new mexican

I really like Santa Fe - I'm going to have to come back here sometime. There wasn't time to see everything that there is to see around here, and this seems like a place where I could spend more than a few days. But, we're leaving tomorrow bright and early for Sedona, so further explorations will have to wait.

We didn't get out of the hotel particularly early, but we did make it up to Los Alamos in time for lunch. We ate at some sort of mexicatessen, where I had chilaquiles - a delicious version of v. saucy nachos, which were tasty but not really that good for me. Then, we went to the Bradbury Science Museum, which is all about the research done at Los Alamos National Laboratory. They played a movie about how Los Alamos got started during the Manhattan Project in World War II - there was nothing there but a boys' ranch before Oppenheimer and co. showed up. Unfortunately, my brother and I agreed that we both knew too much about the nuclear program to really get much out of the museum, since nothing there was particularly surprising or insightful. But still, the museum was quite nice (and free), so it was worth a stop.

After Los Alamos, we drove over to Valles Caldera, where a volcano exploded many tens of thousands of years ago and created a flat plain in a basin surrounded by hills. It was quite lovely in a desolate sort of way, and it made me eager to start writing some postapocalyptic thrillers. Then, we went to Bandelier National Monument and did a hike around some Indian ruins, including a pueblo and some caves dug into the cliffs. It was a nice day for a hike, and then we came back and took naps before going to dinner.

I looked up restaurants on Yelp and found a place that looked v. promising - 4.5 stars and 50+ reviews, and only a couple of miles from the hotel. I wanted to try New Mexico's version of Mexican food, and this looked like it fit the bill. When we got there, though, cop cars were all over the place. We debated whether to go in or not, but the restaurant appeared to be open and the cop cars were all moving away from the entrance, so we went in. The greeter said that some sort of car chase had ended in their parking lot - bad for business, but it meant that we got a table easily (when we left, the line was out the door). As it turns out, I liked what I had, but my brother didn't seem to be a fan of New Mexican, likely because it was quite spicy. We had some queso, which was like a hotter, more gourmet version of Tostitos salsa con queso, and then I had a chile relleno and some pork dish while he had a burrito. My chile relleno was awesome and way too filling; had I had a margarita too, it might have been a perfect meal. But, with cops chilling outside, I didn't think a margarita was a good idea, and the older I get, the worse I sleep if I've let any drop of alcohol cross my lips. After dinner, we came back to the hotel and watched some fine CBS programming (the end of NCIS, NCIS:LA, and The Good Wife) - which means I could have had the same evening in Iowa, but since these were all an episode away from the season finale, I suppose seeing them was a good thing.

And now, I need to go to bed - we're getting up early to go to Sedona, with a stop along the way at the Petrified Forest. Goodnight!