Who can tell me about New Mexico?

[GingerFoxx]

So here's the scoop... My fiance' is graduating with his Bachelor's degree this coming May. We plan to stick around here and live in my condo for a year or two before looking into buying a single-family home with some land. In consideration of the fact that my depression, especially seasonal depression, has been getting worse and worse, and I have almost zero tolerance for the cold, we have been discussing places we could move that would offer more sunshine, the prospect of work for him, and affordable land. We have no kids, and no intentions of having kids, which leaves us pretty well open to go anywhere we choose.

After ruling out a number of regions we would not care to live, we have been giving serious consideration to New Mexico, particularly the greater Albuquerque/Santa Fe region. The dryer, sunnier climate seems more appealing, the population density is low, and we saw affordable real estate listings for nice homes with adequate land, mountain views and even trees. We are considering taking a trip out there in the spring, to see if it feels like somewhere we could live. If so, we will make a few more trips at different times of the year as we get closer to being ready/able to move. We are also expanding our research to look at cost of living, unemployment rates, job opportunities, etc.

I was wondering if anyone here on the board either lives in New Mexico, has lived/spent appreciable time there, or knows anyone who does. If so, what was your/their experience? Is it somewhere I could survive as a veg*n, given that cattle farming is such big business? What are your views on the local culture, etc. Are there any things about the area we should factor into our decision? Obviously we will still continue our own research, but I thought some first-hand accounts might be useful.

Thanks guys!

 

[Amy SF]

I know nothing about New Mexico other than the fact that Santa Fe is a big art town, with a prominent art community and lots of galleries. I imagine that where artists gather to live and work there should be a thriving veg*an community, since artists tend not to conform to group-think, which likely means a rejection of meat-eating.

 

[Calliegirl]

Read local newspapers to also get a feel for what goes on in the area, and see if there are Facebook groups for the area you could join to talk to the locals.

 

[KLS52]

I have a friend/coworker who visits New Mexico several times a year and is planning to move there when she retires from her current job in a few years. She absolutely loves it there. I will try and get some details for you.

 

[Amy SF]

Oh, and if you DO decide to move to New Mexico, bone up on your Spanish and learn to love Tex-Mex.

 

[Second Summer]

We visited New Mexico back in 2008. It was hot. Also, bears. Well, that was in a nature reserve. We also visited Albuqerque. The had some nice church architecture there. Parts of the state is at a high elevation. Also visited Sodona. The road there was impressive as we came from a very high elevation and descended very rapidly, with lots of sharp turns. The town itself was full of new agers, it seems. Well, I don't remember so well.

Oh, and we visited then-VBer froggythefrog in Albuquerque

 

[GingerFoxx]

I have a friend/coworker who visits New Mexico several times a year and is planning to move there when she retires from her current job in a few years. She absolutely loves it there. I will try and get some details for you.

That would be very helpful. Thank you.

 

[yakherder]

Never technically lived there, but have trained at White Sands Missile Range on numerous occasions. Can't say much about work prospects, but it's generally warm, though not as bad as Arizona or Nevada. I have no trouble finding veggie options. It's got a fairly hippie population lol, which is a good thing in regards to veggie restaurants, co-ops, Whole Foods saturation, etc.