Old Town Albuquerque

After a morning overview of New Mexico’s history, we set out on a walking tour of Old Town. Tim and I had spent time here last year when we were in Albuquerque for Christmas, but I enjoyed hearing our guide’s commentary. Old Town has been the focal point of Albuquerque since it was founded in 1706, and it is distinguished by its Spanish-Pueblo style architecture. It’s always a pleasure to wander around the central plaza and admire the historic buildings that give the neighborhood such character.

Old Town Albuquerque

Our Group

We were on our own for lunch, and I joined several people in our group at the Church Street Café where I was able to sample my favorite northern New Mexican food in a beautiful setting.

In the afternoon during our free time, I spent an hour or so at the Albuquerque Museum, one of the leading institutions for art, history, and culture in the Southwest. After returning to the hotel, we were joined by a professional balloonist who gave us a presentation on hot-air ballooning.

I was in bed early since our bus leaves at 4:45 tomorrow morning. Yikes!

A Stop in Lamy on the Way to Albuquerque

From Las Vegas, I visited Lamy, New Mexico, named for Jean-Baptiste Lamy, the first Archbishop of Santa Fe and the next stop on the Santa Fe Railway line. The terrain around Santa Fe made building train tracks a challenge, so Lamy, instead of Santa Fe, was selected for the train depot. I had hoped to see another Harvey House, but I learned that the El Ortiz Hotel had been demolished in the 1940s.

The Mission Revival style depot, built in 1909, is still in operation, however, and across the street, two nineteenth century commercial buildings have been restored as the Legal Tender Restaurant and Saloon.

Amtrak Still Stops at the Lamy Depot

Lamy Depot

The Story of Fred Harvey and Harvey Houses

Legal Tender

The Lamy depot has a direct connection to another site I plan to visit on this trip, the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. The depot was typically the first stop for staff and their families arriving in New Mexico. From this depot in the middle of nowhere, a shuttle would arrive and transport the workers to Santa Fe, where they received their passes to enter the secret city of Los Alamos.

From Lamy, I turned onto the Turquoise Trail Scenic Byway, which links Santa Fe and Albuquerque. I passed through the picturesque mining towns of Cerrillos, Madrid, and Golden and couldn’t get over how much these once sleepy towns had become tourist destinations since my last visit more than 20 years ago. I didn’t have time to stop, but it was fun to see the changes.

Turquoise Trail

When I arrived in Albuquerque, I had hoped to get together for lunch with Lou, our friend who lives in town, but we kept missing one another. Instead, I went ahead and checked into the Best Western Plus Rio Grande Inn, the headquarters hotel for the Road Scholar program in which I was participating.

Orientation for the “Highlights of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta” program was at 5:00 pm, and we reviewed the most up-to-date program schedule and logistics. Our group leaders were quite personable, and I think we are in good hands. At dinner, I met several of the other “Road Scholars,” and we compared notes about our travels and experiences. My only disappointment was the lack of any New Mexican foods at dinner. Johnny, one of our group leaders, promised that we would have a great regional meal later in the program.

The Road Scholar Program

Driving to Las Vegas (New Mexico)

After waiting for Denver’s rush hour to end, I hit the road for New Mexico and the beginning of my Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta road trip. I was facing a five and a half hour drive, and travel would be on I-25 all day. Not the most scenic drive, but there weren’t any reasonable alternatives.

Just before I reached Colorado Springs, my phone rang. I had not heard back from the City of Loveland Museum after my job interview and was therefore a bit curious to see Ashley’s name on the screen. I let voicemail pick up the call but looked for an exit so I could park and call her back. I spoke with Ashley, the museum’s collection manager, and she offered me the job. Wow! I will be starting immediately after I return from my trip.

After a long, but thankfully uneventful (except for the job offer!) drive, I arrived in Las Vegas, New Mexico and made my way to my hotel. The Castañeda Hotel was built in 1898 and was the first hotel built by Fred Harvey along the Santa Fe Railway mainline, connecting Las Vegas, New Mexico, to Chicago and Los Angeles. Designed by Frederick Roehrig, a prominent Pasadena architect, it was the earliest Harvey House to be built in the Mission Revival style and became the prototype of nearly all future Harvey properties.

Castañeda Hotel, Street Side

Castañeda Hotel, Courtyard and Track Side

I enjoyed wandering around the hotel and checking out its many historic features. I also walked next door to the 1889 Las Vegas depot, another beautiful Mission Revival style building constructed by the Santa Fe Railway.  Amtrak still stops here.

Castañeda Hotel Lobby

Las Vegas Depot

I returned to my lovely suite and eventually made my way to the bar for dinner. I asked the bartender if there might be a favorite local vodka, and he made a vodka tonic for me with one distilled in Santa Fe. It was delicious. The menu listed a “Harvey” Smash Burger, allegedly voted the best green chile cheeseburger in New Mexico, so I had to give it a try. It was delicious, but the addition of pickles to the green chiles was a bit odd.

My Suite

Taking Care of Business

When one travels as much as Tim and I have been doing recently, one must fit appointments in between trips. I was able to get my bivalent COVID-19 vaccine booster and my flu shot this month, and I had my annual physical today. Tim had his physical last week.

On a more fun note, we decided to add a pre-cruise extension to our Mediterranean Explorer and Crossing cruise in November 2023. I normally don’t find extensions to be a good value, but this one seemed to be the exception.

We selected the three-night Ultimate Italy – Tuscany extension, where we will “explore the delights of Tuscany, from its legendary cuisine and delicious wines to the Renaissance treasures of Florence, where the breathtaking works of Michelangelo, da Vinci and Brunelleschi took glorious shape and changed the world.”

Our Pre-Cruise Extension

Although we intend to spend several days in Florence on our own before the extension, one additional day there would be a bonus. What most appealed to me about this extension is that we will be staying in a historic Tuscan villa and spending a full day in Siena and San Gimignano, two of my favorite Tuscan cities. We would not be able to do this tour on our own unless we rented a car or hired a driver-guide. The extension also received fabulous reviews on Cruise Critic.

On a whim, I also applied for a part time job since I have no travel plans after the balloon fiesta. If I’m not traveling, I need a project. Earlier this month, I happened to Google “Museum Jobs” and noticed a posting for a temporary position at the Loveland Museum.

I really did not expect to hear back from the City and was actually surprised when I was called for an interview. I met with the staff on September 22, and the interview seemed to go well. I liked the people I would be working with, and the position seemed like a good fit. We’ll see what happens.

Now that necessary and fun business has been taken care of, I can be on my way to New Mexico.

Planning My Trip to New Mexico

After returning from Maine, it was time to start planning my trip to the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. I had previously booked my Road Scholar program for the Balloon Fiesta itself, but I wanted to extend my trip before returning home.

I also wanted to make a stop on the way to Albuquerque. For quite some time, I have been intrigued by the Harvey Houses established by the Fred Harvey Company and try to stay in one whenever possible. Tim and I had stayed at the LaFonda Hotel when we were in Santa Fe last Christmas, and I knew that there was a recently restored Harvey House in Las Vegas, New Mexico, the Castañeda Hotel. I checked for rooms and was surprised to find only suites were available. I went ahead and booked one.

After leaving Albuquerque, I planned to visit two National Park Service units, Valles Caldera National Preserve and Manhattan Project National Historical Park, and decided to spend a night in Los Alamo, New Mexico. For the next night, I was looking forward to staying with a friend in Santa Fe.

I also scheduled a ride on the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad to end the trip, hoping that fall colors would be near their peak. The historic Chama Hotel and Shops across the street from the train station in Chama, New Mexico, seemed to be a perfect place to stay, and I made a reservation.

The stops on my trip seemed to be fully planned when I learned that the National Park Travelers Club was hosting a meet-up at Amache National Historic Site in Colorado. This club provides networking for visitors to national parks and maintains a database of passport stamps. The meet-up happened to fall just after my train ride, and although the site was far away from my route back to Loveland, I signed up to attend.

Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta Trip Route Map