This is Santa Fe

January 13, 2017.

Santa Fe Or Bust, I'd originally said.  

Thankfully, we made it!

 

We arrived in Santa Fe on January 10th and luckily found a fabulous dog-friendly hotel (Luxx) with superb staff right in the heart of downtown!  Doug took this pic of The Plaza (a traditional green space in the center of the city) at night:

For two days and nights we walked around the city and poured over maps and travel notes I'd made.  We wanted to go to see Tent Rocks but no dogs allowed (other than service dogs) so we went for a drive out of town because Zuma was still settling in and we didn't want to leave her alone for hours.  Our drive led us to Lake Cochiti:

And then .... Doug came down with the 'flu I had over Christmas. Zuma and I left him in the hotel to recover for a whole day.  She and I set out on long walks, stopping by Luxx every couple of hours to make sure he was okay.  A day later, he was up and at 'em and we went for short walks around the historic downtown district, then enjoyed dinner at a Spanish restaurant right around the corner; they had excellent live Flamenco Music (guitar and cello) and the Best.Tapas.Ever. Truly a memorable evening and another great welcome to the city.  Fantastic.

When I went on line to search for info about Santa Fe, I learned that Indigenous people lived in the area in villages for several hundred years, then Spanish colonists founded the city of Santa Fe in 1610.  The city is the oldest city in new Mexico and the oldest state capital city in the US.  Originally named La Villa Real de la Santa Fe de San Francisco de Asis ("The Royal Town of the Holy Faith of St Francis of Assissi".  Conde Nast Traveler voted the city the second best city to retire in the US (2016).  Guess which city is first?  Asheville, NC!

The architecture here is "adobe", Pueblo-style homes with flat roofs.  Elevation:  7,198'!

Close to the Plaza is The Palace of The Governors.  Here you can shop daily for jewelry, rugs and other Native artwork: 

Here are some more photos of a stroll around Santa Fe:

Tilework and carved woods are popular:

Mobile Fajita stand at The Plaza on weekends:

Traditional music on The Plaza:

Strands of chiles, (Ristras) hang on buildings all over the city, 

decorating homes and businesses.

In the early mornings, the streets are quiet.

What a nice city.