10 facts about Albuquerque you didn’t know.
These are ten facts that nobody knows about Albuquerque, New Mexico. First, pine nuts. These are something that you probably never heard of, they’re actually really popular in Albuquerque. You can see them a lot in coffee and sometimes chocolates and cookies, but they are really tasty and definitely have a unique flavor that you should definitely try. Second up is that chilies are everywhere, it’s all about red and green chilies. Restaurants have all sorts of those hanging around on the outsides and you see them just pretty much everywhere. They’re in all sorts of food too, so if you don’t like spicy food you might want to watch out when you’re ordering. If it says red chili, at least ask the server or whoever you’re getting the food from if it’s that spicy or not.
Third fact is that hot-air balloons are pretty common in the beautiful New Mexico sky, but hot-air balloons are actually a big deal all year around in Albuquerque. There’s a Balloon Fiesta in October, which is the big event but there’s also smaller events throughout the year that you got to be a part of. You should go ahead and visit the balloon museum, it is really fun. There are over a hundred balloons there and it is a very family-friendly event too. It is just very unique to see and it’s kind of like going to a car meet or a car show, it is kind of the same crowd. Fourth fact, roadrunners. You can actually get to see a real roadrunner, they’re pretty cute and kind of fluffy when they curl up. You can see them running across the street. Roadrunners are the state bird of New Mexico. Moving up to the fifth fact, those who are from Southern California probably have had a lot of great Mexican food. When you come to Albuquerque, you probably expect to have more great Mexican food, but the food there is not Mexican, it’s New Mexican. It’s actually a little bit of a different style, it’s actually more of a mix between Mexican food and Native American food. When the Spanish were there the two flavors mixed together and you get this southwestern New Mexican food, in really good portion sizes.
Next up is the weather. The weather is really unpredictable, they get about 11 inches of snow a year in Albuquerque. You get a lot of rain and cold. Deserts typically are very cold at night and very warm in the day depending on the season, but during winter time it is cold the whole time, so just be ready if you’re planning to come to Albuquerque in the winter, bring a jacket or at least check the weather forecast before you go and you might want to check that weather forecast every day, because it could change fairly quickly. Talking about the seventh fact, you wouldn’t expect a small town in New Mexico to be such a technology hub, but it is. Microsoft was actually founded in Albuquerque. Also this town was the first place in the United States to have a Bitcoin machine. Also the first nuclear bomb ever exploded or tested was in New Mexico. You can visit the Nuclear Science and History Museum, a very fascinating place. It’s a world piece of history right there in New Mexico.
The eighth fact has to do with the famous TV show, Breaking Bad. If you love the show Breaking Bad you will definitely like to visit a lot of the filming locations that are still there. They used real spots like Walter’s car wash and also Walter White’s house. If you go on Trip Advisor, you can read all about that but you know just be respectful if you go to that house cause there is a lady living there. They even have Donuts, they have the blue sky donut and it’s got like rock candy and that kind of Heisenberg stuff. It is interesting to see that after many years it’s still a really big part of the tourism culture there.
Albuquerque has a pretty cool, very vibrant art scene, and this is the ninth fact. You should try and go to First Fridays, which is the first Friday of every month. They have a big Art Show and they open up galleries across the downtown area, where people can show their work. And the 10th fact has to do with driving through Albuquerque. Speed limits are usually not higher than 35 miles an hour, so it makes it easy to look around and see where you’re at and kind of get your bearings without having to be so worried about everybody zooming past you. People drive fairly mellow, it’s just a slower culture there and you don’t have to worry about getting in an accident so much which is really nice.