Rattlesnakes, Nuclear History and New Mexican Cuisine

Today was a busy day. We started out with our typical Saturday morning breakfast of pancakes and bacon. I used the griddle on the barbecue outside to prevent bacon smell saturating our trailer. ;o) I attempted to use up two partial propane bottles. It worked great for the bacon. Once I got the grease carefully dumped into a paper bowl on the ground (so proud I didn't spill), I started on the pancakes. The little propane bottles, I learned, don't actually fuel a consistent heat when they get low which isn't so great for pancakes. I tried the next bottle...and then the next. In the mean time, my little helper, Skylar, stepped in the little bowl of bacon grease spilling most of it and causing him to panic because it was still a little hot. Thankfully he wasn't hurt at all just slightly red for a little bit.

Once we all had eaten and gotten ready, we headed to find a post office to get some items sent out. The closest one was in a grocery store. I ran in while the rest of the family waited in the car. Unfortunately about 7 other people had the same plans as me. There was a big line at the counter, but it didn't take too long and we could check that off our to do list.

Next, we had decided to head to the National Museum of Nuclear Science and Industry. Somehow though, our gps led us right into the middle of Old Town Albuquerque which is not at all near where the Nuclear museum is, so we switched up the order of our plans and found a parking place and went into the Rattlesnake Museum. This tiny little museum has the world's largest collection of different species of rattlesnakes! It is very touristy and cluttered and crowded, but it was cool to see all the different snakes. Plus, they had several tortoises and a tarantula, a whip scorpion and a desert scorpion.

This little guy kept trying to bite the metal handle on the bottom of his enclosure.

Can you spot the mottled rock rattlesnake?

Horned rattlesnake

This is the kind that could be found in the pacific northwest.

After we left the Rattlesnake Museum, we walked around the section called Old Town for awhile. Several of the buildings could be a couple hundred years old.

We were getting pretty hungry, so we stopped at a little cafe and ordered a couple of orders of fry bread since we'd never tried it and got some drinks. We sat at an outside table and everyone tried the the bread. It's kind of like an elephant ear at the fair. The price was about the same too.

From there, we went back to the car and tried again with google navigation to get to the Nuclear Museum. We went right there, but it took us about 18 minutes to drive there. Tom must need another debugging to have landed us that far from our destination.

Our museum admission was free with our reciprocal membership from Evergreen Aviation Museum so that was really cool. The exhibits covered the development of nuclear weapons. Their displays on the Fatman and Little Boy atomic bombs were very interesting and we all learned a lot. It was interesting to see how many individuals were involved and much of this area of the country played such a huge role.

Little Boy bomb casing

Flag flown at Trinity Test Site where the first atomic device was detonated.

The Fatboy bomb casing

Plymouth Sedan - the plutonium core for "the gadget" was transported from
Los Alamos to the Trinity Site in the back seat of a 1942 Plymouth Sedan

"The Gadget"

We saw a display about the Cold War and how fallout shelters were designed. The exhibits eventually got around to the development of peaceful uses of nuclear technology.

Actual pieces of stone and barbed wire from the Berlin Wall

Titan II rocket

Checking out how much energy is required to generate electricity.

When we left the nuclear museum, we called Lou and Lyle, friends of Brock's family since around the time he was born, to arrange a time to meet them for dinner. We quickly went back to the trailer to feed and let Heidi out, today was not a fun day for dogs, and then we drove a little north of town to El Pinto to meet Lou and Lyle. We had a delicious dinner there, which was deemed my true birthday dinner, enjoying our conversation/reminiscing. Lou and Lyle treated the kids' and Brock treated me for my birthday was the compromise that was somehow worked out. We tried really good fried chiles as an appetizer and some traditional dishes like enchiladas and sopapillas and chile relleno that have been prepared the New Mexican way. I even got to have a free flan since we were celebrating my birthday. It was delicious and we all left more than satisfied.

 

We are trying to piece together our next stops before Dallas the first part of May. Decisions, decisions...