Transformers and Transition

Day 9-11 – Santa Fe, NM

We spent three days in Santa Fe, NM. Our campsite is at Trailor Ranch RV Resort, 4.7 miles from downtown Santa Fe. We can jump on the Route #2 bus right outside the entrance to the “resort” and for $1 ride the bus all day long.  We took the bus into Historic Santa Fe all three days. Here are some highlights.

If you have been to The Plaza in historic Santa Fe, you know there are lots of shops, galleries and restaurants. Everything is super expensive but extremely beautiful. Pottery, rugs, metal sculptures and art. One of the strangest things we saw were these transformer type art sculptures. All welded from found metal, they seemed so out of place with all the beautiful Indian/Southwestern themed offerings.

Everyone wants to recommend their favorite restaurant.  The Jambo Cafe, an African restaurant, was a superb recommendation.  Chef Ahmed Obo uses lots of spices, like ginger and cloves, in his East African cooking. He has won numerous awards including a nomination for James Beard Best Chef in the Southwest. The food was amazing.

I am not sure I can explain the experience we had in the Cathedral Basilica St. Francis. It was almost surreal. We met Mary an 80-year-old docent. She was the only docent in the Cathedral and with all the people wondering around, she latched on to us and took us on a private tour of the church. She told us story after story and pointed out some of the unique features of the Cathedral that we never would have seen without her help. We heard about the many outfits they put on the statute of the Virgin Mary, the oldest such statue in the country and the stain glass windows from France, which were packed in molasses for their journey to Santa Fe. We heard about all the people who were buried under the alter, including some of her brother’s ashes the monsignor placed there to ease Mary’s mourning. She made us stand in certain places to see the reflection of Jesus on the opposite wall and the “eye tricks”, created with paint, when viewed from one direction appeared three dimensional and flat from a different direction.

We spent over an hour listening to this fascinating woman whose father made tomato wine, whose husband was killed in Viet Nam leaving her to raise their daughter alone…and get this… drove to Alaska on the Alcan highway by herself in an RV… well she was quick to tell us she had her cat and God with her.

When I hugged her goodbye, I burst into tears. It suddenly hit me she was the spitting image, in stature, energy, and love of her faith, as my mom.  I am 100% certain Mary was sent to me by my mother and it was the exact message I have been waiting for since she died. I felt a huge sense of relief and happiness as we left the Cathedral. Gary and I sat down and stared up at the entrance, trying to process the experience. All we could say was, “it was amazing”. Grief has phases and Mary provided me with a transition to a new phase in my grief. 

Before leaving Santa Fe for Taos, we visited the Meow Wolf Museum, an immersive art museum. The museum features over 70 rooms made by local and community artists. The museum app features an innovative Psychic Sensor that unveils story elements, games and clues to mysteries during your visit. We didn’t use the app we just enjoyed the fun.