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What’s the saying…when something is very appealing?
It’s the Cat’s Meow!
With all there is experience in New Mexico, I can say that phrase it is most appropriate.
After the long drive to Chaco Canyon, you would thing that we would have wanted to sleep in on the next morning. No way! There was too much to see and do and then, we needed to get to Santa Fe!
Rising early, we packed up, check out and headed to Petroglyph National Monument, one of the largest petroglyph sites in North America. Since there are four different trail systems, we chose the trail that appeared to offer the most petroglyph viewing, Piedras Marcadas Canyon. Parking in the adjacent lot, we grabbed out water and headed out onto the trail.
The path was easy and flat, marked with guide lines on either side, to keep hikers off of the fragile desert growth. Before long, we found ourselves alongside the rocky hills that arose from the desert floor. It took a few moments to decipher what we were supposed to be looking for but we soon began to spot the images carved into the rocks.
The petroglyphs we spied were created by the ancestors of modern Pueblo people as far back as the year 1300, by carefully removing the desert varnish with hand-held stone tools to expose the lighter color of the basalt’s interior. Centuries of weathering cause the older petroglyphs to oxidize and darken. As we now knew what to look for, it soon became easier to spot the various human figures, animals and geometric designs along the one and a half mile route.
All in all, we spent about an hour and a half out and about before completing the circuit. Deciding that there was not enough time to do another trail, we moved on.
Next up was Old Town Albuquerque.
The downtown area is comprised of approximately 150 individually owned and operated businesses, situated around the main plaza, the square and birthplace of the city in 1706. This plaza reminded me so much of the ones found in many Latin American countries with numerous people lounging on the benches around the gazebo. With so many shops, restaurants and galleries in the immediate area, we took our time doing a little shopping, grabbing a bite to eat and taking lots of photos.
One of the places I wanted to see most was San Felipe de Neri Catholic Church, one of the oldest surviving buildings in the city and the only building in Old Town dating back to the Spanish colonial period. The current church replaced the original which collapsed during the winter of 1972. I would imagine the interior exhibited European qualities, but sadly it nor the museum were not open during our visit.
San Felipe de Neri Catholic Church
Keeping an eye on the clock as we were heading to Santa Fe, we found one more place of interest, the Breaking Bad Store ABQ. Although I had no knowledge of the television series, I thought that maybe there would be some interesting souvenirs for my sons. What we discovered, however, was that this was not only a store, but a small museum of sorts dedicated to the series Breaking Bad and its follow up, Better Call Saul. While most of it didn’t resound with me, it meant a lot for my son to see mementos and set props from the show. Recently, when my husband and I finally watched all five seasons of the series, it was fun to pull out the photos and understand what all of it meant. My favorite photo? Me dressed in the Los Pollos Hermanos uniform posed behind the restaurant counter!
With our time in Albuquerque coming to a close, we headed out to the highway, making our way to Santa Fe.
When my son had mentioned to his friends that we would be visiting New Mexico, the unanimous suggestion was to visit a place with a very strange name…Meow Wolf.
Meow Wolf, a relatively new experience in Santa Fe (established in 2016) is one of three similar interactive experiences located in the United States. Along with the other two, in Denver and Las Vegas, the explorable art encounter beckons visitors to explore rooms of immersive art. Santa Fe’s version, entitled House of Eternal Return offers 70 rooms which I could only describe as a mix between an art exhibit, escape room, a fun house and a maze.
As we parked, we glimpsed what we thought we might experience with its giant metal spider, robot and of course, wolf, in the parking lot! Although we had not purchased tickets prior to our arrival, we learned that we were lucky since it was a weekday that we were able to gain entry, not usual on busy weekends.
We began our explorations in the front part of the House, trying to read every piece of paper and attempting to decipher clues. There was a strangely dressed man standing in the stairway talking about missing children and we deduced that children from the storyline were missing. We also heard other speaking about finding hamsters. We did discover a few hidden in various places, but then we never quite understood what to do with this information.
Finally, we just decided to have fun and explore all the nooks and crannies. Once we relaxed about the whole affair, it was a great deal of fun just enjoying the unique and unusual artistry.
It was great fun to discover hidden passageways in refrigerators, fireplaces closets and clothes dryers. After exploring both floors of the house, we discovered in the living room a fish tank on a shelf and then a tunnel through the fireplace which led to a life size fish tank which we could walk through! This led to other parts of the exhibit where we encountered a giant neon dinosaur skeleton whose bones made music when you hit upon them, a forest with giant mushrooms and creatures that appeared to be out of the book Where the Wild Things Are, the crazy clown room decorated with recycled bottle caps, cans, compact discs and clown videos, a Chinatown alleyway and the “black and white room” complete with a monster under the sink! There was abstract art and abstract rooms, interactive games hidden away in dark corners and an EDM music room. There was a band playing in the back and walkways overlooking their stage. Everything was dark and bright at the same time and neon and black lighting was everywhere!
It is one of the hardest things to explain and one of the most unique places I have ever visited! I will definitely have to visit the ones in Denver and Las Vegas which are differently themed.
We realized that if this was our introduction to Santa Fe, we were in for a treat! Meow Wolf was definitely the Cat’s Meow or maybe you could say, the “Wolf’s Meow”!
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Petroglyph National Monument
- https://www.nps.gov/petr/index.htm
- Address: Visitor’s Center, 6510 Western Trail, Albuquerque, NM 87120. Boca Negra Canyon, Atrisco Drive, NW, Albuquerque, NM 87120, Rinconada Canyon, 7601 St. Josephs Avenue, Albuquerque, NM 87120, 87114 Unnamed Cul de Sac, Albuquerque, NM 87120, Piedras Marcadas,
- Address: Visitor’s Center, 6510 Western Trail, Albuquerque, NM 87120. Boca Negra Canyon, Atrisco Drive, NW, Albuquerque, NM 87120. Rinconada Canyon, 7601 St. Josephs Avenue, Albuquerque, NM 87120. Piedras Marcadas Canyon, 87114 Unnamed Cul de Sac, Albuquerque, NM 87120. Volcanoes Day Use Area, Western Trail NW, Albuquerque, NM 87120.
- Hours: Boca Negra Canyon, 0830-1630. Rinconada Canyon 0800-1700. Piedras Marcadas Canyon, Sunrise to Sunset. Volcanoes Day Use Area, 0900-1700.
- Admission: free
Old Town Albuquerque
- https://www.albuquerqueoldtown.com/
- Address: Old Town Road NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104
- Hours: Most businesses open Monday-Saturday, 1000-2000, Sunday, 1100-1900. Most restaurants seat until 2100.
- Admission: free
San Felipe de Neri Catholic Church
- https://sanfelipedeneri.org/
- Address: 2005 North Plaza NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104
- Hours: 0900-1600, daily (unverified). Gift shop and museum, open from 1000-1630. Museum may not be open due to lack of docents.
- Admission: free
The Breaking Bad Store ABQ
- https://www.breakingbadstoreabq.com/
- Address: 2047 South Plaza Street Northwest, Albuquerque, NM 87104
- Hours: 1000-1700, daily. Closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, New Years Day.
- Admission: free
Meow Wolf Santa Fe
- https://meowwolf.com/visit/santa-fe
- Address: 1352 Rufina Circle, Santa Fe, NM 87507
- Hours: Sunday, Monday and Thursday, 100-2000, Friday and Saturday, 1000-2200. Closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
- Admission: Adults (ages 14 and up), $35, Children (ages 4-13), $20, Children (under 3), free, Seniors (ages 65 and up), $25, Military, $25.