Albuquerque Adventure Part 3: Santa Fe

 This is a tale recounting our trip to Santa Fe.

 Caution - this blog post is really long - so you might want to take it in a bit at a time!

Theme song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaNQ0vnLtDY

We miss our family and friends! We are really excited to be back in Utah, where we will be closer to many of them. 

So, the song "Santa Fe" from Newsies did not have alot of meaning for me when I was younger (it was one I skipped sometimes) but now that we have been to Santa Fe, it makes more sense!

Who wouldn't want to live in a city that has hundreds of years of history, has belonged to atleast two countries (Mexico and the USA), was figured in the Spanish-American War, was part of what was won from Mexico with help from the Mormon Battalion (though I'm not sure if the Mormon Battalion helped take Santa Fe - but on our way to Santa Fe, we passed a monument to the Mormon Battalion...), has beautiful southwestern architecture (which I am growing to love) and a diverse and vibrant mix of cultures, and has a trading post from 1605?

Well, to tell the truth, I am not sure we would want to live there - but it surely was nice to visit :)

We set out with a plan at about 10am in the morning on a Saturday, and drove the hour or so up to Santa Fe. Our plan was to visit an old Catholic Mission church which was built in the 1700s I believe. Santuario Guadalupe was the name of it, and a beautiful church it was. Yet, we discovered alot more along the way. We really enjoyed the sight we came upon after we walked out of the parking garage. We stumbled into the Santa Fe Farmer's Market! It made me think of Katy and Aaron, and all of our familygoing to the pumpkin patch and smelling the good earth smell of produce.

 The Farmer's Market was held in the train yard of Santa Fe, and the smells of homemade bread and goods and home grown vegetables and stalls of furniture and baskets and wool and herbs were inspiring. It makes one want to be a farmer, and/or more self sufficient.

http://santafe.org/images/Links/7/1207-Santa_Fe_Farmers_Market.jpg

After walking through the Farmer's Market, we found our way to the church of Santuario Gaudalupe - and a marriage had just finished! It is a beautiful little church - with simple, but beautiful decorations which bespoke the devotion of the people to the saint they worship there.

In the front here, they had a courtyard which inspired peace and calm - filled with roses and brick and places to sit and gaze at the church steeple. 

The architecture and distinct southwestern feel was evident in the woodwork - simple, but done with care on the beams supporting the roof and on the door as well. Strong, dark, and a nice contrast with the adobe. We couldn't take flash pictures inside, so we didn't take any pictures. There was a feeling of quiet reverence we felt there - I think it was because the priest was also there - and seeing his obvious goodness of character, and the respect which he showed to the patron saint inspired us to respect it to some degree as well.

To the side of the church was a beautiful shrine to Mary, mother of Jesus. Roses, prayers, etc. were tucked into her alcove, and a small spring of water bubbled up nearby. There were several places for sitting and contemplating there also. Beautiful - but sad too - sad that people do not really know who is the Father and giver of life, and who hears and answers every yearning of the heart. 

We are so grateful that we know of our Savior, and of His infinite sacrifice. We are so grateful that we know it is to Him we owe our praise and devotion forever, and that it is He who answers our prayers.

This is a more comprehensive view of the chapel. 

Next, we walked to a nearby park through the rain that had started. We got fairly wet - and walked downtown for a while before we came to a commercial district. How delightful it was! With two story buildings on either side of a narrow avenue, offering , and many shops in the lower levels, etc. We were glad to get to a covered area! 

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYf0T4iv-A_WgBBnGUDNeHE8Nc6vNvEM4MPmrnmujuECux2SjtR7j1QgEgKhbWoVIRmfSll7tfey5x1i0E7cN155-gUx6oC5vf3xzEA51ZyRa_iKTdhM21L2JGOTjJ1r8vYox4gV5wXog/s1600/Original+Trading+Co+Santa+Fe.jpg

This is actually a picture of the trading post - but the walkways nearby were similarly covered. It was like stepping back in time to step in here - the rafters and floor looked like they were atleast 100 years old, and the smell was of rawhide and leather and dry goods. 

I thought of Joel and cowboys and Indians when we went in here - though, in addition to drums, baskets, dresses, jewelry etc. you would expect to find in a trading post, there was alos pottery from Turkey and baskets woven in Pakistan. Yessir, this trading post is up on the times - even to the extent of global trading. 

Inside, they also had toy guns, bows and arrows, knives, and more, but the thing the trading post did not have was umbrellas. So, apparently, they are not quite up for the weather. So, we went to the local five and dime store and joined the line of fellow adventurers getting umbrellas.

After the umbrella was got, we ventured out into the rain and down the street to the cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi. This was one of the most interesting parts of our trip to us I think. First, pictures of the beautiful facade:

This church was built in the 1700's I think - and looks like a cathedral taken from Spain and put into the Spanish southwest. This is what it looks like inside:

 

Greg and I really like rose windows.

(Note the bottom of this above picture for a story below)

The overlay and colors inside were exquisite, and the light and shining ornamentation inside was a beautiful contrast to the grey of the outdoors 

This is the front (knapse I think it is called):

http://www.ursulinesmsj.org/_images/santafecathedral.jpg

Now, look at the very bottom of the picture that you noted a moment ago (the one above the note) - do you see the lines of colors that look like people's heads? Those are actually these:

http://assets.mediaspanonline.com/prod/4802884/11657195_w650.jpg

When we walked in, they were having this "fabric of faith" exhibit. I thought at first that these were outfits for babies to be baptized in, but when we came around the corner and saw this:

I understood. Dozens of ornate, rich, satin, silk, brocade, cloth, lace, yarn, linen, embroidered, bedecked, colorful, amazing, intricate costumes, all about the same size, and each with a note of dedication or purpose for the costumes creation such as "for family's health" or "for daughter" etc. Faithful members of the Catholic church made these costumes for this statue of Mary. I think the statue of Mary has enough clothes to wear a different dress atleast every week, and possibly enough to have her dress changed twice a week. It was beautiful - to see the care, the expense, the toil that many have gone through to make this special offering to Mary. Others have left jewels on the altar for her - such that Mary has a collection of gold and bejeweled crowns that fit her, as well as several varieties of jeweled crosses to wear, including a sapphire and diamond one that was an anonymous offering on the altar.

I was amazed. It is beautiful, and stirring to see the devotion of people to Mary the mother of Christ, but it also seemed a little bit like idolatry- and thus it was disturbing. 

Christ was also displayed in the cathedral - shown anguishing on the cross, so pained in expression and posture that it communicated that pain and anguish clearly to me, and thus is a remarkable work of art - but it was off to the side and by a plant near a pillar.  

We came away with a desire to help more people knew of the goodness and true nature of God and His Son, Jesus Christ, and that they are the ones who have power to answer prayers and hopes and desires, and that they are the givers of life and salvation. 

After the cathedral, we went to two more churches!

One was the chapel of Loretta, which was figured in the TV show "unsolved mysteries." Apparently, the chapel was built for the sisters (nuns) of the Loretta order (I think), and it is beautiful, and small. 

This is the outside of it - we took this picture just a short time before a bride was due to walk through here for a wedding! Happy day :)

(This is the front knapse)

Yet, there was a difficulty in the performance of worship for the sisters in the choir - they had no way to ascend to the choir loft in a respectable manner. 

Stairs would have to be built. 

As the legend goes, while searching for the funds or resources to have this done, one day, a quiet man appeared at the chapel, offering his services as a carpenter who could build the needed stairs. He set to work, quickly, masterfully, and with very few tools, of the simplest nature. The result is a masterpiece of engineering and architecture, and it still defies all attempts to understand how it stands.

 At the end of his work, the quiet carpenter left, not accepting payment, and with no one knowing his name. It is regarded as a miracle to this day, and is now known as "The miraculous Staircase." As you can see, it has no central support, and it is not attached to the wall at all!

Isn't it beautiful?

This was the the most beautiful, familiar, and comforting part, though - 

Next we headed off to see what we could see of the - oh dear! I forgot the name of it! And, we don't have pictures of it - hmmm....well, be it known to all the family - we went to a church that was one of the very first of the Catholic mission churches! It was under construction, as its adobe was wearing away, but in its simplicity and stoic stability in the midst of downtown Santa Fe was a testament to the service it had seen and lives changed for the better in its couple hundred years standing there.

On our way back to the rail yard, we walked through the Spanish Market!

We saw wood carvings, rugs woven by a man who is the fifth generation weaver in his family, we heard music, and saw carvings and paintings and jewelry - it was quite a feast for the eyes (but not for the pocketbook :)

http://santafenmliving.com/files/2010/03/Spanish-Market-furniture.gif

http://spanishmkt-sf.nm-unlimited.net/SpanishMarketGraphics/selling_market.jpg

http://santafe.org/images/Links/3/1303-SFIndianTradingCo.JPG

As we meandered through the market, we eventually found ourselves at a convention center where there was some sort of dance festival going on, celebrating all the different cultures that are present in New Mexico. We saw dancers in Indian, Mexican, and Spanish costumes, as well as kids in glittery hats and stilts doing a dance when we arrived (I suppose that was the American contribution - I am not sure :)

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z242/flamencovivo/CShawl.jpg

We got to see almost all of a flamingo dance demonstration! 

It was fiery, smooth, and moving - very impressive.

After that, we went to the rail yard to end our adventure

And what an adventure it was! 

Love, 

Greg and Michelle