I've always had a passion for old cemeteries, but this post and this by artist Laurie Beth Zuckerman has me especially eager to explore New Mexico's cemeteries!

From Elizabethtown, we'll drive another hour to Taos where we'll spend the night.

The High Road/Taos


Day two will begin in gorgeous Taos. In the morning, we'll visit the Hacienda de los Martinez Museum, followed by the San Francisco de Asis Mission Church, an adobe church built between 1772 and 1816, and the most photographed and painted church in Taos. We'll spend a bit of time exploring the shops located around the historic Ranchos de Taos plaza before moving on to the tiny chapel, Nuestra Senora de San Juan de los Lagos del Rio Chiquito (Our Lady of Saint John of the Lakes) in Talpa.

From there, we will drive about 30 minutes through the Carson National Forest to the Picurís Pueblo at Peñasco, home to another beautiful church: San Lorenzo de Picuris.  Next up will be Las Trampas where we will visit the old mission church, San Jose de Gracia, which is still an active parish. After Las Trampas, we will head to Nuestra Senora del Rosario, built in the early 1800s and home to many well-preserved old santos. This will be followed by the much-anticipated Chimayó.

In Chimayó, a small community nestled in the Sangre de Cristo mountains, we will visit the Santo Niño Chapel and Santuario de Chimayó, an important pilgrimage site often called the "Lourdes of America." I will also want to stop at the El Potrero Trading Post (aka 'The Vigil Store') for some light shopping. Leaving Chimayó, we will briefly visit Iglesia de la Santa Cruz de la Cañada (church), on our way to the ancient Puye Cliff Dwellings.

I am sure that the kids will be sick and tired of old churches by the time we're finished, but hopefully they will learn a little and won't be *too* bored. This entire trip just happens to tie into our history studies next semester perfectly, so at the very least it will (hopefully!) bring the history alive for them.

A few fun facts about Santa Fe: "Santa Fe" means "Holy Faith" in Spanish. The city was originally occupied by Pueblo Indian villages during 1050 to 1150. Spanish colonists founded the city sometime between 1607 and 1610, making it one of the oldest cities in the country. Santa Fe, a haven for artists, boasts more than 300 art galleries and dealers. At nearly 7,000 feet, Santa Fe has the highest elevation of all the state capitals in the country. (Source)


The Turquoise Trail

Last Friday, I found myself without a working computer - again - so I decided that we would take a field trip to the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve. Unfortunately, by the time we got there it was nearly 3 pm (we made quite a few stops to explore along the way!), so we had little time to enjoy the park. We watched a video, then took a wonderful guided tour and learned quite a lot. Next time I will plan to arrive early so that we can spend the day hiking some of the beautiful prairie trails.

From their website:

Tallgrass prairie once covered 140 million acres of North America. Within a generation the vast majority was developed and plowed under. Today less than 4% remains, mostly here in the Kansas Flint Hills. The preserve protects a nationally significant remnant of the once vast tallgrass prairie and its cultural resources.

Once the hunting grounds of the Kansa and Osage Indians, the preserve's 10,894 acres are home to an astonishing variety of life: over 450 species of plants, 150 kinds of birds, 39 types of reptiles and amphibians, and 31 species of mammals. A cycle of climate, fire, and animal grazing - once buffalo, now cattle - has sustained this ecosystem. Much of the grassland flora and fauna is too subtle to be seen from a passing car, but careful scrutiny reveals the special beauty, wonder, and complexity of the prairie.

Yesterday I took three of the kids to the Renaissance Faire (my husband and my eldest opted for a lazy day at home). Much to my surprise, it wasn't as bad as I had feared, though it did rain a little. I didn't get the greatest pictures because my camera was acting up intermittently, but managed to take a few. While it was a long day, we all had quite a lot of fun.

This baby zebra and camel were completely adorable and clearly best friends. Unfortunately while taking a photo of them, I missed a shot of Maddie on her camel ride!

The boys greatly enjoyed most of the entertainment:

This falcon still had a hood on since it had only been captured last week:

Jaymon takes a much needed break (and agonizes over his decision to wear camo, LOL):

Today we went to the Kansas Underground Salt Museum, 650' down in the ground (through 120' feet in water!) to the so-called Permian layer. The mine, founded in 1887, is jointly the location of the Hutchinson Salt Company (formerly the Carey Salt Mine) and Underground Vaults and Storage, Inc., a storage facility for film, medical documents, artwork and artifacts.

A 1950's postcard of the mine:


This salt deposit is one of the largest deposits known in the world, 4,000 square miles in area, covering parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. The museum is the only of its kind in the United States. With more than 67 miles of mined caverns, the salt mine produces 500,000 tons of rock salt each year, with approximately 80% used for road deicing and 20% used for cattle supplements. Rock salt is 95% halite and contains shale and other impurities. Today, the mine employs only 5 miners per shift, with an additional 5 employees serving as drillers, mechanics, explosive experts, etc.

Cool formations on the mine's walls:


An additional 65-70 employees work for Underground Vaults and Storage. The mine is perfect for storing a variety of artifacts because it is secure and offers a stable year-round temperature of 68° F and constant 42% humidity. All but one of the major Hollywood studios stores their film reels here.

Nearby, the Cargill and Morton plants produce common table salt - mined from the very same salt deposits, as well as salt for many other purposes. Amazingly, there are over 14,000 uses for salt!

Here's a slideshow from our visit: