Hey, I'm Dutch! » New Mexico

Love on Hwy 40

admin — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 03:58:11 +0000

Here’s a roadtrip game for you. Count the number of Love’s road stops along Hwy 40. They are everywhere. And that’s a good thing. They have very clean bathrooms, a large selection of snacks and drinks, souvenirs, a surprisingly handy set of road-critical items (flashlights, gps, lumbar cushions, etc), and usually a partnership with one of the major food chains for something hot to eat. And some of the larger ones even have showers. Nice.

Eastward Ho!

admin — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 03:48:54 +0000

P and I begin the toughest part of our roadtrip. From Albquerque, New Mexico through Memphis, Tennessee. Don’t get me wrong, people do that drive all the time. I’m just saying it isn’t the most restful part of our trip because it’s a lot of driving, crashing at a spot for just one night, then getting up early to drive the next day. Wish us luck!

US Route 66

admin — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 03:42:39 +0000

Immortalized in literature and song, US Route 66 ran from\Chicago, Illinois, through Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, before ending in Los Angeles, California. Also known by “The Main Street of America” or “The Mother Road,” Route 66 was favored as a truck route because it was mostly flat and the route that it took through the southwest. During the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, families seeking agricultural work in the 1930s made Route 66 a popular route.

When the Interstate Highway System was created, the importance and expedience of US Route 66 was greatly diminished. Route 66 was officially retired in 1985, but it’s legacy has been kept by the communities along it’s route and is slowly making its way back onto maps as a national scenic byway. It’s been nice traveling through cities honoring US Route 66.

Funny Signs from the Road

admin — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 03:16:14 +0000

Just had to share this one.

Lightning Strikes

admin — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 03:43:31 +0000

When night falls and the day’s heat surrenders to the biting chill of night, the desert can be a strikingly beautiful place. The evening sky is brilliantly freckled with stars we don’t get to see in the big city and the moon is larger and brighter than you could ever imagine it could be. It reminds me of the camping trips I used to take with my family as a young boy.

P took these amazing photos in our stay at Albuquerque. Gotta’ give him extra points for standing out in the rain and having the patience to keep snapping picks until he could catch these amazing pictures of lightning strikes against the desert night sky.

When It Rains

admin — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 03:27:24 +0000

Scorching heat by day, thunderstorms by night. Got caught out in the rain on our last evening in ABQ. Good times.

Summer Fest 2009

admin — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 03:23:24 +0000

Some of the best times we’ve had on the trip have been complete surprises. We just had Albuquerque as a rest point before we started the rough stretch through Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Tennessee. We had a great time at The Library, had a great meal at Tucano’s Brazilian BBQ, and surprise, surprise, a chance discovery of ABQ’s Summer Fest. In these recession times, it was great to see the city still putting on these brief escapes for the residents. We listened to a fun set of live music, watched some local jugglers and comedians, then watched the first part of a swing contest. Oh, and we learned the Cuban Shuffle. Good times. Since we weren’t really planning to take pics that night, we didn’t have a good camera with us and the square was too dark to get good pics with my iPhone or P’s HTC. The best we could do were these statues at the square. Something about the old couple spoke to me, so I had to snap the pic.

Left at Albuquerque

admin — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 03:07:19 +0000

Who knew? Albuquerque is a pretty happening place. Right there on Central Ave is a cluster of bars and clubs that get pretty packed on a weekend evening. They close down the street in the evening to let the crowds walk about, and the police maintain a clear and professional presence to keep things in order without infringing on the fun; props to ABQ PD. P and I had a good time hangin’ out at The Library Bar & Grill. The Library. How great is that? Oh, I’m just going to The Library, mom/dad/honey/boo. Lots of cuties at the bar. Perhaps it’s the closer connection ABQ has with Native American roots or something else only the locals know about, but there was a lot of ink being sported. Especially the ladies.

I have to drop a little hateration though. While the crowd kept the dance floor packed, the DJ was wack. Yeah, I said it. The transitions were sloppy, the genres jumped around erratically, and there was no feel for keeping the crowd flowing from highs to lows. Duplicating songs within the same hour and a half? Weak. The DJ was doing no work with mashups, mixing, or scratching. He might as well have put on his iPod playlist. Yeah, I can slide the cross-fade from left to right too. Come on, man, do work, son! Perhaps it was an off night, ’cause I hope that’s not representative of the ABQ. I’m sure it’s not.

All in all, had a really good time in Albuquerque and would definitely come back to party.

p.s. For you classic Bug Bunny fans, you got the Albuquerque reference:

Mesa-ra Sera

admin — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 02:05:55 +0000

I’m lucky enough to have P with me during this trip to keep me company during the long drive through the southwest. But in the brief moments when we’d take turns taking naps on the road, I’d always find these amazing mesas in the distance to be our constant companion. I’m not a rock-climber myself and don’t have a desire to pick it up any time soon. But I do have friends who are fairly skilled at rock-climbing–shout out to RC–and looking at these breathtaking monoliths, I can begin to understand what drives them to climb.

Four Corners

admin — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 06:05:25 +0000

With one location, we touched Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico. At Four Corners, these four states converge on a single point.

I wasn’t expecting much from this side trip except to be able to add two more states to our count, but we actually had a pretty good time talking to other travellers and admiring the Navajo arts and crafts that were being sold. I found some cool gifts for family and there was this Navajo craftsman who made arrowheads on the spot for you. The really cool part was that he used these unique stones for the arrowheads. I picked up this blue arrowhead that shimmers in the sunlight.