Visited Albuquerque for Conference and stayed in Hyatt in Downtown area.Hyatt is a normal Hyatt - part of a chain so consistent quality of rooms etc.

US service in Hotels is quite quite different than in Europe and this can be very unsettling. The waitress at breakfast kept asking me what I would like and put a lot of concern into her voice, and when I was only getting some cereal and yogurt asked if she could get me some fresh eggs cooked in the kitchen. I at first thought she was being completely sarcastic - which would have been the case anywhere in Europe - but in the US this type of attitude is common because the waitresses depend on tips etc. So whilst initially I thought i was being insulted this wasn't the case and in fact I got the same attitude in all restaurants I went into - it takes some getting used to, but you have to accomodate yourself to the strange ways people do things abroad.

What is difficult to get used to is the amount of food offered in the restaurants. It is beyond the capacity of any normal person. If you are with a second person one course between the two would be more than you'd each eat in Europe.

I found a good restaurant in Albuquerque called the Seasons, which is in Oldtown, at the end of San Felipe street. I had soup, and chicken breast and a half bottle wind ($18) with total coming to $60 including tip of 15%. This is about €42 which was good value for an upmarket restaurant with nice ambiance. Again, you get the 'my name is xxx and I will be your server tonight' which you'd never get in Europe and make s you a bit uncomfortable, but as US was never an occupied country as the case in Europe, they do not make the same association between 'service' and 'servility' that is made in Europe. Again it would be impossible to finish the meal and out of the question to get a desert as the portions were too large. (- I'm 5'10" and 100kg so no lightweight and with good appetite so I can speak for most).

IN Albuquerque they assume you'll either have a car or will rent one, as they don't walk and the city is very spread out compared to most European cities. In Istanbul I could walk to teh top 10 sites in a day and a half - but here even one visit would be 10 miles away. However I found that there is a bus servcice with a day rambler ticket only costing $2, so I visited Nob Hill on Route 66, Corrunado Shopping Centre in Uptown and Also Downtown by bus. I also waled to Nob Hill and Down town from the hotel - Downtown is only 2 miles and Mob hill 4/5 miles. You can also get close to the Sandia Tramway f you take two buses and then have only a 4 mile walk. When I asked the hotel about visiting these places the suggestions were to take a taxi or rent a car. When I suggested a bus they had some basic maps but it was obviously an unusual request. Visiting the Sandia mountain by cablecar could only be done by car - possibility of walking a few miles was not something that crossed their mind.

All in all Albuquerque is a nice place to visit but woudl not have enough attractiions in the City itself to keep you occupied for more than 1-2 days - if you also hired a car you could probably visit the hinterland also, and Santa Fe is close by - can get their in about 1.5hrs by train for $8 return. A taxi from Corrunado to te eHyatt was €20 for 3 people, yet by bus was $1. Buses are available about 10 min walk from the Hyatt.

Good maps of the city are not available in the hotel as city too large, but if you're close by city is on a grid and flat, so you can see Hyatt tower easily, but as I prefer a good map you can get large city atlas in nearby shop.

Walking into Old Town from the Hyatt you pass block afet block of Court Houses, more than I've ever seen in my life - US is bery litigious.

Talking to guy who had moved to US from abroad, a lot of US citizens go bankrupt if they have to spend a day in hospital and have no insurance as daily cost is $10,000 per day. He had 2 stitches in his lip and no overnight stay and it cost $600 - $300 for doctor and $300 for hospital.

So whilst US might be a nice place to visit you wouldn't want to live there!