Albuquerque, NM - Part 1

A field trip to Albuquerque! This place is famous for their International Balloon Fiesta, those big air balloons you know? We missed the one in October as we didn't want to bring Megan up to squeeze with the huge crowd that was gonna be there.

Isn't the view spectacular? Got this picture from our friends who "cheong" there...


Anyway, moving on to our field trip with hubby and his classmates, the first stop was to Joy Junction, a shelter for the homeless (it was a field study trip after all).


Can you see the attention Megan gets? She's the only kiddo with a bunch of guys missing their families back home. And everyone pamper her so much that I worry it will get over her head.


Listening to the talk on the functions of the shelter.


There's even a church in the shelter!

Next stop is the Sandia Peak Ski & Tramway. It's the world's longest aerial tramway!



Hanging around, waiting to get on the tram.



That's the tram we're gonna get on.


Reached the top safe and sound! All in one piece.

Love the view!

They are hubby's classmate from Egypt and we've been invited to their homes anytime we wanna visit Egypt! Cairo.......... here we comeeeeeee!

That's the ski but it is not in operation yet. Waiting for the snowfall....

Megan enjoying her walk around the mountain.

She spotted a dog and went rushing to him. Scare us to death!

Horsing around as usual.

Isn't it wierd that kids seems totally oblivous to the altitude we are on? No fear at all.

I can't seeeeeeee!

That's better. Should have removed the hat long ago.

Cattleman's Ranch

Remember the Host Family Dinner we had at Cattleman's Ranch a couple of weeks ago? Well, we said we'll be back!

This time, we came in the afternoon to roam the grounds before heading to their steakhouse for our dinner. We started off looking for their mini zoo. The place was huge and we didn't know where to start looking. You can view the map of the grounds from HERE. When we saw a fence, we just parked and started walking.

Deers! There was quite a number of them. They look cute.

Saw the goats next. They look like little puppies actually.

Erm, Mom? This one smells, can we move along please?

Okay, a quick picture. Hurry while I hold my breath.

Is that a Llama? Mom said she think so only!

Recently, she develop this habit of clasping her hands together when she walks. Dunno why?

Let's go for a hayride.

Let's feed the rabbits.

They seems really hungry huh?

Found the playground!

Hurry, hurry, time's awasting.

This is a wierd swing.

Let me go! You're restricting my movements!

Quit taking pictures and come play with me!

This is cute enough for you?

I'm a big girl, I can slide down on my own.

Let's take a break. This is tiring. I mean for my Mom, not me!

Wow... what a big tire... can't imagine the size of the car!

Look! Yucky sand in the tyre!

What else is over there?

A water wheel. The bridge freaks me out actually. It looks like it's ready to collapse any moment.

Come take a stroll with me. The view is great and there are ducks in the lake.

Dinner time!

Hmmm... what shall I order for dinner?

Orange juice is good!

Are you sure this is what I ordered? It tastes suspiciously like the Chicken Bowl from Jack in a Box.

You try it!

What do you think?

If I finish my dinner real fast, can I have dessert?

Corn! Yummy!

Oh, I must praise their level of service again. So far, the service level here has always impressed me. The corn was a side dish, not from the kid's menu. I told them that I'm ordering for my girl and they made the extra effort to cut up the corn and insert the skewers so that it will be easier for her to hold. Otherwise, they normally just serve it whole. Good huh?

And we still didn't manage to cover the entire grounds. But everyone is exhausted and maybe we'll come back again? Afterall, entrance is freeeeeeee.