Five years, WOW! And More Indian Market

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It was exactly five years ago today that we picked up our new motorhome, which we named Cholula Red.

It seems like so long ago and yet it seems just like yesterday.

How this one thing has changed our life, it is absolutely the very best decision we ever made.

I just spent a bit of time looking at my website where I first began writing about our adventures. One thing I can say for sure is that I'm a much better photographer than I was when we started this journey!

Okay, enough reminiscing, on to

Indian Market Part 2

I was in awe of this tiny little piece, I really should have included something to show the scale. Made from the lining of a walrus stomach, this parka is no more than four inches tall.

It's a truly beautiful piece of work.

I love the architecture of Santa Fe.
There's something about the way
the angular adobe shapes fit together.
It pleases my senses.

This skirt also pleases me,
but not the price tag ($120).
I've found several
of these tiered fiesta skirts
at the local thrift shops.
While not as fanciful as this one,
they were a lot more affordable.

Still, if I was rolling in cash,
I'd buy this in a second.

Saint Michael's in the background,
Indian Market in the foreground.

The end of the Santa Fe Trail,
right in the middle of the plaza.

Another shot of the shapes of adobe.

I think it's the timeless quality
that appeals to me.
(Remember that you can click
for a larger version of any photo).

Many of the old buildings
are topped with bricks.

More adobe shapes.

Santa Fe is also blessed
with an abundance of outdoor art.

I love this face.

We found this astounding piece
in one of the gallery courtyards.
That's one of the joys of Santa Fe,
discovering artifacts like this
in hidden places.

One final "adobe" shot.
This is the famed La Fonda Hotel.

I still have more photos from Indian Market. I'll try to get them up in the next day or two.

Till then

Indian Market 2010, Part 1

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We spent most of today wandering in and around the Santa Fe Plaza, perusing the incredible artwork and soaking up the unique atmosphere of Santa Few during Indian Market.

What a great day.

Needless to say, I have lots of pictures to share.

I guess I'll call this first entry

the Faces of Indian Market.

I'm endlessly fascinated by the people I see here, and Indian Market seems to offer a veritable cornucopia of memorable visages.

I love the Native Americans
who show up in their tribal attire

This gent's hairpieces
is made from porcupine hair.

Then there's the cowboys.

We spent quite a while
talking with this young man.
Fascinating!
He's what they call a Fancy Dancer.
Currently majoring in theater in college,
a few years ago,
he decided to carry on.

the family tradition.

He made his costume himself
with the help of his Father

All ages come to Santa Fe
for Indian Market

Including Mountain Men

I love the hat!

The back of the hat
is even better than the front.

This vest is completely beaded.
It'll be a while before we're up
to this level of beading!

I was taken
with this beautiful woman's face.

I'll close with this one.
The picture really doesn't
do this costume justice.
You can't see all the fake flowers
in the brim of the hat,
or the tiny hats and dolls
sewed to the legs of his jacket and pants.
But you get the idea.

I love going to Indian Market!
More pictures to come in the days ahead.

Santa Fe Indian Market Part 5

Finally, the last post about the Indian Market. I'm including so many posts because we had such a wonderful time.

It's been interesting, talking with locals about the event. Apparently, once again, we lucked out and this year was different from all the others. While probably not great for those selling, there were markedly less people attending, bad for them, good for us. The crowds were in attendance but not to such a degree as to make for a bad experience for those attending (like us!).

The weather was beautiful and it was an exciting introduction to the downtown Plaza of Santa Fe. I took LOTS of pictures, but will only share a few with you.

As with all parts of New Mexico, the skies here are beautiful. I can't seem to keep my camera pointing down, of its own volition it seems to keep pointing up!

We've heard that up until five years ago, if you built in Santa Fe, it HAD to be adobe. While these rules have been relaxed lately, it certainly gives the city a particular charm.Here's a shot heading down the Market towards St Francis Cathedral. This is the site of the original mission that was burnt during the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. As you walk down the avenue, it dominates the horizon.


Here's a closer shot of the Cathedral. This was the site of the Mayan dances we posted a few days ago.


The Cathedral is beautiful inside, and while photography is allowed, they are refreshing the interior for an upcoming celebration. There's scaffolding everywhere and lots of work in progress, so I couldn't get a lot of photos.

I did get this shot of some of the hand painted trim. The extends around this huge cathedral and is quite beautiful.


I was also able to get one shot of these stained glass windows. Unfortunately I had to shoot through glass, so the photo isn't quite sharp. That said, I thought the sun coming through the glass was so ethereal, I wanted to include it here. I also liked the shadows of the hanging lamps.


This is a shot that intrigued me. It's one of those old pull down metal staircases attached to the side of a building. I thought the clouds and sky through the slats was so lovely. remember to click on any image for a larger view.


Santa Fe is teeming with public art, it is literally everywhere, I have hopes of shooting more, but it seems and unending task. This is the front of a gallery on the Plaza. The piece stands about eight feet high.



Downtown Santa Fe reminds me of Sausalito or Carmel. That's both a good thing and not so good, but in this climate at this time of year, it's delightful.


The picture above is Burro Alley, usually full of outdoor cafe tables, During Indian Market, there were potters set up in this spot.

The next picture is the entrance to Burro Alley.


And here's a closeup of the "street sign". Again, the public art is everywhere.

As we were walking along, we saw this entrance to an older drug store. This style of old tile work always attracts me. This reminded me of downtown Cheyenne, Wyoming, where so much of this vintage tile work still exists.

Now I want you to take a good look at the pictures above, the beautiful blue skies and the white puffy clouds.

It was a lovely day and suddenly the skies opened up and within ten minutes, it looked like this.


You may not be able to tell in this picture, but these gutters were more than ankle deep. Within a few minutes, it was overflowing onto the sidewalks, causing most of the vendors to close up shop.

It also pretty much cleared out the foot traffic. We stayed for a bit, got completely drenched and finally packed it in.

In New Mexico, they say if you don't like the weather, just wait a while and it will change.

And it does, but we love it!

Life is good, and so was the Indian Market on the Plaza in Santa Fe!

Santa Fe Indian Market Part 4

One of the things we really enjoyed at the Indian Market was all the entertainment. Not only did we get to see an array of varied art and artists, but there was quality entertainment around every corner.

My favorite was a Pueblo dancer named Marcos Saiz, who was accompanied by the Enchanted Lands Singers. For starters, his costume was stunning, but it was his dancing that really attracted the crowds.

There were lots of people around, so I apologize for some of these photos, the conditions were far from ideal.

I included this because it shows the detail of his amazing head dress. Make sure to click to enlarge so you can see all the detail.


In addition to the colorful outfit, the makeup was beautiful.

I wanted to include this shot because it shows just a bit of the performers personality.

We so enjoyed the Indian Market, I have one more series of photos of the Market, then I'll put up some other shots of Santa Fe.

Life is really good, we're having a ball.

Santa Fe Indian Market Part 3

I'm going to continue my entries on the Indian Market with a selection of some of my favorite artwork from the show.

The selections were so varied, it was overwhelming. In looking at my photos, I realized that I didn't take any pictures of baskets, so forgive me.

That said, here's a minor representation of the thousands of pieces we saw.

I couldn't decide whether to start or finish with this piece. Just let me say that pictures will not in any way do it justice.

This is a doeskin dress, decorated with a combination of seed beads, porcupine quills and Swarovski crystals. I did my best to get a good photo, but make sure you click for a larger version. The bead work is exquisite.

Here's one more piece by the same artist. I sorry to say I can't find my notes to give her name, (I have a severe case of CRS). Her bead work was far and away superior to anything else we saw.

These next three were taken from the car window as we were looking for a parking space! I'm not sure if these were meant to be permanent displays or were just there for Indian Market. As you can see, they were on the back of trucks, but what you can't see is that they are all mobile.

I think the elephant was y favorite,his ears moved ever so slightly in the wind.

The buffalo was so solid looking, we saw no movement from him. The way they had him secured made him look ike a pack animal.

Ah, the jewelry, my true downfall. I loved the inlaid work. The quality at the market was superb.
The pottery was, of course outstanding. This little pot with the spotted frogs was my very favorite. We were told a story of these frogs, that they come out at a certain time in the potters village in Mexico. Look closely and you'll see they have brown and green spots.

Another inlaid piece. The precision of this work is so beautiful.

Thus piece of marble was a knockout. The Artist encouraged you to touch it. Truly a Master Carver. I love the idea of him looking at a block of marble and seeing this.

And that's it for now.

Like I say, these are just a tiny representation of what we saw. It was a unique event and one we hope to attend again in the future.

More to follow . . .