We ate breakfast at the restaurant at the Holiday Inn. Eggs, steak, hash browns and an English Muffin – delicious! By far, the best meal of the trip!
When we got back to the car, I had voicemail from Wendy that the house inspection was back, and it was just a few minor things. We left her a phonemail with the hotel fax number, and ran off to explore Truth or Consquences.
I learned from the hotel manager that T or C had purchased the traveling Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and put it on permanent display next to the Veterans Hospital. I’d never seen the memorial, despite it having traveled through towns I’ve lived in. It’s a somber reminder of those who gave their all so that we could be free.
Once we discovered there would be a delay in getting the fax from Wendy, we went ahead and headed to our destination for the day: the Very Large Array, west of Socorro. The drive was the drive. Driving through this beautiful country in the desert southwest somewhat numbs you to the vast beauty of it all, so it starts to look ordinary – what a shame!
So, we traveled through the desert, climbing higher and higher, and finally reaching an open plateau…. And there were the dishes! I was reminded of discovering Stonehenge when we were in England in ’98 – just top the hill and there it was!
This is the same array that was used in the film Contact – there was even a good bit of information about the filming of the film and the production company’s use of the site. Beck and I saw Contact in the theater when it was released, and it really struck a chord with me. To visit this site was a real treat for me!
We stopped for lunch at a little place called the Big Bear Café in Magdalene. This was authentic Mexican food! I had a pair of tamales and a taco – delicious, well spiced, and a bargain.
The rest of the drive from the VLA to Santa Fe was uneventful, although there was once again beautiful scenery, and a terrific climb into the mountains. Santa Fe is supposed to be a great city, and tomorrow, we plan to give it a good looking over.