Taos, New Mexico
For our day-trip to Taos, Steve and I decided to drive up on the "Low Road," a.k.a. the more direct route that follows the Rio Grande, and save the High Road for the return trip.
The day was a special treat because our friends Sabine and Tony met us there. They live in southern Colorado, but are Taosians at heart. (Sabine and Tony's son Arthur is good friends with our son Danny, so we are practically related.)
We met at the historic San Francisco de Asís church in Ranchos de Taos, immortalized by the likes of Georgia O'Keefe and Ansel Adams. It was inspiring that this humble church, somewhere between 200 and 250 years old, is still an active parish. We could see the straw poking out of the adobe, a sign that it would soon be time for the annual re-plastering done by parishioners and other volunteers.
We arrived at Taos Plaza just in time to stroll around the Farmers' Market, where I tasted fresh corn shoots for the first time, and Sabine picked up some fragrant dried oregano. Then we explored the shops in the Plaza. Much of the fun of "shopping" in artsy towns is talking with artists and craftsmen. Sabine is a textiles artist, so she is a natural at this. We chatted with locals about mining turquoise (for jewelry) and onyx (for large lamps and carved bowls). The beauty of their work was astonishing.
Taos Plaza landmark Hotel La Fonda has a collection of "forbidden" paintings by D. H. Lawrence. The paintings were banned in London for being obscene, and made their way to La Fonda in a roundabout way. The "gallery" is really a conference room wall, where these formerly scandalous paintings can be viewed by curious tourists like us, for a small fee.
After a tasty lunch and more window shopping, we walked to the Mabel Dodge Lujan House, admiring the blooming columbines, imposing cottonwood trees, and artsy pueblo homes along the way. Mabel Dodge Lujan was an arts patroness who invited the Lawrences to Taos in the 1920's and later sold them a 160-acre ranch in exchange for the original manuscript of Sons and Lovers. Her other houseguests included Georgia O'Keefe, Ansel Adams, and Marth Gratham. The house is now a historic inn and continues to function as an arts salon (=conference center).
We thanked Sabine and Tony for being such great guides and companions, and drove the gently curving High Road back to Santa Fe. We had the top down so we could fully enjoy the cool mountain breezes and panoramic views. We made a brief stop at the Santuario de Chimayo, where the setting sun cast a golden glow on the peaks behind the old church. It was easy to see why pilgrims still flock to this sacred place.
