so we parked at the Old Town Center and got out and walked.
There's a sign at the corner of the parking area that gives a little bit of a time line for the area. It says that the Villa of 'Alburquerque' was founded in 1706 by the governor of the Spanish province of New Mexico. The extra 'r' got dropped somewhere in the mid-1800s.
The sign also says that there was a Civil War skirmish here in 1862, and that for a little over a month the Confederate flag flew here. Somewhere I missed that in school.
There's beautiful architecture here.
This is the first street we saw. The low buildings on the left side of the street look like they were barracks or something. I really don't know, though, because we didn't have time to stop and get the history of the buildings.
They'd been there long enough for the trees to grow up through the roofs, though.
There are lovely courtyards in the Spanish tradition.
This is the right side of the street. I love the brick walks.
There is an old archway through the wall.
None of the archways is very high. Dean barely fits.
A elegantly simple pergola covers part of the walkway.
This is the view around the corner. More well-preserved old architecture.
And this is across the corner. It looks like those doors that sit diagonally on corner buildings started early out here.
There are a few residences in these old buildings, but most of the places are filled with shops large and small. I like the old slanted entrance to this shop, named the Covered Wagon. The merchandise spills out onto the sidewalk.
Cigar store Indians are valuable items everywhere in the country. That's obviously true here as well. This guy is chained to the post to keep him from walking away.
This is a distance shot of the building. The peppers hanging from the upstairs add a colorful touch.
There was once a sizable tree on this sidewalk out front. The stump is still here. Hmmmm.
This is a charming little alley that runs off the street.
This is the far end of the street. Very different style.
This is the square that's across the street. (The block we've been looking at forms the south side of the block.) The gazebo is relatively new.
This is one of the canons on the square. It is a replica of one that was hidden here by the Confederate forces during the Civil War.
This plaque identifies the gun as a 12-pound Mountain Howitzer, made in 1835 in Boston. There were 8 of the gun barrels hidden here during the war. Two of the actual barrels were on display in the square for many years, but because of their high value, they were replaced with replicas. The original barrels are in the Albuquerque Museum of Art and History, very near where they were hidden.
This is the end of the south side of the square. More peppers hanging up there on the second floor.
More of the east side of the square. We didn't go down the alley to the shops in the back, but it looked interesting. Maybe on the next trip......
East side, again. I'm not sure what the luminaries are about, but they looked very incongruous.
Very different architecture again on this block.
There are vigas holding up the roof of this building. And those posts are just trees that have been stripped. Rustic, for sure.
I don't know why, but there's a wagon on top of this building. Odd.
The gutter system to drain water from the roof is wonderful.
I love this little place.
This is the marvelous church that makes up the north side of the square.
It's the San Felipe de Neri Church. The current building was finished in 1793.
This is the entrance to the sanctuary.
The steeples.
The courtyard.
This is the combination gift shop and book store.
There are some lovely plantings in the courtyard.
This bed is beside the sanctuary.
According to this sign, the church was founded in 1706. The original building was completed in 1719. It stood until 1792, when it collapsed after a heavy rain. It was replaced with the current building in 1793.
This is the annex building.
This is the back of the church. That's a wing off the annex. See the spot on the right side of the tree that looks like a big branch came off? I think it was a fork, and one whole side came off. One way or the other, there's a surprise inside.
Isn't that wonderful?
Here it is closer.
And here are some pictures of the inside of the sanctuary:
It's beautiful. Absolutely beautiful.
This is the block of buildings to the north of the church.
These are lower. I think that building at the end of the street is the Museum of Art and History, but I'm not sure.
I love this little place. The door is on an angle. And the gate to the left side is perfect.
This building is fabulous. The color makes it look like it would be an oasis of cool in this western heat. And note that the peppers are hanging on the first floor this time.
And this is the western side of the square. Doesn't this building look rustic?
There are a couple of large plazas that make up most of this side of the square. This is one.
And here's the other. This one looks a bit younger than the other buildings in town.
There was a band playing at the back of this plaza. Dean says they were good. (I didn't get to hear them.) Fun stuff.
There was much, much more to be seen in Old Town, but we were out of time. I really want to visit again. I'm sure we could spent a couple of days here, taking pictures and learning about the history of old Albuquerque. I hope you've enjoyed the tour with us.
We'll finish New Mexico in the next post. See you there.
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