January 30, 2009


We were very happy to find ourselves in the dry desert after the ice storm fiasco. I NOW hope I don't see snow for a very long time. Unfortunately, we had to drive through Texas in order to get to New Mexico because there was no way that I was going to spend any more time in Texas than I had to. We ended up finding a very nice hotel in the town of Tucumcari.

Tucumcari is a preserved New Mexican town with such a beautiful legend to go along with it (the below is from Wikipedia):
Legend has it that Apache Chief Wautonomah was nearing the end of his time on earth and was troubled by the question of who would succeed him as ruler of the tribe. In a classic portrait of love and competition, his two finest braves, Tonopah and Tocom, were not only rivals and sworn enemies of one another, but were both vying for the hand of Kari, Chief Wantonomah's daughter. Kari knew her heart belonged to Tocom. Chief Wautonomah beckened Tonopah and Tocom to his side and announced, "Soon I must die and one of you must succeed me as chief. Tonight you must take your long knives and meet in combat to settle the matter between you. He who survives shall be the Chief and have for his squaw, Kari, my daughter." As ordered, the two braves met, with knives outstretched, in mortal combat. Unknown to either brave was the fact that Kari was hiding nearby. When Tonopah's knife found the heart of Tocom, the young squaw rushed from her hiding place and used a knife to take Tonopah's life, as well as her own. When Chief Wautonomah was shown this tragic scene, heartbreak enveloped him and he buried his daughter's knife deep into his own heart, crying out in agony, "Tocom-Kari"!



This was a wonderful introduction to our time spent in the state of New Mexico. After we checked out of the hotel we found an authentic Southwestern Grill called Del's and settled in for a hearty meal of Burritos and Chimichangas. We were both feeling a bit stuffed up so we found a pharmacy to pick up some Sudafed and grabbed a few waters for the drive to Santa Fe.



Santa Fe was not at all what I expected. It has the feel of a pretentious resort town. It was a self-sufficient community of chain stores and restaurants. There was a historic plaza where you could walk around and take pictures of the authentic adobe architecture but the stores were filled with jewelry and expensive artifacts. There were also quite a few art galleries. I envisioned a rustic atmosphere with mountains, cacti and desert as far as the eyes could see. This was not the case.



The only thing rustic about our stay in Santa Fe was the hostel. This was the most commune style of a hostel we have stayed in yet. The door to the room had at least a full two inches cut out of it. The roof was slanted. The heater smelled of propane and the bathroom toilet ran for five minutes after flushing. We were also shown around by a guy who can only be compared to Ozzy Osbourne. You couldn't understand a word he said, he talked quietly, mumbled and shuffled around. He was also very judgemental about us passing through and not staying there for more than one night. He did however give us one fantastic recommendation of a walk up this mountain where you could see the sunset. That was how we knew we had finally arrived to the west.



After a disappointing meal at Cowgirl Cafe (the second suggestion made by Ozzy) we headed back to our hovel and went to bed early. Our stuffed up noses were turning into colds and we wanted to get a good night's sleep to feel better in the morning.
All is quiet on the western front.
Emily