Despite the fact that school is in full-swing for both Susan and me, we decided it was high time for another mini-vacation. Actually, it is my parents vacation that we chose to piggyback on a portion of. Either way, we’ll be exploring Northeast New Mexico over the next few days.
The trip began early yesterday. Thanks to the hospitality of some friends, we were able to stay in Dayton the night prior to our 6AM flight and were given a ride to the airport way too early in the morning. After a couple flights with minimal delays, we found ourselves in the Albuquerque airport where my parents awaited our arrival.
First order of business was picking up some tickets for Saturday morning’s balloon fiesta mass ascension. Then we grabbed some lunch (where I had my introduction to the local red and green chile’s) and made our way northeast to Santa Fe.
The main tourist activity of the day was a scenic back road trip to Taos. Out of the scenic route options, we took the “high road”, which travelled along at a higher elevation (than the “low road”), as you might expect…
We were pretty excited about the higher speed limit in NM, but don’t get caught talking on your cell phone and driving.
Familiarizing ourselves with the desert landscape, including the aptly named Camel Rock (below) 
After hitting the back roads, we got to our first pit-stop in Chimayo at the local chapel (below) where we also caught our first glimpses of artists in action (she’s painting the chapel) 
This strange depiction (above) of St Francis of Assisi and the stylish skeleton, with his globe in hand, riding in the cart was hiding below the chapel at Chimayo…we are still looking for what it’s supposed to mean.
Further along the poorly marked roads to Taos, we passed through a variety of small villages. What struck me most was that, despite not being more than an hour from a good sized city (Santa Fe), the villages gave the feeling of being in a remote portion of another country. The gravel roads, small adobe chapels surrounded by smaller adobe huts, and basic lack of commercialization made for a unique atmosphere, particularly for being in the US.
By mid-afternoon, we found our way to Taos, and to our hotel, which is pretty spectacular. Travel tip: Ski resort hotels have great deals in the off-seasons. Pictures of the hotel grounds and our room, complete with fireplace and large, spa-like bathroom are below.
After settling in and taking an exploratory walk of the resort, we walked into the Taos plaza where most of the shops had already closed, before grabbing dinner at the Gorge bar and grill.
Post-dinner had us return to the hotel for some relaxation and a fire before a pretty early bedtime. It was a long first day.
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