Albuquerque is about 70 miles from Sangre so we left 8.30 am and arrived right on 10 am in time to see the Indian Cultural Centre and Museum there until 11 am. It was all too little time because there was so much to see and a very interesting gift shop. There was one section devoted to 'Code Talkers' during WWII. Aparently the Indian languages were used by native speakers to communicate by code and the enemy never cracked the system. eg. The Indian soldier's word for 'dog' was used to specify 'd', the word for 'stone' 's' etc. as he spoke to another member of his tribe across the airwaves. This system was essential to victory in several major battle
Other sections of the museum were devoted to displays from the different Tribes of their lifestyle at different periods. It was very complex and advanced, and there are a lot of ways it influences life here today - eg. adobe housing, beautiful pottery from local clay, handwoven objects. I didn't get a really good impression of the Spanish imposition of Catholic religion on a very spiritual people. However, today the people are both Catholic and Traditional and practise both their Catholic faith and their original Spiritual customs. The comment was that they believe there is only one Creator God. No photos, sorry - not allowed.
We moved to 'Old Town' Albuquerque - a reminder of the past in what is a very modern and busy place with a lot of industry, major roads and heavy traffic. I'll show you a few photos I took of this: 
On the left you can see a bit of St Felipe de Neri Church which has been in continuous use since 1706. The Convent on its left is named after a Sister Blandina who brought a mason from Santa Fe to rebuild it after the first one, built in 1881 collapsed. The Sisters of Charity served there.
The Old Town is very adobe-looking. Here are a couple of photos:
You can see the entry to the Old Town area has been greatly embellished. In a cafe area (where I lunched) you can see a genuine adobe wall with wooden window bars. The cafe was in a walk-through courtyard and all the tables were out of doors under shelter. Very charming.
A couple of other photos will give you a bit of an idea of the style of the area: First, the plaza itself (the church is on one side); secondly, a couple of 'Queen Anne' style buildings which also feature in the area; thirdly, part of the courtyard beside the Church (to the right - opposite the convent side). The taller building may have been the original school - the only one in the town originally.
I spent most of the afternoon at the Albuquerque Museum with another Sister. Before going in I photographed some of the multiple statues outside the very impressive building. They go in a lot of very life-like statues but there are also modern art sculptures there which you may glimpse in the background. Here's a selection:
Our trip home was delayed by what a radio announcer described as a 'horrible' accident along Route 66 (Freeway with wide space between sets of two lanes). We basically sat for 2 hours! We played '20 guesses' and 'I went on a trip and I took ....' around the bus! Got home at 7.05 pm instead of 5 pm. The two lanes must have stretched for miles and miles behind us but it took us a long time to get even near the accident whieh seems to have involed at least four vehicles when one came across from the wrong side of the highway. That car was an absolutely mangled wreck, split almost in half! News reports last night suggest 6 people were injured and only two in that car were injured seriously ( it is a wonder they were alive). I had plenty of time to take photos of the Sandia Mountains which overlook Albuquerque, so here is my best photo. There is actually a very long scenic railway right to the top which about 18 of our group are going to go on next Sunday. I decided to skip that trip - save my pennies for some other delights, like the Grand Canyon which we are busily planning: 
That is enough about Albuqerque, but a final note. The radio announcer was also talking about how the flu has arrived here - time to get flu shots! If it takes off here, we'll all be a bit sorry for ourselve. Hope everyone is well and kept out of mischief, as you can see I am. God bless! Rita
1 comment:
Thanks for the update and pictures. Sounds like it was an interesting day out. We were lost in forestry roads near Albany one evening when John Sinclair took the wrong road out of town at dusk. I helped get singing going - a large repetoire helps! Meanwhile someone was trying to navigate with a small map and a weak torch. We had a very late dinner that night. Speed must have been a factor in such a horrific crash. One problem with freeways is that you can't get off if there is a problem.
Love,
Kath & John
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