| “Mama, you
really need some time off, and I can meet you for the weekend,”
my daughter said. Fortunately, I had enough airline credits
to cover a trip, and a chance to spend time with my San Francisco
daughter is a rare treat, so a quick decision to meet in Sante
Fe, N.M., (which I had never visited) was made.
Very early Friday morning, I shared the Connecticut limo
to La Guardia with an interesting young man, born in Puerto
Rico but educated in Connecticut, who was leaving to live
and teach in the Dominican Republic. He spoke several languages
and had traveled extensively.
Although he said he would miss some modern American conveniences
in the Dominican Republic, he liked the slower life pace
and the neighborliness, which he felt were disappearing
in America. Wishing him well, I departed at La Guardia,
boarding pass already in hand as I had downloaded and printed
it via my computer.
I also was bringing just a carry-on as almost all airlines
now charge for any checked luggage. I wore shoes and a sweater
that were easy on-off items going through security, but
despite all these precautions, I find that for senior travelers,
these are no longer “friendly skies.”
There are long lines everywhere and most airline personnel
seem too busy to be very helpful. Many of the airports such
as the Dallas/Fort Worth International where I changed planes,
are huge and require a great deal of walking.
Flight attendants are not supposed to help with your luggage
so I constantly felt like Blanche DuBois in “A Streetcar
Named Desire,” dependent on the kindness of strangers
to heft my bag into the overhead bin. Usually, some nice
gentleman came to the rescue, but only after I had blocked
the aisle and my fellow passengers while waiting for some
help.
The warm late-afternoon air of Sante Fe greeted me, following
an hour’s ride from the airport which is in Albuquerque.
The scenery was an immediate contrast to what I had left
behind in Connecticut. Instead of greenery and cheerful
daffodils and cherry blossoms, all was brown: sagebrush,
cactus, and buildings of terra cotta.
While you do see the Sandia Mountains in the distance,
the immediate landscape is vast and flat. I also found my
allergies came out in full force; like many of the residents,
I learned I am very allergic to their juniper trees.
However, the hotel was adobe-style and charming ... decorated
in soft, desert colors and accented with brightly patterned
Navajo rugs and pottery. A small balcony gave me a view
of the nearby town plaza where most shops and restaurants
are located.
Marianne and I had dinner at a new place in town where
the kitchen is open to the dining area, and you can watch
as your dinner is being prepared. Delicious! Breakfast buffet
at the hotel the next morning, however, and I was in trouble.
The scrambled eggs were made with red and green peppers
and chili was also on the menu for breakfast. Featured prominently
on the buffet table were Tabasco sauce, ketchup, black beans
and mustard.
Sante Fe excels in museums; but in deference to Marianne
who is not the museum addict I am, we visited only one the
following day, the Museum of International Folk Art. Folk
art is art that is made with materials that are at hand
and usually by self-trained artists. There were an amazing
variety of absolutely beautiful objects made from simple
materials such as wood, wool, clay and straw.
A large part of the collection was donated by Alexander
Girard, a New Yorker who was famous for his unique designs
for Herman Miller furniture, Braniff Airlines and the now
closed La Fonda del Sol restaurant in Manhattan. The playfulness
and sense of color he found in folk art became part of his
life and his distinctive designs.
In the afternoon, we enjoyed an open-air tour of the entire
town; viewing the many elegant art galleries lining Canyon
Road and seeing Loretto Chapel, perhaps the oldest church
in America. Sante Fe is a shopper’s town and features
one-of-a-kind, handmade items (most quite expensive) from
unusual patch-work leather or fabric handbags to eye-popping
turquoise and silver belts, brooches, bangles and rings.
I exercised great restraint and only bought a colorful basket
to add to my kitchen wall collection.
The final day of my three-day excursion was spent in Albuquerque
with former Long Island neighbors whom I hadn’t seen
in almost 30 years. It was wonderful to renew our friendship
and to enjoy their beautiful home which has a view of the
mountains by day and the sparkling lights of the downtown
by night.
However enjoyable my visit, I somehow always felt I was
out in the middle of nowhere and found that this part of
America would never be a place I would choose to live. The
long weekend had been a much needed respite and change,
but I was grateful to head back to the greenery of New England,
Connecticut and home.
Jean Cherni is founder of Senior
Living Solutions, a retirement advisory service. Contact
her at jeancherni@sbcglobal.net or 15 The Ponds, Branford
06405.
H. Pearce Company REALTORS®
is a full-service real estate company with more than 100
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Corporate and & Commercial offices are located in North
Haven, where the company was founded in 1958. All listings
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