Traveling Twosome
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Summer trip to the Southwest - Albuquerque,  NM (Part 1)

10/31/2013

2 Comments

 
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During the summer after moving back to the US from Belize, we were taking a break from blogging. Now we're back at it, but this summer trip to Albuquerque and Taos, New Mexico (with side trips to Santa Fe), slipped through the cracks during the hiatus.  We thought we'd fill in the gaps a bit and share some of our photos from this trip.  We loved this area so much and had such a fantastic time we can't wait to go back. 

We stayed in a small Airbnb "casita", essentially a guest bedroom with full bath, microwave, dorm-size fridge, and private entrance in a home in a residential neighborhood.  More than a week in such a small accommodation would be difficult, but for a week, we managed.  We liked that the neighborhood was quiet and safe, had lots of sidewalks for taking Paisley on walks, and great views right from the main road nearby.  We could also ride our bikes to many places from there on bike paths and bike lanes.

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Nice quiet neighborhood
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Our accommodation with the three windows
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Views of the city and Sandia Mountains right down the road!
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More views very close to our casita
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Barry & Paisley enjoying a morning walk
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This mosaic fence was so beautiful
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We saw hot-air balloons most mornings
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There are some very creative yards around -- no grass required!
For the most part, we had great weather, but there were some pretty severe thunderstorms at times as it was monsoon season.  The clouds looked pretty awesome right before or after storms.
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While in town we visited the Rio Grande Nature Center State Park, which we'd spent hours hiking and birding in on our 2006 southwest trip.  We were disappointed this time; however, as the trails were closed due to drought and high fire danger, so we had to content ourselves with a short nature walk through the gardens and not nearly as much bird-watching as in 2006.  
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All hiking trails closed -- bummer!
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But birdwatching still possible
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Female hummingbirds nicely sharing nectar
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Turtles on the pond
We paid a brief visit to old town Albuquerque but didn't stay long since we'd been there before.  We were looking for a restaurant that had moved.  
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Although we ate breakfast and simple lunches in our room to stay on budget, we had several good dinners out in the city.  One of our favorite meals was at Garduno's Chile Packing Co.
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We enjoyed the margarita tasting flight!
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One dessert to enjoy at the restaurant...
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...and one to take home for the next day!
We also did some great bike rides exploring the city and two side trips to Santa Fe, so stay tuned for future posts!
2 Comments
David Christmas
11/1/2013 04:57:34 am

Nice entry, guys! I am going to a high school mini-reunion in Albuquerque next summer, so this was of special interest. We have a small group of Zaragoza (Spain) HS alums in touch and meeting up decades later. So far we've rented houses in Austin and Key West - NM is next. Definitely doing Garduno's!

Reply
Emily
11/2/2013 08:40:02 am

Hope you have a great time in Albuquerque, David. It's a city we really like! Plenty of good eats and lots to do.

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    Emily & Barry

    We're a long-married, early-retired couple who are currently traveling as nomads with no fixed home base.  After years of living in North Carolina (Emily's home state), we spent 18 months living oceanfront on Ambergris Caye, Belize, a year road-tripping the US in a Honda CR-V, a year in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, and are now roaming North America in our 32' motorhome, Pearl, following warm weather whenever possible.

    Our passions are bicycling, walking and hiking, birding, continuing our midlife struggles to learn Spanish, enjoying healthy food (and the occasional donuts & pie!), traveling (duh!)  We travel with a fleet of bicycles and Paisley, our 10-year old Boston Terrier. 

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    Paisley, May 2016
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    States visited (pre-RV)
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    Pearl, a 2007 Newmar Bay Star
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    States visited in "Pearl"

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  • Traveling Twosome Blog
  • BeBelize - Our life in Belize (2011-2013)
  • Earlier adventures (2003-2010)
    • First Belize Trip 2010
    • Fall Sail Cruise Aboard Logos 2009
    • Conch Key 2007
    • Charleston Sailing School 2007
    • Biscayne Bay Sailing School 2007
    • Key Lime Sailing Club 2006
    • Southwest Parks 2006
    • BEYC/Jost van Dyke, BVI 2005
    • Offshore Sailing School 2004
    • Annapolis Sailboat Show 2004
    • Finger Lakes 2004
    • NY State Bike Tour 2004
    • Biras Creek, BVI 2003