July 21, 2021

Madrid, NM to Madrid, NM

As I hear Jason fumbling into the bathroom with all of the grace any of us have when walking in the middle of the night, I crack my eye open to see an orange sliver of light against the kitchen cabinets. I peered out the window and was awestruck by the most beautiful sunrise just beginning to take over, barely after 5:30am.

I threw on a sweatshirt as it was 60 degrees outside this early in New Mexico and with Bear and Patch and my camera in tow we sat on the rocks and gazed. This is why we chose this place.

Jason crept over to us and grabbed some photos too. We already feel so much better after the running around since leaving Nashville. What a start to the day.

J, the owner, had told us about the canyon hike and the property lines, and with a map in hand we took off before 7am to explore. Anyone who knows me is probably very confused right now. I know. I am not a morning person at all. Ever. But New Mexico challenges everything you think you know about yourself.

The pups were off and exploring as this place has a very reasonable leashing policy of having them under voice command. We kept them fairly close as we didn’t want them to meet a rattlesnake friend (spoiler alert: we saw no rattlesnakes while in NM).

During the hike Jason reminded me that he slammed the door shut in the middle of the night. At the time, I didn’t think much of it as the door is difficult to close from the inside. He tells me the tale of how he heard coyotes howling and chattering so he shut the door so the dogs wouldn’t wake and let their presence be known by returning the chatter. So we have some company!

Jason and I brought yoga mats with us to help stretch out after these longs drives. Yoga Daddy, as Patch refers to him when he does his stretching routine, came out this morning and Patch was just as intrigued as always. Jason looked peaceful and kept encouraging her so she was happy too.

Our plans for the day were to head back into Santa Fe to the Plaza. This is a great area filled with shops and restaurants along with the Palace of the Governor’s where merchants sell their wares outside under a covered patio.

On the way home from Santa Fe the night before we noticed some overlooks we wanted to stop at today (without and impending storm up our butts). We stopped at this structure and Jason had as able to get some great shots of bird nest nestled into the openings.

Jason let me drive into Santa Fe as he looked up information and places to go. We arrived at the Plaza and I needed to parallel park this monster of a truck. By some stroke of true luck, I was able to accomplish the task with more grace than expected.

And I was immediately rewarded for my good fortune. Instantly, I spot an owl painted on the barrier across from where I parked. Yessssss. This is a good sign! Then, we’re not even 20 ft away and this gorgeous yellow butterfly swoops in front of me and lingers to say hello. Ahhhhh I can’t even! Just a few months back I had a yellow butterfly tattooed onto me with gemstones representing my friends who helped me through a difficult year last year. In Maine last summer, while working up to 70 hours a week in preparation for back to school, a yellow butterfly was constantly around me. I meditated on the moment each time, ensuring that I reminded myself that no matter how stressed I was, I needed to find moments to breathe. Right now, I feel pretty. Euphoric. I’m in my favorite state to visit, with my pups and Jason, it’s a gorgeous day, I’m wearing my vegan Adidas Superstars, and I’ve just passed a beautiful painted owl and interacted with a yellow butterfly. We turn the corner and all I hear Jason say is, “Is this for real?” We are staring right at a store called Good Folk and the entire two windows of the shop are FULL of owls. I made him take a picture of my bliss.

We wandered the Plaza for a short time before Jason spotted some artwork that he liked. We spoke to the creator and his wife and himself both made types of art. He walked away for now but I knew he would return for the painted piece of the church in Chimayo that was on his NM bucket list.

We met some nice people and had good conversations but nothing jumped out at us to buy. I’ve been on the lookout for skirts and Jason, eclectic as always, has been on the hot pursuit of vintage clothing.

Jason returned to the artist and bought the painting. The pups and I watched from a park bench as Jason also looked at what the merchants were selling in the Palace of the Governors. Returning empty handed, we headed back to the car in search of delicious food.

Our lovely friends Kevin and Chris had suggested a place close by, La Choza. It had outdoor seating and strong drinks, so naturally we took their advice. Jason hates waiting but we did today for about 30 minutes until we could sit outside with the pups. They guided us through a flowery oasis to a back patio and we totally forgot about the wait.

We grabbed the chips with salsa and guac to start. Then, I took an odd route and went with the pozole. I have never had hominy before but I will absolutely be trying to find these beans at home! Deliciousness! It was hot soup on a hot day, so I went with the vegetable tostada for my meal. Crispy and packed with flavor! Also featuring myself as a glutton for punishment with my jalapeño margarita!

We stopped next in the Ghost Town of Cerrillos on the way back to Madrid. Maybe a mile away, it’s pretty barren of a town. We drove around and grabbed pictures, loving the unique doors on some of the houses. Jason also found a cemetery and took some pictures there too.

Back at the campsite, we took a short siesta before heading into town for dinner. We don’t typically want to be eating out twice in a day, but we missed out on going out last night due to the flood warnings so we didn’t want to miss out totally on the local places.

We went to the Mineshaft Tavern/ Cantina because it’s one of the very few places to eat here. No vegan items on the menu so I was going to be winging it. Walking up, we hear Bingo numbers being called out. Oh man. I like bingo. I do. I have many memories of playing bingo with my grandmother and asking her if she won whenever I talked to her. But sometimes, Bingo can be quite boring. I wasn’t totally up for this but still we took a seat and I began my fun game of “how do I make this vegan?” The waitress was busy and I felt slightly annoyed with my line of questioning. I ended up being able to have a sandwich with grilled veggies and avocado so I took the chance.

Okay, back to Bingo. This wasn’t Grandma Corey’s church bingo. This was drunk bingo. All of the locals were here, and they were bouncing from table to table greeting each other and calling each other out on things. Two dogs roamed freely around, happily accepting pets or scraps. The atmosphere was vibrant, but wow! We didn’t play right away, choosing to people watch while we ate. As the hour went on, the commentary got more comfortable and slurred. Definitely more of a stand up comedian than a usual bingo caller. They announced that the money was all going to their community garden so Jason and I jumped into the game. I’m glad we stuck with it because we had a blast!