Do you know the way to Sante Fe?

It's definitely been a long first day adjusting to the new time zone. This morning we flew out of STL right on time at 10:35 a.m. The flight was generally uneventful except from some initial turbulence due to some stormy weather in Missouri.

Around noon we arrived in Albuquerque and my parents met us at the baggage claim. By the time is was 12:30, we had managed to secure all of our luggage and leave the airport. The way we chose to make our way to Santa Fe on this particular day was via the Turquoise Trail. At first, it was fairly unimpressive as we made our way out away from the interstate. By about the time we got a good 10 miles in, the mountains, rocks and building afternoon storms made the drive quite interesting.

In Madrid, we stopped for lunch at a typical tourist spot called the Mine Shaft Tavern. I ambitiously ordered a burger with green chilies and pepper-jack cheese. I underestimated the heat of this dish and ended up eating very little. But, my Santa Fe Brewery IPA was good!

So, we continued the rest of the way through the scenic byway and eventually reached Santa Fe where we checked into our Fairfield Inn room. After freshening up, we headed out for an evening of drinks and apps.

First, we went to the Ore House right on the plaza for some guac and margaritas. Then, we walked to the Coyote Cantina and had more mixed drinks as well as tempura fried shrimp and duck quesadillas. Our third stop was the Bell Tower Bar at La Fonda hotel. This was the spot where we were able to catch a fantastic sunset after a somewhat stormy afternoon.

Finally, we went to the lounge at the Inn at the Loretto, which was quite relaxing. My mom and I sipped on a glass of Syrah, while Justina and my dad had beer. We also snacked on a tempura fried artichoke and mushroom dish with a fig aioli. Yum!

Finally, we got back to our hotel a bit after 10, and I'm typing this and just about falling asleep at the same time. Hopefully, we'll start to adjust to the time change a bit more by tomorrow night so this isn't as much of a chore! Good night!