Adobe

Santa Fe Signs

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Wrapping up my 2023 Santa Fe photo dump with a cavalcade of signage.

We had drinks at sunset on La Fonda’s rooftop cantina one evening, including some of the most delicious–and dangerous margaritas I’ve ever sipped.

Again, the blue New Mexico skies make everything appear brighter.

I suppose this could just as easily be Texas, but it works.

Not the estate of Charles Foster Kane nor a roller disco. Alas, it’s a home goods store.

Why name your gallery when bright red against adobe easily draws one in?

So many galleries in Santa Fe.

Some of them take on an otherworldly glow at night.

Dog-friendly vacation rentals just outside the Plaza.

Cafe Sonder did not survive the pandemic but at least its retro-cool sign remains (for now.)

Kudos to this curious but compelling signage.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a really big shoe for you today…”

Rather than use boring old letter grades, restaurant cleanliness in New Mexico is simply APPROVED (or not.)

I’ve saved the worst (best?) for last: DJ Corncob sounds like an alias Jason Mendoza might’ve used if he was from the Midwest instead of Jacksonville, but one can’t deny how, ahem, Cash-4-Titties really draws one in.

Pecos National Historical Park

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On the way back from Las Vegas to Santa Fe, we stopped at Pecos National Historical Park.

Located roughly halfway between the two cities, the park covers thousands of acres. 

We walked the Ancestral Sites Trail, a 1.25 mile hiking loop with lush greenery and beautiful mountain vistas.

Purple flowers dotted along the trail add a muted but effective splash of color.

The juxtaposition of cactus trees and green grass is not something you’ll find in every corner of desert-heavy New Mexico.

I honestly first read this as “Enter With Carl” (Sandburg? Sagan?), but most made-made holes in the ground do require a certain amount of mindful navigation.

It’s best to stay on the path.

Walking along the trail, I had no shortage of opportunities for taking landscape shots.

However, Pecos is not just limited to scenic nature.

This trail’s centerpiece is the ruins of Pecos Pueblo and the Mission of Our Lady of the Angels of Porciúncula.

What remains of the Mission itself is relatively substantial.

It cuts a striking figure against New Mexico’s bold, blue, endless skies.

A patch of sky within a fortress of adobe.

A man-made hallway onto a world of tall trees and mountains.

What’s left of the Pueblo, built sometime around 1619.

Although one of the sites of the 1680 Pueblo Revolt against Spanish colonizers, today, Pecos is a somber, peaceful place. A half-hour drive from Santa Fe, it’s one of the more convenient ways to take in the simple, lovely essence of New Mexico.

Return to Santa Fe

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Three weeks ago, I returned to Santa Fe for my first visit in nearly seven years.

I took enough pix for at least five or six essays; this first one is set in and around the famed Santa Fe Plaza.

On past visits, the Plaza Cafe did not have outdoor seating; like many other businesses, it has adapted, although far more beautifully than most.

Santa Fe’s distinct desert/adobe/Spanish-style architecture is reason alone to visit.

Adobe and turquoise paint almost always go well together.

Some buildings near the Plaza are more baroque and elaborate than others.

When there, I occasionally feel like I’ve stepped into a different country.

Charming little roads such as Burro Alley further enhance this idea of not being in Kansas anymore.

A few blocks from the Plaza, this elaborate garden was like something out of a storybook.

There are no shortage of scenic views from Downtown Santa Fe, like this one from my hotel room of Cross of the Martyrs.

Or this one from Sandoval Street of the mountain range east of town.

Stay tuned for more photos from Santa Fe and beyond.