Santa Fe - Day Seven La Casa Sena

La Casa Sena is one of my all time favorite lunch spots in Santa Fe. When the weather is nice - eating outdoors in the interior courtyard is a wonderful experience. This place (like The Shed) is always busy so reservations are recommended. 

Santa Fe - Day Seven Oldest House & Church

Today is our last day of sightseeing in Santa Fe. We started the day at San Miguel Church before heading over to Canon Road to finish our gallery walk. 

Sitting in the shadow of San Miguel - you will find the older house in Santa Fe. 

San Miguel Church is the oldest Church in the US.

Santa Fe - Day Six Las Vegas

Las Vegas, New Mexico dates back to 1835 when 29 settlers applied for a land grant from the Mexican government and laid outa large plaza. The plaza was established on high ground above the Galinas river for irrigation purposes. The town boasts architecture from 1840 to1940. It has over 900 buildings on the National Register of Historical Places. In the census of 1900, Las Vegas was the largest city in New Mexico. Expansion of the railroad and Great Depression changed all of that - and today it is a quiet and charming town to visit.




Plaza Hotel (1882)




Charles Ilfeld Building (1882-1890)


E. Romero Hose & Fire Company (1909)


Bridge Street


Stern and Nahm (1885)


Romero Building (1919) and First National Bank (1880)


Inside the Romero Building


Conejito in Las Vegas

Santa Fe - Day Six Mine Shaft Tavern

The Mine Shaft Tavern offers good food and excellent service (themineshafttavern.com). In the 1950s most of the mines closed and towns sat as ghost towns for nearly 20 years. Today - Madrid is filled with visitors and tourists.










Chicken and onion rings


Hamburger


Nachos






They love bunnies here. Conejito was a hit and very full by the end of lunch.

Santa Fe - Day Six Historic Turquoise Trail

Our day tripping took us out to Madrid via the historic turquoise trail (hwy 14). Madrid has a rich history as an 1800s mining town turned artist community. The mine produced coal for the Santa Fe Railroad and US government. In the 1970s artists rediscovered this place and began making it their own. Madrid is a short 40 minute drive from Santa Fe and well worth a visit.




Views from hwy 14



Madrid, NM

Santa Fe - Day Five Cowgirl BBQ

What can I say? We love Cowgirl BBQ on South Guadalupe in Santa Fe. They have a good mix of comfort foods and a killer green chili cheeseburger. Plenty of cold beer on tap too. They also have live music pretty much every night. A good resting spot after a full day of sightseeing in New Mexico.




Green chili cheeseburger


Chicken fajitas


Sea scallops


BBQ sandwich


No carrots to be found.

Santa Fe - Day Five Jemez Valley

N.M. highway 4 delivers you to Jemez Mountains and the valley. Jemez Springs is a quaint place along the way. These pictures don't do the area justice. I was speeding along more focussed in finding a gas stations as our garage approached empty.

Santa Fe - Day Five Valles Caldera

A volcano eruption created the beautiful 89,000 acre basin called Valles Caldera National Preserve (www.vallescaldera.gov) and ash went as far as Kansas.