Outside a museum in Old Town there is a set of bronze sculptures which commemorate the Spanish conquistadors and colonial families who came to New Mexico in the 16th century. Accross the street, the National Atomic Museum has a decommissioned Redstone missile on permanent display. There’s a profound juxtaposition of time and technology.
Some people have protested the inclusion of such an overt symbol of war and destruction in the tourist center of the city (they’re referring to the rocket, not the conquistadors, in case you were wondering). I think both are inescapable elements of Albuquerque’s history. They are woven into its DNA and shape the city, and hiding either one won’t make it any less so.
