Twinkling lights strung in trees. Couples walking down the sidewalk, hand-in-hand. Jazz music wafting from the balcony, over a bar. Cheerful voices, the clink of silverware on dishes, people enjoying a meal on another balcony nearby.
Watch where you walk on the sidewalk: there are cracks in the cement, bricks, and cobblestone-like rocks forming patterns in the walk. But then, what do you expect in a town that is celebrating its 400th birthday?
The church, St. Francis of Assisi, dominates the downtown. Well-placed spotlights lend an ethereal look to the statues in the courtyard. The bells chime softly on the hour.
Small shops, tucked in large facades, offer Native American crafts, upscale clothing, art pieces and lots more. Some shops are open still, even though it is later in the evening. Others are closed but promise that they will be open again tomorrow morning at 10.
Driving into the downtown area, I was on the old Route 66. Every chain store known to mankind is represented. Gas stations abound. But what catches my eye are the motels. Adobe-facaded, flat-roofed structures straight out of the thirties and forties.
Courtyard motels, with the office in the front, and single-story, adobe rooms line the parking lot. One of them advertised, on their neon sign: “Televisions”, as if that would be a draw these days. Free WiFi is a draw, free breakfasts is a draw, but televisions? Actually, maybe fifty years ago, that would have been a draw.
Walking along the old sidewalks, there it was: the restaurant, in the shopping complex, just off the courtyard. A memory from nearly twenty years ago, it is still there.... Still decorated the same, still offering the same delicious food. And what a great name: Blue Corn.
After a long afternoon on the road, it was fun to stop and enjoy a lovely evening in a city that has seen 400 years of history....
Santa Fe, New Mexico.
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