Tlaquepaque Wanderings

I was moving a little slowly this morning after being awake half the night calming the dogs during the thunderstorm that rolled through around two a.m. The lightning was really close and the thunder was exploding all around us. Huge raindrops pounded the roof of the RV and the storm didn’t relent for about two hours. Koda took it the hardest, shivering and panting with her little heart beating like a drum. Held her and petted her hoping to ease some of the fear. Eventually it passed and I lay awake thinking about all of the events in my life that lead up to the point we are at now. Checked the roof and found no leaks. A gold star for Lexi as the rain was heavy for quite some time.

We took our time getting our day going, drinking tea and coffee along with cereal and bananas. It seemed like most of the campers were gone doing touristy stuff in town or the surrounding area so we had a peaceful and quiet morning on our little lawn. We pulled out the yoga mats for the first time and treated our bodies to some stretching and relaxation. Pamela is quite taken with Sedona and went to the office to see about extending our stay. Our spot is reserved after Saturday, but there is a little postage stamp sized RV site over next to the creek that we can move over to for Sat. and Sunday nights. PJ went ahead and booked them, then we took the dogs for a walk around neighborhood.

Lots of lounging in our lawn chairs reading and taking it easy. Pamela took a shower and we did some laundry before a lunch of cheese, crackers and grapes. I took a nap and did some reading and research on the Internet. Kudos to Rancho Sedona for having wi-fi that actually works. Later in the afternoon a 25 foot rental RV arrived and squeezed into the up until now empty space to our right. A family from Boston. We fed the dogs then walked into Tlaquepaque to have a look around and see if we could find a dog friendly diner.

Easy ten minute walk to the fancy little shopping district. PJ went in the New Age emporium and shopped around while the dogs and I waited out on a bench. Then we crossed the street to the main shopping zone. We perused the art galleries from outside and wandered around the beautiful southwest style buildings. I had found a restaurant online that had a large patio for dining and went to check it out. The Secret Garden restaurant. I walked in and asked the young patchouli laden waiter with the Om tattoo on his forehead if dogs were cool. Of course, they love dogs. Adam set us up on the little side patio and quickly brought the dogs their own silver bowl of water.

We sat back and enjoyed a tasty meal with totally laid back service and the total new age vibe. The owner came by towards the end of our meal and chatted us up for a while. Mostly about her new hip, but it was interesting nonetheless. The dogs were mellow and laying at our feet throughout the meal.

After dinner, we walked around the maze of little alleys window shopping all of the little galleries and shops. Most were closed which was fine with us. It gave us the freedom to roam with very few other tourists wandering around. Lots of cool art and architecture with little courtyards with fountains or bell towers or amazing wrought iron fencing and heavy wooden doors.

It was nearing dark and we had been warned about roving bands of aggressive javelinas that frequent the trail back to camp at sunset. PJ was spooked and on the lookout, but no fierce little tuskers to be seen. It was nice to have the little walk home to settle the wonderful food we had just eaten.

Bats were coming out and flitting around as the stars began to show over the red rock landscape rising up all around us. The cicadas were singing in the trees and the sound of the creek was bubbling in the background. When we got home (everywhere Lexi is, is our home) the Boston family was gone. Can’t blame them. Their spot was one of the tiniest in the park. We sat out on our little grass patch and admired the waning moon and watching the stars peek in and out of the clouds as they moved across the sky overhead.