a perfect birthday in taos, new mexico

Arrival in Taos

Tuesday, October 24, 2023: We arrived at our outstanding Airbnb in Taos, an adobe casita attached to the host’s house, late Tuesday afternoon. We made vodka tonics, assembled snacks and sat outside on the private patio, walled off for guests only.

What a fabulous place! It was a big open room with a partial textured glass partition between the living room and bedroom. Apparently it was once a potter’s studio. It had a wood-burning stove with a stash of wood which Mike had to figure out how to use. It was set in the high desert landscape of Ranchos de Taos. Although I loved the casita in Santa Fe (especially the hot tub), this one was even nicer with its New Mexican aesthetic.

Our first night in Taos we went to Orlando’s New Mexican Cafe. It was a charming and colorful cafe with a line of people waiting; luckily the line wasn’t too long. We each had wine and I finally had my favorite Mexican dish that I order whenever I can, Chili Rellenos: two green chilis stuffed with Jack cheese , breaded and deep fried. Topped with choice of chili and cheese. Served with beans and posole.

The perfect way to begin our short stay in Taos.

San Francisco de Asis Church

Wednesday, October 25: The first stop on our one-day exploration of Taos was the San Francisco de Asis Church, completed in the early 19th century as a Franciscan mission. It sits in the middle of a quiet plaza ringed with adobe buildings and trees that cast artistic shadows over the doorway. As with every adobe structure, it must be refinished every year with a mixture of clay, sand and straw. It is then coated with a fine layer of water and sand, and buffed with sheepskin. This process is called enjarre.

Inside, the whitewashed walls hold the stations of the cross. Two Spanish Colonial reredos ( large altarpieces, screens, or decorations placed behind the altar in a church) decorate the altars.

This church has been used by artists such as Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams as subject matter for paintings and photographs.

Río Grande Gorge

After visiting the mission church, we drove out west of Taos to the Río Grande Gorge, also called the Taos Gorge. It plummets 800 feet down into a shadowy basalt canyon as the river cuts through it. Besides the rushing water, seismic activity has also caused this rift in the earth’s surface. The crack extends north to just over the Colorado state line and south nearly to Española.

The bridge that spans the gorge was built in 1965. At that time there was no highway on the western side so it was referred to as the “bridge to nowhere.” Still, the American Institute of Steel Construction awarded it the “Most Beautiful Steel Bridge” in 1966. At 650 feet above the water, the cantilever truss was an amazing engineering feat. Today it is still the 7th highest bridge in the U.S.

Greater World Earthship Development

Of course, we had to stop by the Greater World Earthship Development visitor’s center since we were only a mile away after crossing the Rio Grande Gorge. I was curious to see it as our son Adam had spent some time here after going to Australia for a permaculture course soon after high school.  Mike and I took the self-guided tour of the model of the basic Earthships: modular, low-priced homes that function entirely on collected rainwater and wind and solar power. The walls, usually built into hillsides, are stacked used tires packed with earth, while stacked bottles filled with cement, and crushed aluminum form the front walls. This architecture was developed in the late 20th- to early 21st-century by architect Michael Reynolds. Earthships are designed to withstand the extreme temperatures of a desert, managing to stay close to 70 °F (21 °C) regardless of outside weather conditions. They are designed to be “off-the-grid-ready” homes with minimal reliance on public utilities and fossil fuels.

We could only visit the model home and drive along the highway to see the Earthships from afar. The rest of the community is closed off to visitors unless they want to rent an Earthship for a night.

Taos Pueblo

We visited Taos Pueblo, a village with two clusters of multistory mud-brick buildings at its core. Its claim to fame is that it, along with Acoma Pueblo, is the oldest continually inhabited community in the U.S. The current buildings are from the 1200s and are annually repaired and re-coated with mud. About 150 people (out of the community of around 1,900 residents of Taos Reservation) live here year-round. The town is designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The homes, stacked upon each other and reached by wooden ladders, have no electricity or running water.

We wandered around and into some of the craft shops here. Mostly we loved taking photos of the picturesque village and especially the San Geronimo Church, built in 1850, which replaced the first mission the Spanish built in 1619, using forced Indian labor. The picturesque whitewashed gate to the church is a favorite subject for paintings and photographs. Absolutely no photography was allowed inside the colorful church, sadly.

Taos Plaza

We spent a couple of hours at Taos Plaza where I did a little shopping for my birthday. 😍😍

Taos Plaza is the center of Taos, with many touristy shops selling Northern New Mexico foods and cultural items, including products made in Taos: chile ristras (strung pods of dried red chiles that are displayed near arches, doors and windows all over New Mexico), packaged food items, Southwestern jewelry, pottery, clothing, leather work, and Native American moccasins and drums.

Taos Plaza was established in 1615 but then destroyed in the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. New homes were built in 1710 but before long, fires gutted the block-style buildings. Now the structures that line the plaza are from around 1930.

Taos Plaza and the Taos Pueblo were the terminal points of the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, or King’s Highway, from Mexico City.

Taos Plaza served for decades as the central meeting place in the valley and survived numerous fires that destroyed several older buildings.

We walked into the Hotel La Fonda de Taos, the smaller and older version of La Fonda in Santa Fe. We also found colorful murals in the town.

Mabel Dodge Luhan’s house

I’d been interested in seeing Mabel Dodge Luhan’s house in Taos ever since I saw the 2009 TV movie Georgia O’Keeffe. Mabel Dodge (1879-1962) was a free-thinking woman who was a patron of the arts and held art salons in Greenwich Village, New York City and Florence, Italy. She followed her third husband to Taos in 1916. Eventually she got married again, to Taos Pueblo member Tony Luhan, and invited many famous artists to stay in her cobbled together house, where they thrived in their artistic pursuits. Her guests included novelist D. H. Lawrence, Greta Garbo, Willa Cather, photographer Ansel Adams, artist Georgia O’Keeffe, poet Robinson Jeffers, and psychiatrist Carl Jung.

Today the house operates as a hotel and retreat and it was closed for a special event when we visited. Sadly we couldn’t go inside, but we were able to walk around the grounds. I could almost feel the creative spirit wafting about in the air at this fabled place.

We drove to the end of the road where our Airbnb was situated and found the Río Grande Gorge Recreation Area: Taos Valley Overlook. Sadly the shadows in the canyon made photography difficult.

The Love Apple

To celebrate my 68th birthday, we went to The Love Apple in Taos. Frank, the guide at the Georgia O’Keeffe house, had recommended it to Mike, who was looking for somewhere nice to take me. The Love Apple, or La pomme d’amour, emphasizes local, organic home cooking.

The restaurant is housed in what was once known as the Placitas Chapel. This little Catholic church was built around the 1800s and was in operation for 100 years.

We sat outside, but it wasn’t too cold because they had space heaters and we dressed warmly. The place had a really nice ambiance.

We began with Buttermilk Yellow and Blue Cornbread. We shared a bowl of the tomato soup of the day. I enjoyed a Homemade Baked Tamale and Oaxacan Style Mole (Local sauteed greens and sweet corn baked tamale topped with red chile mole finished with a farm-fresh fried egg and crême fraice). Mike had a Polenta Bolognese (Santa Ana Polenta with local beef & Pancetta Bolognese served with house-made lemon ricotta).

It was another memorable birthday to add to all the memorable ones I’ve enjoyed in my life. I’m filled with gratitude for every new year I get.

We should have stopped when we were ahead after my birthday dinner, but we’d read the Adobe Bar at the Taos Inn was a lively spot to go. Lounge music was playing and a bunch of older folks were dancing. I know, I know, I’m old too. But I don’t want to act like I am. It really wasn’t my scene at all and I definitely didn’t need another margarita after all I’d had to eat and drink at the Love Apple. So, this place was a bust, in my humble opinion.

Steps: 9,532; Miles: 4.04. Drove 79.7 miles. Weather: Hi 66°, Lo 31°.