I Went on a Girls' Trip with my Mom and Sister...And Shit Got Weird
Back in March of 2018 (aka last year?!?), my mom, sister and I took a ladies-only trip to Santa Fe, NM. It was a delayed celebration of Mom’s 70th birthday and E’s 40th birthday (milestone ages were ‘unlocked’ these in 2017), and we had a lovely time. Also, yes, shit got WIERD. I’ll explain later on. But first…here are some of the fun things we did/saw/ate.
Where we stayed: We stayed at The Inn & Spa at Loretto, and if you are planing to visit Santa Fe, I cannot recommend it enough. The staff, services, and facilities were impeccable. About a month before our stay, the hotel snail-mailed me a Santa Fe Guidebook, and a handwritten greeting. How sweet is is that? Also, when we arrived, they upgraded us to a larger room, free of charge, after I realized the room that I had booked was a bit small for the three of us. The hotel desk clerk said it was their gift to us for choosing their hotel for our special weekend. While I’m sure the lower occupancy for staying during the off-season worked in our favor to scoring a luxe room, it was a much appreciated friendly gesture.
My sister and Mom in front of our hotel. We enjoyed beautiful, blue sky weather all weekend long.
Where we ate: I am a big lover of Tex-Mex and Southwestern cuisine, and Santa Fe delivered. Our dining wasn’t exclusively Southwestern in nature, however, and each and every restaurant we selected was a culinary treat. Here are some highlights:
La Fonda on the Plaza: This is the hotel just around the corner of where we stayed, with an excellent Southwest restaurant and potent margaritas. Yum!
Luminaria: This is the restaurant hotel where we ate breakfast a few times. It was a bit chilly to enjoy the award-winning patio, but the inside is also charming.
The Living Room: This comfortable little happy hour bar is located in the hotel where we stayed. We had fun reading about the “smoking nun” who “haunts” the hotel — though none of us ordered that beverage!
We enjoyed the “spirits” at our hotel. OoooeeeeEEeeoooo!
Coyote Canteen: We enjoyed tex max appetizers and margaritas at this fun, colorful, vibrant rooftop bar. A nice break from our day of sightseeing and shopping.
Terra Cotta Wine Bar: New American style cuisine and a plentiful wine list, we enjoyed this litte gem after spending the afternoon at the Georgia O’Keefe museum.
Mucho Gusto: This little Mexican joint was one of my favorite food stops of our weekend. Guacamole, queso fundido, flautas….get in my belly!
Cultural Experiences: When we weren’t busy stuffing our faces, we had a great time shopping the plaza and checking out the local history. Here’s a little bit of what we were up to:
Little Loretto Chapel and the Legend of the Miracle Staircase: This is the miracle site located right next to our hotel, and the one our hotel is named after. It’s a tourist trap, to be sure, but fun to see, had a mysterious vibe, and was worth the history lesson. No one know who built the spiral staircase, or how it was built (it seems to defy physics!)
Miracle Loretto Staircase. Don’t get it twisted! (Get it? Twisted like the staircase? Get it?)
The Plaza: So many jewelry shops and so much beautiful Native American Art for sale in the plaza! Both Mom and E picked up some pieces, while I stuck to admiring it all and taking in the history.
The Plaza. It was lit.
Georgia O'Keeffe Museum: Fun fact about Georgia O’Keeffe. Not only was she a dazzling artist with a deep love of nature, but she was quite a beautiful poet as well. I purchased a book of her art and poetry to commemorate our weekend.
Mood.
Meow Wolf. Where Shit Got Weird.
Meow Wolf is a one of a kind experience that's hard to describe. It's a giant, strange, immersive, multisensory-overload, art maze that showcases the collective, cooperative talent of a community of artists, located in Santa Fe, NM. My mom, sister and I spent HOURS exploring this space of weirdness and wonder and still didn't see it all. Here are some snaps that don't do it justice and provide only a fleck of the bigger picture.
They don’t make these at General Mills…
Lots of little nooks and crannies and ways to interact with the art. This wasn’t creepy. And we look cute!
This though… a little bit more toward the WTF end of the spectrum.
Meow Wolf. Issa viiiiibe.