Santa Fe

 Song - Tumbling Tumbleweeds by Sons of the Pioneers

Wednesday - April 9

Gallup to Santa Fe

 Mr. B discovered a great cozy cafe in downtown Gallup for breakfast. Jerry’s Mexican Food & they served the most delicious Sopas. 

Everyone in the cafe was  Diné which means - Native American Navajo. At times there was a line out of the door so we were happy to get a booth and enjoy some great food. 

Heading East we crossed the Continental Divide in NM. There were plenty of Mesas along Hwy. 40 with snow topped mountains in the distance and black lava rock along the highway. 

We drove past Milan & Casa Blanca and if I had known they were that close to California, I would have visited long ago!

Checked into hotel Pinõn in Old Town Santa Fe and we finally have a normal size bathroom! Yay!

Walked over to Cafe Pasquel, a restaurant Mr. B found several blocks from our hotel. Small place but great, creative food and service. As we were seated we were served this amazing savory Asiago-Parmesan Seed Crisp. I’m going to try that one at home!  

Walking home we saw a guy parking a very, very old truck. He ended up being a very fastinating guy, dressed in cowboy leathers & hat. Looked like he just got off the set of an Old Western movie. 

Truth was his name is RJ Gibson and he is both an actor and a photographer, but not your regular photographer with a high end portrait camera but an old fashioned 1903 Graflex camera and he does a wet-plate process that dates back to the 1850’s!

Oh, BTW the truck is a spectacular-looking 1934 Dodge Humpback panel truck which he uses for travel, lodging, darkroom and advertising. It has a 1960’s Chevy Camero engine and a 1966 Ford Mustang rear axel. 

After our visit and Mr. B being offered a seat behind the driving wheel, we stopped at our hotel’s bistro/bar to have a glass of wine before bed. We saw a guy eating dinner with a red accordion at his table and I asked him if we missed his gig.  I told him that my dad had played accordion and he said when he finished eating he would be happy to play some more music for us. We had a blast with him. What an incredible guy. He was from Northern Mexico so Mr. B began speaking Spanish with him. They told story after story. He told us not to worry about what was happening in our country right now. The truth was that people like us and him that cared about other cultures and gave other people a hand would take care of this country and its people. And you know what?  I believe him and it’s the first time since the election that I have had a moment of peace……