Trip to Taos

"Do we have any fun trips planned?" Dan asked Kim. The Colorado air that afternoon, although brisk, seemed boring. Thus began a seemingly random long weekend in Taos.

At first glance, Taos resembles Bisbee or Jerome, AZ with its run-down historical vibes and sidewalks packed with fanny-packed tourists ogling "I (chile pepper) Taos" sweatshirts and brushed-aluminum Kokopelli wall art. But Taos has so much more. It has, for instance, warehouses of overpriced Mexican pottery where one can purchase hand-painted dinner plates for $25. It has, for instance, coffee shops where the toothless local "fine" artists can congregate with their arty, paint-spattered overalls and share obtuse political derisions about the Bush era. It has, for instance, chile rellenos. Admittedly, the chile rellenos are spec-freakin-tacular.

"Oh, come on, Danberly!" you bemoan. "Enough with this pained sarcasm!" you assert. "Tell us what what great about Taos!" you request. OK!

Old Taos Guest House
Our first inkling that Taos was not the average little tourist town was Tim, the animated proprietor of the Old Taos Guest House. In some sort of New Mexican impromptu interpretive dance -slash- welcoming ceremony, he popped out from behind an old door and gave us the tour of his guest house. More presicely, he pointed out a few key regulations and led us to our room; allthewhile his voice sneaking into crescendo, his eyebrows a sauntering see-saw, his hands conjuring invisible treats; Dan and Kim smiling, charmed.

Tim can cook. He makes baked egg creations and muffins with just the perfect amount of crunchy walnuts and crispy outer layers. And Tim is great at pointing at maps. During one breakfast, Tim pointed at three different maps for us, explaining his favorite restaurants, tourist attractions and hot springs. Very helpful, Tim.

Earthships
A few minutes outside of town is a community of off-the-grid homes called Earthships. These Earthships are built into the ground, using mostly car tires, dirt and soda cans. The homes utilize the earth's natural sunlight, water and wind to optimum effect. One entire side of the houses is devoted to huge windows. These windows heat the home as well as grow a bountiful garden inside the home. Tubes and other complex thingies are used to treat and retain rainwater for drinking, showering and flushing; in that order.

Much to our surprise, being inside an Earthship is an experience of light and wonder. There is a lush garden with banana trees and healthy jade. The walls are dense and curvy, seemingly how all walls should be. There is no dirt or scent of patchouli anywhere. It is a clean, modern, intentional and intelligent living space — and we want to build one of our own!

Here's some more info from travelers who were lucky enough to stay in an Earthship rental: The Good Human.

Chile Rellenos
The most enchanting aspect of Taos is the New Mexican cuisine. You might argue and say the most enchanting aspect of Taos is the way that people drive as if they hooked into a morphine drip or the way all city traffic funnels into one, small dawdling traffic light, or the way that the whole town seems stuck in some nightmare about a fine artist who paints and sculpts and weaves baskets and makes pottery and then leaves tons of it everywhere, mesmerizing passersby, causing them to stumble and press their noses against window displays — some of the unlucky ones awaken days later wearing denim jackets with leather tassles sewn down from the sleeves. But we would argue it is the food. The green chile on everything truly is spectacular! Seriously. We couldn't digest fast enough. We ordered everything spicy and slathered in green and red chile. Deeeee-lish!

Hot Springs
Our instructions were to take this little private dirt road crisscrossing out to the edge of the Rio Grande Gorge, park and walk 800 feet straight down an old unmarked stagecoach road to the Rio Grand River. There, on the banks of the Rio Grand are some spectacular hot springs. We soaked for close to three hours; until we were so far beyond pruney that we were starting to tremble with either dehydration or positive vibes. Several amazing people popped in and out of the springs in our three-hour sting, so we had quite a few naked conversations with strangers. One guy was an alchemist — how often do you meet an alchemist?

When we returned to our car, Kim shouted "Oh no! They broke my window and took my stuff!" Sure enough, Kim's passenger window had been bashed in, splattering shards of glass across the seats and floor. The vandals had taken everything within reach of the passenger window — as not to open any doors and set off the alarm. Among the booty: Kim's purse, wallet, iPod and, for some reason, leather-covered Subaru manual; Dan's phone and sunglasses. Kim tried to cry but realized she wasn't really that upset.

The next hour was spent in the Sheriff's office filling out paperwork in slow motion. Then some overrated pizza at Pizza Outback, where they charge $5 per slice to leave the center of the crust raw and put the toppings on mostly raw.  Then back to our B&B where the owners said "*gasp!*", "no!" and the always comforting "We told you so!".

The next morning we duct-taped a large, flappy swatch of translucent plastic to cover the gaping window. The official weather report was basically "oh Gahd, its snowing everywhere!" We drove seven slow, blizzard-condition hours past countless accidents, over a hellacious mountain pass, over miles of winding icy roads. When we arrived home, we were half-deaf from the flapping plastic, frazzled from the white-knuckled drive and frozen from the poor insulation. But we were ALIVE! Isn't that what vacations are all about...?

Love
Dan&Kim

Mommy posted on 2009-11-30 at 7:30 am

Those who steal are evil. POOF...mommy has made them disappear from the earth! Taos is not a happy place. Love you both!

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Heruss Daragarofalo posted on 2009-11-29 at 7:16 pm

I really enjoyed the snarky sarcasm as it was very enjoyable. (Woah, I'm listening to domestic violence potential on the 2nd floor) And then I stopped reading because I have no plans to be in Taos and hearing good things is not funny. Sorry you got vandaled. Best of luck to you both and the couple downstairs who keeps yelling inside, opening door, yelling, slams door and continues yelling inside.

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Monica posted on 2009-11-28 at 3:03 pm

I miss you guys sooooo much!! Kimmy, I am always in awe of your beauty, inside and out!

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Sharri & Becky posted on 2009-11-27 at 7:26 pm

Entertainment at your expense is always so delightful. Giving Thanks, Love from Us

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