Although we've been to Santa Fe many times on short visits we've never been able to enjoy some of the attractions in town such as are museums or churches. Our first stop was a very quiet and enjoyable lunch at Flying Star where we were able to read some magazines and chat. From there we went to the Georgia O'Keeffe museum, which surprisingly focused on her artwork from her time in New York as opposed to her artwork here in New Mexico. It struck Jamie and I how much of our lives are grounded in realities (budgets, schedules, meals, kids needs) that it takes a bit of time to transition to the abstract artwork that was so much of her paintings currently featured in the museum.
From there we wondered around the downtown square as well as visited a beautiful catholic church. After that we went back to the hotel (free thanks to Hilton points), and then went out to dinner at a cozy Italian restaurant called Cafe Cafe. We very much enjoyed our meal talking without interruption as well as the amazing food. I had green chile, buffalo lasagna.
The next morning we drove down town and enjoyed a few hours at a Starbucks reading and journalling. We then headed back to the catholog church to take a few pictures of the labyrinth out front. I was intrigued by the though of a labyrinth which is different than a maze in that a labyrinth has only one path that twists and turns until it reaches the center destination. Early on Christians used labyrinths to symbolize life with it's unexpected twists and turns. They would often meditate as they walked the path.
After our wondering around the old town we concluded our stay by eating at one of our favorite restaurants in New Mexico called Maria's. They have the best Chili Reano of any place we've visited so far.
Overall it was a great getaway and and good to come back to the kids and dad and mom Otten.
