Sky City

ACOMA RESERVATION/ALBUQUERQUE, NM - After getting into Albuquerque, I met up with Melissa and went out to dinner with her and her friend Deb.

Deb is crazy.

But in a good way. Like a crazy art therapist way. Or something like that. Dinner was a lot of fun and full of Deb rambling about crazy random things. Good times.

I was so hungry and thoroughly enjoyed my steak dish. Steak slathered in cheese, pico, and red chili with beans and potatoes. Just what I needed. Thus far my daily intake had consisted of white cheddar popcorn, a couple small Twix, and some water. The dinner also came with sopaipillas, so you know it had to be good.

Here's a shot of Deb and Melissa posing with our new friend.



I want to include a video I shot of Deb to really illustrate her "Deb-ness" but I suppose I should probably get her permission first.

Yesterday, Melissa and I headed out to Acoma, a reservation about an hour from Albuquerque. We wanted to go on a tour of the grounds. This place was amazing. It is the oldest continuously inhabited site in the entire U.S. People have been on this mesa since at least the 12th century. The mesa has sheer walls going up more than 300 feet and until John Wayne rolled through to shoot some movies, there was only one way up and that was up some stairs carved into the rock. Amazing.

We had to purchase a camera permit in order to take any pictures. Absolutely no video or sketching allowed. If you were found breaking the rules, your equipment would be confiscated and destroyed. Keep in mind they are a nation inside a nation, so they make their own rules. There was also a strict dress code basically around showing too much skin.

We ended up being the only two people on the morning tour, so we had Fred, our tour leader, all to ourselves. He was a very nice guy and was very warm with the people we came across on top of the mesa. Always hugging and greeting. It seems like a very close-knit community. He was also right to the point. I don't want to try to guess how many times he has led tours, but he had it down pat.

There were a couple things we couldn't take pictures of on the tour. First, there was a cemetery. Absolutely no pictures of the cemetery. There was also a church right next to the cemetery. Absolutely no pictures inside the church. However, you could take pictures outside the church, so I grabbed one of these.



This is the oldest standing church in the U.S. The inside was amazing. All this work was done with some sandstone blocks, mud, and straw. And it still stands today. It was simple but beautiful. Fred explained how the beams used for the church had to remain pure, so when they were carried from a forest 30 miles away, they weren't allowed to touch the ground. A team of 12 carried them and then passed it off to another 12 while the original 12 slept. If one was dropped or touched the ground, it was discarded and they went back for a new one. That's commitment.

There were many paintings inside the church going back 300-400 years. The altar had a definite Southwestern flair to it and reminded me of artwork from Day of the Dead. Fred explained how the Spanish attempted to destroy all remnants of the original Native religion. They destroyed their places of worship and tried to abolish the practice. So, the Acoma hid numerical symbols inside the church - repetitions of 4, 7, 12, and 21.

Fred explained that there are really only two days that the church is used: Sept. 2 and Dec. 24. He said they still integrate Catholicism into their culture, but their native religion always comes first.

Right next to the church was the oldest schoolhouse in the U.S. You can't see it very well in the picture, but you can see the railings for it right next to the church bell tower.



Which reminds me of another story he told. Apparently the Spanish forced the Acoma the trade 8 children for one of the bells in the tower. It is believed these children were taken to Mexico as slaves. They never did return. But in one of the side walls of the cemetery, there is a small hole. Fred said the hole was put there so the souls of the children could make their way back home, even if their physical body never would. It was a sad story. Fred also explained they don't use the word "buried." They believe they are "planted" again, as they came out of the earth and will always return.

The only other rule was that you couldn't take pictures of any of the people or their artwork without permission. Fred let me know early on that he didn't care if I took his picture. There were vendors around the village selling pottery and ceramic items. One woman I came across had a bear fetish for sale. I've been slightly obsessed with bears on this trip, so I bought it.



A quick story about the bears (if I haven't mentioned it already). At Timberline, the adolescent girls decided to put together a list of each staff member and what animal they would be. The list ended up being amazingly accurate. You would look at what they chose and it just made sense for each person. I was a little confused by mine though. They chose a Grizzly or Polar Bear. Now, had it been the adults, I would get it because they thought I was an asshole most of the time. But the adolescents? They liked me. So, I asked. I was quickly informed that I just had a "bear-like essence." I started looking into animal symbolism and found out that the bear fit me surprisingly well - in ways the residents would never know. Particularly in regards to the urge to hibernate every winter and what that translates into as a human. Strange. So, the small obsession began. I really want to see a bear in person on this trip. In the wild. At the Grand Canyon, I looked at some books available in a gift store while I waited for my sandwich I had ordered to be made. One of the first books I saw was about Native American astrology. Guess which animal is my sign.

The bear.

And it was crazy accurate. Curiouser and curiouser.

So, I bought the bear fetish. I was told it stands for power and strength. I like that.

We checked out the rest of the village. I think it's great that some people still live this simply. Not that many do though. Most of the Acoma people choose to live in the village off the mesa. On the mesa there is no electricity, no gas, and no running water. Homes are heated with wood burning stoves. It is a simply life and the people seem very happy (although a few do have gas powered generators that run TVs... you can never get away from it I guess). The water is hauled up the mountain side every few days. Here's a shot of an oven.



Fred showed us the only tree on top of the mesa. It is a cottonwood and he referred to it as the "Acoma National Forest." Haha. Funny guy.



Fred showed us the places of worship. The white ladders you see lead to the rooftops and then smaller ladders lead down through a hole in the roof. I can't recall the names of the structures but they were originally round. The Spanish destroyed them all and the Acoma resorted to rebuilding them square so they would blend in with the houses and the religion could continue to be practiced in secret.



The small town square is the site of community celebrations. Around Christmas time, there is a four day celebration. I'd love to be there for that. Unfortunately, it isn't going to fit in the schedule this year for me.



Here's a shot of the desert from on top of the mesa. The other mesa you can see in the distance is "The Enchanted Mesa." It was the original settling place of the Acoma people, but during an intense storm, lightning struck the only path down the mountain. There was a group of people who were stranded up there. Several jumped off the side so they didn't have to suffer with starving to death. Since then, the mesa has been off-limits. No one is allowed up. A small group of archaeologists was allowed up briefly just to collect some information so the Acoma could have all the facts. It is now considered sacred ground.



I feel as though this entry is getting a little long, so let me just show some pictures to wrap it up. The first set shows the original carved staircase that leads down the mountain. Until the roadway was built, the only way water got up the mountain was if it was carried in jugs on heads. I had a hard enough time maneuvering it while holding a camera.











Here's a shot of the mesa from the ground.



And some shots around the grounds while we walked back to the visitor center.





This is "Lonesome Rock." not sure why they call it "lonesome" because, as Fred pointed out, it looks a little bit like two people kissing (although not so much from this angle).



I dubbed this a "New World Campfire." These rocks were set in a circle around this electrical box like you would see around a campfire somewhere.



And one last shot of the valley. Sky City is to the left.



I took a panoramic shot of the entire valley, but I haven't loaded the program yet to stitch the shots together. Maybe later when I'm a little more motivated.