Aboot is a Real Kick
Written: Dec 15 '04
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Pros: Great tour guide; amazing tour for the money;
Cons: None
The Bottom Line: This is a great tour for anyone who can walk a couple of miles. You will learn so much about Santa Fe!
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| jo.com's Full Review: Aboot About Santa Fe |
On June 12, 2004 we went on a walking tour in Santa Fe, New Mexico. We usually do not do tours preferring to use self guided maps. Santa Fe has so much to see and such history that we thought a tour would be a good idea. We had many brochures from which to choose. We chose Aboot in Santa Fe basically because we liked the humor added to their brochure.
General Information:
We were told that this tour is the oldest in the city having started in 1979. We were promised a delightful stroll through 400 years of culture and beauty, led by witty, longtime resident historians. We were told we would get opinions about shops, restaurants and galleries. We got all that and more!
Reservations are not needed. The tours leave at a couple of places. You can meet the group at 9:30 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. at the Eldorado Hotel or 9:45 a.m. and 1:45 p.m. at Hotel St. Francis. On Saturdays and Mondays there is just one tour at La Posada Resort and Spa at 10:45 a.m. What happens is if you meet the group at 9:30 a.m. at Eldorado the group then picks up people on foot 15 minutes later at Hotel St. Francis.
The Eldorado Hotel is located in downtown Santa Fe, about three blocks from the central Plaza, at 309 West San Francisco Street. Hotel St. Francis is located one block southwest of the Plaza in downtown Santa Fe at 210 Don Gasper Avenue and La Posada de Santa Fe is in downtown Santa Fe at 330 East Palace Avenue, These are all easy to find and parking is not a problem whether it is on the street or in a lot.
The cost is $10 and free for children under 12. They tell you to expect a two hour tour.
For more information you can call 505-988-2774 or e-mail info@abootabout.com
What we saw, where we went:
The name of our tour guide was Marylyn and in spite of her age (late 70s) she had a lot of energy and gave us an amazing tour. Although there are certain things the guides have to tell us and show us (She told us this.) she wandered off a bit and I think we got a better than normal tour.
Marilyn was in fact a local resident, historian and retired teacher. She had taught English, History and drama. She was so dramatic she was a pleasure to listen to. We started the tour at 9:30 a.m. at the Eldorado Hotel and then proceeded to pick up the rest of the group.
There is no maximum so you have no way of knowing how many people will show up. We had a fairly large group perhaps 20 people but we had no problem hearing Marilyn. She stopped frequently to talk about what we were seeing. On problem with large tour groups is oftentimes the tour guide will talk with the few people who can keep up with her or him but it seemed that Marilyn moved quickly from one sight to another and then gathered us around.
If you cannot walk I recommend a trolley tour in spite of the fact I cannot remember taking one. This walking tour is supposed to be two hours of walking. That can be a lot for many so keep that in mind. In addition Marilyn spent about 2 and one half hours with us. She would have kept going if she did not have another tour to try to get to on time! I suggest you wear very, very comfortable shoes. There aren’t hills but there are stairs and cobblestones so be warned.
We basically walked along the Santa Fe Trail while she pointed out all the great restaurants, places to buy jewelry and art. I am going to get into many of the sights we saw but I want to make mention of one thing. I do not think La Fonda Hotel is on the itinerary but there are restrooms there so she took us in. It is a gorgeous hotel and you do want to take a look at it.
She introduced us to a Native American women selling jewelry. My husband and I went back to this woman later and bought her turquoise Peggy, the jewelry maker has been sitting in the same place since 1939 when she was 10. She sat on the floor with her dad; now she sits on a chair. She is, according to Marilyn, the only vendor who has old turquoise. What that means is that it was mined in New Mexico not Arizona. It is almost priceless because it is old and very hard to get. Now I might not have believed all this except later when we were looking at the vendor’s Governor’s Palace where they have to prove they made the crafts, go before a bureau in order to get a license so I felt they are reputable. I asked one what the difference was between old and new turquoise. At first she looked at me quizzically but then said that old turquoise cannot be found in New Mexico anymore. So back we went to Peggy who told me the necklace I bought was her father’s. She sells only a few of these old pieces a day and eventually she will have no more. She asked me never to sell it. She said I should hand them down because they are so valuable. Whether or not all this is true, I guess I will never know but I took her word for it. I am telling this whole story because if you are in Santa Fe and see Peggy who has old turquoise, I would buy it if I were you. By the way, La Fonda has the only non-smoking bar in Santa Fe.
We went into a couple of churches which are renown in Santa Fe. The first one was Saint Francis Cathedral. It was built in1869. There is a Chapel connected to it which has its own history and stained glass windows everywhere.
There is an interesting story that Marilyn told us. I won’t go into the story but the end result is that inlaid in the amazing architecture are Hebrew letters. We could not go inside because there was a wedding. I could not find anything online about these Hebrew letters. However we heard an orientation film that mentioned these letters, Marilyn talked about them and I have a picture of them although nowhere online is there a picture of this church depicting the letters. (Which spell Adonoi or G-d)
Loretta’s Chapel has been on the television show Unsolved Mysteries because of the mystery of the staircase. This staircase is considered miraculous because as the story goes a carpenter appeared and built it in answer to the Sister’s of Loretto’s Noveno and then vanished without getting paid. It costs $2.50 just to go in and see the staircase so if you plan on doing that and the tour then wait and see it with the tour because that is included in the $10 charge. You’ learn a lot about this staircase and it is quite interesting. The staircase by the way is only used for weddings.
We saw the Palace of the Governors which is an historical museum and the oldest building in the United States. We walked around the beautiful Plaza where vendors sell items on all sides. Inside the Plaza, which is a park-like setting, Marilyn talked to us about some of what we were seeing including a baselisk monument in the center of the plaza commemorating the rich history and culture of Santa Fe.
We ended our tour at the State Capitol. We went in and toured that building including sitting in the Senate while Marilyn gave us a lengthy historical overview. The Capitol is known as the roundhouse. The building is New Mexico’s fifth State Capitol to be built. (The Palace of the Governors was the first State Capitol.) You'll see an interesting structure outside the building. This is the type of stop that Marilyn made and explained to us. It is not on the itinerary I am sure but people were curious about it so she spent more time with us.
My final thoughts:
This was a brief tour of our tour. Santa Fe is an amazing city with so much to see. I would highly recommend a tour and I cannot imagine a better one than Aboot Santa Fe. The price is incredible. We got lucky with a wonderful tour guide but I would take a guess that all of them may be just as good as Marilyn.
As an aside we ate after this tour at Longevity Cafe. It was excellent especially if you are vegetarian and/or prefer to eat healthfully. (Review to come.) You will find it at 112 W. San Francisco Street in Santa Fe right in the downtown area.
Feel free to leave me a question or comment. I have not reviewed Santa Fe yet but will be glad to help you if you are heading there.
I am keeping track of the reviews I am writing chronicling our 3-month cross country trip:
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Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas
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Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, TN
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National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma
Oklahoma City National Memorial
Souper Salad in Santa Fe, New Mexico
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Petrified Forest National Forestin Arizona
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Recommended:
Yes
Tour type: Group
Tour format: Walking
Tour length: Several Hours
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