Taos Pueblo in December

Beauty Way

Today my heart will have harmony;

My spirit singing the songs of happiness.

My mind will seek balance, one with Mother Earth and the Creator.

My eyes will look for good and there I will find it.

My mouth will whisper the words of gratitude.

Today I will walk the beauty way.

~ Howard T. Rainer

Pueblo de Taos

and

The Red Willow People

This incredible place has been inhabited for the last thousand years, the longest continuously inherited community in the United States, by the Tiwa people. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and on the National Register of Historic Places and Saint Jerome Church, a Nation Historic Landmark. And along with the San Francisco de Asis Church, I couldn't leave New Mexico without seeing it.

There is a 16 dollar entrance fee, and then my sister and I also had a guide that lives there take us around and talk to us about the Pueblo. Tours start every 20 minutes and I think it is a must, if you can go. You don't pay the guide up front, but you give them a tip after. They are giving their time so try to be generous. Also, many are students.

Our guide was very nice and open to any questions we had about the community. You can take pictures, but not of tribal members without permission. It is a living community. (You can read about the etiquette on the website.)

Only a few families live in the pueblo full time, (about 150 people) but about 1,900 of the Red Willow people live on Taos Pueblo lands.

A short intro ...

There were not many visitors that Monday in December but there were a few tribal members selling their jewelry and art. Above, in the second photo, you can see the huge dream catcher and my sister bought a gorgeous turquoise necklace, from a lovely young jewelry maker, who was also a sculptor of clay.

It was afternoon and the light could not have been more beautiful. You might recognize the San Geronimo Chapel, below, and other sites from Ansel Adams photos. (His first book of published photos was Taos Pueblo , in 1930.) 

You cannot photograph inside the church, but my mom sat in there for quite a while we did the tour, to rest from the altitude. It happens that they were decorating for Christmas and my mom started chatting with two men who were tribal members and who were putting up the gold tinsel garland in the church. The men where pretty funny and joked about my mom telling them where to put the hanging garland so it wouldn't hit the Madonna as she was carried into the church.

San Geronimo de Taos

1,000 year old multi- home structure ... so beautiful. Some walls are several feet thick.

Taos Pueblo Round Dance Song ...

The young man who showed us around explained that there is no electricity or running water but they have propane and also use wood for fuel. He showed us an an outdoor bread oven they still use for bread for celebrations and events.

As you can see the structures are made of adobe bricks. See my previous New Mexico posts for more on traditional adobe architecture.

 

This beautiful Red Willow River, is their only source of drinking water.

Crossing the river ...

The color of the red willow was so beautiful ... and the snow against the adobe! I took a couple hundred photos, at least, so I can't wait to use them as reference to do some painting! It was magical and very peaceful.

Pueblo Peak in the distance ...

Found these 1920s 16mm "home movies" of the Taos Pueblo and other areas ...

We had big plans to take the scenic "high road" back but we realized the sun would be setting fast and it might snow again, so we decided to take the faster route back to Santa Fe. I was craving a green iced though and decided to ask Siri "where is the closest Starbucks?" In L.A. it's usually around the corner. In this neck of the woods? ...

An hour and 18 minutes. In Santa Fe.

We cracked up at that, and then we were off ...

For more information on the Taos Pueblo, visit their website here.
For additional information, you can go to the Wikipedia page here.

I believe the world is incomprehensibly beautiful-
an endless prospect of magic and wonder.
~Ansel Adams

Blessings and light!

San Francisco de Asis Church ~ Rancho de Taos

Make time for quiet moments,

as God whispers

and the world is loud.

~ Author Unknown

Our greatest gift 

is the thunder of Silence.

~Joel Goldsmith

San Francisco de Asis Church

Rancho de Taos, New Mexico

foundation, late 1700s

This place was at the top of my list to experience on our trip to New Mexico, in December. I can see why Georgia O'Keeffe and Ansel Adams were so so inspired. I don't know if it was the day or the season ... but it was so quiet and peaceful. 

Learn to get in touch with the silence within yourself and 

know that everything in this life has a purpose.

~Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

Every year, in June, volunteers and parishioners re-plaster or "re-mud" the church, in the traditional way.

Let me silent be,

For silence is the speech of love,

The music of the spheres above.

~Richard Henry Stoddard

The sweet gift shop ...

And a wonderful old structure next to it ...

The offices and other rooms used by the church.

Painting on another little neighboring building ...

Last lovely views ...

I mentioned the traditional "mudding" of the building, and this explains it a bit.

The sign said "no photos," which was kind of a bummer because it was so beautiful and simple inside, but sweetly decorated for Christmas. This video however shows the inside, and by the wreathes they had up it was perhaps spring or summer. Anyway, you can see the inside at 1:40.

To read more about the San Francisco de Asis Mission Church, click here.

When all the noise is gone

there is only God.

~Author Unknown

blessings and light!

Santa Fe and the Road to Taos: San Miguel Chapel and the Classical Gas Museum

Sant Miguel Chapel

Santa Fe, New Mexico

1610-

According to our guidebooks, San Miguel Chapel is believed to be the the oldest church structure in the United States, so of course I had to see it! It looked so beautiful surrounded by snow.

They believe the building was started in around 1610, and then partially reconstructed a century later, after a fire. The adobe structure was built by the Tlaxcalan Indians of Mexico, who came to New Mexico as servants of the Spanish, atop an ancient kiva of the Analco Indians. (This reminds me of the churches in Europe built atop Roman Temples.)

Apparently, the altar screen was restored in 1955. It had at some point been covered over in house paint! Many other restorations have taken place over the years.

I love the old Spanish architecture so much, so that I am always drawn to visiting these places. The history is fascinating as well, but often sad when it comes to Native Americans and their culture being wiped out or taken over.

The San José Bell, which weighs around 800 pounds was said to be cast in Spain, in 1356. According to the very nice man who is the guide for the place, there is dispute about the date and there are theories on both sides of the argument, but we did ring the bell and it sounds wonderful. Love all the amulets on the posts!

Below, Christ on the Cross painted on buffalo hide by Franciscan Friars in about 1630, could be rolled up and taken around to use as a teaching tool to help in converting the Pueblo Indians to Christianity.

Found this video on the official website, about the restoration of San Miguel Mission. It even shows how they make the adobe bricks and resurface the adobe, all in less than 4 1/2 minutes!

Wood Station of the Cross
Date Unknown
"This is the only remaining Station of the Cross which rested in the body of the Chapel, when the Christian Brothers began using the Chapel as their private Oratory in 1859. This remnant may have been painted by one of the Spanish painters who decorated the Chapel during the 1710 restoration of the building, under supervision of Don Agustin Flores Vergara."

Across the street from the church ... this beautiful building!

After the church we headed north to see the San Francisco de Asis Mission Church in Rancho de Taos, and then the Taos Pueblo. I'll get to those in another post, but check out the view from our rental car!

We took the route 68 to Taos, so we could make it in a shorter amount of time. The high road (Scenic Route 76) is supposed to be amazing but takes quite a bit longer. We'll have to save that for another trip!

Check out Camel Rock in Tesuque, between Santa Fe and Espanola! You see it?

Surprises are the joy of living.

Surprises directly touch the soul.

Good surprises energize 

and bad surprises teach.

~ Alev Oguz

I'd seen this next roadside attraction on Route 68 in my guidebooks, as well, but had kind of forgotten about it and then we came around a corner and there it was! It's right along the Rio Grande River Valley and I think if you know about it, you can't miss it!

Johnnie Meier's

Classical Gas Museum

Embudo, New Mexico

We knocked on the door but aparently Mr. Meier was unavailable, and though we didn't go inside the little building, there was so much to look at and take pictures of outside, it was not a disappointment.

When your life itself 

becomes the subject matter of the creative process,

a very different experience of life opens to you.

~Robert Fritz

My mom wanted me to get a shot of her in front of an Edsel, to show our friend Evelyn!
Here you go Evelyn!

As you can see by my mom's coat (And Doctor Zhivago hood) that though it was beautiful in December, it was quite cold that day!

An Instagrammers dream!

Just across the road from the little museum ...

And then we were off again!

Links
San Miguel Chapel
Camel Rock
Classical Gas Museum

I've been pretty busy lately getting ready for two art shows, plus working, trying to start working out on the treadmill, watching the nominated movies, and doing physical therapy for my shoulders etc. ... So, I haven't been able to catch up on here! I'll try to get caught up soon, as well as make some visits to your beautiful blogs and make some phone calls!

Hope this finds you well and enjoying 2016! 

The journey between what you once were 

and who you are now becoming

is where the dance of life really takes place.

~Barbara De Angelis

Blessings and light!