The Road North
We have now been in our Summer Campsite in Elysian for five days. In that time, I've had a couple of doctor appointments and have knee surgery scheduled for June 10th. I've had lunch with three of my cousins and we have re-connected with our Cleveland friends. We also spent a day golfing with Lael and Doug and enjoyed a visit from Janet, Aiden and Amariah. The hectic pace of summer has begun - love it!
Ah, but I started to tell you about our trip north. We met Diane and Tud at the Sky City Casino along I 40 in New Mexico. We spent the day touring the Acoma Pueblo. It was the third time Mike and I have been there, and each time, we learn something new and enjoy it even more. The museum is now complete and the tour guides are much more knowledgeable.
Brandon (You can call me Turtle) was our guide. He is a member of the Acoma people and grew up celebrating feast days at the Pueblo. He spoke passionately as he told us about how the Spanish Priests enslaved "his people" and made them build the church. He told how the wooden altar pillars were carried over 30 miles and that they could not be dropped. If they were, the men had to go back and find another that would be suitable. All of the ceiling beams were harvested from trees that grew in the mountains over 30 miles away.
This little fellow wasn't happy and caught my camera's eye.
The vendors, many of which still live year in this village on the plateau, make pottery in the same style and design used for hundreds of years.
The only tree that grows on this plateau...
The ladders were used to access the second story entrances; years ago, there were no entries on the main level.
Each family has an outside adobe oven - the same kind that has been used for centuries.
The village still looks much the same...
The butte far away is the original home of the Acoma; it was abandoned when the stairway collapsed and there was no other easy way to access the top.
This man's work captured the attention of all three of my companions.
Tud and Diane
Us
This piece of original pottery caught my eye; I paid to take a picture as the price to own was out of my range. It is called The Storyteller.
This is the artist, who also offered cherry and apple pie for sale. She told me that she found the materials and mixed all her own paints using natural materials for brushes, just as her ancestors had done.
This is The Storyteller that is in the museum - made by a famous member of the Acoma Nation.
These pictures were from the early 1900's - I found them in the museum. It is easy to see similarities between then and now. Acoma remains a spiritual place to visit; if you haven't been - plan to stop next time you are in the area.
When we left Sky City, we headed north.
Along the way, we saw antelope - look carefully and you will see them.
We also saw wild horses
and more antelope - at least their butts...
Colorado (east side), Kansas, and Nebraska seem to all blend... lots of windmills
and a few junk car lots.
Along The Side Roads on the High Plains Highway - heading North - Going Home.
Ah, but I started to tell you about our trip north. We met Diane and Tud at the Sky City Casino along I 40 in New Mexico. We spent the day touring the Acoma Pueblo. It was the third time Mike and I have been there, and each time, we learn something new and enjoy it even more. The museum is now complete and the tour guides are much more knowledgeable.
Brandon (You can call me Turtle) was our guide. He is a member of the Acoma people and grew up celebrating feast days at the Pueblo. He spoke passionately as he told us about how the Spanish Priests enslaved "his people" and made them build the church. He told how the wooden altar pillars were carried over 30 miles and that they could not be dropped. If they were, the men had to go back and find another that would be suitable. All of the ceiling beams were harvested from trees that grew in the mountains over 30 miles away.
This little fellow wasn't happy and caught my camera's eye.
The vendors, many of which still live year in this village on the plateau, make pottery in the same style and design used for hundreds of years.
The only tree that grows on this plateau...
The ladders were used to access the second story entrances; years ago, there were no entries on the main level.
Each family has an outside adobe oven - the same kind that has been used for centuries.
The village still looks much the same...
The butte far away is the original home of the Acoma; it was abandoned when the stairway collapsed and there was no other easy way to access the top.
This man's work captured the attention of all three of my companions.
Tud and Diane
Us
This piece of original pottery caught my eye; I paid to take a picture as the price to own was out of my range. It is called The Storyteller.
This is the artist, who also offered cherry and apple pie for sale. She told me that she found the materials and mixed all her own paints using natural materials for brushes, just as her ancestors had done.
This is The Storyteller that is in the museum - made by a famous member of the Acoma Nation.
These pictures were from the early 1900's - I found them in the museum. It is easy to see similarities between then and now. Acoma remains a spiritual place to visit; if you haven't been - plan to stop next time you are in the area.
When we left Sky City, we headed north.
Along the way, we saw antelope - look carefully and you will see them.
We also saw wild horses
and more antelope - at least their butts...
Colorado (east side), Kansas, and Nebraska seem to all blend... lots of windmills
and a few junk car lots.
Along The Side Roads on the High Plains Highway - heading North - Going Home.
posted by jf and me | 8:49 PM
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