Thunderstorms over Memorial weekend may have delayed the first pool weekend of the season and rained out a couple of barbecues, but they also (hopefully) foreshadowed the monsoons Santa Fe counts on to cool off hot summer afternoons.
Sudden rainstorms, of course, aren't all that's in store in the coming months. The city kicks into overdrive for art, theater and music. We've made it easy for you to plan with our local seasonal culture calendar and summer movie preview. Looking at a frugal summer? No worries: There's lots of free music in the offing. (And if there is a little summer shopping in your future, check out our picks).
If getting rained on isn't enough as far as water activities go, peruse our guide to New Mexico lakes and kids' swimming lessons (and, if you really need some shore time, consider a Mexico beach vacation this summer).
Of course, cooling off in the water requires getting hot first. Warm up on the golf course or alongside a llama or even up, up and away in a hot-air balloon.
All that activity should help you work up an appetite. Learn how to cook a great summer meal, followed up, of course, by ice cream.
Whether you spend your summer working up a sweat or trying to cool off, there's at least one experience you don't want to miss: roller derby. Be sure to check out New Mexico's national female derby team, Muñecas Muertas—it's pretty hot.
—Julia Goldberg
This summer’s movies can be separated into three categories, provided one is willing to make up three bullshit categories and put this summer’s movies into them.
A chronicle of free outdoor music for summer in Santa Fe.
Hot air ballooning only seems expensive until you realize it's necessary.
Wherein Chef Johnny Vee teaches a sad bachelor how to cook. And how to date.
Desert Waters (796k .pdf)
Find your own oasis in the sand.
But you can buy summer necessities
It’s a yummy job, but somebody’s gotta do it. Santa Fe offers many varieties of cold treats—ice cream, gelato, frozen yogurt, ice pops—so the hardest part about finding the good stuff is simply choosing from the many options.
Puerto Peñasco is a former fishing village-turned-vacation-destination, a mere 12 hours away from Santa Fe or, if you’re traveling in a minivan with two kids, the journey translates to about eight DVDs with some time added for bickering as to whether Iron Man’s Robert Downey Jr. beats School of Rock’s Jack Black when it comes to charisma and believability.
The Santa Fe Botanical Garden's many satellites offer solace among nature that other people mercifully maintain.
This was supposed to be a “hilarious tale of misery and humiliation on the green.” At least, that’s how I pitched the story. But I made a gross miscalculation when I thought Nettles, the head golf pro at Marty Sanchez Links de Santa Fe, was gonna be the guy to help me with that plan.
A half-naked man is directing my husband to turn our 2.5-year-old daughter face down into the pool while I watch nervously from the side.
Why the hell would anyone want to go on a hike with a llama? Well, why the hell wouldn't you?
The Roller Derby renaissance is alive and well this summer in New Mexico.
