On Route 66

I left Santa Fe yesterday to make my way to Albuquerque once again by train.  This was my shortest train journey but it was a bit strange.   I had to return to Lamy to catch the train.  Lamy is in the middle of nowhere.  There is a train station, a community library which uses the window ledges of the station and a few empty train carriages.  Now I didn’t explain in my last blog that this part of the railway is single tract so both trains use the same line at some point, which means that at some point one train holds up the other.  Trains around here don’t appear to run to time because of the “passing places”.  So we sat in the middle of nowhere for a wee while and then the train came and we all got on...... to a train full of Amish.  There were 3 “coach” carriages. 2.5 were full of Amish men, women and children.  Honestly I was looking for Harrison Ford and Kelly McGuinness.  Can I just say that I have met quite a few Amish people in my trips here but meeting a lot of them after a night and a day on a warm train ..... maybe not the best time to do so.

Albuquerque sits on what is know as Historic Route 66.  

In fact Albuquerque had the only crossroads of Route 66, which is commemorated there. For a short while in the 1930s you could drive from Denver to El Paso( North to South) and L.A. to Chicago( West to East and the roads linked there.

Albuquerque has made a real effort to maintain the buildings which were around at the time that Route 66 came into being. 

However this was only after it tore down a building of historic interest to the town and caused huge amounts of public uproar.

Apparently you have seen huge amounts of Albuquerque on TV and in films.  Because of the diversity of housing types, the weather and tax relief it fills in for many locations in America and sometimes Europe( not Britain).  Johnny Depp has finished filming “The Lone Ranger” here and Denzel Washington was in town filming. I’m presuming that The Lone Ranger was also filmed in the desert. On teh subject of buildings here is a very strange one built by Bart Prince who seems to be a well known architect(?).  This is his home.

It receives a lot of visitors almost all of whom  are turned away.  However William Shatner was filming in the area and his his chauffeur brought him to see the house.  When Bart opened the door to Captain Kirk and his opening words were”Beam me up Scotty”, he got to stay for tea.

Here’s how to celebrate Hallowe’en Albuquerque style.  I thought that this might appeal to Bah Humbug.

Albuquerque is a lovely city to visit, warm, friendly and with lots to see.  I would have liked to spend more time here.