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Dodging Aliens in New Mexico

April 7th, 2011

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by Lisa Calvi

Aliens are out to get us. Maybe they know Husband, Garry Sowerby, and I are on this self-imposed mission to locate them. They’re messing with our heads. Delayed flight, lost baggage, sleeplessness, only decaffeinated coffee in the motel room. Alien conspiracy.

We’ll begin in El Paso, Texas, drive north into New Mexico and eventually get to Roswell, site of a supposed spacecraft crash where four non-human bodies were found. The trail must be cold by now; it’s been 64 years.

The backroads of New Mexico may be somewhat rough and I’m sure our rented Dodge Journey is up to the challenge. With this thought comes a metallic crash on the windshield so loud, my ears ring for a few seconds after. We’ll never know what it was but there is not a mark on the glass.

Turning north from El Paso, it’s time to ascend into New Mexico and attempt to get close to the aliens. With a pure blue dome overhead, not a speck of cloud in the sky, it’s one of those large days when you love everything and everybody.

What is New Mexico? Arizona is the Grand Canyon. Colorado, the Rocky Mountains. Texas is, well, Texas. Big and in-your-face. But New Mexico? Just wait.

The state is roughly cut in half by the Rio Grande, the mighty formative river with a big name that is classified ‘exotic’ like the Nile because it flows through a desert. I’ve seen the Rio Grande a few times and I’m always shocked because it looks like one insignificant creek until you fathom the canyons that it has carved.

The enchanting land of New Mexico is dry and the vegetation is sparse. How creatures adapt to life in this unforgiving desert never fails to instill a sense of awe.

We follow the basic path of the Rio Grande and constantly climb, past Las Cruces at 3,900 feet, then to 5,300 feet in Albuquerque. Skimming over the sprawling city on the interstate highway, we continue straight north. When we get to Roswell, I wonder, will we be wishing, like Bugs Bunny, that we had taken that left turn at Albuquerque?

Still climbing, our Dodge Journey handily gets us up to 7,260 feet in Santa Fe. It’s cold but the sun warms my face. The innkeeper at the sensuous Inn of the Five Graces tells us we’re 13 times closer to the sun, whatever that means. Closer to the aliens?

Garry warns my shopping compass will spin uncontrollably and may actually explode in Santa Fe. He’s not kidding. It’s not the altitude that’s making me light-headed. It’s the dizzying array of toney shops and galleries bursting with eclectic crafts, bold art and dazzling jewelry. Here, you can actually buy beauty and culture. Or you can just walk around and soak up history in one of the oldest towns in America.

Alas, the aliens are calling us to Roswell and we start the descent.

Our Dodge Journey serves us well. We discover its excellent turning radius when we get temporarily disoriented. The trinkets and trash we’ve collected tuck away nicely in the myriad of storage options. A dreamcatcher, dubbed our ‘alien deflector’, looks at home swinging from the rearview mirror.

So, do Roswellians really believe that, in 1947, on a ranch outside of Roswell, an alien spaceship crashed into our planet, killing four non-human beings it allegedly carried? In the charmingly kitschy town, we talk to local business owner, Clay. He definitely believes though he didn’t hear much about ‘the incident’ growing up. He’s been to the crash site.

Theories abound about the crash, whether it happened, what crashed and why the military claimed it was a spacecraft and then, hours later, recanted. There’s no denying that the City of Roswell’s friendly manipulation of Earthlings’ enthrallment with Unidentified Flying Objects has been great for business. The gaudy and gory memorabilia all over town and in the International UFO Museum and Research Centre has fed the fascination and improved tourism, employment and morale.

From aliens in space to the depths. We leave Roswell and make our descent, south to Carlsbad Caverns. After a 750-foot plummet in an elevator, we are in a series of immense cathedrals of such ornate decoration that no human could have created. Water, time and sulfuric acid are the architects and artists of the staggering number of stalagmites and stalactites that populate one of the largest underground chambers on the planet. When humans found it, they put in an elaborate walkway and installed unobtrusive lights (over 1,000 bulbs and 19 miles of wiring). It’s right there, unforgettable wonder, for $6 and a couple of hours of your time. Every Earthling should see it.

So if you land in El Paso and the car rental company hands you the keys to a Dodge Journey, don’t be surprised to find an ‘alien deflector’ hanging from the mirror and feel an overwhelming desire to head north into New Mexico. You probably won’t have any close encounters with otherworldly little green men but you will find otherworldly wonder in Carlsbad Caverns. And you’ll gain a new respect and curiosity for New Mexico, Land of Enchantment.

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