Читать книгу Walking Albuquerque. 30 Tours of the Duke City's Historic Neighborhoods, Ditch Trails, Urban Nature, and Public Art онлайн

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DISTANCE: 1.75 miles

DIFFICULTY: Easy

PARKING: Free parking on 20th St., north of Mountain Rd.

PUBLIC TRANSIT: Buses 66 and 766 on Central Ave. at Rio Grande Blvd.; bus 36 on Rio Grande Blvd. at Mountain Rd.

In 1706 Don Francisco Cuervo y Valdes, acting governor of the Province of New Mexico, boldly announced the founding of the Villa of Albuquerque. It proved to be a poor decision. In his haste, he’d failed to ask permission from the viceroy and, through him, the King of Spain. He also neglected the paperwork necessary to obtain a land grant for the new villa. The oversight soon cost him his job, and the legitimacy of Albuquerque would be debated for centuries to follow, even in the New Mexico Supreme Court as late as 1959. Legitimate or not, what stands on the founding site today is Old Town, a former town center packed with hundreds of boutiques, galleries, museums, hotels, and historic sites. This walk winds through hidden alleys and patios, then strays west to explore an “authentic” residential area outside of the tourist zone.