New Mexico - "The Land of Enchantment"

Continuing on the road from Oklahoma to Colorado, we decided to take the long, scenic way, passing through Texas and New Mexico.  So glad we did...we had a great time!!  

Our first sites of snow were in eastern New Mexico.  Already into the month of November, we were ready to see some of the white stuff!

We arrived in Taos, New Mexico on Monday afternoon, November 7th.  Taos is a lovely town that draws millions of tourists each year.  Glad we were there during the off-season...it must be a zoo in the summer!  The famous Taos Plaza (pictured above) has been around for hundreds and hundreds of years.  Today, the true essence of the Plaza remains - that of a gathering spot for people from all over the world.

New Mexico is famous for their Mexican and New Mexican cuisine.  Our supper that night was delicious!!!  I would highly recommend "Orlando's" to anyone visiting Taos!

After a great night sleep in our snowy-covered Element parked in the Walmart parking lot, we visited the 1000+ year old village of Taos Pueblo - the main tourist destination of Taos.  Taos Pueblo is considered to be the oldest, continuously inhabited community in the USA.  About 200 Taos Pueblo Indians still live in the village (only about 50 in the summer during the peak tourist season) just as their ancestors did over 1000 years ago - without running water and electricity.  They get their water each day from the small river pictured above.

Over one million people visit Taos Pueblo each year.  The village welcomes these people just as their ancestors have welcomed their neighbours throughout the past 1000 years.  The North House and South House (located on opposite sides of the river) are apartment-style buildings that people still live in today.  Both buildings date back to the earliest history of the village.  The small windows on the third floor are original to the building.  They were small enough to let fresh air and light in, as well as to watch for enemies that oftentimes raided the village.  There were no doors and no other windows on any of the three levels; the building could only be accessed from the hatch-doors on the roof which helped to protect them from their enemies.  

Each family has an adobe oven like this one that is passed on between each generation.  A loaf of bread takes approximately 30-45 minutes to bake after the oven has sufficiently warmed up (to about 900 degrees F).   

Each building in Taos and Taos Pueblo must be built with adobe.  First, they make adobe bricks (mud and straw mixed together), then once a building is built with bricks, they cover it with adobe plaster.  About once or twice a year, each home as to be re-plastered.

About 90% of the Taos Pueblo Indians are Catholic; however, they still believe in and practice their ancient religious rites.  There is no conflict between Catholicism and their native beliefs, as is evident with the presence of both a church and kiva.  

Important employment sources for residents of Taos Pueblo include traditional arts, crafts and food that are sold year-round in shops like these that are located throughout the village.  The tourist trade is also another huge employment source (remember, over 1,000,000 people visit Taos Pueblo each year).

The San Fransisco de Asis Church, located in Taos, was built between 1772 and 1816.  It's a National Historic Landmark, as well as a World Heritage church.  Famous painter Georgia O'Keefe and photographer Ansel Adams have made it the focus of some of their pieces of art.  

On our way out of New Mexico, we stopped at the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge located just outside of Taos.  The fifth highest bridge in the United States, the Gorge Bridge (as it's known to locals)  stands 650 ft (200 m) above the Rio Grande Gorge.  As a civil engineer, you can imagine how much Guillaume loved stopping to study the bridge!

Pictures really don't do it justice...we were so high up!  The views from atop the bridge were magnificent!!  

Our last stop in New Mexico was at an earthship located a few miles from the Gorge Bridge.  Made completely of natural and recycled materials, most earthships are completely off-the-grid.
   

Their special designs and systems allow for natural ventilation, regulated indoor temperatures year-round without the use of pubic utilities or fossil fuels, as well as a natural water filtration system which reuses water (collected from rain, snow and condensation) multiple times for different purposes.  Earthships have all the modern amenities of a regular home such as toilets, running water, stoves, fridges, TVs, etc.  Hmm...maybe an idea for our next big project?

After visiting the earthship, we were back on the road en route to Colorado.
Stay tuned for our next blog..."Rocky Mountain High."