Santa Fe, New Mexico

Last weekend I spent four days camped in the mountains just north of Santa Fe, New Mexico. I met some great locals who answered a lot of questions about what life is like in Santa Fe but other than a few trips into town for food, ice or fuel I didn't give myself much time to go exploring.

So yesterday I returned with some chores: Find a landromat and wash clothes, get a routine service check at the Honda dealer, and stock up on food from places like Trader Joe's before I go out into small town America again.

I asked the iPhone to find me a laundromat and for some reason it took four tries to pick one, go to its location and actually find one. I found one in a little plaza, got my laundry started and then visited a local Whole Foods type co-op grocery store for some lunch. When my laundry was done I went over to the Honda dealership and let them do an oil change, tire rotation and air filter changes on the Fit.

So this is pretty boring stuff, huh? I think so too, because its the type of stuff we all do in our home towns. But it wasn't until later that afternoon that I realize I'm comfortable here. There are businesses to support my life like a Honda dealership, a health-concious food store, Whole Food and Trader Joes.

The architecture -- which looks like 2009 as if Fred Flintstone designed it -- is starting to grow on me.

When my brother calls me around 6pm I tell him I'm headed either out of town or back to the local camp site from last weekend because I've seen enough of Santa Fe to get an idea of it and move on. But I can't. After I talk to him for about forty-five minutes I realize I'm comfortable here and not ready to go. It's like meeting a stranger and finding a chemistry between you: it's a nice surprise that you don't get very often.

So I decided then to find one of the little local motels I'd spotted over the weekend. The Thunderbird is an aging 1950s motor lodge in the style I adore with rooms for only $39 an free Wifi. I am not kidding you when I say this, too, is run by indians from india and the lobby smells like curry. I'm totally cool with that.

After I check in, it's still light out and I'm in a good mood so I go exploring. I find the "Plaza" that Annette, the local, had been telling me about over the weekend. The Plaza shoes the Spanish influence in Santa Fe. Don't mistake Spanish for Mexican -- by Spanish I mean european. Santa Fe has a grand Catholic church next to a park-like plaza at the center of their historic downtown. It's beautiful and for the past 17 years they've hosted free music outside in excellent weather... for free.

For the next two hours I take pictures of everything I see in the plaza. The thing I'm most impressed with is the people. They're young and old, bikers, arists, average moms and dads and they all get along...

I don't know where it came from but I'm really starting to like this place.