Observations from the Park in Santa Fe

We settled in to our space here in Santa Fe on September 2nd. In the last 18 days we have enjoyed the marvelous weather, a family wedding, some hiking, a  Santa Fe Fiesta, a Farmers Market, amazing New Mexican cuisine and of course numerous trips to the neighborhood Walmart.

In front of the Walmart? The Walmart horse?

The Santa Fe Farmers Market, fabulous!
 

In between all this excitement we enjoy a normal routine. This includes a walk around the park every night around 7pm to enjoy the sunsets. There is something so phenomenal about the sunsets here in New Mexico... They are so enormous and colorful and its like a new painting every night.
I guess I need to upgrade my 4S IPhone because I can't fully capture this beautiful sight to save my life!

Our neighbors change every few days. There are always new people to chat with during our walks.
The conversations always include, "Where ya from?", "Is your dog friendly?", "Where ya headed?" and "How long ya been on the road?" Of course there is always a "nice coach/camper/tent" thrown in for good measure... I just think that's good manners, right?

I am rarely surprised these days about anything I hear, but, this surprised and delighted me. I have met several women who travel solo in their RV's with their pets! No husband, no partner, no kids, solo baby! During our walk the other day we saw a BMW SUV pulling an Airstream trailer, she was setting her camp! We commented to the owner, a (60ish woman) how nice her trailer was and she proceeded to share with us that she recently retired from her teaching job, she bought this diesel BMW and Airstream. She sold her house, most of her possessions and hit the road to see the country! She had already driven 6000 miles and was having the time of her life! ALONE! This conversation fascinated me! Yesterday an antique VW bus pulled in next to us, two ladies got out and proceeded to pop the top of the bus, set up their camp stove and settle in for the night! OK, I had to casually walk over to them and see what's up, call me nosy, but there has to be a story and I wanted to hear it! They were from Canada, two AARP card holders, "if you know what I mean" and they were traveling and camping in that VW bus!
 I have taken many solo vacations in my days and I always heard from friends and family, "you are so brave", not really, these ladies are the brave ones! So I decided to do some research on line, apparently there many women of a "certain age" that live this lifestyle! There are even Women RV Clubs. I found a Utube video of a 72 year old women who lives in her 40 foot motor home and travels the country for the last 10 years, You Go Girl! I found many stories like this, all I can say is WOW... I think the lesson here is about living life to the fullest and not waiting for the perfect scenario...

 

 

There are many stories yet to be told from this long and winding road...