Fall's Twilight - Santa Fe

 Our first night in Santa Fe, the night was brisk with early winter air.  We were unprepared for this chilly exhibition of cold weather.  Sure, we had packed jackets, and pants for that matter, but at less than 30 degrees, the weather exceeded our wardrobe's chill threshold.  We walked directly from our hotel (Hotel Santa Fe), and across to the rail-yards, an area filled with art studios and converted buildings with razor sharp modern facades.  We noted the REI, and knew that it would be a miracle to go 4 nights in Santa Fe without handing over some dough to those people. 

Believe it or not, we went to REI with intentions of purchasing 1 item - swim-trunks.  I know this seems antithetical to the chronicle of shattering teeth and cold chapped hands that I laid out before you prior, but there is an explanation for this.  Our hotel has an excellent outdoor jacuzzi, and we fantasized about laying back in 104 degree water while breathing smoke like a couple of spa dragons.  Since I would have looked like a backwoods baboon taking on the water in my denims, trunks were the only solution.

With the swimwear season a long faded horizon at this point, deals were to be had and on the meager remainders for those with flexible tastes.  I picked up a pair of black board-shorts that fit perfectly, and that should have been the end of our shopping experience.  It wasn't.  By the time we had finally exited REI, we were speaking well worn justifications and wearing brand new winter coats.  It was cold after all, and the Patagonia stuff was on sale.

We took to the gorgeous Santa Fe plaza in the twilight of this late Fall evening.  We could almost smell the snow a few weeks off, and a barbecue in the distance filled the air with a cold nostalgia that I always seem to find in late October.  Our new down jackets snuggled us with warmth while each breath dramatically represented itself as a huff of expelled carbon, vanishing into the dark New Mexican evening.  As we passed by Saint Francis cathedral, an old vagabond approached.  Noting my camera draped across my body, he instructed that I follow him up to the entrance of  Saint Francis.  He had something to show me.  At the keystone of the entrance is a Hebrew Tetragrammaton.  Apparently, the archbishop ran out of money during the cathedral's building, and Spanish Jews supplied the money to finish the building.  He told me it was a very rare instance, and that this made this cathedral exceedingly unique.

 

We moved on through the plaza, searching for a place to rest and take in some regional grub.  Santa Fe has remarkable food.  Using locally sourced organics and world class green hatch chilies, the food takes on a Southwestern New Mexican identity that is grown out and evolved from tradition Mexican cuisine.

We found our spot for dinner, The Shed.  We sat up at the bar while waiting for a table, and met a fellow traveler named Aaron.  We talked about volunteering in India, crisscrossing South America, and other adventures that he had spent his life accumulating.  We told him about our plans to head up to Taos the following day.  He instructed us to take "The High Road to Taos," which is a route that passes through many small villages.  One of the villages, Chimayo, is renowned for its small church that is built on ground with magical dirt.  Many sick people pray at the Santuario de Chimayo and find themselves relieved of their maladies.  As such, discarded crutches line one of the walls of the cathedral, purportedly left behind by those that arrived hobbled and walked away healed.

We did not need any more convincing.  We would go first thing in the morning. 

 HDR train at the rail-yard, Santa Fe's rail service generates over 20 million in losses per year

 A parking garage never warranted a photo before 

 St. Francis church 

 Kristin 

 Hebrew tetragrammaton on church 

The facade of the church with the great New Mexico sky 

 Indian statue

 I really like this cathedral 

The streets around the plaza.  It was pretty quiet.  The high season begins in late November.

The entrance to The Shed courtyard, great food at this place, I will explore it in a later post

Bric a brac

I saw these antlered statues everywhere

Very classic

The sun peaking out from behind me casting a deep shadow 

Every little shop looks interesting 

There are zoning laws that require adobe architecture around Santa Fe plaza 

La Fonda - a great hotel 

The plaza attracts lots of dirtbag adventurers with huge backpacks. I think they may sleep there.  They had a look like you were walking through their living room.

More adobe 

The mountains beyond the city 

It was a really quiet evening 

A French bakery.  We would eat here for breakfast and resent our decision.

 Burro Alley 

Sun setting beyond the state capital 

Funky light store

Ducati at right is flipbags gnarl

A man and his belongings 

Sort of odd, I saw a ton of old school VW bugs

A row of shops beyond the rainbow man 

Night approaches 

My favorite time of day to take pictures is right after the sun goes down, in the quarter light 

Full circle, back to the masssive cathedral 

Glowing Injun

And I give to thee with mine wolf, pretty sure this is St. Francis and his pooch

Not too straight 

Looks like a great place to part with your wallet, but Santa Fe is very safe at night.  Lots of independent woman travelers visit here.  Hell, I think I was the only male at our hotel.

Palace and Cathedral 

Goodnight Santa Fe

A statue I passed on the way back to our hotel 

I should really take pictures of more humans

There was probably a no here at one point, genius 

A little bar 

 Love this car with the mural 

 a live show, it was at Corazon in Santa Fe, avoid this place, the door people were total pricks to me 

Dogs of Santa Fe - The Great Furmonsters of the Southwest

I have quite a few updates to do about our recent trip to Santa Fe.  I am going to try and do one per day, maybe more, perhaps less.  Santa Fe blew us away.  So much so in fact, we have already looked at apartments and scouted jobs in the region.  Some recurring themes such as great food, unique architecture, art, nice people, lots of dogs, and gorgeous surroundings planted Santa Fe as one of our favorite places in the world.  For this entry though, I will speak only of dogs.

With goboogo.com, it is a common theme for me to include a daily picture of a dog that is crowned "Furmonster of the Day."  Through this feature, a diverse array of four legged furmonsters have been appointed champion in countries all over the world.  In Santa Fe, the sheer magnitude of canine personalities moved me to include an entire entry about the friends we met while in Santa Fe.

 After walking around the plaza and seeing all stripe and badge of dog, we knew Santa Fe was a great dog town, but it was not until Friday evening that we stumbled upon the motherlode.  While footing it to a nearby restaurant for dinner, we walked passed a shop called Zoe and Guido's, a very chic and fun pet boutique.  We saw a sign in the window, "Small dog Halloween Party 6-9."  After basking in the splendor of this serendipity, we pulled open the door and waltzed into a haven filled with small costumed dogs.  We had missed the rush, which was disappointing, but had a great time visiting with the remaining party animals.  We were also informed of a costume contest to be held the following afternoon.  We were so there.

 The contest the following day was a great time.  A giant named Hugo (Saint Bernard) wont the costume contest, but all applicants seemed to shine in their own way.  There was Maggie the poodle dressed up as a skeleton and Coco the devil.  The owner of the boutique, dressed as Ms. Havisham, presided over the contest with several other human admirers.  It was a great time. Below are pictures from all over Santa Fe. 

 A distant cousin of Libby's searched for scraps in Chimayo

 This fella in Taos gave my camera the eye 

 One of our favorite furmonsters of the trip was Ella, this gray poodle named after Ella Fitzgerald 

 She was big girl and just loved attention 

 Great smile and check out her eyelashes

 Hard not to love this face 

 One moment you are sitting around staring at humans 

The next you are meeting similar friends in Santa Fe plaza

 A goldendoodle or "dood" saunters up and shows off his golden locks

 This papillon looking Chihuahua was traveling with its owners through Santa Fe.  He was really curious about the camera.

 A Welsh Corgi suspiciously glances back

 I love this little Pomeranian's markings 

 He looks like he has a head of hair!

 A poodle apprehensively looks on at the festivities, from the outskirts

 This is precious Maggie dressed up as a skeleton 

 A smiling poodle with a silver party hat 

 The canine handshake 

 This little one was having a great time at the little dog party party

 I believe this guy placed in the top 3 at the costume contest 

 The owner of Zoe and Guido's, dressed as Ms. Havisham 

 A little rescue poodle with her owner 

 Hugo, the St. Bernard, getting dressed up for a convincing run at the championship 

 Spiderman and a lizard 

 A firefighter trots by 

 Saying hello

 There were two Spiderdogs, this one 

 And this shy cute pup

 Coco defiantly wearing her horns around her neck 

 The full costume, with a little help 

 Hugo is crowned champion.   He basks in the afterglow of his accomplishment with this massive bonety.  He sat like this in the middle of the store for several minutes; his prize laid out for all to admire.

 Hugo is a managing partner of "Fido's Bed and Biscuit," a bed and breakfast for dogs in Santa Fe

 Peaking through his ghost holes 

 The little poodle finally warmed up to me 

 The poodles bodyguard sniffed at me suspiciously, finally letting me pass 

 I was granted an awkward handshake from her highness

 

Maggie and her owner say goodbye to us 

Bert's Burger Bowl - Santa Fe, New Mexico

As with most travel days, the morning came to soon.  We rose a little passed 3am, and slowly zombied our way through the morning operations:  breakfast, grumbling, cups of orange juice, cold shoulders, commuting, removing shoes, veiled sarcasm, waiting, boarding flights, fighting for the elbow rest with portly grey strangers, landing, and thrashing onto the open road northbound in a wimpy little Chevy Cobalt - care of the Albuquerque Budget Rental Car.  With 2 flights and a robust morning of happenings behind us, the devil was in the detail of the time - 9:45am.  As we tore through the desertish shrublands towards Santa Fe, I resented the amount of life we had already crammed into this extended morning.  Our accomplishments were worn with a grimace and a our growling stomachs spoke tales of malnourishment.  

We were famished.  Food was needed and fast.  As our car alighted with Santa Fe proper, we began scanning buildings for a den of sustenance.  We happened upon a ramshackle abode with promise and a heady "as seen on tv" endorsement.  One of those shows, with one of those guys, that talks about food, had gone ahead and extended to the world a recommendation that we accepted as we peeled open the weathered teal door.  It was going to be chili burgers.  My god, it had to be.

This restaurant, Bert's Burger Bowl, is one of those hole in the wall establishments that locals adore and travelers embrace.  Using the locally sourced chilies, Berts has created a burger concoction that bears a familiar badge - chili burger, yet it is not the usual sloppy concoction.  No sir, this chili burger is made using green hatch chilies and a familiar cast of characters - cheese, beef, tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, a slightly charred structural bun, and a little bit of mustard.  The whole experience is unbelievably balanced, each ingredient is noticeable with nothing overpowering.  The burger is humble, simple, and perfect.  The meat is thin and tender, a part of the whole.  The green chilies are the true star, and they add a kick that takes this burger to addictive new heights.  I dipped my burger in the Bert's red chili sauce, and that took the taste up a glorious notch.  All in Bert's is a fantastic hole in the wall, and if you find yourself in Santa Fe, find yourself a Bert's burger.   

Bert's burger bowl is in Santa Fe, New Mexico.  The green chili burger is about 3 bucks.  Open 8am - 7pm, Monday-Friday and 10:30am - 5pm on Sunday.   

Buns and green chili

More behind the scenes with the stars 

Bert's has no indoor seating, just a little counter to munch at.  There are plenty of outdoor tables, but it was too cold for us to sit out there.

Damn good fries with spicy Bert's red sauce 

The burger 

 Happiness is this right here