Hump Day at Chimayo & Bandelier National MonumentHappy Hump Day from New Mexico! Today is another day spent pretty much in the car as we move from Taos to some sights along the way including Chimayo, Bandelier National Monument and ending in Santa Fe.  Taos Pueblo As you may remember, we had originally had Bandelier National Monument on our list for Monday on our way to Taos, however, due to over scheduling we opted to slug that in today as we traverse from Taos to Santa Fe. One of the things I have loved about staying in our vacation rentals is that we have been able to have home-cooked meals each night, in a relaxing manner. The fact that Tanya and I live 3000 miles apart, we don't get an opportunity to share family dinners together. This trip, and staying in private houses, has given all of us cousins a wonderful opportunity to experience the family time together, which we are not able to enjoy when we are all back in our respective homes.  Tanya cookin' it up in the kitchen  Yummy Miso Soup Back to our touring yesterday! In spite of how much we did, our day flowed quite nicely and had a great mix of sightseeing and relaxing. The Taos Pueblo was quite a cultural experience. Hard to believe that this ancient Pueblo belong to the Tiwa-speaking Native American tribe of the Pueblo people is approximately 1000 years old and believed to be one of the oldest continuously inhabited communities in the United States. The Taos Pueblo has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  St. Jerome's Catholic Church, Taos Pueblo
 Taos Pueblo Cemetary The homes in this structure usually consist of two rooms, one of which is for general living and sleeping, and the second of which is for cooking, eating, and storage. Each home is self-contained. We treated to ourselves to Fry Bread, which was absolutely scrumptious with a little powdered sugar, cinnamon and honey!  Kids skipping through Taos Pueblo   After re-charging our batteries at "home" we headed for a delightful tour of the Kit Carson Home and Museum. We followed this with a leisurely walk around historic Taos.  Kit Carson Home & Museum   Taos Building Mural  Checking out the Historic Town of Taos We promised the kids if they were well behaved, we would get them something sweet before heading to the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. So, with smoothies and chocolate in-hand, we headed out to see this beautiful bridge and capture some views of the New Mexico sunset.  Taos Town view
 Poor Cosette was terrified being on this bridge  View from Rio Grande Gorge Bridge The Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, also known as the "Gorge Bridge" or "High Bridge" is the seventh highest bridge in the United States. It was quite freaky walking across this bridge, being so high. There were a number of floral markers on the bridge, paying tribute to individuals who had died. But, it was also a scenic marvel to behold. Tanya did a little exploring after me and the kids returned to the car, which you have to read about in her Daily column. She also captured some stunning photos! Well, more to do today! Santa Fe awaits us! Tanya has given an informative history of this historic southwest city, and the two other sights on our itinerary today: Chimayo and Bandelier National Momument - which you must read! See you back here tomorrow with Day 6 of our road trip and Part 5 of Elisa's China Adventure for Throwback Thursday!! Have an awesome day! -E  Beautiful horses of New Mexico  | On the Road again!Hinu co puyo (general greeting in Tiwa)! Can you believe that it's already Wednesday?! We've already been gone for one week and have driven over 1400 miles so far!!  Beautiful Horses with the Sangre De Cristo Mountain Range in the background A few of those miles were spent here in Taos. Where we had the wonderful opportunity to visit the Taos Pueblo... - see Elisa's side for some great information about this amazing site! - come back on Foodie Friday when I focus my article on the Foods of New Mexico. Which will include such specialties as the "Oh So Good" Fry Bread!!! "Mmm"  St. Jerome's at Taos Pueblo  The Travelin' Cousins in Taos
  Dogs roam everywhere at the Taos Pueblo  Store/Gallery Front  Our kids in front of the North House of Taos Pueblo  Horno = Oven  It's me :) and my kiddos in front of the South House After our self-guided tour of the Pueblo, we headed for relaxing lunch at "home". Followed by sightseeing and shopping time in the cute Historic Downtown, visited the Kit Carson Museum, and went to go watch sunset at the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. Well, everything had pretty much went according to plan, aside from there being a controlled burn nearby. Which caused a layer of dark gray smoke in the air, and a sunset that didn't live up to it's promise. "Boo" We did however get to see a magnificent Red Sun as a result of the smoke in the atmosphere. And I spotted and pointed out a Big Horn Sheep for Dominic and Gianna. *Elisa was kind enough to offer and take my poor "terrified" Cosette (who was in tears), and Kelsey back to the car.  In the Courtyard of The Kit Carson Museum  Street view of The Kit Carson Museum  Sights of Taos  Laughing Kids  The Red Sun!  Standing above the Rio Grande Gorge  Rio Grande Gorge Bridge  Big Horn Sheep  After Sunset Today we leave Taos and head for the New Mexico state capitol - Santa Fe!
And of course it wouldn't be a road trip with any Tanya flair if we didn't have a number of stops along the way! As planned (see our New Mexico Road Trip Details Page) we will be heading to Chimayo, spotting for a photo opp at the Saints and Sinners sign, and visiting Bandelier National Monument; we had to add this additional stop since it was missed on Monday (we just didn't quite get on the road in time to do everything planned). Luckily we have room in today's schedule to squeeze it in! CHIMAYO - (chimayo.us)
BANDELIER NATIONAL MONUMENT -
So, as you can see we've got a pretty spectacular and rich day full of culture and beauty ahead of us! I hope by now that you are subscribing to our page! That way you won't miss a beat and get your dose of the Daily delivered straight to your email! Meet you back here tomorrow for some more fun, and a new edition of Throwback Thursday! And just in case you haven't already read last weeks story from Costa Rica you can do so by clicking here! Ciao 4 Now, -T  |
