It is time for the annual migration back to Minnesota. Close up the house in the desert for the summer, and get in the car for a few days. This spring our itinerary is:

• Indio to Phoenix and meet friends for dinner.
• Phoenix to Santa Fe with a stop at the Petrified Forest
• Santa Fe to Kansas City (borrrrriiiiinnnggg)
• Kansas City to Decorah IA.

Once in Decorah, I’ll be in board of regents meetings for a couple of days. The meetings this week are highly consequential with the announcement of the impending retirement of our president, Jenifer Ward, we have some real thinking to do about how to set the course for the next several years.

Most of the drive is pretty flat, following the high plains! Not many trees, the desert turns to fields for as far as you can see. But the stop at the Petrified Forest was interesting. The science behind the petrification of the trees, and the views of the mesas and the painted desert were really great.

We arrived in Santa Fe a bit later than planned due to a lot of road construction! But we walked around for a bit, then tried a couple Margaritas at the highly rated bar in the La Fonda hotel. We had a later reservation at Sazon, a James Beard winner in Santa Fe. Dinner started with a sampler platter of Moles and another Margarita. (I am now a huge fan of Mezcal over Tequila) After we had a chance to try the various Moles, our water presented the menu. Lots of different options to go with the various Moles, so it all made sense! Jane ordered the Cholula — a tower of chile poblano / ground lamb, pork and beef / nuts / dried fruits, spices over a cold creamy walnut sauce / pomegranate seeds / balsamic jalapeño reduction! Jane describes it as having the main course and desert at the same time. It was really delicious. I opted for the pork loin with one of the spicier moles on the menu, served with rice it was truly a feast! We even got a chance to chat with the chef, Fernando Olga, who dropped by our table in jeans, chefs coat and cowboy hat.

It was a great evening, but tomorrow is nearly a 12 hour drive to get to Kansas City.