Day 6 (Friday, August 30, 2019), made it from Tucumcari, through Santa Fe and to Albuquerque with enough time to write a proper entry.
Before I begin, I do have one question. Why do Broadway musicals think Santa Fe is THE place head west destination? Newsies and Rent both have songs about heading west to Santa Fe and now having been there I honestly don’t get it. Granted, we did not have much time to explore, but the traffic at 1 pm on a Friday was horrendous, there is zero parking, and the sidewalks were packed. It was like Chicago but the buildings are shorter and there’s less steel. We had lunch (once we could find a decent place that had seating or didn’t cost an arm & a leg), wandered around for a bit and then headed out because our parking meter was up. We tried to check out the basilica but there was a wedding going on, so no outsiders allowed. If shopping for heavy wool blankets in 95 degree heat is your thing, then definitely check out Santa Fe.
On a more pleasant reflection, the highlight of today was watching the terrain change from flat dust to sharp cornered mesas in the distance to the beginnings of softer edged mountains. Keep in mind, I’m a complete midwestern plains girl, so to me they’re mountains. To anyone else, they’d probably just be considered hills.
This morning, we enjoyed breakfast at “Kix on 66” and so did everyone else who stayed in The Blue Swallow. This really is becoming a community of travelers. On our way out of town we stopped at the Tucumcari Route 66 Museum, but not before having to make our first U-turn. It’s not our fault! The museum is BEHIND the Tucumcari Convention Center and the signage is really poor. But they did have a great collection of classic cars, with a couple even for sale. Unfortunately, I don’t think a 1931 Buick would fit in my luggage on the plane home.
As we headed out, we noticed the red Challenger of the people who stayed next to us at the hotel following behind us. They followed us for a few hours until we had to pull off and get gas. WORD OF WARNING, if you ever do this trip, be sure fill up often. You never know where you next gas station (or bathroom) will be.
We decided to take the older Route along the “Santa Fe Loop” instead of the newer Route that goes along I-40. It’s a much longer drive, but it took us through some really cute towns. Of course there were a few not-so-cute ones too, but that’s what you get on this ride. There were not really any viable side trips today, unless we had a good off-roading vehicle. The side trips options were to a lot of dead end spurs on dirt or gravel roads. I know, I know, where’s our sense of adventure.
As we get closer to the New Mexico/Arizona boarder, I have noticed the NM has the cutest Route 66 signs, but the state/counties are severely lacking in their use. We’ve gone over 300 miles in the state and I can probably count on my two hands the number of signs I’ve seen. And they are not exactly in helpful locations either. Thankfully, todays route was fairly direct so I think we only had to turn around 3 or 4 times.
Albuquerque is an interesting town. At first glance, it kind of has the feel of an adobe covered Schaumburg. But then, you start walking down Central Avenue and realize it has more bars and clubs to create the feel of a college town, and then add to it the guy using rolling down the side walk on his pimped out Divy scooter. He literally had a two foot tall speaker perched on the scooter which was blasting out his tunes while he sat on top of it and just rolled along.
Dinner was at Lindy’s Diner. A diner (partially turned bar) that was originally opened in 1929. It is the oldest diner still in operation along the New Mexico section of Route 66. What has been lost in its retro feel, was made up for with the delicious food and good service. When we asked for ginger ale, our waiter (Steve) said they didn’t carry any so he ran to the store next door and got a bottle for us. My burger was simple but fantastic and Mom’s BLT was bigger than her head. Her plan to have something small failed miserably.
Back at the hotel we were greeted by a concert going on in the lobby. Not sure who or what their style was supposed to be, but it sounded good and carried all the way up the 7th floor where our room is. Thankfully, the sound had faded by the time we got into our room. I love a good concert, but not after driving ALL day long. Only some good zzz’s keep the road rage monsters away.
Tomorrow we head to Gallup, NM. I have no idea what’s in Gallup or what’s on the way, but that’s the point of the adventure. Until the next chapter!
Journey On 