Vacation 2002 Part 1:Albuquerque
July 6, 2002

Every time I return to New Mexico, my mother and I pretend to be tourists instead of natives and go visiting places in the state as a tourist. I have seen more of the state since I've left than the 18 years that I've lived there. This year, because I was due in Las Vegas for a wedding, we deciced to take a road trip from Albuquerque to Las Vegas, with a stop at the Grand Canyon, which I had never seen.

The trip began in Albuquerque, and it was a pleasant surprise that my Auntie Margie was visiting as well. Here is my 11-year-old nephew Jared, nearly taller than my Auntie in the middle, and my Mom.

The Historic landmark of Old Town Albuquerque in the center of Old Town Plaza. This was once the civic center of a very young Albuquerque a couple of centuries ago. Now it's a popular tourist spot.

Surrounding the plaza are art galleries, tons of shops selling native american crafts, and New Mexican restaurants. And then there's the Rattlesnake Museum, a small shop filled with rattlesnakes of every variety. We finally went in and saw the snakes, and that was the first time I had ever heard a rattlesnake rattle its tail. My sister, nephew and I went in to see the snakes, but my nephew ran out no less than a minute after being in the museum. My mom and aunt refused to go in; they'd seen too many rattlesnakes living on the ranch.

After spending a few days in Albuquerque, my mom, nephew, and I hit the open road to Las Vegas, with our first stop being Flagstaff, AZ!