Day 3: ABQ - I'm in Love with You!

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Ah - what a completely fun-filled day we had in Albuquerque, New Mexico!!  We saw this city - as much as we could fit in one day - and there is still so much more to do!  I am so glad we decided to spend an entire day here, learning more about Albuquerque - it really just makes me want to come back for a much longer stay.

So what did we do?  What didn't we do........

Petroglyphs National Monument
We enjoyed the little hike we took to see the petroglyphs that scientists estimate to be over 400-500 years old.  We did it first thing in the morning before it got too hot.  There are a few different hikes to choose from, and with the little one, we opted for the Mesa Point Trail in the Boca Negra Canyon.

What amazed us is that the petroglyphs has lasted so many years.  And what do they all mean?  Some of them looked just like a cute cat or a mouse - not at all what you expected.  The Visitors Center was very informative as we earned our Junior Ranger badges here too.

ABQ BioPark & Zoo
My children love animals, so any chance they get to see a zoo, they jump on it. We hopped on over to this great Zoo, Aquarium, and Botanic Gardens.  We spent our time in the shady zoo, as we found some really fun animal encounters, like a water bottle loving porcupine:

And this great cage I could lock my monkeys in:

66 Diner
So happy to have had this recommendation for lunch - the 66 Diner was so fun.  All decked out in Route 66 memorabilia, this kitschy place had burgers, sandwiches, and blue plate specials.

But the best part of the meal??  The milkshakes - this momma had The Elvis - banana & peanut butter - it was the BOMB. (and yes, I'm bringing back that word)

Explora!
We wanted to get indoors as the temperatures heated up outside, so we headed over to this amazing children's museum in the museum district.  As you know on this blog, this fmaily has been to their fair share of children's museums, so I didn't know how this one would rank.....um, at the top!!!  Explora! is fantastic - where they had some of your typical water and air hands on exhibits (my son can spend hours trying to make various paper objects fly), Explora! also has some things we hadn't seen before. We spent what felt like hours making music, bubbles, and playing with the Ball Sculpture.

And does your children's museum have this?

International Museum of Rattlesnakes
Huh??  Yes - this momma (who can't stand snakes) ventured into a museum named after them most feared snake in my book.  And it was great y'all.  We had popped over to Old Town, which is just a few blocks away from the museum district and came across this crazy place.  We met the most interesting fellow, the owner, who told was all about how he started the museum and what it houses - the world's largest living rattlesnake collection in the world. gulp.  Very well done and interesting - a fun stop in Old Town.

Sandia Peak Tramway
And we ended our fab day with a bang - on top of Sandia Mountains overlooking Albuquerque.

The 20 minute ride on the world's longest tramway (lots of world records here in ABQ huh?) was gorgeous.  The conductor points out various rock formations on the way up and tells a few corny jokes.  I don't think we knew what we were in for on the way up.

Try 10, 378 feet and 46 degrees!!  Not at all what we expected to find in Albuquerque.  It was gorgeous during the summer, but I can only image how pretty it must be covered in snow.  On the backside is what looks like a pretty nice ski resort.  Unfortunately, the forest is closed due to fire danger, so there is no hiking at the top, but that should not stop you from going it.  The view was amazing - the perfect way to end the day.

As I sit here and reflect on our day, I can't think of any one negative experience we had.  This town is filled with so many friendly and helpful people - from the great park ranger who helped us with our badges, to the fun waiter at the 66 Diner who encouraged us to try the Elvis.  The guides at the museum were so helpful explaining the exhibits and we found the owner of the Rattlesnake Museum delightful.  It was just one of those days that came together so well.

We accomplished so much here, but like I said, there is still so much more to see and do - we have to come back.

What's up for tomorrow?? A quick drive over to Flagstaff, AZ with a few fun pitstops along the way!

My family and I were invited to visit Albuquerque and various places here.  All opinions are my own.