OSF. The heart Of Robin Hood

OSF. The heart Of Robin Hood

Golden Gates

Golden Gates

Morning on top of mark

Morning on top of mark

Avenue of the Giants

Avenue of the Giants


Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Wednesday, August 7, 2013. Albuquerque, New Mexico

This is the table where I am writing this entry. It is around 11, and there is a very slight breeze, which feels good after the dry scorching heat of the day. Next to me there is a small fountain, its soft mumbling mingling with the song of a cicada; so warm, so lovely...

I am in the Casas de los Suenos; it is a small boutique hotel, whose owner is a dedicated arts collector. Each room, each nook and corner both indoors and outdoors is filled with art: paintings, watercolors, prints, sculpture, some maybe too modern and some maybe painted in the 40s of the last century...
I love it all. I am drinking in this summer night, the stars that so rarely could be seen in Seattle. The closest to the feeling - I  am 15 and I am  back in Tashkent.... 

Back to the road trip: I hardly noticed the road to Albuquerque - it took us less then an hour. We arrived to our hotel around 11, but they took us in immediately - the rooms were ready. We got a short tour of the hotel  and a little art talk... Our suit is called I-66. It has a kitchen with a gas stove, full size refrigerator, a coffee maker, a kettle, plates, cups, silverware...

The sitting room has a TV and a sofa bed; the other room is a bedroom with a queen size bed. There is a closet for suitcases, and a bathroom. Everywhere one notices little art pieces - traditional tiles in the bathroom, hand woven pillow cases on the couch, original paintings on the wall.

The Old town is about 300 feet away - literally, one crosses the intersection of the Central Ave, walks to the end of a small block  and turns right: old town! Here you gasp entering the plaza and facing San Felipe Cathedral for the first time. The screeming bright colors overwhelm you: the deep indigo of the skies, burning yellow of the walls of the cathedral, intense green of the trees and accents of red, turquoise, white, orange everywhere - cheerfully painted window frames, bundles of chili peppers, embroidered blouses, shiny glazed pottery...

We wondered in and out little patios that brim with art galleries, little chapels, small cafes. Dad got a metal flask that says New Mexico, and Mom got two hand woven Navajo pillow cases that look like they could have been made in Turkmanistan. We had lunch/dinner at the High Noon restaurant. The building dates back to mid-18th century. Food was excellent, ambiance - beyond compare. 

I also managed to run through the Art Museum, worth seeing!

Later we took a car ride about the city - we wanted to see the downtown, some real houses... what are the schools like, the streets, the office buildings... It was a good thing - now we understand that Albuquerque is a normal big (1,200 million people) American city. When you are in the Old town you forget all about it - and are transported 200 years back.

One and only disappointment: the ABQ trolley was not working till August 13. Their web site is impossible to navigate, you hit "page cannot be found" at every step; their telephone is not a way to communicate - you can only hear when they do not operate. Oh, well... we survived!

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I love these movies!

  • The Fall, directed by Tarsem
  • Amelie, directed by Jean-Pierre Jennet
  • Lord of the Rings, directed by Peter Jackson
  • Moulan Rouge, directed by Baz Luhrman
  • Moonsoon Wedding, directed by Mira Nair
  • Australia, directed by Baz Luhrman
  • Despereately seeking Susan, directed by Susan Seidelman
  • Miss Pettigrew lives for a day, directed by Bharat Nalluri

Favorite books and authors

  • Boris Vassiliev, historical novels
  • C.Cherryh, Morgaine Sagas
  • Ch.Dickens, The Bleak House
  • George Martin, The Chronicles of Ice and Fire
  • Gregory Frost, Shadow Bridge novels
  • Heinrich Mann, Henry the IV
  • J.R.R.Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings
  • Jane Austin, Pride and Prejudice, Persuasion, Emma
  • Robert Jordan, The Wheel of Time
  • Sir Thomas Mallory, Le Mort D'Artur
  • Ted Williams, Green Angel Tower
  • Terry Goodkind, Magician's First Rule and the following books in this saga
  • Thomas Mann, Joseph and his Brothers