Albuquerque - New Mexico's rarely seen major city

[alleystreetindustry]

wonderful job! i really do regret not going to unm sometimes.

new mexico will always have a place in my heart though.

[Buckeye Native 001]

Love the architecture there, it represents the Southwest well and isn't nearly as tacky nor drab as what's seen in Phoenix

[xzmattzx]

Great pictures! I like the roadside architecture (motel sign, motorcycle dealrership, etc) on top of the adobe architecture.

[village person]

Intriguing vibe. Thanks for the tour!

This house really grabs me. There are plenty of 1920s 'Spanish eclectic' examples in my home state of Florida, but rarely with this nice subdued earthy color. SO much more character than white with bright orange roof, IMO!

Are there very many more like this in Albuquerque?

As an aside, I can never see the word "Albuquerque" without hearing Bugs Bunny saying it in his thick accent, "Albakoiky." One of the weirdest major city names we have, isn't it?

[Omaharocks]

^ That house is located in the Huning Castle neighborhood, crammed between old-town, downtown, and the Rio Grande River. There are a few houses like this in ABQ, but they are primary to be found in the relatively small neighborhoods between old-town and downtown in an area developed in the 1920's/1930's. However, most houses in ABQ (especially in older neighborhoods) are of the one story, pueblo-revival style (seen in the other photos), often with a number of small craftsman-style bungalows mixed in. There are newly built cookie-cutter neighborhoods, mostly on the west side of the river, but for the most part even the newer buildings echo the regional architectural style (or more specifically, the New Mexico-pueblo style).

Albuquerque originally had an additional R - ALBURQUERQUE - but it's rumored than an early mayor, or some such politician, couldn't pronounce the extra R, so it was eventually dropped. Most locals simply type ABQ and refer to the town as "Burque."

[diskojoe]

kind lots interest after about the 20th artsy chopped off photo. i like shots like that but not all your shots should be like that.

[Deepstar]

Some really cool buildings in Albuquerque!

[Dmitry095]

I went to this city back in 2006. It is amazing!!

[Cementglow]

A,l,b,u........ querque!

[ABQturkey]

Woohoo! Thanks for posting these! You captured my hometown in a unique way. If you're interested, you should join in the conversations over at skyscrapercity (can we use that word here?).

[kc17]

Beautiful! These make me so homesick! I grew up 1 block from the Presbyterian church whose photo is just below The Pueblo Loft. My parents still live there, and I have a picture of that church from almost every visit I make. Before me, my mother grew up 3 blocks from the Monte Vista Firestation (the second photo). There's nothing that photographs quite like an adobe building against a cerulean New Mexico sky.

But... where's the photo of The Frontier?

[HooverDam]

Very nice thread, Ive always been fond of ABQ even though its kicking Phoenix's butt right now in the Film Production business.

We do need more ABQ and New Mexico threads in general, I sure wish ABQ/New Mexico folks would head on over to the Southwest Section and keep us all up to date on whats going on there. Right now the SW section is somewhat overly AZ centric and Id love more from Vegas, NM and West Texas folks.

Originally Posted by edmontonenthusiast

What I find interesting about ABQ is how much more "urban" it is compared to other deserttropolis'.

That couldn't be less true, but OK. First ABQ isn't really a desert in the way that Phx, Tucson, Palm Springs, Yuma, El Paso or Vegas is, its arid but sort of on the border of being desert or not depending on ones definition.

Secondly, Im also not sure how you're defining 'urban' but ABQ is certainly no more urban than Phoenix or Tucson by any measurement.

Originally Posted by Buckeye Native 001

Love the architecture there, it represents the Southwest well and isn't nearly as tacky nor drab as what's seen in Phoenix

Ah we can always count on you to bash Phx even when the threads not about it, glad you didn't let me down.

I'm not sure what the obsession is with on this board that some folks feel like they need to praise one city or region by knocking another, its rather silly.

[Modifyourself]

This place was very different than anywhere else I have ever been. I liked it allot more than I thought I would though. I was also impressed by its size. Its allot bigger city than I expected!

[Quixote]

Underrated city in an underrated state. New Mexico never really appeared on my radar, but this thread has definitely got me interested.

[BG918]

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

Underrated city in an underrated state. New Mexico never really appeared on my radar, but this thread has definitely got me interested.

Agree, NM and ABQ are very underrated. You don't hear a lot about them. NM is quite a bit more arid than Colorado to the north, and ABQ is a high desert climate. The mountains north and west of the city are beautiful, especially when you get up around Taos.

[Jarrod]

Really nice. I'd like to see some landscape pictures of New Mexico