2025 NFSPS Tour Info
About Our NFSPS/BBP Tours
We know that out-of-towners coming to New Mexico for a Convention often like to get out of the Convention Hotel to see what else there is to see. Actually, that sometimes goes for in-towners, too. Whether you are from Back East or “Born and Bred in ‘Burque,” you will have a memorable experience on any of the three tours we have arranged. We welcome all NFSPS Convention or BBP Slam registrants and their invited guests to join us.
Take note:
Remember to bring your cell phone on all tours, not only to shoot photos or videos, but also to stay in touch with the NMSPS person directing the tour. It would be easy to get turned around or separated from the group in some places we will be going.
Wear comfortable, closed-toe walking shoes; a hat (wide-brimmed advised); a long-sleeved, light jacket or coverup for your arms; use sunblock on any skin exposed to the sun; and stay hydrated. The combination of sunlight and our high elevation can really ruin your fun. It’s especially true for the Wednesday and Monday tours, but it applies anywhere outside the hotel.
For all of these tours, we have reserved a 12-passenger transit van, but the driver and NMSPS guide get the two front seats. If we know in advance that we will have more than ten people to fill up the remaining seats, we probably can reserve an additional van, but only those who sign up by July 10 are guaranteed a seat.
With advance notice to Tours Director, Kuan Tikkun, at kuant777@gmail.com, we should be able to transport handicapped but ambulatory passengers. The venues are wheelchair accessible. Also, we will have insurance on the van that covers any injuries a passenger suffers INSIDE the van. You will be asked to sign a waiver that absolves NMSPS and its members from any injury or damages that occur outside the van.
Albuquerque has over 1600 pieces of public art, and Kuan has a special love for ekphrastic poetry (poetry inspired by another kind of art). She is also keen on beautiful scenery and the wild diversity of New Mexican arts and cultures. She has curated these tours to share with you “A Few of Her Favorite Things.”
Tour Guide Kuan Tikkun
Kuan Tikkun had a career in academia, industry, government, and nonprofits as an expert in Speech Communications. She has been a tenured professor in Texas and a trainer/facilitator for industry in the California Bay Area. Since moving to New Mexico in 1994, she has worked in government and nonprofits; in retirement, she volunteers with them. Kuan is chair of RGV, the NMSPS chapter for Valencia County. It includes the village where she lives, and Belen, where she teaches Tai Chi at the Public Library. She writes a lot of haiku and adores ekphrastic poetry.
Tours
Tuesday, July 22, 5:30 pm. to 8:30 pm
The Golden Hour Chauffeured Art Tour
Free!
This tour is our Society’s welcome to the NFSPS and BBP early birds who come in by Tuesday and often have to fend for themselves before the start of festivities. Let NMSPS help. The van will load passengers in front of the Sheraton at 5:30pm. We will take a route that goes by some of those public art works mentioned above on our way to Los Cuates Restaurant on Lomas Blvd. for a self-pay dinner featuring authentic New Mexican cuisine.
After dinner, we will take a leisurely ride through neighborhoods near the restaurant where architects in the 1950s experimented with futuristic home design, and the houses they built still catch the eye. Then, we’ll head west on Central Avenue (Historic Rte. 66), passing through neighborhoods where Pueblo-style adobe houses stand beside churches dating back a hundred years, and public art is scattered left and right.
We’ll explore the streets surrounding Old Town, which are laced with museums that bring the inside outdoors (like the dinosaur sculptures at the Museum of Natural History). We’ll see many murals depicting ‘Burque’s crazy quilt of cultures and rich heritage. We will see funky sculptures and stunning tile artwork as we meander back onto Sunport Blvd.
The best time to view the botanical and man-made sculptures along our lovely Sunport Boulevard is during the “Golden Hour” of sunset (8:16 pm on July 22), when the Sandia Mountains east of the city and the ribbon sculptures along Sunport Blvd are bathed in colored light. We’ll have you back to the Hotel by 8:30pm for a nightcap or early turn-in (or maybe even a rogue open mic). This tour is free for our early birds, although donations toward gas money or our driver’s dinner at Los Cuates would not be turned down. We may have a “tip” jar on board or a button on this page if you want to drop in a buck or two. NM Convention Coordinator Shirley Blackwell will likely accompany you on this tour. Remember to bring those cell phones.
Wednesday, July 23, 9:30 am to 1:30 pm
Albuquerque Hidden Gems of Art
$40!
Tours Director Kuan Tikkun will conduct this tour and present the ekphrastic (Art Inspired by Art) workshop that concludes it. Passengers should check in with her in the Hotel lobby by 9:25am so she can count noses and confirm lunch orders. The van will leave the Sheraton Hotel at 9:30am for a 4.5-mile drive to City Hall.
Albuquerque City Hall contains 11 floors of art depicting the history and culture of the Duke City and featuring New Mexico artists representing a wide variety of genres. At 10:00am, a docent will lead you on a tour of various art exhibits on several floors. You may also be given some time to explore on your own; this could be when you really need your cell phone.
Kuan will inform you when to assemble in the large conference room on the 7th floor, where she will present a short intro to ekphrastic poetry. You will then be served a lunch catered by Chef Ilie Silca, the Romanian-born, French-trained owner of Desert Skies Café, a new eatery gaining popularity at 1 Civic Plaza. As you eat your lunch and digest the morning’s experiences, you will come to the writing exercise fully inspired.
At 1:15 pm you will reboard the van and return to the Hotel in plenty of time to attend the 2:00pm Slam Orientation or the 3:00pm NFSPS Board meeting. It’s a short but sunny walk to the pick-up point, so remember your sunhat and sunglasses.
The tour fee of $40 (plus a small handling fee) covers transportation, lunch, and the workshop.
Monday, July 28, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm
Turquoise Trail, Metal Origami Garden, Madrid, Harry’s Roadhouse and Santa Fe Capitol Art Surprise
$100!
Participants should wear comfortable, closed-toe, walking shoes and bring a sun hat, not only for the graveled paths at the Origami Gardens, but for other short ventures under the NM sun. Outdoor exposure will be mostly in the morning. Lunch and the Capitol Art Tour will involve short walks from van to air-conditioned buildings. We will provide cold bottled water aboard the van. Please bring your own beverages if you need something other than water.
First Stop: Origami [Sculpture] in the Garden
We’ll start out early (8:00 am) to reach the fascinating Origami in the Garden because it is open only in the cool morning hours. Created by artists Kevin and Jennifer Box, Origami in the Garden is a collection of sculptures that capture the texture, fragility, and impermanence of small paper objects in outsized metal forms. Origami cranes, boats, horses, and paper airplanes are just a few of the sculptures on display. This is an outdoor venue, and most of its paths are navigable in a wheelchair. If you are walking and wear sandals, expect to get small stones in them and very dusty feet.
Second Stop: Madrid, Home of Castles, Mines, and Movies
Then, we travel a few miles further to the former coal mining town of Madrid (MADrid, in local parlance) where, as a young man, Walt Disney got the inspiration for Disneyland when he visited the town during the Christmas holidays. Back then, the miners set up a Christmas fantasyland complete with castles, lights, and a toy train ride for their children.
When the coal mining era ended, Madrid became a ghost town, but it was revived as an artists’ colony. We’ll park at the Mine Shaft Tavern, where we will have about 30-45 minutes to rest and drink a cold beverage (or hot coffee), check out the shops and galleries, or take a look at some of the mine artefacts, including a real (not toy) locomotive.
Wild Hogs is a 2007 American biker road comedy film directed by Walt Becker and starring Tim Allen, John Travolta, Martin Lawrence and William H. Macy. If you are fan of the movie, check out Maggie’s Diner (not now and never was a place to eat, but was a featured part of the movie set). The movie was shot in several towns in New Mexico, which is a popular site for numerous film companies.
Third Stop: Harry’s Road House
From Madrid, it is about half an hour’s drive to an iconic local favorite, Harry’s Road House on the Old Las Vegas Trail. We are trying to negotiate a fixed-price deal that gives you a wide variety of choices but allows us to know ahead of time what our group will order. The lunch is included in the tour package, but if you order a steak, you may have to pay extra at the restaurant or hand me (Shirley-I plan to go with you) the extra cash. You can check the place out at https://www.harrysroadhousesf.com ahead of time to narrow your menu choices; it takes too long to decide at the restaurant. The food is moderately priced and all of it is tasty. They have a standard menu, but usually run three lunch specials, which change from day to day.
Fourth Stop: Santa Fe Capitol Art Surprise
Founded in 1610, Santa Fe is the oldest state capital in the United States. the building that houses our NM State Legislature is known as the Round House. It is, indeed, a circular, brown building that doesn’t look like much from the outside, but once you walk through its doors, you will find an interior exploding with colorful, breathtaking, world-class art. Every painting, sculpture, weaving, or carving was wrought by a New Mexico artist. You will be astonished by the spirit of New Mexico captured in the art that surrounds you, and the art is on every circling floor, all of which have balconies that open onto the interior space.
When we held our NFSPS Annual Convention in Santa Fe in 2019, we held the readings by the winners of that year’s BlackBerry Peach Prizes and an open mic in the Rotunda of the Round House. Veterans of 2019 will be able to add to the thrill of that moment by viewing the art they may have ignored then; it’s visible from the marble floor of the Rotunda. We will be met by a docent named Orlando for a 2:00pm tour that will last about 45 minutes to an hour.
Then, it is back to the Hotel, where you can take a dip in its large swimming pool and decide if you still have room for dessert.
The tour fee of $100 (plus a small handling fee) covers transportation, admission/docent fees, lunch, and the tour of the Capitol. In Madrid, any refreshments are self-pay. Same old reminder: bring your cell phone.
2025 NFSPS Tour Registration
Register by July 15th!
Last updated on June 28, 2025