The peoples of our past (part 2)

Sorry about that lapse folks- we stopped to see family and I wanted to savor every minute. Now, where were we when I posted last? Oh yes, outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico.

We drive north of Santa Fe to a small town full of history- Taos.  This area has a few historic spots- the “biggest” is Taos Pueblo and the area of Ranchos de Taos. We wanted to explore both with our last day in the New Mexico so we got up early and headed to the farthest spot- The village of Taos Pueblo.  We were there in time for the first guided tour of the day, given by a descendant of the ancient people that first inhabited this land.  This Pueblo is the oldest continually inhabited dwelling in the country. The people who live here are living in the homes that their great grandparents, their parents and their their parents lived in. Generations of tradition is in the dirt that covers their walls...it was amazing to be a part of. The people here make traditional art, foods and goods to sell out of their ancestral homes and each one of the villagers that we encountered was happy and very friendly. One  dry sweet artisan agreed to a selfie with me. Our favorite thing from Taos was the fresh oven baked bread!!

We stopped next in the historic shopping area of Taos proper.  We visited Our Lady of Guadalupe in town, the parish of which has been in existence since 1801. The church itself was not nearly that old but it was beautiful and built in the Pueblo style.

St. Francis of Asis at Rancho de Taos is a more historic building and we sought it out next. This mission church was built in the early 1800s and is the only original church in the area.  Every year the parishioners still join together to Re-mud the building and keep it protected from the harsh New Mexico weather. The inside was as beautiful as the outside and we lit candles in honor of lost loved ones both recent and long long past; realizing that some of mine may have worshipped in this very church. 

We felt we had thoroughly investigated all that we needed to in Taos for this trip and decided to get back on the road again that afternoon.  We were now officially “on our way home” and Todd drove the next leg straight through to Oklahoma.