican restaurant – I think I have to agree with her.
Mike: What's with Mexican food with no rice and beans?
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