Grants and Albuquerque, New Mexico v.16

We made it to Grants, New Mexico just in time for the All Star game.  I'm driving in and I get all excited- I know what that is!!  The Transformers have been here too!!  And they left their road debris!!  No-really I got all excited- "Look Becca! Lava!  There must be an old volcano around here!"  "Yah Mom.  Are we going to make it in time for the game?"  She wasn't quite as excited as I was...

 The plan was to go to the Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque the next morning, then go to Old Town Albuquerque, then ride the Tramway before meeting up with my West Point classmate, Donna, and her husband, Mike.  The Pueblo Center was interesting and very well done.  I was intrigued by the explanation regarding the Pueblos' acceptance and integration of Catholicism into their beliefs.  There was a whole section dedicated to the patron saints of each group and the generally positive view of the missionary priests. Becca liked the clay pottery area- one of the exhibit planners came out to explain the importance of the pottery and how it was used.

Old town Albuquerque was great for people watching and shopping.  I'm not a big shopper, but Becca loved it!  There was lots of jewelry- most of it Native American made.  There were shops, and there were vendors lined up with their wares laid out on blankets.  Becca's newly pierced ears got some new bling for not too much cash.  She chose to skip the Tram ride to stay and shop.  

We came across the beautiful old San Felipe Neri Church in the square. I was almost afraid to go in, with all the shops around I feared it may have been turned into some thing commercial... 

Not to worry!  It is still a Catholic Church, and a beautiful one at that.  It has a gift shop of its own, which has a window to the past.  There is a window in one of the walls that shows the original mud wall construction of the building.  

Maybe the shopping addled my brain- I have no pictures of the church!  Here is a link if you want to see it:  http://www.terragalleria.com/america/new-mexico/albuquerque/picture.usnm44038.html

Thanks to Mike for fabulous Taco Soup and fellowship!  Really enjoyed catching up with Donna in the AM, as she had just returned from delivering her son to West Point to join the class of 2016.  Congratulations!

Becca loving the White's pets