Santa Fe Week 4

Ed and I took advantage of having Lola in town to babysit while we headed to Ten Thousand Waves - a Japanese-inspired spa in the mountains of Santa Fe. We rented a private outdoor room, the "Ichiban",  complete with individual ceramic hot tubs, an outdoor shower, sauna, indoor Japanese style shower and, last but not least, a Japanese style toilet that has all the buttons to do everything for you (and yes, we tried them - how could you not???) It was a relaxing indulgence on a beautiful night. It was great to be in the hot tub with the mountains as your backdrop.

The last week in Santa Fe, the boys were enrolled in a tennis & sports camp for 4 hours/day which also gave Lola and I some shopping time around town. We checked out Canyon Road and well, pretty much everywhere. We also saw some sights such as the famous spiral staircase at Loretto Chapel (it is an architectural marvel with no central support). Made me think you you, Marc - you would've liked it : )

In our time in Santa Fe, Ed connected with tennis legend Jim Parker who is the nation's #1 winningest player of all time (at any age). He was 70 and still kicked Ed's butt! We played at an indoor, underground private tennis court on the grounds of the founder of the WTTA. It was beautiful and filled with photographic memorabilia of tennis greats. I know Ed enjoyed getting tips from him.

there's a tennis court inside there????

On Thursday while the kids were in camp, Ed and I drove Linda to the Albuquerque Airport. With time to spare on our way back, we couldn't help but stop at the casino we passed. It was fun to play some blackjack, but it would've been more fun to walk away winners...

On Friday, we began our 3 day journey back to Austin, but that's for another post...

Santa Fe Week 3

In our 3rd week in Santa Fe, Ed flew out on a business trip and Lola arrived later that same day, both from the Albuquerque Airport, so I took the kids to the Albuquerque Zoo in between. It was a hot, hot day so we got to see lots of panting animals resting in the shade. They also had a train ride that went throughout one side of the zoo so of course we had to take that.

I spy a giraffe

My personal favorite, the baby chimp

The kids were happy to see Lola and for our first day together, we visited El Rancho de las Golondrinas, a Spanish & Mexican colonial resting stop that transports you back in time the way things were hundreds of years ago. (Basically the Mexican Williamsburg with costumed people). The compound consisted of several areas, and the kids got to see what living conditions were like and how they ground corn, wove textiles, and raised sheep among other things. Life was a lot simpler before air conditioning and XBox...

the boys learn how to grind beans with a stone

These boys are almost as tall as the door frames!

they said they prefer their beds to this lumpy, skinny one

After Ed got back in town, he and I went on a 2 hour sunset horseback ride. We agreed afterwards that 1 hour would've been enough as our bodies were hurting from the saddle : ) We rode through the very canyons where Billy the Kid evaded the law and where "Young Guns" was shot. The scenery was beautiful and while it wasn't the clearest sunset, the thunderstorm that rolled up close by provided dramatic views of lightening and sheets of rain, just far enough in the distance to keep us dry. It was hill after hill of pretty views and our horses George and Jack were good followers of our guide, Sequoia.

We went to the Farmers & Artist Markets and also checked out a Johnny Cash cover band at the Railyard one night, but a thunderstorm rolled in a little too close.

That weekend, we headed to Badelier National Monument, where you could climb into ancient cave rooms inside the mountain walls where settlements from the 12th century lived. We hiked through the remains of their civilization and saw kivas (walled gathering places for ceremonies) and stone walls that marked where their storage and housing had been. The kids liked climbing up the ladders and completed a packet to earn a Junior Ranger Badge and patch.

hello lizard