July in Taos: The Taos Pueblo Pow Wow

We've been busy here at La Posada de Taos for the last several weeks with wonderful guests from all over the world.  A recent announcement from the Town of Taos detailed the events we can expect in July, so I'd like to fill in some details for those of you coming in the upcoming weeks starting with the Pow Wow.

Regalia from "Southern" Tribe

The Taos Pueblo Pow Wow is scheduled for July 8, 9 and 10.  Beginning that Friday night at 7 pm with the Grand Entry, Native peoples from across the Western Hemisphere will entertain us wearing the regalia of their Nations and honoring their friendships with one another that date back centuries before Europeans arrived in North America.  I've been told in the past the incredible clothes you'll see are NOT costumes -- they are regalia.

Preparing for the Grand Entry, July 2010

Unlike many other ceremonies and observances at the Taos Pueblo, the Pow Wow isn't considered a religious event.  It is a social gathering and celebration of Native peoples and cultures honoring traditions and the proud histories of the many tribes participating.

Pow Wow's are a time for old friends to reunite.

 If you attend, be prepared with hats, sunscreen and sunglasses.  Cameras are allowed, but be advised that you may not take anyone's picture without their explicit consent.  I can say without a doubt, however, that a camera is highly advised.  Be courteous, patient and observant.  Ask questions.  Meet people.  Spend time doing nothing but being a spectator and then begin thinking about the camera.  Not once were we denied the opportunity to photograph, but we also felt that it was a privilege and not a right to do so.  You should know that some folks make their living working at Pow Wows.  That means that they may charge you for permission to take their photograph.  It's their job, after all.

Be Polite, Posing for Photographs is Work!

 I encourage you to visit the link to the descriptions of various dances to be held, including the Gourd Dance, Grass Dance, Men's Fancy Dance, Northern and Southern Traditionals and the Women's Dances to be held during the festivities.   

Finally, although I've been holding a room for the weekend, if you're interested in seeing this amazing display of a rich history, heritage and tradition, you'll need to call soon.  (800) 645-4803.

What is the Taos Pueblo?

It's hard to summarize in a blog just exactly what the Taos Pueblo is, but I'm going to try.  

First, it is a World Heritage Site recognized by UNESCO as one of those places that all of us have a duty to preserve.  Take a few minutes to read the "official" description as to why Taos Pueblo is such a special place.

Second, Taos Pueblo is the only inhabited World Heritage Site in the United States.  This means that in addition to all those incredible things that make it a World Heritage Site, it is also a place that many people call home.  

Third, the people of the Taos Pueblo are nothing short of a treasure.  They have worked tirelessly over the decades of American rule to preserve their heritage while also being citizens of the United States.  Taos Indians have long been known to be the best type of friends anyone can have and their allegiance to our country in the form of the ultimate sacrifice is legendary.

Finally, the five story structures made of adobe are the oldest continuously inhabited structures in North America.   When the Spanish Conquistadors arrived 500 years ago, the buildings had already been standing for 500 years.  Yes, right here in Taos on the Pueblo are 1000 year-old homes.

I'll revisit this topic from time to time in the future. My Mom and I visited there on a beautiful early Spring day in March and fell in love with this incredible place all over again.



In the meantime, I encourage you to read my reviews on TripAdvisor.com regarding the Pueblo.  I can assure you that anyone posting a negative review is simply confused at the difference between an ancient people's ancestral home and Disney World.  

Visit their website and plan a trip to Taos.  You'll be welcome with open arms.

Only One Night in Taos? Sorry . . .

With only 6 rooms and one vacation rental, La Posada de Taos can't book 1-night stays in advance.  If we've got something open at the last minute, we can do it, but why take the chance?

Besides, one night in Taos isn't a good idea. 

There's too much to see and do.  If you're driving into Taos for a one-night stay, you're not going to get here until mid-day at the earliest.  This gives you about a half-day to visit the Pueblo and maybe do some gallery and shop-hopping.  You'll check into your B&B, go to dinner and come back for a nice restful night.  

The next morning you'll have an amazing breakfast and then what?  Check out is 11 am.  Oh, I'm sorry, you're leaving already?  Did you get to visit the Pueblo?  Did you get to the Harwood or Millicent Rogers Museums?  Did you visit the John Dunn Shops?  What about that horseback trip or the Hot Air Balloon Ride?  Did you drive the Enchanted Circle?  What did you think of the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge or the Wild Rivers Recreation Area?  Did you get to eat at Graham's Grille or El Meze or Lambert's?  Lunch at Lula's? 

I don't want to belabor the point, but Taos simply isn't the kind of place that offers much or caters to people who are in a hurry or just passing through.  Nothing personal, really.  Many of us stayed here or came here specifically to avoid moving at Mach IX with our hair on fire.  If you're ready to quietly slow down, then you're in for a treat.  If not . . .

As D.H. Lawrence said, "Time moves differently here."  If you're in a hurry, you're just not going to enjoy Taos at all.  In fact, you're probably going to think that people here are rude or indifferent. 

Innkeeper Brad Malone and his Mother, Mary Malone at Taos Pueblo

 I said in my recent review of Taos Pueblo on TripAdvisor.com, that people rushing through Taos often experience a major disconnect.  The problem is that we believe in moving at the "Speed of Taos."  It's slower and much quieter than many are used to.

A recent guest experience says it all.  While visiting the Pueblo, they allowed themselves the opportunity to find a place to quietly sit and take in the scene.   They're not sure how long they sat there, but it was at least a half hour.  Finally, they got up and visited some of the shops and met some of the residents of the Pueblo.  As they put it, "Suddenly this entire new world opened up to us.  People were friendly and genuinely interested in not only telling their story, but learning ours."


Open your heart to the possibilities of what this place offers to those who stay.  Many guests to La Posada de Taos leave with an understanding that they'll need to come back to finish what they started.

That's Taos. 

Taos Pueblo: World Heritage Site

I live in the hinterland -- a place that is far from any coastline and remote from any urban area.  It is my hope that you will find some understanding of this place in Notes from the Hinterland.  In many cases I'll keep each entry relatively short -- a quick read of less than 5 minutes each.  As I tell the story of this place, each post will try to build upon those coming before.

Starting a story of Taos means that one should go back, back, back in time to find its original inhabitants.  That means that you start with the story of the Native Americans who first called this place home.

Most people have never heard of the Taos Pueblo.  They probably don't know where Taos is and they think Pueblo is a town in Colorado.   Like so many other things about New Mexico, Taos Pueblo remains a secret to most of the world at large.  Being the only inhabited World Heritage Site in the United States hasn't raised its profile.  Being one of the oldest continually inhabited structures in the North America hasn't brought it to public attention.

Pueblo de Taos, as it is known to some, is a place you must see in your lifetime. That is the sole purpose of writing here about Taos Pueblo -- to ask that you come here and to experience it for yourself.  In particular, you should Ask your Innkeeper at La Posada de Taos about which times of year are the most special to visit the Pueblo.  Christmas at Taos Pueblo, for example, is one of the primary reasons Travel+Leisure Magazine designated Taos as one of the Best Places to Spend Christmas in both 2001 and 2009.

The official World Heritage designation of Pueblo de Taos says in part:

"Taos is the best preserved of the pueblos north of the borders defined by the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848). Located in the valley of a small tributary of the Rio Grande, Taos comprises a group of habitations and ceremonial centres (six kivas have been conserved), which are representative of a culture largely derived from the traditions of the prehistoric Anasazi Indian tribes who settled near the present borders of Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Colorado."

Archaeologists and anthropologists believe that the two main old buildings at Taos Pueblo are at least 800 years old.  The Taos people say that their buildings are much older than that.  This much we know for sure:  when the original Spanish explorers arrived at Taos soon after 1500, they found the Taos in their adobe buildings much as we see them today.

World Heritage Site Photo of Taos Pueblo

 As you can see, these structures are not teepee's, nor are they wigwams or igloos.  Constructed of adobe as only the Taos make, the structures are said to have been seven stories tall when the Spanish arrived.  The bottom floors, used for food storage, had neither windows nor doors.  The Taos employed their now-famous Pueblo Ladders to climb up to the safety of upper floors and pull their ladders up after them.  In modern times, doors and windows have been added for function.

A Pueblo-Style Ladder at La Posada de Taos

One of the ways to understand the significance of these structures is to realize that unlike so many nomadic peoples, the Taos were settled.  When the Spanish arrived about 500 years ago, the Taos had been settled here a period longer than our nation has existed.  By the time the Americans arrived in the mid-1800's the Spanish and the Taos had shared the land in this valley for almost 300 years, again a period longer than the United States has been around.   Americans,therefore, became the interlopers, the invaders and the uninvited.  Despite promises that everyone would be protected by this nation of laws, the Taos and the Spanish were circumspect at best and rebellious at worst.

Equally important to an understanding of the modern Taos Pueblo, is the role played by the Catholic Missionaries who accompanied the Spanish explorers and settlers.  As Willa Cather noted in her masterpiece "Death Comes for the Archbishop," by the time the United States annexed the New Mexico Territory, the Catholic Church had been the principal authority in the region since 1540.  The whole vast expanse stretching from Texas to California had sat ignored, isolated and uncharted until the very end of America's Westward expansion.  Even after California became a State, the New Mexico Territory remained just that -- seemingly unworthy of Statehood until 1912 (New Mexico's Centennial Celebration is gearing up this year).

Through all the centuries of repeated invasion and settlement, through all the years of rapid technological change, Taos Pueblo remained.  As Americans violently implemented all that Manifest Destiny demanded, the Taos remained in place at their ancestral home.  They were never forcibly relocated as were so many other Native Americans.  The complex history of their interaction with the European-American culture tells only a part of their story.

To many the Taos Pueblo helps form the spiritual foundation of this place we all know as Taos.  There are many who will disagree. 

In future blog entries I'll begin to describe this special place for those who want to visit; I'll try to provide context and color.   Please understand, however, that my telling of these stories will be affected by the lenses of my own life experiences and from the perspective of someone who is not from here.  Although I'll try to quote authoritative sources, my telling of the story of Taos will not necessarily be what you might hear from an official source or from a local.  Watch for future posts.