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- Newsgroups: rec.travel
- Path: sparky!uunet!worldbank.org!dickinson.worldbank.org!user
- From: (Nathaniel Dickinson)
- Subject: Re: Need info on Albuquerque
- Message-ID: <1993Jan27.142359.29451@worldbank.org>
- Followup-To: rec.travel
- Sender: news@worldbank.org
- Organization: The World Bank
- References: <1jvjlcINNbda@falcon.natinst.com> <1993Jan25.195242.833@athena.mit.edu>
- Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1993 14:23:59 GMT
- Lines: 52
-
- In article <1993Jan25.195242.833@athena.mit.edu>, rnewman@athena.mit.edu
- (Ron Newman) wrote:
- >
- > > My parents are considering a trip to Albuquerque in the next few weeks. They
- > > want to find out if that is a good place to retire too.
- >
- > I have to say that when I drove across the US eight years ago, I found
- > Albuquerque utterly lacking in charm or character. Most of it seemed
- > to be a sprawling mess of suburban trash, err, tract homes, fast food
- > joints, and highway clutter.
- >
- > I suggest skipping it entirely. Poke around nearby Santa Fe and Taos instead.
- > They still have a distinctive culture, and most of their historic character
- > intact.
-
- I lived in Albuquerque for a couple of years and enjoyed it a great deal.
- I chose Albuquerque over Sta Fe or Taos because I was told job
- opportunities and the younger single crowd were more prevalent. These are
- likely not the concerns of a retiring couple, but after living there a
- while I was pleased with my decision for other reasons.
-
- Albuquerque is warmer in the winter than Santa Fe or Taos, and yet is not
- uncomfortably hot in the summer. On a sunny winter day, you can expect to
- go around in a light jacket with temperatures in the fifties-- but it does
- cool off at night or when it is cloudy. When it does snow, it generally
- will melt off the first sunny day. This isn't really true for Sta Fe or
- Taos.
-
- In summer it will get into the nineties with some regularity, and it is
- mighty hot when you get into a car that has been sitting in the sun, but I
- was never uncomfortable like I was in Tucson.
-
- As to the general appearance of the town, yeah, a lot of it is ugly.
- Central Avenue, the area around the Airport, Fourth Street, Yale Avenue,
- and many other areas are sprawling messes, and the South Valley is pretty
- crime ridden. But by the same token Corrales and the North Valley have
- some staggeringly pretty properties, great communities, and convenience to
- a metropolitain center that Sta Fe and Taos cannot offer.
-
- Sta Fe and Taos are beautiful areas, but they are very expensive to live in
- on a retiree's income and much of the local "scene" is cloyingly hokey.
-
- >
- >
- > --
- > Ron Newman rnewman@bbn.com
-
- --------------------------------------------
- Nathaniel Dickinson
- The World Bank
- Washington, DC
- ndickinson@worldbank.org
-