Santa Fe is great for shoppers

About 4 weeks ago, we rode up to Santa Fe for our 3rd anniversary, to see what the place was like and see the showing at one of the museums.

We went by way of highway 14, known as the Turquoise Trail, which winds its way around the back side of the Sandia Mountains from Albuquerque. We've been up and down the lower part of it several times to visit one of our favorite local spots, the Lazy Lizard, or to traverse the side road that leads to Sandia Peak (over 9,000 feet),but hadn't been farther than that. The weather was threatening at times, with some moderate rain around Cedar Crest, but we had drier conditions the farther north we went.

Our first stop was in a little former mining town called Madrid (the accent is on the beginning of the name) which has stayed alive by becoming a haven for local artists of many types, and a great food stop for the motorcycling community. Everyone kept telling us to stop at the Mineshaft Tavern, so we did and were greeted by the shiny chrome of several motorcycles and their friendly, but impatient, riders. It seems the place isn't open for breakfast so we had about a 20 minute wait for it to open for lunch.

No problem, there were quite a few interesting-looking shops nearby so off we went to explore their wares. The usual assortment of touristy "gift-ware" was at one shop, so we passed that one up and moved on to one that really caught my eye. They advertised tapestries and textiles. Inside, the place smelled faintly of incense, and a woman of uncertain age stood next to a rack of colorful fabric. She explained that everything was hand woven by members of the community who had participated in a weaving class that she had taught last year. Beautiful wraps and ponchos of different styles hung on numerous racks about the small shop. There was also a rack of colored, hand spun, yarn. Some of the dying was done using berries or other natural coloring agents. I took a card, promising to purchase a wrap at a later date. (Since they aren't created in a third world country, the prices fit the beautiful workmanship.)

By the time I finished oooing and awwing over the racks of pretty things, it was time to enter the Mineshaft Tavern. We had eaten a late breakfast so weren't particularly hungry, so we ordered sodas and some of their homemade salsa and chips. The inside of the restaurant/bar was like stepping back in time. There was a long wooden bar and all the tables, chairs and walls were wood. In the "front" of the large room was a small stage where we were told they have live music performances.

After this brief stop, we hit the road to finish the ride to Santa Fe. It was a scenic ride and the weather held for us, providing nice cloud formations along our way. Once in Santa Fe, at least the portion I saw, didn't impress me all that much, except for the architecture of the older buildings, which were built after the Pueblo style. The newer commercial buildings we passed upon first entering town did their best to cheaply fake it, which winds up looking cookie-cutter-like and artificial. (I guess they succeeded)

We went in search of the Plaza, the main center of museums and cultural encounters, where the Georgia O'Keeffe museum is located, our ultimate destination. The plaza consists of a plentitude of shops and small galleries scattered along several blocks, a great place to unload lots and lots of cash. The buildings in the Plaza, whether newer or older, all resonated with the Pueblo influence. Great care had been taken, here, to blend the style of any newer structures with the surrounding ones. On a less-busy day, it would be a nice place to quietly stroll and contemplate, but since we were there on a weekend, it was filled with the tourist crowds. An interesting area of the plaza was a stretch of sidewalk, along the side of a long building, where native Pueblos, Navajos, perhaps others, are allowed to sell their wares. There's actually a sign designating that stretch of sidewalk as their sales territory. One right after the other are there with their handiwork displayed on tables or cloth on the ground. In my personal opinion, that's where I would prefer to spend my money. It was interesting to hear them explain the methods they used to make the items. I was dismayed at the low numbers of customers along this narrow strip of the plaza in comparison to the commercial stores.

The museum was inconspicuous and off to the side of the plaza, not what I would have expected for a tribute to someone who is so famous in the area. They were running a showing of Ansel Adams prints alongside O'Keeffe's paintings. In some instances, they had captured the same images since they had travelled to the location together for that very purpose. The differences in their views of those images was really interesting.

After getting our fix of O'Keeffe and Adams, we grabbed a bite to eat at a burrito restaurant, that was recommended by a woman who was outside the museum and playing with her grand-daughter, that's owned and run by the family of one of the local chiefs. It was an order at the counter and wait until your number is called kind of place, and the food was excellent.

Pleasantly full, we got back on the bike for the ride home. We planned to take the 41 back since we hadn't been that way before, but had trouble locating it. So, we headed back the way we came, besides, its a nice route.

Follow this link to a captioned SLIDESHOW