April 27, 2023
We initially had planned to go to Los Alamos and Bandolier National Park, but decided to stay a little closer to home due to weather conditions. So we opted to explore Santa Fe. We chose to first explore the Santa Fe Plaza. It is a very cool area. It reminds me of a large square with various vendors in the park and store on the outside of the park. There were also street performers in the Plaza. It was very nice and the weather held for us. Across the street from the Plaza stands the Governor’s Palace. It is an awesome looking structure but we did not go in to tour it. Instead, we walked around the exterior and looked at some really neat handmade crafts. Each vendor was a Native American and you could see a lot of silver and turquoise. They had some very nice pieces and the prices were not bad considering how much time it took to make each piece.
We found a couple of stores to walk through just for grins and giggles. One of those was Lucchese. For those of you not familiar with Lucchese, it is a very high-end boots. They also have other fine leather goods like belts, purses, jackets, etc. The sales person was very nice and friendly. He knew we were only there to admire the quality of the products. I did try on one very nice cowboy hat. And I did find one of the softest pair of boots I have every seen or felt. They were 100% buffalo. They were awesome. But the price of $1,200 was cost prohibitive. The salesman did suggest that I work for Lucchese part-time. They require their employees to wear their products. I hope Lucchese comes to North Carolina very soon so I can get a part-time job. The closest store is in Nashville, TN.
We continued to walk around the square and even took a side trip to a couple of shops just off the beaten trail. One was the Santa Fe Hat Company. The hats were beautiful. Of course they custom make hats but it may take a year for you to get it. We had a chance to talk to a sales/craftsman and learned so much about the difference in materials. It was fascinating and educational. Again, the prices were a big deterrent to purchasing. Nancy got to get a free skin care treatment with some very high end products. We had the chance to talk to a lot of interesting people. It was a fun day.
As we headed back to the truck we passed a cafe called The Plaza Cafe. The menu looked really good and we were hungry so we decided to stop. Nancy had an awesome looking Avocado Toast, which she thoroughly enjoyed. I had the Upside Down Santa Fe Frito Pie. It was absolutely delicious. We enjoyed our meal al Fresco and afterward went back home. An enjoyable day.
