#89 Ten Thousand Waves

Ten Thousand Waves

Honestly, I was still really hurting from my hike through the natural entrance at Carlsbad Caverns and I was so excited that I'd splurged on a spa day.  Although after this trip I am totally convinced that Waves = Steps.  I swear, I climbed at least 10,000 stairs at this spa.



It's a little (okay a lot) new age, a little Zen, and a blend of traditional Japanese baths set in a southwestern location.





and these stairs are AFTER you climb up the mountain.




I indulged in the Nippon Nirvana package and it was super relaxing (and I am not so good at just relaxing).

The package included:

• An hour in a private bath -  I ended up "upgrading" my private bath to the Shoji (which included both a hot pool, cold plunge, and sauna).  It was outdoors, but the only open air side of the room faced the mountain, and it was so nice to just sit and soak in the whirlpool.  
• After that I had the Yashuragi Head & Neck Treatment - their website says, "Yashuragi means 'comfort'.  This amazing treatment is designed to deliver a deep state of relaxation, beginning witht he neck, moving to the scalp, and finishing with hypnotic point work on the face".  There is an option warm camellia oil treatment for your hair which I would highly recommend.
• I had the same technician for both the Yashuragi treatment and the Ashi Ahma Foot Massage so it was heavenly to just transition from one to the other without having to get up and climb more stairs.

After the foot massage I had about a fifteen minute break where I drank about a gallon of their delicious cucumber water.  The technician had reminded me that the elevation change could affect hydration, and that spa treatments (especially those that were "hot") really require you to drink more water.  I hadn't even thought about Santa Fe being a higher elevation, but after she said that everything made a lot more sense.

• My final treatment was a Japanese Organic Massage Facial, and Oh, my!  I thought I had died and gone to heaven. Their website says, "Japanese facial massage uses light stroking, kneading, and percussive techniques to increase circulation, muscle tone, hydration, and lymphatic drainage for the neck and face.  This facial feels different from any you have ever received!"  I don't know about all their health claims, but it felt great - and was soooo relaxing.

I also appreciated that my technician didn't try and sell me 101 products.  In fact, she told me that since I'd be taking a shower before I left (I had oil in my hair from the other massage) I should go to the spa store and ask to use the testers for this, this, and this so I would be nice and moisturized all day. 

I loved my spa day, and although I would never regularly spend this much on spa treatments regularly, it was a fantastic splurge to cross another place off The List.

#88 Santa Fe Opera

Santa Fe Opera 

The Santa Fe Opera was founded in 1957 in a 480-seat open-air structure in the middle of the desert. After a few particularly rainy seasons every seat is now sheltered, but the venue retains its open air sides. On the night I was there a thunderstorm actually rolled across the city, and it was awesome to be able to see the lightning and hear the thunder and still enjoy the performance. 







I saw a performance of Arabella - my first opera experience, and I was thankful for a couple of things.  First, the program contained a complete synopsis of the opera (of which I had never heard) so I was able to read about it and know what was going on.  Second, their seats all have awesome seat-back translators that translate into both English or Spanish.  I had a spectacular time at my first opera, and would definitely go again - if the venue was as spectacular as Santa Fe's. 

#87 Roswell

Roswell 

On July 8, 1947 an unidentified flying object crashed in the desert approximately 20 miles north of Roswell, New Mexico. It was initially reported that it was a spaceship, but later the U.S. military retracted the story saying it was a weather balloon, and still later, a spy balloon. Since then, Roswell has become ground zero for alien aficionados and conspiracy theorists to gather and discuss. The International UFO Museum is super cheesy. All the "exhibits" are copies, reproductions, or fabricated. 



 


My favorite part of this is "These entities are humanoid and might be mistaken for human beings of the Oriental race if seen from a distance."

 
Fake aliens...although they do make tiny little movements that may freak out someone who is not paying attention.

 
Super fake alien autopsy. 


 
This was actually my favorite part - these little aliens were next to the gift shop exit and people have stuck their admission stickers all over them. 



Another illusion to Michelangelo's Creation of Adam ... only with aliens.

All in all this should NOT be on the list.  Do you know what should?!

#86 Carlsbad Caverns

Carlsbad Caverns

Carlsbad is one of many limestone caves in a fossil reef laid down by an inland sea over 200 million years ago.  Unlike many caves it was not carved by water, but were dissolved by sulfuric acid. 



The park ranger in the visitor's center somehow persuaded me to hike down the natural entrance despite signs everywhere containing dire warnings about the strenuous nature of that hike.  I just figured it was a little  more than a mile and all downhill...how hard could it be, right?


You can see the starting switchbacks of the trail in this picture.  





The Rangers and warning signs are NOT JOKING when they say the natural entrance trail is steep...you drop over 750 feet (79 stories) in a 1 1/4 mile.  Trust me, you will feel it in the morning.  


Why yes, that light is the entrance through which I initially entered the cave.


Devil's Spring


Not a great picture, but you can see the trail.  It was not only super steep, but also wet.  The handrails were even wet, and there was loose gravel in places.  Can you say dangerous??


Looking back up at the trail switchbacks.

I was deathly afraid that I would slip and roll the entire way down to the Big Room like a Plinko disc, but I didn't.  I did however, slip and fall on an asphalt patch, that was wet, and had loose gravel.  Luckily, I had been hiking with this cute little Mom and daughter from Michigan named Debbie and Nicole.  


They very heroically saved me from rolling to the bottom of the cave, made sure I was okay and let me tag along for the rest of the day.  It was awesome, and they were a great family!


That's Jim on the bench.  He was part of the awesome Michigan family!







Debbie & Nicole also convinced me to do the self-guided tour of the Big Room - I'll admit I didn't take a lot of pictures.  


This photo reminded me of Michelangelo's Creation of Adam at the Sistine Chapel.  This was to be a recurring theme...

Also, regardless of outside temperature the caverns stay at a brisk 55 to 57 degrees Fahrenheit.  You know it's brisk because even the formations get cold...
 


This formation is actually called "The Caveman", but I think it should be called "The Thinker with Wookie" because that thing sure looks like Chewbacca.  Another theme for this trip would be "rocks that look like stuff".  

And for all my sisters and SIL who LOVE these kinds of pics...

"I'm a ranger!"

I also went to the Bat Flight Program that night, and I have to say it was less impressive than I imagined.  Growing up our neighbor had bats literally living in her attic and during the summer we would sit on our porch in the gloaming and watch the bats fly out and about.  There were more at Carlsbad, but I kind of expected them to fly out in one giant swarm that would blacken the sky.  Instead they proceeded out in a very orderly fashion a few at a time.  I've compared this to communion were they have ushers that indicated which pew should go next.  So, cool, but not overwhelmingly impressive on the bat flight.

All in all, Carlsbad was an excellent stop and should definitely be on The List.