Taos

We spent one busy day in Taos, and covered quite a bit of history and culture. In the morning, we drove by the Rio Grande on our way to the day's activities.

Our first stop of the day was at the Taos Pueblo Day School. Taos Day School (TDS) is located on the Taos Pueblo Indian Reservation in Northern New Mexico 3 miles north of the town of Taos. The school serves 170 students in grades kindergarten through eighth.

52% of TDS students live in households below the poverty level. All students are Native Americans. The majority of the students are a mixture of Native American tribes, Hispanic or Anglo. Twenty-four percent 24% of our children are full-blooded Taos. Fourteen percent 14% are from another tribe altogether. 

The mission of Taos Day School is to provide an equal opportunity for all students which will adequately prepare them to function in a multicultural and increasingly technological society while maintaining their unique cultural heritage and identity.

"We believe that the school must encourage students to become collaborative workers through understanding of self and others. The school will foster the development and use of effective leadership, communications and group skills in a variety of settings."

We were given a tour of the school by the principal. School was not in session the day we visited because the United States was celebrating the very first official, Indigenous Peoples Day (formally Columbus Day) so the kids had the day off. It was pretty cool to be in New Mexico, learning about the Pueblo culture during the first Indigenous People's Day!

The principal had asked a small handful of students to come in to show us a a few of the different ways they learn. First, they showed us roll call, all the students go by their Native American names at school. When their name was called, they would tell us what the meaning of their name such as snow flower, flying falcon, or little wolf.  Pueblo children are often given an English name in addition to their Tiwa Native American name. They also spend time each day speaking and learning Tiwa, the native language of the Taos Pueblo tribes. Keeping the Tiwa language alive and thriving is becoming an issue as the younger generations are opting to just learn and speak English, so spending time learning Tiwa at school is very important.

Then we went out into the courtyard where the children showed us how they learn to make adobe ovens. This activity serves so many educational purposes, first they are learning a practical skill that will be useful in their tribes and perhaps in a business. Second, they learn math by calculating different ingredients while mixing the adobe, as well as calculating the height and width of the oven. They are also learning science, with volume and density. I thought the practical application of these math and science concepts was such a great way to teach. Plus, the kids learned to work together as a team, which helps build communication skills and promotes teamwork. Taos Day School uses actives like this all throughout their circulum, it was so fascinating to learn about, and watching the kids work together to build a large adobe oven was so amazing, they knew how to do everything, they didn't need any help from a teacher or principal.

After our time at the Taos Day School, we visited Taos Pueblo, the only living Native American community designated both a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and a National Historic Landmark.

The people of Taos Pueblo have a detailed oral history which is not divulge due to religious privacy. The ancestors of the Taos people lived in this valley long before Columbus discovered America and hundreds of years before Europe emerged from the Dark Ages. Ancient ruins in the Taos Valley indicate our people lived here nearly 1000 years ago. The main part of the present buildings were most likely constructed between 1000 and 1450 A.D. The appeared much as they do today when the first Spanish explorers arrived in Northern New Mexico in 1540 and believed that the Pueblo was one of the fabled golden cities of Cibola. The two structures called Hlauuma (north house) and Hlaukwima (south house) are said to be of similar age. They are considered to be the oldest continuously inhabited communities in the USA.

Approximately 150 people still live within the Pueblo full time, but the Pueblo traditions dictate that no electricity or running water be allowed within the Pueblo walls. Thus, other families owning homes in the North or South buildings live in summer homes near their fields, and in more modern homes outside the old walls but still within Pueblo land. There are over 1900 Taos Indians living on Taos Pueblo lands.

The Pueblo is made entirely of adobe — earth mixed with water and straw, then either poured into forms or made into sun-dried bricks. The walls are frequently several feet thick. The roofs of each of the five stories are supported by large timbers — vigas — hauled down from the mountain forests. Smaller pieces of wood — pine or aspen latillas — are placed side-by-side on top of the vigas; the whole roof is covered with packed dirt. The outside surfaces of the Pueblo are continuously maintained by replastering with think layers of mud. Interior walls are carefully coated with thin washes of white earth to keep them clean and bright. The Pueblo is actually many individual homes, built side-by-side and in layers, with common walls but no connecting doorways. In earlier days there were no doors or windows and entry was gained only from the top.

The Pueblo Indians are about 90% Catholic. Catholicism is practiced along with the ancient Indian religious rites which are an important part of Taos Pueblo life. The Pueblo religion is very complex; however, there is no conflict with the Catholic church, as evidenced by the prominent presence of both church and kiva in the village. This is the St. Jerome Chapel, he is the patron saint of Taos Pueblos.

We were given a short tour of the pueblo by a young girl whose family owns a home in the pueblo, but she doesn't live there full time. Then we had time to wander the village freely and visit the numerous shops. Our favorite shop was owned by a man who makes little bear figurines out of mica flecked clay, the mica looks like glitter. Mom bought a couple of his adorable figurines.

By now it was time for lunch, so we headed to the Taos Plaza, the historic center of downtown Taos, it's full of shops and restaurants.

We were expecting it to be similar to Santa Fe's plaza or Main Street in Park City, but it was a little bit more on the touristy side, and the shops weren't as charming and we were hoping. So mom and I opted to find a nice sit down restaurant for lunch, while Dad chose to stretch his legs and walk around the town.

Mom and I had a hard time finding a restaurant that was open, we finally found the Gorge Bar and Grill but it had a 45 minute wait. So we got diet cokes at the bar while we waited.

We were both intrigued when we saw fried green beans listed in the appetizers and we just had to try them out, since we both love fried pickles and onions rings. They were kinda interesting, they were good, just not as good as fried pickles.

Then we got a large plate of loaded nachos to share for our main event.

After lunch, it was time to head back to the hotel for a relaxing afternoon at the hotel. Mom rode the bus home with the tour, while dad and I opted to walk the half mile home, we passed by some nicer looking stores on our way.