“HOMEWARD” BOUND

April – May, 2022

April, 2022 found Barbara and Brian able to once again travel the highways and by-ways of America (apologies to our Canadian friends whom we had hoped to visit, but alas and alack the boarder opening was delayed, delayed and delayed), and over the past year, as this blog has evidenced, we’ve experienced some pretty amazing places and seen oh so many amazing things.

Our time wintering in Mesa was more difficult this season than in previous years, spending less time with friends, and more time workcamping. Something was rotten at VDO as only 1/2 the number of workcampers necessary to “do the job” signed on for the season, and that meant that Barbara and Brian worked far more than that required to pay their rent. The events that needed our presence were usually in the evening; little interference with pickleball, softball, occasionally water volleyball, workouts and other day-time activities. However, evenings were royally screwed-up, and honestly by the end of the week exhaustion had set in, and, of course, there was the catching-up on those life maintenance things everyone not workcamping at VDO could do at their relative leisure. For the record Barbara and Brian WILL NOT workcamp at VDO again.

During the May/June and November/Thanksgiving visits with grandkids and kids we discovered that longer stays weren’t always better stays. There’s a fine line between the excitement of seeing family, having great times together and staying too long. We love each other and for the most part really really really enjoy our time together, but each of our children has their own family and their own traditions and customs and pace of life and expectations of each other and their own brand of normalcy and we mess up all of that staying too long. No one would ever say (at least Brian doesn’t believe so) “move along,” but why mess with the forces of nature?

Barbara and Brian did a bunch of soul searching and talking and lot more talking about this question – how could we continue the vagabond lifestyle we’ve come to love as well as be in a location to spoil our grandchildren; i.e., closer to family? Graham and Leigh negotiated with their employers an arrangement to be able to work at home, and decided to move from Arlington, Virginia to East Grand Rapids, Michigan – to be closer to family. Could Barbara and Brian do the same?

A plan was developed for the homeless vagabonds to find a “summer” home – some place close enough to children and grandchildren that would be just far enough away to maintain everyones’ individuality and yet not interfere in the family our family had developed. Make sense?

But where? If a central location was to be chosen, it looked like Morgantown, West Virginia might be the epicenter of equidistance. But for Barbara and Brian it has an appeal rating of 1 or 2 out of a top score of 10…now Ann Arbor, Michigan has an appeal rating of 8 or 9, but is 2 hours to Rowan and PJ, 3 1/2 hours to Maggie and Penny, 5-6 hours to Kyra, 7 hours to Helena, and 8 hours to Ben and Dan. Longer overall to some of the grandkids than Morgantown, but definitely manageable as retirees (and certainly closer than anywhere in the Western United States). It’s pretty easy to know why Ann Arbor, Michigan has such appeal – just ask Brian.

The 2022 plan was to leave Mesa mid-April in order to make it to Ohio for Maggie’s 11 birthday on May 19th, and then skedaddle into Michigan and look for a condo in or in close proximity in the land of Maize and Blue. Rest assured though that we will continue travelling!

In previous years a journey through Austin and a visit with nephew Jon and family then through Memphis and Nashville guided travels. However, a more direct route to Ohio was chosen – heading pretty much northeast from Mesa to Gallup to Albuquerque to Oklahoma City to Amarillo to Springfield, MO to St Louis, then a slight detour to Bloomington/Normal, Illinois to visit sister Karen, niece Terri and family, and then into Bloomington, Indiana and Yellow Springs, Ohio before settling into a campground in Grass Lake, Michigan for a couple of months.

Brian and Barbara had been to Gallup and Albuquerque previously, but new worlds waited for the remainder of the trip.

SO LET’S GET THIS PARTY STARTED!

Founded in 1706 by Nuevo Mexico governor Francisco Cuervo y Valdes as La Villa de Alburquerque, Albuquerque was named in honor of the Viceroy of New Spain, the 10th Duke of Albuquerque.  The city was an outpost on El Camino Real linking Mexico City to the northernmost territories of New Spain. It is the most populous city in New Mexico with a population reported by the 2020 census of just over 560,000.

…and it’s known for absolutely fabulous green chili cheeseburgers!

While in Albuquerque it is possible, if not mandatory, to pay homage to Walter White aka Heisenberg from the TV Series Breaking Bad...one of the most evil bad asses in TV history.

Many scenes from the series were filmed at the El Camino Hotel and across the street at the (you guessed it) El Camino Dining Room. The hotel is now (maybe always was?) an apartment building.

According to Atlas Obscura “the De Anza Motor Lodge was a burnt-out, run-down motel on Route 66 that would have been torn down long ago if it weren’t for the priceless Native American artifacts in its basement. Today it is a dilapidated old building that was nearly razed to make way for a grocery store. If it were not for the priceless, one-of-a-kind Native American artwork in the basement conference room, the De Anza would be a memory. Instead, it is now protected by 24-hour security.”

“The basement contains seven, 20 x 4-foot murals depicting the Zuni’s sacred Shalako ceremony. The Shalako ceremony is a series of ceremonies and dances unique to the Zuni people and performed at Winter Solstice – the most important ceremony of the year. The murals were painted by famed Zuni artist Tony Edaakie. Edaakie is considered a major figure in 20th century Zuni painting, making the murals in the basement of the De Anza not just sacred, but priceless, one-of-a-kind treasures. There is nothing like them anywhere else in the world.”

A definite must see – no? What wasn’t known or advertised to us “out of towners” is that there are only certain days and times that Zuni docents provide a lecture and tour of their sacred location. We stopped in and a local business owner was kind enough to give us confirmation about the murals, but also informed us that today was not one of those days.

When in town a visit to Old Town Albuquerque is recommended – there the visitor will find wonderful adobe structures, hanging flowerpots lining the streets and alleys with vibrant color, little back alleys with all manner of goods for purchase, glorious church skylines, vendors offering Native American jewelry, restaurants for a delicious meal and, with forewarning to Brian’s beautiful daughter, the International Rattlesnake Museum.

MurosConnect is Albuquerque’s city-wide project brokering artists to business and property owners (and visa versa) in order to arrange to adorn buildings (well almost anything but sidewalks) with outstanding creativity. Much of the street art, mosaics and murals reflect the cultural history of the city. As a result, Muros de Burque is very diverse and spectacular.

…by the way – this is just a sampling of Albuquerque’s street art…

Leonard Peltier is a Native American activist and mainstay member of the American Indian Movement who, following a controversial trial, was convicted of aiding and abetting murder and has been imprisoned since 1977. He was sentenced to two consecutive terms of life imprisonment for aiding and abetting resulting in the death of two Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents in a June 26, 1975 shooting on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation (Wounded Knee occupation) in South Dakota. He is considered by Amnesty International, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, National Congress of American Indians, the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights, and Rev. Jesse Jackson, among many others, to be a political prisoner who should be immediately released.

Meow Wolf is “20,000 square feet of unique please touch experiential labyrinth of art.” There are three Meow Wolf locations each offering a different theme. Whether exploring House of Eternal Return in Santa Fe, Convergence Station in Denver or Omega Mart in Las Vegas, Meow Wolf provides an “immersive psychedelic, mind-bending art and underlying rich narrative journey of discovery into a surreal, science-fictional epic.” Suffice it say (apologies for the cliche): “you gotta see it to believe it.”

A converted bowling alley purchased by George R.R. Martin (yup-that George R.R. Martin) has been converted to house Meow Wolf Santa Fe.

Immediate impression? STIMULUS OVERLOAD!…look over there – no! look here – look up – look down! The floors, walls, and ceilings are packed with images and phrases, colors and black light pastels all presented to confuse your eye with depth of field distortion, and to prepare your mind to do quite a bit of work!

Once through the entryway there are 2 directions from which to choose – head toward The Mystery House or make your adventure winding through the many warehouse spaces, rooms, nooks and crannies that make up the Meow Wolf Experience.

House of Eternal Return focuses on what really happened to the happy family that once occupied Mystery House?

Start with Mystery House and the visitor follows successive clues from one room to the next within the 2-story house. There are hidden passageways (check out the refrigerator), a slide, and some kind of electronic equipment in the basement. It all tells the family’s story – although the answer as to their disappearance (did they really disappear?) is never fully revealed. Staff are placed throughout in order to assist the baffled.

Head away from the House and there are still many hints and clues and kiosks offering videos that tie together the mystery as to what happened to the family that had (?) made this home. It’s fun to imagine what all of the different rooms have to add to solving the mystery. It’s also fun to just let the experience wash over you and provide an amazing visual adventure.

Check it out…

We did the usual and customary sight seeing during our first visit to Albuquerque, and had a pretty good time seeing the sights. Our campsite in town was also a springboard for trips to Santa Fe and Taos – touring pueblos and trying spice mixtures, attending a street fare, and eating green chili cheeseburgers. Unfortunately, we haven’t had the chance to see the balloon fest – yet.

We’ve also had a great time in Las Cruces, Mesilla, and Alamogordo as well as visiting the White Sands Army Base and Testing Grounds and hiking around White Sands National Park. We would have recommended a visit New Mexico be on a traveler’s bucket list. But after our time this time in Albuquerque that recommendation becomes much, much stronger.

Barbara and Brian

“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.“ – Henry David Thoreau