Land of Enchantment

We left Pagosa Springs and drove Route 84 south into New Mexico and subsequently into Santa Fe. I was in Santa Fe in the late 90s and found the state motto Land of Enchantment very fitting. These pictures of northern New Mexico as we drove south show why I think that.






We arrived at our campground and set up. There was an RV Mobile Repair truck across the road so we were finally able to get our vent fixed that was damaged by hail way back in South Dakota. I did two loads of laundry and then Ted suggested we go to Wal-Mart. The store was not a Super Wal-Mart so they had the paper products we needed but not much else. Since we were out, Ted suggested Olive Garden for dinner. I wasn't about to argue with him so that's exactly what we did.

Today we drove to the Santa Fe Railyard. This is a newly developed area around the train station that is in use again for their new mass transit Rail Runner train. You can go from Santa Fe to Albuquerque and spots in between on this high speed train. We strolled around to see what was there and it's newness is apparent. Neither of us had eaten breakfast and it was already noon so we ate at the Railyard Grille out on the patio. The temperatue was perfect and there was no wind. It was delightful.



We then drove to the Santa Fe Plaza and first visited the Loretto Chapel, home of the miraculous staircase. Legend has it a carpenter appeared in answer to the Sisters of Loretto's prayers for someone to build them a staircase to the choir loft. There is no such wood in the area as was used and it makes two complete 360 degree turns without any visible support. Engineers today still marvel at its construction. The carpenter disappeared as mysteriously as he arrived and was never paid for his services. This was originally the chapel for the school started by the Sisters of Loretto in the 1800s. It has since been decommissioned as a Catholic Church and now serves as a museum to preserve this historic building.



Next we visited the Basilica of St. Franicis of Assisi. The cathedral was built by Archbishop Jean Baptiste Lamy between 1869 and 1886. The new cathedral was built around an older adobe church which was dismantled once construction was complete. A small chapel on the north side of the cathedral is all that remains of the old church.This is a picture of that chapel dedicated to our Lady of Peace. The statue was brought from Mexico in the 1600s.



The towers were originally planned to be topped with dramatic 160-foot steeples, but due to lack of funds these were never built. The left tower is in fact a single row of bricks taller than the right tower. I was taking a picture of the sculptor of St. Francis but this photo shows the abrupt end of what should be the towers. They are not cut off in the picture.



We came upon a courtyard with sculptures by Artist In Residence, Scott Rogers (Ted has a nephew Scott Rogers) and Ted was taken with this large sculpture of a soldier and the young golfer. I'm sure he will love Canyon Road when we visit there over the weekend.



A need to find a restroom found us in the La Fonda Hotel, a Santa Fe landmark that first opened in 1922. The inn’s pueblo-style architecture features thick wood beams and beautiful hand-carved and hand-painted furniture by local artists that creates a rich ambience. In 1925, the hotel was purchased by the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad and operated as one of the famed Harvey Houses. This is the main dining room.



We have much to see over the weekend so we'll do the best we can.