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Ironically, New Mexico and Albuquerque has more beautiful areas that Colarado, more history than Texas, more culture (Taos, Santa Fe, etc.) than Arizona. The only ones who seem to appreciate it are the outsiders. This to me is concerning. This same attidude is directed towards UNM too. I have never understood why Albuquerqueans always devalue and depreciate their city.
Hmmm...I believe beauty is in the eye of the beholder. To say New Mexico and Albuquerque have more beautiful areas than Colorado is a pretty bold statement. IMO, Colorado has many beautiful places, and so does New Mexico. From lush green valleys beneath snow-covered peaks to desert cactus flowers, both states are "blessed," and I see no need for competition between the two states.
I suppose outsiders probably do appreciate Albuquerque and New Mexico more than most people, and I think that happens wherever you go. When I go to another state for fun, my mind is already "set," ...I'm going there to see the beauty and enjoy the place. I'm going to ignore their "warts," and I don't even want to see or think about what's wrong with "their" city or state. When people come to New Mexico, they're usually here with the intention of seeing the beauty and enjoying what New Mexico has to offer.
I've been in Albuquerque a long time. I think I can see it for what it is. I don't wear rose-colored glasses, but I see a lot of things I like. I see things I don't like, but I try not to focus on them. The fact I haven't gotten up and moved yet tells me I must not be too uncomfortable in my environment. I think it was Frederick Douglas who said a patriot is one who loves his country but rebukes its sins. I think the same can be applied to state and community.
Gee...I hope too many people are not undervaluing UNM. My son is in his last semester there, so we've "invested" plenty of dinero there.
I do agree with the general idea behind your question...and I think that wherever people are, they should look for the beauty that is around them and not take the "good" for granted. This time of year, I'm looking forward to the "smell of the midway" and the sight of hundreds of balloons piercing the deep blue New Mexico sky!
Linda Ronstadt sang hispanic? What is that? What was she supposed to sing...she is Hispanic! Should she have sang The Star Spangled Banner..wait that is actually an old English drinking song.
If you didn't realize the impact the Hispanic culture has in this area before you moved here then I guess you made a big mistake. The Native American and Hispanic cultures have been here for hundreds of years...long before white people.
Maybe you should move to Colorado Springs...one of the whitest cities I've ever been to! I think they even have a law that Linda Ronstadt has to sing in English.
You know, Pennsylavania and Ohio are pretty damn 'white' and yet there are a fair number of German speakers there. Why don't the English-only folks go pester the their forums.
Spanish has been spoken in New Mexico since 1598. We were part of Spain for over two hundred years. We are not going to stop speaking Spanish because you think there is "too much" Mexico here. This used to be Mexico, so that could account for part of this, don't you think?
You can always go to Des Moines or Peoria for your "USA" fix. There are guns in those place too, ya know.
Well lets remember we (I) send my taxes to the USA not Mexico. When I start sending tax money to Mexico I wont complain if its too much Mexico. I think people need to remember this is not Mexico, and if I am correct was only officially part of Mexico for around 25 or 30 yrs. It has been a part of the US for around 158 years. If anyone has a biatch its the Native Americans who got screwed by everyone. IMHO people use the Mexico thing as a crutch to excuse many things that go on here. Not to mention based on your rational we should be speaking ? Pueblo.
As someone who reluctantly transplanted from Idaho looking for what is definitely a better job market and labor economy, I was actually quite pleased with all the wilderness NM has to offer. Here in Northern NM, too, access to Southern CO is pretty direct. Gotta love those San Juans!
Anyway, I've travelled abroad during my youth, mostly to Canada and Mexico, but also Brazil and Argentina. Still have yet to tour Europe, but with New Zealand on the up-coming agenda, that will probably be a while unless I stumble upon a quick fortune. New Zealand alone will drain my last three years of disposable savings. Altogether, I'm saying this to relay that spoken tongues are no issue for me. I've been out of the element of my first language and appreciate those who adjusted for my slow lingual learning curve (thanks U.S. public schools). I'm still far from fluent in both Spanish and Portuguese, as dialect/slang are way over my head since my only practiced example was Argentinian Spanish, which isn't exactly Mexican Spanish as I quickly found out. Also, I've been biased to countries where English is the first language or I have a local-wise translator on hand. (I guess, to true adventurers, that doesn't even count as "travelling abroad"... more just meager "touring".) Still, I believe that adjustment to local convention/custom is the first rule of moving/travelling.
Two critiques I have about NM: Idaho is what some might call an overly friendly state, but Idahoans like me enjoyed that way of life. There are many benefits and opportunities to be benevolent when you know all your neighbors personally. It has been difficult to adjust to the more cliquish, exclusive, easily put off social temprament in places like Santa Fe and Espanola. Albuquerque's been great on that front when I dine out or take a night on the town, though when I made rounds with neighbors, some of the younger ones looked at me like I had an obscenity tattooed on my forehead. To reach out to people with a friendly gesture and get a cold silence in return is something I wouldn't have even had nightmares about in Idaho. Perhaps someone could fill me in on what appears from my paradigm to be a taboo against friendliness? Why are such a significant frequency of people in Albuquerque only cordial and open when it's their job? Why is it bad to be neighborly or strike up conversation with someone who shares my predicament of waiting in a line? I love to travel, and as a result, I love to engage in dialogue, so I can adjust to a more guarded populace, but would hate to give up entirely.
Also, the traffic here is pushy and inconsiderate. I wish people could use their turn signals and not get on my a** or in my way so often. There are crazy and lazy drivers everywhere, but in the Inland Northwest, the kind of disregard and recklessness I see here every day are only an occasional occurrence. My insurance rate tripled when I moved here, so I know I'm not being harsh on this one. I can't tell you how much every excursion in my car or on my bicycle makes me miss Idaho.
On any other notes, though, I can't critique Albuquerque. It does strike that marvelous balance mentioned by other posters on here, by avoiding to be a sprawling, sky-scraping metropolis or nexus of industry. Cities like that can drive someone into an ego-centric, vain, rude, guarded mire pretty quickly. Despite my going on and on about Inland NW friendliness, people here are not callous, rude, condescending, or confrontational like most bigger cities back East or in SoCal. I've met and dealt with many nice people here in Albuquerque, but they're just not actually friendly per se.
Thanks if you took the time to read that, and please understand that I'm not looking for an argument of who can belittle where, who, and how. I am vehemently opposed to stereotypes, and am mostly just curious about how I can better conform to the conventions of meeting people and driving in ABQ and NM as a whole. Conventions here are not what I'm used to in some respects and that leads to an awkward dysphoria and unrequited frustration. I'm well aware that it is I who must learn to cope with this culture shock and not culture that should adjust to me. I just need some pointers on how I can appease the social disparity and feel more like a local.
stingraynm: I think it's a pretty eclectic mix in the Albuquerque area and unfortunately, when someone gets the cold shoulder, it's easy to be guarded after that. I personally just chat away and start conversations in lines. I know the guy that checks out my food at Albertson's. I chat with the other moms at Explora while I watch the girls play. I figure if they want to be guarded, it's their hang-up and they can think about it later.
As for the driving, I know you know about the 'cautious drivers' thread. I've lived in NM most of my life, and it's just one of those things that you can only indirectly manage. Of course, that's why it's so frustrating. Anyway, I don't know if you caught that link for the blog about 'outing' bad drivers, but I'm going to be a part just to vent some of those frustrations. I already took video of my local stop sign being blown to get APD to take interest, so seeing someone else using the same idea against moving violations was an easy next step.
For what it's worth, I'm glad to know thoughtful folks like you are being added to the mix.
Well lets remember we (I) send my taxes to the USA not Mexico. When I start sending tax money to Mexico I wont complain if its too much Mexico. I think people need to remember this is not Mexico, and if I am correct was only officially part of Mexico for around 25 or 30 yrs. It has been a part of the US for around 158 years.
Cheers
The "New Mexico was once part of Mexico" excuse is lame, I agree, and I think most of the people who use that excuse are under the misapprehension that the Spanish population here is, somehow, Mexican. Just ask the Spanish speaking people of northern New Mexico who are, in many cases, resentful of recent 'Mexican' influence in the hispanic culture and language here.
But you cannot discount the fact that Spanish was the dominant non-indiginous language in these parts for the last 400+ years and in terms of population, the Spanish outnumbered the Puebloans in the middle Rio Grande Valley by the early 1600s. They did everything they could to eradicate the Puebloan languages and culture. While they did succeed in converting them to Catholicism, they failed in nearly every other regard vis-s-vis assimilation.
I think all places have friendly and not-so-friendly people. I suppose some places have a decidedly unfriendly air about them; north Dallas doesn't seem the friendliest area because so many people are in a hurry, but that doesn't mean that the people in general are unfriendly (just some on the freeways!).
It seems consummately absurd to me to prohibit the speaking of a language other than English. I sometimes think bilingualism has gone too far, but to prohibit it is ridiculous. The Spanish-American population and anyone else who wants to has every right to speak Spanish.
I don't like the sort of threads which attempt sweeping generalizations such as several do on the Texas forum, setting one whole city/area/skyline(!) against another in a specious comparison. That leads to incorrect conclusions, fanatical regionalism and unwarranted prejudice. Besides that, it's silly!
I agree completely. I'm a native Texan and more or less gave up soon after moving to Albuquerque. The place just never opened itself to me on any level. People were nice when they needed to be but not overly so. Frankly I think nowadays this is pretty common no matter where you live. When I landed in Albuquerque in 2000 I went to the mall across the street from Winrock and wandered in to a vitamin store. I asked a guy who was working there to give me the "low down" on what Albuquerque is really like. He told me it was mostly a self centered town filled with people who are either in to their cliques or their own personal lives.... I never made many friends there but my one good friend certainly does fit that description: nice but not friendly. I would try to work around it. Either that or try to make friends with some Texas transplants. Some of us bring our money and stay.
Quote:
Originally Posted by stingraynm
Two critiques I have about NM: Idaho is what some might call an overly friendly state, but Idahoans like me enjoyed that way of life. There are many benefits and opportunities to be benevolent when you know all your neighbors personally. It has been difficult to adjust to the more cliquish, exclusive, easily put off social temprament in places like Santa Fe and Espanola...... Albuquerque's been great on that front when I dine out or take a night on the town, though when I made rounds with neighbors, some of the younger ones looked at me like I had an obscenity tattooed on my forehead. To reach out to people with a friendly gesture and get a cold silence in return is something I wouldn't have even had nightmares about in Idaho. Perhaps someone could fill me in on what appears from my paradigm to be a taboo against friendliness? Why are such a significant frequency of people in Albuquerque only cordial and open when it's their job? Why is it bad to be neighborly or strike up conversation with someone who shares my predicament of waiting in a line? I love to travel, and as a result, I love to engage in dialogue, so I can adjust to a more guarded populace, but would hate to give up entirely. I've met and dealt with many nice people here in Albuquerque, but they're just not actually friendly per se.
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Love ABQ... want to conform/adjust
). I'm still far from fluent in both Spanish and Portuguese, as dialect/slang are way over my head since my only practiced example was Argentinian Spanish, which isn't exactly Mexican Spanish as I quickly found out. Also, I've been biased to countries where English is the first language or I have a local-wise translator on hand. (I guess, to true adventurers, that doesn't even count as "travelling abroad"... more just meager "touring".) Still, I believe that adjustment to local convention/custom is the first rule of moving/travelling. 
I love to travel, and as a result, I love to engage in dialogue, so I can adjust to a more guarded populace, but would hate to give up entirely.
