Tales from the Tiki Bar, Tinkertown
Wow. If you come to Albuquerque, one thing not to be missed is Ross and Carla Ward's Tinkertown Museum. Fabulous collection of the whimsical and historical along with Ross' skillfully and lovingly carved Old West figures in their tiny town dioramas. My favorite part was the full miniature circus, complete with authentic carney banners -- authentic because the artist himself was a real circus banner painter -- and original photos from the old circus and carney days. There's a collection of old coin-operated mechanical arcade machines, a fortune teller, try-your-luck, one-man band and other wonders of days gone by. It's like the ghost of Coney Island pre-'50s! And this is the highest port in the country since the Theodora R is at her final dock there after sailing around the world on a great adventure. I could happily spend days there and never really see everything. Here is a link to a fellow traveler's blog who describes this place in word and picture far better than I ever could:
Check it out!
Roxi loved the place even more than we did, since she's, uh, small. She got to keep the card from the antique magical fortune-telling machine lady, and she's now the proud owner of her own mini rubber chicken -- ya just can't be a real bartender without a rubber chicken, after all!
We also visited the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science for a few hours this morning. Fascinating exhibits on dinosaurs, volcanos, caves, space, computers, and more. The volunteer docents in each area just love to talk to you and tell you all about the exhibits, and they are deeply knowledgeable about their subjects. Show an interest and get a great education. A+++ museum!
On another note, the smoke did clear eventually here during the morning, so we were lamenting not going ahead and going up to Bandelier today. So we're going tomorrow and hoping for the best. It's not a place to be skipped if we can help it.
So as the daylight is starting to fade, we're back in our little Tiki BaRV as the afternoon winds pick up for our daily sandblasting. Roxi will be opening the bar soon. Come join us for a cocktail! Cheers!