My husband K got up at 6:48, but let me sleep until 8:18. Before I headed down to breakfast, I got this view.
After breakfast, I dealt with a Kickstarter campaign that was kicking off.
When we went out to the car to leave at 10:40, I discovered two things. The first was this bird, that turned out to be a greater roadrunner! What luck to see one in New Mexico and why was it hanging out at the hotel? Was it avoiding the Coyote?
The second thing was that the passenger side window had been open all night. Argh! K had opened the window for me to get air, while he was checking in last night and we never realized it was never closed. It's a good thing we were parked right in front of the hotel.
We left at 10:45. Just 5 minutes away,we saw this great old bowling alley sign. It was nice to see that they'd kept it and just put signs for the new businesses.
K had found a card advertising a quilting shop and knows how much I love fabric. So, at 10:59 (25751 on the odometer), we parked at Hip Stitch. He left me to it and went to a nearby used book store for a while. I saw a terrific panel of the alphabet with New Mexico items that I thought could be turned into a cloth book for our baby granddaughter. However, at $75, it was far too expensive to do that. I did find some nice fabric to make a pillow for her to play with and others to make shorts. I got myself some nice pieces, as well. I had a nice conversation with the owner, who was a transplant from back East.
At 11:46, we were finally on the road. As we headed for the Old Town, I appreciated the work they'd put in to make some overpasses and road walls look interesting, or at least nice.
At 2:08 (25760), we parked in one of the lots next to Old Town. There was a pretty entrance nearby.
Our first stop was San Felipe de Neri church, which was built in 1793, and is one of the oldest surviving buildings in the city and the only building in Old Town proven to date to the Spanish colonial period. The church is listed on the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties and the National Register of Historic Places and has remained in continuous use for over 200 years. The parish, however, dates to 1706. So, it is over 300 years old.
Looking at the church, you can see some elements that are also in the construction of the mission churches we visited north of here. But, these one has some serious upgrades. By the way, unless there used to be a stairway on the altar side of the pulpit, I did not understand its purpose. But, then I found a sign that explained the stairs, which had been on the nave side, were removed in the 1990's for safety and practical purposes.
We did some shopping and then decided at 1:35 to get lunch. We chose the Old Town Cafe, which seemed to be in a space that used to be two storefronts. We ordered at the counter and then took the food to our seats. We ordered what turned out to be a dry Chicken Enchilada Casserole bowl for $13.95. We also got a Pork Tamale Bowl that came with beans for $11.50. It was ok, but nothing special. K got a Diet Coke, but I decided to go for variety and got a Diet Dr. Pepper.
The decor was nice and I particularly liked a mirror in the rest room and a pretty painted glass piece.
We finished at 2:15 and went to do more serious shopping. We needed gifts for folks. It was now 100° and we were grateful for the air conditioned spaces.
When we got to the car at 2:59, it was 101°. As we drove through town, we saw this amazingly large sculpture outside the Albuquerque Museum. themaritimeexplorer. ca had this about it:
This is the leading edge of one of the most remarkable pieces of sculpture I have seen anywhere, La Jornada, the combined work of sculptors Sonny Rivera and Betty Sabo. The work is amazing not just for its epic effect, but even more so by the fact that it ever was commissioned. The figure at the forefront is Juan de Oñate, often referred to as ‘The Last Conquistador’. In 1598 he was granted permission by the Spanish to lead an expedition from Mexico into what is now New Mexico and bring ‘civilization and the Word of God’ to the people who had been living there for millenia. Among the tribes of the southwest he is remembered as being the perpetrator of the Acoma Massacre that resulted in the slaughter of over 800 people at the Acoma Pueblo including 300 women and children. Survivors, and that is an apt term in this case, were sold into slavery and some had their right legs cut off. Not exactly a guy you would think they would be building statues of in the 21st century.
But here’s the thing. A great number of people in New Mexico trace their ancestry and their history back to La Jornada and while they don’t want to expunge the horrific actions of Juan de Oñate, neither do they want to be told that they don’t belong here or that their story is secondary to anyone else’s. Thus, over the objections of many, the New Mexico Hispanic Culture Preservation League managed to get the story of La Jornada set out in plain view in a series of life-size sculptures that are inescapable as you head to the Albuquerque Museum entrance. Frankly, they are entrancing and you will want to walk around them to appreciate them from all angles.
Behind Juan de Oñate are these conquistadors and the priest Fray Alonso Martínez who was in charge converting the people of the pueblos, whether they wanted to be or not.
Next are representations of a few of the eighty-three ox carts that brought provisions from Mexico and introduced many food items that have become staples of New Mexico cuisine. The way they are portrayed in the midst of desert plants and native rock adds a great deal of authenticity to the work.
They brought not just oxen, but longhorn cattle and their herders as well. These would be the first vaqueros in the southwest.
t was not just men who made this journey, but women and children as well, which adds a humanizing element to what otherwise would have been just a brutal conquest. It was through these women and children that the present day Hispanics of New Mexico trace their roots and without their presence, I doubt that the La Jornada statues would ever have been constructed.
That said, Oñate was removed for several years and only came back in 2023.
Our next destination, which we reached at 3:17 (25770), was The National Museum of Nuclear Science and Energy. This was K's choice. I probably would have preferred going out to White Sands National Park. At least this would be air conditioned.
We paid the senior rate of $13 for each of us. The building is huge and houses a lot of exhibits. There are a lot of signs telling about the various scientists who paved the way for splitting the atom. Then, there are a lot about Robert Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project. We found out that there was a movie about him due to come out in Summer, 2023 and we'd never heard of it before.
One large exhibit was of the lab where the first test was put together. The sound of a Geiger counter reminded you just how much radiation was in the room. Considering how dangerous the stuff was, it looked rather nonchalant. I think the green machine might have been an adding machine or such.
A map did a good job of giving us an idea of where everything was in the state and how much was related to the bomb.
There were exhibits on what life was like for those who lived and worked at Los Alamos. Married men (they were almost all men) brought their wives and children. The wives couldn't tell their relatives were they were going, nor could they see them. There were single women, most of whom were no doubt mathematicians, secretaries and such. There wasn't a lot to do there, which resulted in a baby boom. The state of New Mexico issued driver's licenses without name, real address or signature, just a number.
After the bomb and the war, there seemed to be a concerted effort to convince folks that uranium and nuclear power were great. Kids toys, comic books, songs, you name it- nuclear was "in". There was a uranium rush like the old gold rush.
I do recognize a few of these songs.
Even the Boy and Girl Scouts got in on it. This Girl Scout one was not available when I was a scout, but I remember spending the night in a fallout shelter. That was not fun.
I must have ducked into the wrong room, when I saw all of these everyday people things, because suddenly, I was back with the Manhattan Project. There were displays about Oak Ridge, Hanford, and the production of the U-235 needed for the bombs. It then moved on to the planes, pilots, and bases for the bombings. Also, there were full-sized models of Little Boy and Fat Man, the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, respectfully, as well as The Gadget that was the test at the Trinity Site.
There was a sign that told of the Downwinders, who were not taken care of after the Trinity Test. A photo also showed what a family's fallout shelter would look like.
Then, it was back to popular culture. Nuclear power plants, books about the uses of nuclear medicine, movies that involve nuclear power, and even a race car from the (Paul) Newman Wachs Racing team.
There were also multiple placards on why the German efforts to make the bomb were unsuccessful. (Antisemitism was part of the problem.) There was a uranium cube that had been made in Germany. It really doesn't look like something that could be so incredibly useful and dangerous.
There was a gift shop and I was disappointed to find no pin for the museum. Opportunity missed, I told the clerk.
We left at 5:50 bound for our last destination of the day. At 6:13 (25792), we arrived at Sandia Peak Tramway. I hurried into their shop that I was sure would be closed later and found postcards and pins.
At 6:38, we were heading up to Sandia Peak, which is 10,306 feet at its highest point and 6800, where we started. Sandia, we learned, is Spanish for watermelon and the mountain is pink and red at sunset. The ride up was crowded and the windows did not yield the best photos.
When we arrived at the top at 6:59, I went to the end of the platform to snap the scene below. It was 80°.
We had planned to get food from the snack bar, because it was impossible to get a reservation at the restaurant up there. However, we were appalled to find out the snack bar closed at 7 and we couldn't get the ice cream we'd been looking forward to. The closing time was not on the website. The website claimed 7:30 and we even checked again at 7:20, but it was closed. We were glad we had water and almond butter bars with us.
We proceeded to start taking photos and to hike a bit on the trails on the ridge.
On the ridge, we discovered that the back of the mountain was a ski area.
We found a trail called the Crest Trail and decided to follow some it. We did want to go to the actual crest, but could see that the trail had an easy way to bail out and head back. There were terrific information signs devoted to various topics: trees; lichen; fossils; and so much more. They helped us be a lot more observant.
Soon, the views allowed for some rather arty photos, which I like to try to take. I like the light in these.
Besides appreciating the light, there were more flowers to admire and the chance to observe flagging. Since the winds up on the crest of the mountain are stronger and bring rain and snow, branches on the windward side take a beating. In this case, that is the southwest side. To compensate, the tree makes more branches on the downwind side. This is flagging. I've noticed it in other windy places, but I just thought the wind pushed the tree into that position. The tree does it itself. Pretty cool.
By 8:12, it was time to turn our attention to the reason we'd planned to come up here at this time of day- the sunset. Of course, we didn't want to get caught out on the trail after dark. So, we made sure that any walking we did at this point was close to the restaurant building. We found the ski side just as photogenic as the Albuquerque side.
What always amazes me, when taking sunset pictures, is how bright the landscape around you remains, even when the sun has dipped below the horizon.
Just over 4 minutes after the previous photo was taken, the one below was taken. Notice how much color has drained from the sunset.
Oh, and as the sun was setting, the wind picked up. And very quickly, it was very windy and only 68°. Luckily, we had jackets, but they weren't a huge help.
Like us, many people wanted to get off the mountain once the sun had set. We wound up in a line that wound its way through a bit of a museum about the mountain. Happily, there was also a restroom, or more of an indoor latrine.
I did hurry out to the platform next to the tramway to get two last photos. I came back frozen, but it was worth it.
When the line went outside again, K stayed in it and sent me inside to sit on a bench. He's thoughtful that way.
We were on the tram at 9:17 and on the way down learned all kinds of things. The water for the restaurant and rest rooms had to be carried up on the tram. So, in the evening, when fewer people were going up, more water was loaded on it. In order for the tram to ascend, another has to descend. There has to be at least one person onboard each tram. That means someone has to stay on the mountain every night. One of the guests brought up a horror story about folks stuck on the tram overnight and it is true. (Google it.) What they don't point out is that on the other tram there was just one guy, freezing alone.
We got off the tram at 9:34, and after a pit stop, were on the road at 9:39. It was 80°. What a difference!
K decided that he still really wanted ice cream. So, I googled the nearest Baskin-Robbins. We got there at 9:54, six minutes before they were to close. We both got waffle cones. Mine had Mint Chocolate Chip and his was Butter Pecan. After paying $13.33, we went outside to sit on a bench in the mostly closed shopping center. It was rather pleasant.
We left at 10:16 and reached the hotel 19 minutes later (25807). It was windy there, too.
The phones says that I walked 6553 steps for 2.2 miles today.
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