Arizona – New Mexico – Texas Road Trip

Posted on March 3, 2011 by beckyajohnson

As gas prices soared throughout the country, my husband and I embarked on a 8 day road trip from our home in Las Vegas, NV through Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. While the main reason for our trip was to attend a friend’s wedding in Fort Worth, we encoutered many crazy activities along the way. Here is our (partially) illustrated account plus some recommendations on things to see, do and eat in the region.

I love exploring new road food places, and we decided from the beginning that we would avoid eating at corporately-owned restaurants whenever possible throughout our trip. Our first day we drove along the stretch of I-40 from Kingman, Arizona to Tucumcari, New Mexico and ate at 2 great casual eateries.

In Flagstaff, Arizona, not far from the NAU Campus, we ate lunch at East Coast Deli & Grill. When you exit the I-40, there’s a slew of fast food and restaurant chains. But if you drive about 1 mile into town, you’ll find several indie restaurants in a non-descript strip mall.

Sandwiches come in 4″, 8″ or 12″. Chips and other sides are at an additional cost. As a plus, their beverage selection features all-natural cane sugar sodas. I recommend getting your sandwich “Pittsburgh-style.” It will come topped with French fries, tomatoes and cole slaw.

For dinner, we again found a great restaurant just 1 mile off the I-40 – this time in Albuquerque’s Old Town. Take the Rio Grande exit and drive south. Casa de Fiesta Mexican Food is located off S. Plaza street in the Old Town.

A fun atmosphere, margaritas with generous amounts of tequila and tasty regional specialties make this restaurant worth a visit. I went with the Wednesday dinner special: a stuffed sopapilla with refried beans topped with green chile sauce. Also a New Mexico tradition, you get additional sopapillas to top with honey for dessert.

Driving along the I-40 for hundreds of miles, we kept seeing signs for “Free 72 oz. steak” in Amarillo, Texas. While neither of us was particulary interested in attempting this feat, we did have to stop at the “World Famous” Big Texan Steak Ranch for a photo shoot.

Once in the Dallas/Forth Worth area, we spent 2 days catching up with friends (my husband lived in the area for about 10 years before we met). While there, we also made a visit to the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth.

The museum is one of the smallest I’ve been to in a major city (aside from the now extinct Las Vegas Art Museum), but it’s FREE and worth a visit if you have a free afternoon while in the area. There’s several galleries featuring a mix of pre-Columbian artwork, paintings and sculptures from lesser known European artisits, and a few early works from notable artists such as Michaelangelo and Caravaggio (the Michaelangelo painting on display was painted when he was only 13!).

They also had a special, temporary Salvator Rosa exhibit, which you could view for $8 a ticket. While I took art history in college, Salvator Rosa was one Italian Renaissance artist I’d never heard of. I imagine it was hard to compete with the Michaelangelos, Boticellis and Caravaggios of the day, and much of Rosa’s dark themes were more reminiscent of Francisco Goya than the religious themes prevalent of the day.

After a few days in DFW, we headed 3 hours south to Austin, Texas. Neither of us had been before, and we were looking forward to seeing the “other side” of Texas. And while I am on the subject of Texas travelling, here are a few of my travel tips:

1. While driving in Texas, make sure you know the small towns you’ll come across on the way to your larger destination. For example, although Austin is the state capital and only a few hours from Dallas, we never saw a sign for Austin until we had passed Waco (halfway between the cities). Likewise, we didn’t see any signs or distances for San Antonio until we reached Austin.

2. Don’t drink the water in Dallas. It tastes like dirt. Unfortunately bottled water in restaurants is also hard to come by. Sweet tea is a popular alternative. However, tap water in other parts of the state did meet my basic taste requirements.

So during our 2 days in Austin I had 2 goals: (1) to listen to live music in the “Live Music Capital of the World and (2) eat some good ol’ Texas barbecue.

Finding live music is not hard to do, especially if you’re in the Historic Sixth Street District.  We stopped in a bar called Paradise that had no cover and a great-sounding band.

We opted for the $2 “mystery beer.” The waitress admitted she had no idea what the current beer on tap was, but generally a local microbrew is featured. The beer was not bad, but the food was only so-so.

The featured band of the evening was “Midnight Ramble.” They were a rock-blues blend and played mostly covers from artists such as Stevie Ray Vaughn, ZZ Top, and Jimi Hendrix. They were just the type of band we were looking for.

Day 2 in Austin we did some sight-seeing in the downtown area. Our first stop was the Museum of the Weird.

As Austin has the motto ‘Keep Austin Weird,’ we figured this was a must-see attraction. Tickets are only $5 per person (free if you buy a t-shirt) and you get to see such things as shrunken heads, a naturally mummifed cholera victim, trigger finger of Pancho Villa, and possible alien skull (you decide!). My favorite artifact was the mummified Fiji mermaid.

We did find some good ol’ Texas barbecue at Stubb’s on Red River Street.

They also have live music on site, although we arrived a bit too late. I tried their barbecue chicken with mac & cheese and serrano-cheese spinach and all was super delicious. My husband said the beef brisket was the best he’s ever had. They also have a good selection of microbrews.

While in Austin, we stayed at Habitat Inn & Suites, which I highly recommend. They’re an award-winning “green” hotel. Although they’re about 6 miles from downtown, they were far cheaper than comparable hotels in the area and the rooms were quite nice with king-sized beds, full kitchens and lounge areas. Plus they have a nightly happy hour with free beer and wine plus a full breakfast buffet each morning. And their breakfast buffet features macrobiotic selections (plus traditional items if you’re not so adventurous).

After our Austin adventure, we headed on to Carlsbad Caverns National Park in southeastern New Mexico. With your $6 per person entry fee, you have access to the ‘Big Room’ of the cave, which for most of the visitors is the main attraction. While there is elevator access to the cave, we chose to hike in through the ‘Natural Entrance.’ It’s now a paved trail, but it’s 1.25 miles with a 740-foot descent which makes it incredibly steep. But it’s ever-so-worth-it despite being incredibly sore the next day.

The ‘Big Room’ features another 1.25 mile loop trail that’s relatively flat and easy. Parts of it are also wheelchair accessible. In the Big Room, you’ll find some pretty amazing cave formations.

The highlight of our trip to Carlsbad Caverns was definitely our adventure tour to Lower Cave. We booked this ranger-guided tour several weeks in advance, as they only allow up to 12 people on the tour and it’s only offered once per day. This was one of several adventure tours offered, and was described as ‘moderately strenuous.’ Once you’re in the cave, it’s not so difficult, but the tricky part is descending the 90 feet from the Big Room. You’ll have to rappel down a 15-foot slope plus descend a series of 3 ladders another 70 feet.

 Lower Cave is truly a ‘wild cave’ and is not kept lit by artificial lighting the way the Big Room is. We navigated via lighted headlamps, and during a portion of the tour we also got to experience complete darkness. Highlights included cavern pools, cave pearls, interesting formations, and this stalagmite that’s estimated to be 1.3 million years old.

Heading back to Las Vegas the following day, we stopped for one last road food meal: Eagle Cafe in Gallup, New Mexico. It’s just off the I-40 off Historic Route 66 and has been in operation since 1889.

This was our last opportunity for New Mexican cuisine and I wanted to try my latest discovery in local cuisine. When you order New Mexican food they’ll ask if you want red or green sauce, but according to our tour guide at Carlsbad Caverns, many locals ask for their sauce to be ‘Christmased’ – with both red and green sauces.

Now it’s back to work so I can save up money for our next adventure.

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The Same Earth Virtual Book Discussion

Posted on February 27, 2011 by beckyajohnson

The Same Earth by Kei Miller. Published in 2008.

Synopsis: Set in the village of Watersgate, Jamaica in the 1970s – 1980s, this novel tells the stories of a host of characters – most notably Imelda Richardson. While intertwining the lives of characters such as an Evangelist preacher, a foul-mouthed lawyer, a neighborhood gossip – turned fiery Pentecostal, a man obsessed with dictionaries, and a Rastaman, Miller paints a picture of small town Jamaica life and the important role religion and customs play.

About the Author: Born in Jamaica in 1979, Kei Miller divides his time between his home country and the UK, where he currently teaches creative writing at the University of Glasgow. He has previously published several collections of poetry and a collection of short stories. The latter was short-listed for the Commonwealth Writer’s Prize for Best First Book.

My Initial Reactions to the Book:

To be honest, I did not much care for this book overall. I thought it would be a quick read, as it’s only around 230 pages, but this is the longest it’s ever taken me to get through a book club pick. Throughout the first 50 pages, I wondered if the book would even develop a plot. I thought perhaps it was a collection of short stories, but this book really didn’t fit that description either. Also, I thought the ending was a bit too anti-climatic, given the suspense that had built up in the last 100 pages.

Although I wasn’t an overall fan of the book, I do have plenty of good things to say about it. First of all, Kei Miller is a very talented young writer and he has the gift of developing quirky, highly interesting characters (but he needs to work on plot development).

The part of the book I found the most interesting was when Imelda travelled to England.  Here, Miller explored the themes of immigration, homesickness and what it feels like to be a stranger in a foreign country. These were issues that I could readily relate to based on my own life experiences. Likewise, when Imelda returns to Jamaica after the death of her mother, she struggles with fitting in with a society that no longer really welcomes her. This conflict is really the heart of the book.

The other interesting theme is the role of the Evangelical/Pentecostal Church, and as the character of Pastor Braithwaite suggests, it is sometimes easier to hate than to love. Joseph the Rastaman was another interesting character, and given that this book was set during Bob Marley’s prime in Jamaica and the rise of Rastafarianism as a religion, I wished that this was touched on more in the novel – the struggle between Pentecostal Christianity and it’s polar opposite in Rastafarianism.

So what did you think of the book? Did you love it or hate it? Which characters did you find to be the most interesting? Which stories were the most entertaining for you? What didn’t you like about the book? Please post your thoughts in the comments section below.

Next up for discussion: Hilary Thayer Hamann’s Anthropology of an American Girl. Discussion begins March 10th.

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Nineteen Eighty-Four Virtual Book Discussion

Posted on February 10, 2011 by beckyajohnson

Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. Published in 1949.

Synopsis: In a quasi-oligarchic world, Winston Smith’s job is to re-write history to suit the ever-changing needs of an all-powerful Party. Where evil thoughts and adultery are considered to be the ultimate crimes, Winston both inwardly rebels against the totalitarian government and finds love. In this allegorical Cold War-era tale, Orwell paints a picture of a society where every thought and action is carefully scrutinized and the only things that matter are power and loyalty.

About the Author: George Orwell (born Eric Blair) was born to an English family in India in 1903. After being educated in England, he served with the Indian Imperial Police in Burma and also  lived in Paris for a while. In his mid-30s, he developed tuberculosis, was admitted to a sanatorium and never fully recovered. He wrote 6 novels and 6 nonfiction books before his death in 1950; Nineteen Eighty-Four was his last.

My Initial Reactions to the Book

When I initially set out to read this book, people told me, “you’ll be surprised how closely Orwell’s predictions resonate with today’s world.” After reading that Jared Loughner had been a fan of the book, I feared what lied within its pages. However, after reading the book, I think that Fahrenheit 451 – a novel from roughly the same time period – had more similarities to our present society than this one. But there is so much possibility for discussion contained within this book, that I can’t possibly put it all down in this blog. I’ll begin with just a few things.

I bought this book during a layover at Heathrow Airport in London, and so picked up a copy of the original, English version. My version started with an introduction written by an English professor from Leicester. Since I started with the introduction, and didn’t delve right into the novel, I’ll admit that my views on the book may have already been tainted.

I think it’s important to look at the time period in which this book was written. It was post-World War II Britain and the world was fully entrenched in Cold War-mania. The introduction to my version of the book indicated that this novel was originally used as anti-Communist propaganda, but that this was not likely Orwell’s intention. Politically, Orwell was at the far left and believed that if the British Labour Party (who supposedly stood for workers’ rights) were to take over, it wouldn’t make any difference. The only thing that mattered to political parties was power. I guess one could argue the similarities between politics, power and our current world, although it isn’t near as severe as in Orwell’s Oceania. I’m reminded of the 1979 Iranian revolution, when many young Iranians craved socialism, but instead they got the totalitarian Ayatollah.

The other day my husband and I watched the National Geographic documentary Inside North Korea. Here, I thought, is the society that most closely resembles the one created in Nineteen Eighty-Four. Kim Jong Il is like Big Brother, and every member of society must pledge their unquestionable allegiance to him in their every action. The “medical” crew who filmed the documentary was watched at all times by “minders,” similar to Orwell’s Thought Police or the telescreens. Also, if one member of society should try to defect or disagree, they may be placed in concentration camps, perhaps similar to the ones in Part 3 of this novel. It made me thankful to live in a society where I can enjoy basic freedoms. I highly recommend this documentary; we rented it from Netflix.

There was one subtle thing I did notice in  Nineteen Eighty-Four that I thought bore a striking resemblance to the United States: all products bore the brand ‘Victory.’ Earlier this week, I was saddened to learn that the Huffington Post had been bought out by the AOL/Time/Warner mega-media conglomerate, as if our news can now only be controlled by a single source. Also, while watching the Super Bowl, I saw commercial after commercial of Doritos, Pepsi and Budweiser and thought to myself, “aren’t all of these brands actually owned by just a few corporations.” I fear our greatest enemy is not the pursuit of power by those in our government, but the pursuit of absolute power by the corporations who control most of the wealth.

Okay, enough of my political ramblings – what did you think of the book Nineteen Eighty-Four (and also feel free to comment on my political rants if you wish)? Have you read the book recently or a while back? Did you think it was more reflective of the time it was written or of today? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Next up for discussion will be The Same Earth by Kei Miller. Discussion begins February 24th.

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My 2011 Half-Marathon Goal, Wine Country Get-Away & Girls on the Run SoleMates

Posted on February 4, 2011 by beckyajohnson

A couple of weeks ago, when I shared about my experiences running the Rock n Roll Arizona Half-Marathon Relay, I briefly mentioned my hopes to train for a half-marathon this year. Well friends, I’ve found my race!

Last night registration opened for the Healdsburg Wine Country Half-Marathon on October 29, 2011. The race has both a wine harvest and Halloween-inspired theme and is supposed to be one of the most scenic courses in country. It’s also limited to just 2,000 runners (I’m a big fan of smaller races), advertises itself as having “a sip of wine and estate-produced jam” at one of its water stations (I’m a big foodie), and there is a post-race wine and music festival.

I’ll also be running the race as a Girls on the Run SoleMates participant. SoleMates is an adult charity running program that raises funds for Girls on the Run, a positive youth development program that combines training for a 5k with an interactive curriculum to develop self-respect and healthy lifestyles in pre-teen girls. Those who are regular followers of my blog will know that I am currently working to bring this great organization to Las Vegas, and the money I raise through SoleMates will directly support our local council.

In case you are interested in donating, you can visit my individual fundraising page. My goal is to raise $1,000 by the end of October.

And the race date means that my husband and I will be in Wine Country to celebrate our 2nd wedding anniversary. We plan to stay in the area for a few days after the race, so I look forward to writing more about our explorations there. 

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Eat, Pray, Love Virtual Book Discussion

Posted on January 29, 2011 by beckyajohnson

Eat, Pray, Love: One Women’s Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert. Published in 2006.

Synopsis: In her mid-thirties, Elizabeth Gilbert finds herself recently divorced, severely depressed, and not getting what she wants out of life. A surprise and generous book advance allows her the opportunity to spend a year abroad in search of herself: four months in Italy in pursuit of pleasure, four months in India in pursuit of spirituality/devotion, and four months in Indonesia in pursuit of finding a balance between the two.

About the Author: Prior to publishing this New York Times best-selling memoir, Elizabeth Gilbert was already a published novelist who also worked as a journalist with several different magazine publications, based in New York City. Her sequel to Eat, Pray, Love – Committed: A Love Story – was published in 2010.

My Initial Reactions to this Book

With all the hype surrounding this book, the film that had been released, and my love of travel, I’ll admit that I’m a bit late in reading this book. After reading Gilbert’s short introduction – in which she discusses her plans to enjoy great food, devotedly practice yoga, and find balance in her life – I was sure I would love this book . For these are also a few of my favorite things.

Alas, I began reading this book a little over a week ago on an intercontinental business trip and really had a hard time getting into it. In the first section of the book (on Italy), I wanted to hear less about Gilbert’s messy divorce and complicated life, and more about Italy. There, I’ll say it: I found her to be a little (obnoxiously) whiney.

The second section (on India) was a little more entertaining to me. I’ve been practicing yoga for just over 7 years now, a practice I began when I lived in South Africa. I find the Americanized version of yoga too watered-down, and I’ve always dreamed of spending time in an Ashram. In this section, I really appreciated Gilbert’s anthropological anecdotes about ashram living, the people she met along the way, and her quest to find spirituality and tame her mind.

By the time I finished the third section of the book (on Indonesia) I loved it! Maybe it is because I too am currently seeking balance in my life? Also, I have never been to Indonesia, so this was the most ‘foreign’ of the three places to me. Now, I definitely want to go to Bali ASAP. Also, while in Indonesia, Gilbert seemed to have already found herself and began a number of interesting relationships (Ketut, Wayan, Felipe, Yudhi). The book was no longer just about her. This new, mature version of the author was way more enjoyable to read.

So what did you think of the book? Have you been to any of the places where Gilbert travelled to? Did you enjoy one of the 3 sections more than the others? I’m curious to find out what other people thought of the book based on their personal quests du jour. Please post your thoughts in the comments section below.

Next up for discussion will be George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four. Discussion begins February 9th.

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