Bonus Post (5/5/22): A Day in Santa Fe
It’s a rest day, so no progress report, but we had such a nice day I wanted to capture what we did. Truth be told, I’m finding this blog to be incredibly useful. There are just so many things I want to remember about this journey that aren’t going to make it into my long-term memory unless it’s documented. I hope the detail isn’t too much.
We started our day with breakfast with a new friend, Dean Johnson. Dean was vacationing in San Diego in March when the article about my ride was published in the San Diego Union-Tribune. He reached out and said he’d like to meet us when he was back home in Santa Fe. An objective of our trip is to meet as many new people as we can, so his invitation was a no brainer. Although we’re in one of the southwestern cuisine capitals of the world (see dinner below), we had breakfast at a great French café in downtown Santa Fe. We had a great conversation with Dean about life in Santa Fe, the ride, our travels, his and his wife’s travels, and our families. Dean was so kind and gave us a copy of the latest New Mexico magazine, a jar of chili sauce, and a beautiful wood carving he completed using wood from local juniper tree wood. A delightful start to a great day. Thanks Dean.
Santa Fe is just lovely. We were here 4 years ago at Thanksgiving and really liked it. The Spring here, though, is marvelous. We’re at 7,000 feet so there are all sorts of trees and vegetation in bloom. The place just smells and looks great. It was another crisp day with unbelievably blue sky. We wandered the streets and took in the shops, architecture, and cuisine most of the afternoon. I couldn’t have asked for a better rest day activity.
We had dinner at The Shed which served as Robert Oppenheimer’s secret office during the Manhattan Project. All of the people on the project were required to interview with him there prior to being let on the project. Regardless of its history, The Shed has awesome fish tacos. Unlike San Diego, where the norm is beer battered fish, The Shed simply takes Pacific Cod filets and seasons them in a butter garlic marinade. So delicious. It was a recommendation from Scott, and we were not disappointed.
What I’m Grateful for Today
More new friends. We set out to be more active social butterflies on this trip and we seem to be making progress.
Relaxation. Strolling and eating was a perfect way to take a break from the road.
You reading this blog. I can’t believe how many people are checking out our progress regularly.
A little diversion tomorrow. More to come…