Santa Fe has been on my bucket list for years and I’m so glad we were able to spend a whole 10 days in this historic, vibrant, yet so laid-back city.
The RV park we stayed at was conveniently located on a bus route that made it super easy for us to get to the Santa Fe Plaza–a National Historic Landmark in downtown Santa Fe. It’s easy to see why this city square is the gathering place in town, with so many quaint shops, art galleries, restaurants, and artisans set up throughout the square. On the day that we were visiting, the Plaza was abuzz with people camped along the streets, waiting for a parade to make its way to the center. For more than 300 years, on the weekend after Labor Day, Fiesta de Santa Fe is held. We just happened to be downtown during this huge event, and apparently, it’s quite a big deal — with religious ceremonies, an art market, food festival, live music, and, of course, a huge parade. It was the longest procession I’ve ever seen and an immediate introduction to the vibrant culture of Santa Fe.
Another huge draw to Santa Fe is its world-famous arts scene. There are literally hundreds of galleries, with more than 80 of them scattered along a half-mile stretch on Canyon Road. We spent a few leisurely hours strolling the tree-lined street, visiting galleries in Pueblo-style adobes and historic homes. Talented artists were representing their work not only inside the galleries but the whole street is peppered with amazing metal sculptures and eclectic garden art.
During our stay in Santa Fe, our son Nick and his fiance, Margaret, were able to fly in from NY to stay for a few days. When you’re on the road, far from family and friends, it’s always such a treat to have them join us to explore–and we had quite the list planned when they arrived.
We took them to The Plaza to shop. We took them to Tomasitas for sopapillas (yum!) We took them to Canyon Road. We visited The Georgia O’Keefe museum. And we took them to Meow Wolf for an absolutely amazing interactive art experience (highly recommend.) We had such a great time showing them around Santa Fe and also loved just hanging out at the RV lot, and catching up with them. It’s never enough time, but we try to relish every minute we can when we have an opportunity to see the kids.
On Tuesday morning, after having dropped the kids off at the airport the night before, we packed up the coach and were back on the road for our last big stop: White Sands National Park. It’s hard to believe this journey is almost over — with lots more changes coming in the months ahead.
An interesting fact about Santa Fe– and why it is, in part, such a beautiful place: In the 1920s, Santa Fe officials ordered that all buildings in the city be built with adobe in the Pueblo Indian style. The city also retains beautiful examples of Victorian, Italian, and Spanish architecture. It is this combination of cultures that helped give Santa Fe its most popular nickname, “the City Different.”
