Lots of hiking trails, including the Dale Ball hikes.
Abiquiu Ghost Ranch is where Georgia O’Keefe did some of her painting.
It’s about 65 miles from Santa Fe. There are a couple of great hikes there too. It’s worth at least googling it to decide if you’re interested.
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The first “kid-less” Thanksgiving we took a trip to Sante Fe. Not much was open on the holiday, so we enjoyed a drive to this interesting park, where you can hike through the cliffs and climb letters to peek into ancient indian abodes. We were pleased it was warm enough that day for a picnic lunch. Then for dinner we went out for Thanksgiving dinner, with a New Mexican gourmet flair.
Enjoyed the Georgia O’Keefe museum another day.
We took a really interesting historic walking tour… maybe this one(?)
UPDATE for @jym626 - Went back to old emails and found this was our Sante Fe walking tour ($15 in 2017, really good) -
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We also enjoyed Bandelier. We also spent one afternoon at Meow Wolf.
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The funny thing is that we have for decades lived only 8 hours away but had never heard of Bandelier. (Mesa Verde is more extensive, more famous… still on our travel wishlist).
I put it in the category of afterthought stops we stumbled upon but really enjoyed… a wonderful kind of travel bonus. Ditto for even closer Colorado Monument (which also like a small national park) in western CO when on a wine trip to Pallisade.
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I think I learned of Bandelier here on CC. I went to Mesa Verde as a kid when one could run all over the dwellings.
@CountingDown I paid $1200.00 for the 2 shot series. It was worth it to me as I’ve been able to put off the replacement and do more of the things I want to do. I watch one of my grandkids and I’m so much more comfortable with the up and down. We also did a family lake trip that involved a lot of stairs to get to the lake edge. Prior to the injection I would not have been able to do it.
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We just put down a deposit on a group tour to Israel/Jordan in spring 2024. We would normally never do a group tour, but this is an exception. It’s going to be with a group from our church and the tour is billed as “Following in the Footsteps of Jesus.” The tour host is a professor of New Testament at a seminary and there will be evening study sessions to prepare for the next day. (This may sound like torture to some of you but it appeals to me and I’m making DH go, lol.) Anyway, I feel like we have the biblical history side of this well covered. What’s missing for me is an up to date understanding of the history of the creation of the modern State of Israel, including the ongoing Israeli/Palestinian conflict over the West Bank and Gaza, and maybe a little about the rival political parties involved on all sides. I realize that’s a huge topic so I’m looking for a couple books that will give me a fair overview. There’s really no significant opportunity on the tour to do stuff on our own, so I’m asking for book recommendations to help me better understand the area, not for recommendations of places to visit.
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The Loretta Chapel is pretty cool. There are 3 mysteries associated with the spiral staircase.
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When are you going? The Indian Market in August is amazing. I recommend the NM Museum of Art and the sculpture garden at St. Francis Cathedral. If you have time, take the high road to to Taos which is my absolute favorite place in northern NM. You’ll pass through Chimayo, home to a sanctuary built in 1816, and enjoy gorgeous views of the Rio Grande Valley. I’m envious; I need to book a trip to NM!
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Great suggestions! Keep ‘em coming. Will work on the itinerary today. Going in a few weeks!
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I agree if you can get to Taos it is wonderful. H and I actually liked it better than Santa Fe.
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I think Taos and Santa Fe are worth separate trips. When we went to Taos we thought we might drive back to Santa Fe for a day, but there was plenty to do in Taos. When we went to Santa Fe we were there for Ballon Fiesta, so we drove back to Albuquerque a couple of times.
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Going to Brussels in a couple of weeks. Those who’ve been there - any suggestions? Any recommendations on Waterloo? A part of me does want to go there, but H was saying there’s really nothing there to see.
Thanks for that tip. We once contemplated a Taos detour on return trip from Santa Fe but would not have had much time to stop. Gonna have to put Taos on my travel wishlist.
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I absolutely loved Brussels. Easy to take day trips to Amsterdam, Bruges etc. We visited at end of my son’s study abroad program so had an instant tour guide. (LOL at the time his biggest advice was do not speak French in Amsterdam–speak English. They hate the French. No idea if this holds true today but it wasn’t that long ago.)
My son went to Waterloo while he was there and really liked it. But he (and my husband) are very much history buffs. I’m interested but not necessarily THAT interested. From pictures there appears to be nothing to really “see”. I think the closest thing I could compare it to is the Wright Brothers first flight site in Kitty Hawk. Super historical but not much there. But overall it isn’t far from Brussels and if you have time you’d probably learn a lot and enjoy the experience.
Definitely visit the Grand Palace at night–it’s a real light show. Beautiful.
The Musical Instruments Museum is fantastic. Don’t miss it. You don’t only get to see the instruments (most you never knew existed) but get to hear them. Fascinating.
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My husband and I met a family from Belgium on a trip. They made it very clear that they were not French speaking Belgium’s. That has stayed with me.
One of the most memorable moments was shopping at the mall in Brussels. The sales clerks would run down the list of every language they knew to land on one you understood. And they did that with every person in line. It was fascinating to stand to the side and watch the exchanges in action.
So much fun to try to communicate with someone next to you at a sales rack or bin. You’d say something in English and get a reply in a different language. English, Dutch, French and some others. Everyone would laugh. And really enjoy the exchange. “Do you like this color, style, how’s the price, does this look good on me? is a universal shopping language.”
Circling back to Santa Fe (and flights in/out of Albuquerque). Has anyone been to the Kasha Katuwe Tent rocks? Is it better than Bandelier? Bandelier is saying that the Tsankawi unit is closed. Toughts?
Also we made dinner reservations at Geronimo for one night. Should we also try Coyote cafe? Other suggestions? After the kids go home we will be staying at the In on the Alameda
Never a problem speaking French in Brussels. Lots of languages abound. Just no French in Amsterdam (although all train personnels are required to know Dutch, French and English.
Loving Quebec City even though the weather is not great. What a wonderful place.
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Any recommendations for things to see/do along the NC part of the Blue Ridge Parkway? Looking for easy hikes, scenic views, waterfalls if they are reasonably accessible (have a knee replacement and use walking sticks). TIA!