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A frugal tribute to (New) Mexico

Road trips to Acoma Pueblo, being blessed by a Havasupai elder before hiking the Grand Canyon, watching a Zuni rain dance, seeing the cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde, sitting in a kiva, winter camping, the smell of creosote bushes, seeing the sunrise in Sedona and magical night stars at Shiprock - these are memories that Tightwad will carry with her for the rest of her life; memories gathered during a year's hiatus in New Mexico and travelling throughout the Southwest US.
Okay she realizes that New Mexico isn't Mexico – like for starters it's in a different country – but Tightwad thinks that the connection to the past, the strong family connections and the relationship with the earth that she experienced whilst there is probably pretty close. And the food! From eating at the Shed in Santa Fe and the Casa Viejo in Corrales to little rustic restaurants – the food is unbelievable. Fresh chiles, sopapillias, guacamole, enchiladas and just-dropped from the tree pecans were diet main-stays. Eskies in Taos brews green chile beer – OMG good. Fresh bread on a pueblo that was baked in an outdoor oven is pretty close to perfection. 
The thing is, Tightwad doesn't remember all of these experiences actually costing much. We ate at home a lot; making our own refried beans from soaked pintos, brewing our coffee in a Bodum (with fresh red chile powder for that extra little zing) and always traveled with our camping equipment in the car in the event we wanted to stay someplace on a whim. The food portions are so huge we always shared our meals, which always tasted fantastic after a day of exploring.
Is this what life is like in Merida? Is it full of culture, history and wonderful food? With some quick research Tightwad has confirmed that in fact, Merida has a rich cultural scene, fantastic beaches and significant archeological resources – and everyone gets a month off in the summer to relax! That's living! Now, my question is, do you like red, or green?

This article was previously published on What Do I Do All Day? on August 25, 2010.

3 comments:

Gigi said...

Sounds like a fab place. Pictures???

Nancy at EmbroideryIt.com said...

I like green.
Nancy in New Mexico
http://www.howtohomemaker.com/

Anonymous said...

yeah, it was a great year.

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