3 days in New Mexico, part 1

My friend, my brother, and I decided on one day that we want to go to Roswell, New Mexico. It was random and spontaneous as heck. We were into UFOs and alien sightings at the time. I think it is fair to say that Roswell is the birth place of American Alien and UFO phenomenon. A saucer supposedly crashed into the desert of New Mexico. Witnesses reported that they saw something fell from the sky. For those who went to the scene found silver metallic debris that was not from this world. The government initially admitted but quickly dismissed anything had to do with UFO or aliens.

The entree of our trip was to see Roswell and experience the the alien fever there. We only had 4 days to see Roswell and the rest of New Mexico.

Day 1:
After a 5 hour flight to Albuquerque from San Francisco, we quickly rented a car and checked in to Motel 6. We spent only 10 minutes unpacking. It was noon and our stomachs were pounding louder than the airplane engine. We wasted no time and took our camera, backpack, and gears and hit the streets of Albuquerque for food. We settled for some Thai food in an almost empty Thai restaurant that was ran by Mexicans. It was pretty good.



After lunch, we drove about 5 miles east to Sandia Peaks, our first attraction. We took the Sandia Peaks Tramway, world’s longest passenger aerial tramway that travels 2.7 miles to the top of Sandia Mountain at 10,378 feet. The panoramic view of the city in the ascending tram was breathtaking.








Once got to the top, we picked a mile long scenic hiking trail.


Here are some more amazing views:


Before we can hike any longer, we saw a cloud of rain was approaching our way. Disappointed, we headed back to the visitor center to avoid getting soaked. I have to say hiking in such high elevation was not suitable for anyone. Why? Thin oxygen. I was not able to run, jump, and do anything that requires just a bit of energy.


2 hours on the top of Albuquerque's Sandia Peak was enough for 3 guys who didn't bring any water and had no understanding of high altitude. We took the tram back to ground level; brought some souvenirs at the gift shop, and then went back to our hotel room to rest. We spent the rest of afternoon resting and getting ready for our next event, Albuquerque Old Town Ghost Tour.