Santa Fe

We spent the morning driving East and then South down Highway 84, through the mountains into New Mexico. We only stopped once on the way to Santa Fe and then only late on and due to the bladder demands of the male half of the party but we were lucky enough to happen on Bode's Trading Post at Abiquiu, a marvellous old-school establishment where you can score anything from a bag of animal feed to a breakfast burrito or a souvenir fridge magnet. Once we were finally safely esconsed in the basement garage of the La Fonda Inn on the Plaza, we took a little time to marvel at the Old World grandeur of a chosen 'Historic Hotel of America.' We checked in, checked out the boutiques and artwork, tried on the robes, inventoried the toiletries and generally behaved like the peasants we are. Then we went to wander round the Plaza and soak up the atmosphere. We checked out the Cathedral of Saint Francis and visited the small but beautiful Georgia O'Keefe Museum. A bit more sophisticated than Colorado - we even went upmarket and dined at the very nice restaurant in the Hotel before trying out the pool and the hot tub, despite the huge margarita that Beck had consumed with her meal...!