Things I Liked About New Mexico

I liked the land.  Without an abundance of foliage and plants, you can see the land.  In the span of one viewing, you can see the rocks and dirt vary in 5 or more colors.  The colors varied anywhere from off white, gray, tan, brown, pink, red, peach, and black.  In one spot I saw dirt on the side of the road that was actually an olive green.

I liked the mountains.  Hills and gullies are exciting.  Viewing the landscape that is so different from home restores my soul. I think I'll make it through the winter now.

I liked the colors. I saw a lot of reds, oranges, and yellows in the landscape.  Even the license plates on the automobiles were attractive.  Some were a blend of red, yellow and orange.  Others were an intense yellow or turquoise.  I asked a store clerk why the license plates were a different color.  She said the auto owner gets to choose.  With my blue car, if I lived in New Mexico, I'd choose the yellow plates.

I liked the yards.  No one has to mow their lawns.  No lawn mowers in New Mexico.  I did see some snow blowers but no lawn mowers.  And most yards are fenced in.

I liked the houses.  In the desert, the houses are pueblo style.  I think they're attractive. In the forested hills, the houses were wood framed and looked more like the ones in Minnesota.

I liked the permeable surfaces.  Aside from the roads (which I thought were all in good shape), the parking lots and driveways were sand or gravel.  Rain, when there is rain, can soak right in.  Sometimes this lack of asphalt made it hard to tell if a business was actually open but I think that is something I could get used to.

I liked the people.  On our trip, we didn't speak to many people outside the tourist industry.  But the people we did meet were kind.  Several people we met were originally from Minnesota.  New Mexico has a lot of dollar stores.  Even small towns will have two dollar stores and they have quite a few customers.  We stopped at one store to pick up some dollar gifts I needed for a party.  Their dollar stores carry items that cost more than a dollar.  The clerk commented on out items and asked us questions about how we planned to use them.  People are very friendly at the dollar store.

I liked the plants.  The species varied quite a bit as we drove from the southern end of the state to the northern end.  In the Chihauhuan desert, I was happy to see yucca plants.  We also saw creosote and mesquite.  Along the Rio Grande river we saw cottonwood trees and maple trees.  In the northern end of the state we came upon juniper forests.

I liked the animals.  We saw a lot of birds. The highlight of the birds was the road runner, the burrowing owls, the flocks of sand hill cranes, the black billed magpies, the flocks of pin tail ducks and the wood ducks.  We saw a couple rodents around a bird feeder.  And we saw mule deer several times.  I didn't see a single reptile or a any bugs. 

I liked the way the drive sober warnings were worded.  Instead of saying, "Don't drink and drive-it's the law,"  in New Mexico the signs read, "Don't drink and drive-it's our law."  The difference is subtle but I liked it.  The sign implies that if you are a good citizen of this state or "one of us", you won't be drinking and driving. 

I liked the sky.  Gone were the gray blankets of Minnesota winter clouds.  In New Mexico the clouds had interesting shapes and made for colorful sunrises and sunsets. 

This was my first vacation where I just picked a state and decided to explore it.  I think I'll do that again.