Two Days in Santa Fe

We spent two days in Santa Fe and the weather was wonderful.  Nice crisp fall temperatures, humidity non-existent (on Jackie’s curly/fuzzy hair scale we were definitely on the curly side).  Our first trip into town meant we had to find antifreeze and some fresh fruit and veggies.  Of course there was a Walmart, so that task was accomplished.  However, Santa Fe has very narrow streets with houses and landscaping close to the road that curve around and are often suddenly one-way.  It is a beautiful town, with all buildings done in an adobe style with courtyards and covered patios, everything brown, tan and orange and lots of native xeric landscaping. 

Parking is tricky and all paid.  We figured out the meter system this time (shades of our Chattanooga parking problems) and found a spot near the main square downtown to start our walkabout.  Lots of shops, lots of restaurants, many museums and art galleries and a lot of public art.  We wanted to have lunch at one of the breweries, but had to wait until 4 for them to open.  We did stop for ice cream and to rest, drank a small bottle of water and saw as much as we could.  Jackie was getting out of breath and feeling the elevation, and the shop owner mentioned a product called “Boost” that was canned oxygen.   We both soon realized that we had not had enough water to drink and the 7,000 ft elevation was taking its toll.  Since our parking meter was up and it was not yet even 3:00, we drove to a Walgreens and I bought 4 cans of Boost. Her pulse-ox was very low, so Jackie sucked a few bursts of the oxygen to get it back up, along with some water.  Getting better, but still low.  We drove to the Santa Fe Railyards where Second Street Brewery was and waited for it to open at 4, since we were pretty hungry.  

Jackie sat for a bit while I went off shooting pics, and we finally got inside the brewery to order WATER and dinner.  Beer was good (just for Doug, as Jackie was still light headed) and the meal was delicious.  I was able to upload the last post with pictures in between bites of the chicken enchilada plate (huge) and we just tried to recharge a bit.  The wait staff was great and overall we loved the spot.  The entire area is quite a transformation area and as you can see, they have a cool excursion train that departs from there.  Big spot for Saturday farmer’s market, too.

Getting back to camp, up the long, winding road into the mountains, we realized that we were camping at 9,000 ft elevation and hence our gasping.  In the motorhome Jackie checked her pulse-ox, hit the bed and I insisted she use her BIPAP machine.  Boost, water, BIPAP and rest seemed to help get it back into the 90’s.  We learned a lesson and were prepared to drown ourselves in water if we had to.

Second day in town we took much slower and our goal was the Georgia O’Keefe Museum and lunch at The Shed.  Well, the museum was on limited capacity (we stood in line, but it was not going to happen for us) so we scrubbed and went to lunch in this delightful courtyard restaurant.  Very colorful and just memorable.  We both gulped down glasses of water, but had a beer with lunch of course.  Two beef tacos for Doug and a Frito pie for Jackie.  Just the right amount of food and a relaxing lunch.  Back to the Jeep as the meter expired and off to find cheap-er gas.  Actually found a Kroger with gas so I got my discount of 20 cents a gallon.  Jeep was full and we were back at camp to catch our breath and clean up for departure in the morning.

Our new neighbor campers were a wonderful family from Oklahoma – the Spencers – with young children who just adored Kodi.  They managed to get plenty of licks from him and came over many times to pet him.  A really wonderful family (they left us a nice note before we left).  How they had the energy to ride bikes, hike and run around was mystifying.

We have had a lot of nice comments from our friends back home, and I thank them for following along. I enjoy keeping the blog and am especially heartened that folks actually read it. Marcie gets the prize for fastest read and response (must be the teacher in her). We are fine, yes we have had some glitches, but that’s what this is all about. Something different, and as my daughter would say, an appropriate retirement activity. Oh, and a shout out to our grandsons who seem to be having an amazing time .. Hi Wyatt. Hi Owen!