Santa Fe was chilly but sunny and delightful. We enjoyed our morning on Canyon Road, browsing the galleries. We really only needed to buy one painting but when Ken saw Robert Taylor's new works, he had to have one. Not sure where we'll put it, maybe his Houston apartment? Anyway, it's a wonderful work, it's titled When Magic Becomes Medicine, it's the top left painting that you'll see in this link.
I have to tell you, the best margaritas I've ever had are at the Ore House on the square in Santa Fe. They are small but pack a punch. Holly, Dani and I ate and drank (Dani had the virgin one, of course) all afternoon.
After that, Holly caught the train back to Albuquerque and we took the high road to Taos and then on to Angel Fire. We had a condo right on the slopes - walk to the lift. We skied the next morning but a storm was coming in and they closed the lifts mid-day due to high winds. So we went to Taos and spent the afternoon shopping (a tragedy....ha). Here's a picture of Dani in the snow.
We woke up the next morning to a beautiful blanket of powder and had a great day on the slopes. I really felt proud of myself in my skiing ability -- no falls. I exclaimed to Nile: "I didn't fall on the steep part!" and of course, his reply (totally serious): "What steep part?" Sigh.
The following day, however, was just too cold. It snowed again, all night, and the powder was incredibly thick. It was zero degrees, the news said -15 with the wind chill factor. So fools that we were, there was no line at the lifts first thing in the morning and we went up the mountain. It was bone-chilling cold. All my fingers and toes were numb at the top. And this is with the silk liners and the little warmers in my boots and gloves. I had to say to myself "just keep going" to get down the mountain. Nile & I decided not to do any more runs, but Dani and Ken did two more. They are ski champs.
The trip back was uneventful (the best kind) but we did eat at this fantastic Turkish restaurant in Houston on our return. Honestly, they served the best tabbouleh that I've ever eaten and I like to think I'm a tabbouleh snob. Here's a link to the place, I'll definitely be returning there.
OK, so I rate that vacation at an 8. Would've been more if we could've skied a little more. But it still was great fun.
