Santa Fe, NM

We spent exactly one week in Santa Fe which I find is the perfect amount of time to explore a city.  After a week, we know if we have seen everything we want to see and experience, or if it is a place that might warrant another visit for a longer period of time.  We really enjoyed visiting Santa Fe, but we did experience some problems with the elevation.  Santa Fe sits at 7,260 feet which was a surprise to both of us.  High altitudes typically create sleepless nights for me and it did for both of us.  It also causes a nighttime headache and Gerry found it rather difficult at times to breathe deeply.  These slight problems did not stop us at all from everything we wanted to do rather we just slowed down the pace a little.  It is also a very dry environment so we drank tons of water which also helped with altitude adjustment.

In a nutshell here is how we spent our time:

Walked around the downtown area and had drinks in the square on arrival
Open air bus tour of the city
Visited the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum
Gerry played a round of golf (I drove the cart since I won't play with a walking cast)
Had dinner at Maria's New Mexican Kitchen (known for their menu of 100 different margaritas as well as their food)
Santa Fe Farmer's Market (a huge, bustling market featuring lots of organic local produce)
Took the high road to Taos tour (a scenic route through the mountains which was spectacular)
Walked around downtown Taos  (which feels a little smaller than Santa Fe)
Ended our week with a superb dinner at 315 Restaurant and Bar (a French Bistro)

Our dinner at 315 was the perfect way to end our visit.  The restaurant is in a stucco building (typical Santa Fe architecture) on Old Santa Fe Trail but the food and service were absolutely French bistro.

We started our meal with a Charcuterie plate, a house-made sampling of smoked meats.  Next came Rabbit Terrine studded with olives and pistachios.  My entree was the Seared Duck Breast served on a potato gallette with ribbons of fresh vegetables.  Gerry chose the Brasied Veal with Halibut Cheeks with an assortment of oven roasted vegetables.  We both splurged and had dessert; Flourless Chocolate Cake with a raspberry sauce for me and a Pear and Berry Baked Pudding smothered in a wine sauce for Gerry.  The entire evening was perfection.

Downtown Santa Fe

Black Hollyhock Blue Larkspur at Georgia O'Keeffe Museum

Santa Fe Golf Course

High Road to Taos (Route 68)

Also on the road to Taos

In conclusion, we enjoyed Santa Fe and would enjoy spending a day or so there but we would love to try staying in Taos next time to explore that area.  Taos is at 6,967 feet high, so I suspect we would still have trouble adjusting to the altitude and it seems to be just as dry which means lots of water and lotion.

We left Santa Fe and drove to Colorado Springs on Sunday and the views were amazing.  Check in next Sunday for more news of our travels.