A very nice day in the oldest capitol in the country. It made it to the low 80's but with the light breeze made it very comfortable. We parked the truck around 10:30 and didn't get back until 4:00 in the afternoon. Our first stop was the visitor center, picked up a very nice map and went to the state capital. After a visit of the capital we ventured downtown with stops at Loretto Chapel, San Miguels Church and the oldest house in America. Downtown and any street leading to downtown or the "plaza" has concessionaires, trading posts, jewelry stores or just about anything you can think of for sale. Most of all the buildings are adobe, even the post office, hotels, churches and even Trader Joe's. We didn't make any major purchases. Carol did buy a nice looking hat, I think she was still thinking about the "Kentucky Derby". After our visit of the "plaza" we found a Borders and a Trader Joe's where we made a few purchases and made it back to the RV park. Enjoyed a nice dinner and evening at our site. We haven't decided on what we'll be doing tomorrow, plenty of choices.
A visit to the Capitol Building.
We stopped by the Governors office but Bill wasn't in.
Typical street in downtown Santa Fe.
San Miguel Church, oldest church structure in America. Built in 1610 by Tlaxcalan Indians from Mexico under the direction of Franciscan Padres.
Loretto Chapel and the The Miraculous Staircase, which legend says was constructed or inspired by St. Joseph the Carpenter, was built sometime between 1877 and 1881. It took at least six months to build, and has two 360 degree turns with no visible means of support. The story of the miracle is as follows.
Needing a way to get up to the choir loft, the nuns prayed for St. Joseph's intercession for nine straight days. On the day after their novena ended a shabby looking stranger appeared at their door. He told the nuns he would build them a staircase but that he needed total privacy and locked himself in the chapel for three months. He used a small number of primitive tools including a square, a saw and some warm water and constructed a spiral staircase entirely of non-native wood. The identity of the carpenter and is not known, for as soon as the staircase was finally finished, he was gone. Many witnesses, upon seeing the staircase, feel it was a miraculous occurrence.
If you are ever in Santa Fe this is a must see. The construction still puzzles engineers today.
Inside, you can see the "stations of the cross" depicted in sculptures along the walls. In 1971, Our Lady of Light Chapel was informally deconsecrated as a Catholic Chapel. The Loretto Chapel is now a private museum operated and maintained, in part, for the preservation of the Miraculous Staircase and the chapel itself.
"La Casa Vieja de Analco", the "Oldest House in the USA". The foundation is an ancient pueblo dating from around 1200 AD. In 1598 the Spanish establish a permanent settlement. From then until 1920 the structure was occupied by a wide variety of cultures from Indians, Spanish settlers, it was even home to the Spanish Governor in the early 1700's. Local folklore abounds with stories of murderous witches and ghosts. Even today, some insist they can feel a presence inside the structure.
Inside the "oldest house" supposedly lies the remains of a Spaniard murdered by resident witches.
Amazing carvings on a door we found on a adobe structure in old town Santa Fe. Didn't have laser carving so this took some time for this detail carving.
Typical concession downtown, they were everywhere.
Indian's lined up with their wares for sale on blankets in front of them. Some nice work. They were set up all over the "plaza"
Typical store that utilizes the alley for retail space with a door opening into the rear of their store
Nice little restaurant back inside a cozy plaza.
Needing a way to get up to the choir loft, the nuns prayed for St. Joseph's intercession for nine straight days. On the day after their novena ended a shabby looking stranger appeared at their door. He told the nuns he would build them a staircase but that he needed total privacy and locked himself in the chapel for three months. He used a small number of primitive tools including a square, a saw and some warm water and constructed a spiral staircase entirely of non-native wood. The identity of the carpenter and is not known, for as soon as the staircase was finally finished, he was gone. Many witnesses, upon seeing the staircase, feel it was a miraculous occurrence.
If you are ever in Santa Fe this is a must see. The construction still puzzles engineers today. 
Inside, you can see the "stations of the cross" depicted in sculptures along the walls. In 1971, Our Lady of Light Chapel was informally deconsecrated as a Catholic Chapel. The Loretto Chapel is now a private museum operated and maintained, in part, for the preservation of the Miraculous Staircase and the chapel itself."La Casa Vieja de Analco", the "Oldest House in the USA". The foundation is an ancient pueblo dating from around 1200 AD. In 1598 the Spanish establish a permanent settlement. From then until 1920 the structure was occupied by a wide variety of cultures from Indians, Spanish settlers, it was even home to the Spanish Governor in the early 1700's. Local folklore abounds with stories of murderous witches and ghosts. Even today, some insist they can feel a presence inside the structure.Inside the "oldest house" supposedly lies the remains of a Spaniard murdered by resident witches.Amazing carvings on a door we found on a adobe structure in old town Santa Fe. Didn't have laser carving so this took some time for this detail carving.Typical concession downtown, they were everywhere.Indian's lined up with their wares for sale on blankets in front of them. Some nice work. They were set up all over the "plaza" Typical store that utilizes the alley for retail space with a door opening into the rear of their storeNice little restaurant back inside a cozy plaza.
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