An Urban Beach

in ,

It's winter, yes, I know. When it gets this cold out (with imminent snowstorms looming), I dream of warmer times and commence spring cleaning. It's a sort of wishful thinking deal. As I'm doing that, I go through my photos and clear out the clutter. Alas, I found these photos that never made it up. It's a shame, really, because it was one of the highlights of last summer. Spruce Street Harbor Park is an urban beach on the Delaware River Front. It comes complete with shuffleboard, hammocks, ping pong, and a beer garden catered by Jose Garces. What else could you want? 

Here are the photos from that lovely Sunday in August.


A Return to the Land of Enchantment: The Way to Santa Fe, NM

in ,

After the wedding, we drove down the Rio Grande Valley. Our intentions were to lunch at Embudo Station in Embudo, NM. It lies somewhere between Taos and Espanola along the Rio Grande. It's formally known as a ghost station as the trains no longer travel along these parts. Alas, the restaurant was closed, but I had to get out of the car and take in the breathtaking scenery and daydream about what once was a thoroughfare in the middle of nowhere. Since the restaurant was closed, the area was completely deserted. It was eerie. 

Once we were done basking in the stillness of Embudo, we headed to Santa Fe. It needs no introduction. It's a melting pot of sorts. It was one of the very first settlements by the Spanish. Pueblo Indians set up shop around 900 and in 1598 the Spanish officially claimed it. You have the old pueblo style buildings interspersed with old Spanish colonial. The Plaza is a hub of activity and that was our first stop. 

santafe_01

If you missed Anthony Bourdain's New Mexico episode of Parts Unknown on CNN a couple years back, you didn't miss much. It wasn't my favorite. He focused too much on the lore of cowboys and shot some automatic rifles in the desert with some rednecks. He barely talked about the food, except when he went to the Five and Dime in the Plaza. It's a basic convenience store. You can easily miss it, but if you do wander in and walk past all of the tacky postcards and knick knacks that prove you were in Santa Fe, you'll find the world's best Frito Pie. They just slice open a bag of Fritos, pour in some spicy, greasy chili and top it with shredded cheese. Worth the mess.

santafe_02

After watching the Eagles blow their playoff chances by losing to Arizona, we had to drown our sorrows. We dined at Santa Fe Bites, a diner-type establishment famous for its green chili burgers. Three please. 

Sadly, this is the last New Mexico blog...for now at least. I swear to not let 10 year go between now and my next visit. 

A Return to the Land of Enchantment: Angel Fire, NM

in ,

Now, when you land at the Albuquerque Sunport (probably via Southwest Airlines), you might say, darn I've landed in a desert with a couple of shrubs here and there. Sure, the Sandia Mountains have an imposing cameo in this adventure, but just a couple hours north of Albuquerque is, in my opinion, where the true beauty begins. Northern New Mexico is an amalgam of desert, snow capped mountains, mesas, valleys, Pueblo Reservations, and the Rio Grande. 

Jess and Lowry's wedding was set in Angel Fire, a ski resort town north of Taos. The day of the wedding we were quite ambitious about our plans for the day. From all of the options, we chose horseback riding - a first for me. Roadrunner Tours was rather inexpensive and what we got in return for our money was a quiet escape in Carson National Forest.