Aug 24th 2012 Leaving Dublin

Well into the second week of our adventure and I am only now getting around to opening my blog. While I love technology I am still working on the social media aspect of it. I grew up with, and participated in, the promotion of technological change, but Facebook, Twitter and indeed Blogging are still somewhat alien to me. However, my Bucket List is about challenges, about getting out of my comfort zone and trying new things.

After creating my blog I sought some guidance from Google on what makes a good blog. I was not surprised to find a vast array of suggestions containing many contradictions. There were, however some common threads and it is with those few suggestions I will endeavor to impart some small insight into our US Road Trip.

I will be posting photos on Flickr whenever I get a chance and I will provide a link from time to time.

According to  Mark Twaine“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” 

I believe this to be true but only where the traveler is prepared to open their eyes, heart and mind

Friday August 24^th 2012:

In the beginning there was the book:

And so it begins.  Already I can hear you asking “what the hell is the significance of this first photo” or words to that effect. Well, all will be revealed shortly. We are not good packers and generally most of the clothes we take with us never see the light of day when we are away. They simple make the round trip and then get put away until our next holiday. We had intended to pack early in the week and then repack the day before we left but, as usual, we left it all too late. So, Bags packed by 3:30 am and off to bed for a few hours’ sleep.

To the Airport – our first ‘oh crap!’ moment

A good friend, Paul Sherlock, offered to take us to the airport. He arrived as planned and we left the house at 10am thinking that went well. Fifteen minutes into the trip Brenda says, ‘Jack, do you know what I forgot?’ Too late to turn back now I though, so, (a) we do without it or (b) if it’s really important we buy one when we get to our destination. But no, it didn’t fall into either category. She forgot the book, her Journal.  For those who don’t know Brenda let me tell you she is very creative in the artistic sense. She created a beautiful Journal to record her journey. (I will post images as we go along – if she lets me: )  )  Anyway, (already failing on Google’s suggestion to keep the blog short) we called Damian back home and asked him to pop the Journal in a taxi and send it to the airport a.s.a.p. Paul, a self-confessed careful driver, was genuinely concerned that the taxi would reach the airport before us despite our twenty minute lead on a 30 minute trip. The Journal arrived, by taxi, shortly after we did and was reunited with Brenda. The taxi guy apologized for having to charge 50 Euro for taking a book for a ride.  We were back on track

I am trying to find a suitable name for our travelling companion in the images below. Your help with this would be appreciated.

The Journal

August 25th and 26th 2012:

The first few days of our US road trip were spent with Brendan, Julie, Mya and Sean. This gave me an opportunity to organize to a couple of mobile phones and  rent a car for the next couple of months. Brendan was a great help. Thanks Bren. I love the new Facebook site with your superb photos, 

http://www.facebook.com/BODImages

Walmart an American institution.

We went to Walmart for the phones where you can get anything you could ever want and you will purchase many things you never needed in the first place. There’s no such thing as ‘just popping in’ for a single item. That may be your intention but 1 hour later and a couple of hundred dollars poorer you will emerge back into the real world. Anyway, we got a couple of cheap phones and pay as you go minutes.

Car Hire:

I can recommend  Budget at Albuquerque Airport. Just ask for Laura, she gave us a great deal on a Ford Fusion for the full two months. She even made renewal after one month as easy as a phone call while other operators wanted us to call back to the center to renew. Ask for Laura and tell her I sent you : )  Ladies you may like to check out her nails.

Cliffs Amusement Park:


We went to Cliffs Amusement Park in Alququerque with Brendan, Julie, Mya and Sean

I will load more images onto Flickr once I can get WiFi that runs a little better than old dial-up.

Cliffs Amusement Park on Flickr



Brenda watching the speedometer

Brenda, Mya and Sean take a helicopter ride

Brendan and Sean on the Train



Julie enjoying a train ride

Brenda and Mya on the Train

Brenda and Sean on the Waterslide

For tourist information about Albuquerque and New Mexico click the links below:
Albuquerque ,  New Mexico 

Oct 17-22 2012 Albuquerque

Oct 17-22 2012  Albuquerque

We arrived at Brendan's home  at about 9:30. Spent some time catching up before going to bed after the long drive. We were looking forward to seeing Mya and Sean early the next morning.

Sandia Peak Tramway
We took the Ski lift (Sandia Peak Tramway) to the summit of the mountain at 10,300 feet. Great views across New Mexico. It was not as cold as we expected and a big improvement over Pikes Peak.

I'm sure Brendan's photos of the sunset are far better than mine. check out his facebook page here
Click for our photos

Sandia Peak: High Finance Restaurant
The High Finance Restaurant at the summit of Sandia Peak is abusing their monopoly. It is the only restaurant up there. The prices are high  but you would accept that if the food lived up to expectations, sadly it didn't. However, you can get great views of the city and the sunset if you get a window seat, which we did : )


Corn Maze and Pumpkin Patch
We had a great time at the Corn Maze. Myself and Brenda even managed to get lost for about ten minutes. We always wanted to spend some time in a cornfield together. Why waste the opportunity : )
We  travelled around the maze with Mya's class mates. Such fun for kids of all ages.

Click for our photos

Vernon's Steakhouse (Speakeasy)
Vernon's Steakhouse was amazing. It's a speakeasy. You are granted access after giving the password to the big guy behind a metal door. He then outlines the rules of the house, without ever smiling. We had a great table close the the band who  played brilliant music, jazz/ blues/ I think. The wine list was very impressive and hugely expensive. We found some within our bracket and enjoyed a few bottles. The food was superb. A great night and the food was up there with the best we had on our trip. A very special place for special occasions. Loved it. Click for our photos













The Main event: Sean's 2nd Birthday 
Bren and Julie organised a party for Sean to celebrate his second birthday with us before we left Albuquerque. The official date is November 10th. I have many more photos to load and will do so over time.

Leaving Albuquerque:
Leaving Bren, Julie, Mya and Sean was made easier because he informed us he would be moving back home shortly. We had a great time in Albuquerque. We loved the time we shared with Mya and Sean and will continue to Skype with them so we will not be strangers whenever they return to Ireland.