Great Day in Santa Fe

Thurs-Fri, Oct 5-6

Thursday was pretty much consumed w/ chores (laundry, haircut, groceries) and planning the next couple weeks and reserving sites. I really enjoy the “laundromat” – clean machines, super nice folks, cozy lounge atmosphere, and plenty of time to rack up steps in the parking lot.  (I don’t think Greg feels the same about planning and reservations.)

I did make time this afternoon to take some pics of the fall landscape colors here at the Visitor Center. Each day I seem to notice something different. I can’t tell you what any of these are, but the colors are all rich.  (Please ignore ragged layout.)

FRIDAY we took off for a day in Santa Fe. Great town – lots of leafy trees! Also lots of history, intensified by a docent determined to include every single detail in her 45-minute talk. (After lunch we returned to the museum and walked through the main exhibit again to reinforce key points and chronology.) Before lunch, though, we also walked through the Palace of Governors (oldest continuously occupied gov’t bldg in the U.S.). This place is about 400 years old; it’s amazing how much of the original construction is still viable (or at least visible). 

Don't judge success by appearance.
Doña Tules (Miss Trudy), an excellent
card player and entrepreneur, was
both wealthy, very popular, and
possibly much prettier.

Everything is beautifully presented, and
I enjoyed reading en español tambien.

This is the 3rd Harvey Girls exhibit I've seen - one at the Grand Canyon (not this trip), one at the Depot Museum in Cheyenne, WY, and now here. These young women in black dresses and crisp white aprons were said to civilize the Wild West. (Harvey Houses were located at stops along the Atchison,Topeka & Santa Fe RR... America's first chain restaurant!)

Palace of the Governors (since 1610)

Small, but super good.

Our parking had expired by the time we finished wandering through the Palace. We passed a lot of places that looked interesting (e.g. tasty), but there was never available parking and Greg ended up pulling into this nondescript taco spot on the edge of town. I was not thrilled, but that changed. BEST TACOS EVER! Simple, authentic, great flavors. ¡Muy bueno!





Back in the heart of town, we found ourselves on another parking prowl. Once the car was deposited, we roamed around and through Santa Fe Plaza, heart of the city and home to the famous Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi (completed in 1886, 3rd church on the site). Lots of arts vendors, lots of pigeons on the central statue, and lots of just generally friendly folks.

These pigeons reminded me of a similar
 scene in NYC.

Red chile ristras welcome visitors.

Back in the museum, we also visited exhibits we'd missed on upper and lower floors, including ones dedicated to pop songs of the 60s, Rte 66, lithography in relation to cigar box design, and POB 1663.

One display showed the step by step application of color, including gold, leading to these richly colored images.

This room was fascinating. Quotes are from early Manhattan project folks lamenting their loss of individuality. Everyone initially reported to 109 E. Palace St in Santa Fe. All mail was delivered to POB 1663 (and all babies were born simply at POB 1633). One bride couldn't reveal her fiancé's name to outsiders (including parents) until after she became Mrs. XXX. (And, of course, her parents couldn't attend the wedding.) Numbers, rather than names, were even used to issue licenses or pay taxes.