Southwest, 2005

Do a trip report here....go to another city and want to relate it to what KC is doing right or could do better? Give us a summary in here.
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Roanoker
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Re: Southwest, 2005

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Highlander wrote: I loathe Vegas though. 
When we went there in the late 90s, my then 20-something son commented after being handed a paper advertisement for a porn show and noticing walkways littered with zillions of such ads, "Las Vegas is a dung heap encrusted with glittery jewels."

But on this trip, we really enjoyed the cactus garden. Speaking of which...

Still strolling through the cactus garden.
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This is actually a picture within itself. It started out portrait-oriented. When I copied and pasted the 300dpi picture into a 72dpi "frame" for a background, I discovered how pretty the flowery sticks were. The area surrounding the focal plant was rather busy, so I lassoed it out. If you don't look all that close, the result is not too bad.
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This cactus is called "Boxing Glove." And you can see said gloves!
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Purple cactus.
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This one would be easy to miss.
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The sign said this cactus is Silvery Cholla.
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Small flowers deserve attention.
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Golden Barrel cactus.
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Let's take a step back.
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This one reminds me of the Disney Sorcerer's Apprentice where the brooms march with buckets of water.
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Back to the real world.
“Give up money, give up fame, give up science, give the earth itself and all it contains rather than do an immoral act.” —Thomas Jefferson (1785)
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Re: Southwest, 2005

Post by shinatoo »

My grandmother worked at Ethel M's in the 80's. I spent a lot of time in the cactus garden and ate a lot of chocolate.

You don't see Ethel M's much outside the area because they don't use preservatives.
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Re: Southwest, 2005

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shinatoo wrote: My grandmother worked at Ethel M's in the 80's. I spent a lot of time in the cactus garden and ate a lot of chocolate.
Wow! I bet you learned a lot about cactus...and chocolate.
You don't see Ethel M's much outside the area because they don't use preservatives.
As I recall, it was delicious. I think they would ship it in dry ice.

Anyway, no more cactus garden pictures after these.

Another experiment.
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This is one, portrait-oriented picture, copied, flipped, and pasted next to itself. The result seems to create animals in the center.
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I spent too much time with this one, trying to minimize the too-bright background. But I like grass.
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Ouch!
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Small excerpt of a larger picture.
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I have no idea what these are.
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Here's another portrait-oriented picture that took too much time for its worth.
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Now to find some real work to do.
“Give up money, give up fame, give up science, give the earth itself and all it contains rather than do an immoral act.” —Thomas Jefferson (1785)
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Re: Southwest, 2005

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Guess what. After sixty (60) weeks of twelve pictures each, this is the last week for this trip! Yaaaay! How fitting that Las Vegas marks the end.

I took this picture from our seen-better-days hotel room.
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I think Fremont Sreet was part of the original city.
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We can still see mountains.
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Strolling along Fremont Street late afternoon.
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We didn't realize until too late that the ceiling lit up at night with some sort of show. Oh, well.
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Gotta love the gaudy colors. (I do.)
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Famous place.
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Famous cowboy.
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Famous cowgirl.
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Last shot.
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We had to move our rental car to another garage and then drag our luggage several blocks because the streets around our hotel were closed off for a parade on the morning we checked out.

New trip next week!
“Give up money, give up fame, give up science, give the earth itself and all it contains rather than do an immoral act.” —Thomas Jefferson (1785)
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Re: Southwest, 2005

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We are close to embarking on a vacation similar to yours.  What do you recommend for Santa Fe New Mexico....Things to do, restaurants?  I've only passed through on several occasions and never spent any time there. 

It's an ambitious trip with climbing, hiking, caving planned along with a little splurging on restaurants in Santa Fe (and just a hellish amount of driving).  Any suggestions on Santa Fe would be appreciated. 
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Re: Southwest, 2005

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Highlander wrote: We are close to embarking on a vacation similar to yours.  What do you recommend for Santa Fe New Mexico....Things to do, restaurants?  I've only passed through on several occasions and never spent any time there. 

It's an ambitious trip with climbing, hiking, caving planned along with a little splurging on restaurants in Santa Fe (and just a hellish amount of driving).  Any suggestions on Santa Fe would be appreciated. 
You may remember that I posted pictures in my New Mexico thread. Santa Fe was our last stop on that trip, in September, 2009. I think this link will take you to the last page: http://forum.kcrag.com/index.php?topic=16205.40.

My notes don't say anything about where we ate. If you are at all interested in art, Santa Fe is the place to go. There are many galleries, and all of them seem to be excellent. It is definitely a place to walk around and take in all the variety.

I will ask my friend, who lives in New Mexico, if she knows of any good restaurants in Santa Fe.
“Give up money, give up fame, give up science, give the earth itself and all it contains rather than do an immoral act.” —Thomas Jefferson (1785)
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Re: Southwest, 2005

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Roanoker wrote: I will ask my friend, who lives in New Mexico, if she knows of any good restaurants in Santa Fe.
Highlander, my friend responded. Here is what she said:

Hi -  Tell them to head for the plaza, pick up a free city map at one of the vendors, which has listings for restaurants, galleries, ( Georgie O'Keefe gallery ) special attractions and streets, making it easy to find anything and everything.  Then start visiting the shops, ask the salespeople for restaurant suggestions.  Like everything else, restaurants can go up or down hill but the locals will usually know which ones are staying true to form.  Suggest they visit St. Francis Cathedral, ( famous spiral staircase ) which is on the plaza.  Off the plaza on Old Santa Fe Trail is San Miguel Mission ( the oldest church in the US )  I believe the oldest house is nearby on De Vargas St. and right by that 2 blocks off Old Santa Fe Trail is the State Capitol.  They can drive or walk these areas.  The Santa Fe Opera, second only to the NY Met,  is a few miles North of the plaza area... It is an open air theater that is just lovely, not sure if you can tour it now or not but they can find pictures of it.

  As for food.... it's been called ' The City Delicious, a culinary destination.... with more than 200 restaurants in a town with a population somewhere around 70,000. '  some of the more upscale places with nationwide attention are Geronimo, The Compound and Coyote Cafe ( with it's rooftop dining )
   
  Last summer [my daughter] and I went up and ate at  The Shed,  which is very popular with nearly everyone.  We were very disappointed in the green chile enchiladas ( which they are known for ) and the woman who worked at the Palace of  Governors ( a wonderful history museum on the plaza )  told me she had gotten sick after eating them a month earlier. I think their hamburgers and soft tacos are popular but I don't like soft tacos or burritos. I think people like their patio area and the dining rooms in the hacinda.  There's at least one place that offers Bison ( can't think of the name )  Ted Turner, the second largest landowner in NM, has a Bison ranch in the So. part of the State.  The old La Fonda Hotel ( on the plaza ) is a lovely place to brouse through and perhaps have a glass of wine or snack. If you need a break,  the atmosphere in the enclosed courtyard is calming.  Cowgirls ( BBQ ) is very poplular  but my personal favorite is Tomasitas... I love that place, never disappointed... it's just off the plaza by the Rail Runner shuttle depot.  Some friends and I took the Rail Runner up last year for my birthday dinner.  There is a sister restaurant ( of the Shed ) right by Tomasitas,  that is supposed to be better then the Shed with more variety, called La Choza.  Seems to me there was a another very good restaurant in that area, off the plaza. I think it's called Los Mayas.  Many years ago we went to the Ore House and the Bull Ring ( steakhouse)... they were the ' in '  places to eat and may still be winners.  Again, best to ask and get several opinions.  By the way, if  someone asks them ' red or green chile ?'  tell them to ask for a bowl of each, ' on the side, ' and then spoon it on the food themselves.  Usually  I prefer green on chicken and red on any beef dish.  The salsa ( common snack )  is good on the tacos or for dipping with chips.

  There are various bus tours that can be picked up from the plaza that offer a nice tour around the town focusing on interesting locations and quaint little side streets and homes that are off the plaza area. 
 
  Tell them I truly hope they enjoy their visit to the Land of Enchantment and all that Santa Fe has to offer.
“Give up money, give up fame, give up science, give the earth itself and all it contains rather than do an immoral act.” —Thomas Jefferson (1785)
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Re: Southwest, 2005

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Highlander, when do you plan to visit Santa Fe? This is probably not a good time to go there. Here is what my friend (who lives in Albuquerque) said in an email this morning:

I've been hearing planes (probably air tankers) going over all day, they must be trying a different approach with the fires. The weather patterns play a large part in how they can fight them. They've been trying to save the ski lift but I think I heard on the news last night they lost a good portion of it while trying to keep the fire from Los Alamos and the labs. The National Guard are looking out for looters and any other would-be problems. People are anxious to get back in, but officials say it is not safe yet. They are trying to keep the hospital ER open with skeleton crews for anyone who needs medical help and get all essential services up and running before letting people return. This is now the State's largest fire on record. The two previous, big ones burned 92,500 and 94,580 acres. As of yesterday this fire has burned over 100,000 acres and was only 5% contained.

The paper said 1/3 of the picturesque main valley of the Valle Caldera's 89,000 acres have burned. 10,000 acres within the main preserve have burned. No structures lost, but there could be a terrible impact on the wildlife habitat, including stream quality and all of the recreational activities. Meanwhile, it's burned onto the Santa Clara Pueblo. No houses have been lost but their watershed was threatened and  their sacred land areas have been destroyed.

I think there were 8 or 9 fires going at one time this week in both the Northern and Southern parts of the State. Meanwhile, Sen. Udall was telling people not to avoid NM for their vacations. "We are still open for business!"  Personally, I'd pick Carmel!  You should see the sky here today. It looks very bad and visibility is terrible. I can't even see any of the planes that have flown over. They take off from here and fly low to Santa Fe.

I was just reading that many of these firefighters came here directly from fighting the AZ fire, which by the way burned a half million acres and is now 95% contained.  These people go from one fire to another with only a short break between fires.  They are working from 6:00 AM to 10:00 PM, with 2 days off after working 14 straight days. For many, this is their fourth assignment since April. There are over 1,200 here from all over the country. Most wildfire crews, funded by federal government fire-fighting efforts earn something like $12.00 to $18.00 per hour. Any team assignd to the fire line gets a 25% hazard bonus. Firefighters are paid overtime if they work more then 8 hours a day. What a horrible job hauling hoses, axes, shovels, chain saws and all kinds of equipment with 100 degree temps in all of that heavy smoke. Then they get a hot meal from a mobile unit and sleep in tents! God Bless the firefighters. With all of this going on can you believe the Governor and the Mayor can't stop the sale of fireworks? They are pleading with people not to buy form the stands that are around the city. The grocery and other kinds of stores have pulled theirs off the shelves but the makeshift stands are still sitting on lots. 

Then yesterday some disturbed 14 yr old kid climbed the fence to the "closed" and patrolled bosque area and started a fire, which was quickly spotted and put out. The bosque is in the Valley and it's full of dry bushes and trees lining each side of the Rio Grande for miles. Gobs of homes line that area, too. Everyone is concerned about it catching fire (not to mention our mountains). Because it's so dry, it's been closed for a couple of weeks to the usual hikers, bikers and fishermen. It's usually a lovely place to stroll along to enjoy nature, especially if there's some water in the river! Occasionally, lightning or some homeless person has started a fire but normally it can be controlled when conditions aren't this bad. The boy was caught and I'd sure hate to be in his shoes.
“Give up money, give up fame, give up science, give the earth itself and all it contains rather than do an immoral act.” —Thomas Jefferson (1785)
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Re: Southwest, 2005

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Roanoker wrote: Highlander, when do you plan to visit Santa Fe? This is probably not a good time to go there. Here is what my friend (who lives in Albuquerque) said in an email this morning:
Thanks for the info...both about the fire and the city.  Unfortuantely, I did not get to read that before leaving so we ended up in Santa Fe the day before the fire started in the Los Alamos area.  Later in the day that the fire started, Santa Fe got pretty smoky and when we left the next morning, we had a thin layer of ash all over our car.  We had planned to visit Los Alamos and Bandalier on the way to Taos but cancelled that part of the journey and stayed ahead of the smoke into Taos.  It's dry as a bone throughout much of the SW ....  111 degrees when we were in Carlsbad and the temprerature discouraged our planned attempt to climb Guadalupe Peak.  Anyway, we experienced a lot of smoke all the way to the Colorado border on subsequent days but it added to some great sunsets in the Mesa Verde area.  I have some nice pictures of the smoke plume from Los Alamos. 

Santa Fe has a great restaurant scene.  With the kids along, we didn't dare venture into some of the more high priced venues but did go several "mid" priced places including Cowgirl BBQ which is much better than the name implies.  After fattening up in somewhat pretentious Santa Fe, we had a great time hiking in several western national parks. 
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