Retracing My Childhood Steps
- shananelizabeth
- Dec 30, 2016
- 2 min read
Have you ever gone back to visit a place that you went to for years and years but haven't seen in nearly 5 years? Well I did, and although it was reminiscent, it was also strange. My entire childhood was made up of memories in New Mexico, where every vacation or holiday, we would drive out to our family cabin. But, about 5-7 years ago, my grandpa sold our place, and I haven't been back since, well... until now.
The Hoehn's, family members from New Jersey, take an extravagant annual Christmas vacation, and this year they decided to fly into Albuquerque and road trip across New Mexico. Since my family was within driving distance, we rented a house together in Arroyo Seco, near Taos, for the last leg of their trip.
My mom, brother, and I arrived on Christmas night, greeted by the Hoehn's, who got to the house just a few hours before us. We spent the first night catching up with our family, sitting by the adobe fireplace, and playing board games with one another.
For our first day in Taos, we visited the town square, walking around each of the shops before heading along the enchanted circle to the town of Red River, which is the resting place of my old family cabin. On the way to the enchanted circle, we stopped to walk across the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. After visiting the cabin in Red River, which was covered by nearly 3 feet of snow, we walked around the shops and went to Texas Reds for drinks, then Sundance for a Mexican dinner. Crazy how all of the same waiters work there, and the owners welcomed the Pierce's with such remembrance.
The following day, the family piled in the cars to drive to Taos Ski Valley, where we toured the mountains via snowmobiles. When we arrived back at the house in Arroyo Seco, we soaked in the hot tub as we watched the sunset.
The previous day spent in Taos Ski Valley prompted a skiing expedition! The Hoehn's, along with my brother and I, rented ski/snowboard gear and hit the slopes. I hadn't skied in almost 4 years, and although it was easy to pick back up where I left off, it was a lot of work. The slopes were steep, and I really worked my leg muscles and knees. We spent all day skiing, occasionally taking a break or two to re-energize.
That night, we rested our muscles and packed our bags, leaving Taos the next morning. As we drove back to Colorado, we stopped in some of our favorite spots, including Taos Drums.
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