Sunday, June 18, 2006
Step One, Two, Three, FOUR
It was our last sight-seeing excursion with John and Sandy we decided to make it a biggie. We decided to try to visit four states in one day. Yep, and we did it too!
Our first stop was at the Four Corners Monument, which is in Colorado..no..it's in Utah...no wait...is it New Mexico or Arizona?? Oh yeah...it's in all of them! We drove for what seemed like hours (2 of 'em), and I think we were all a little bit surprised when we got there. I'm thinking it's going to be something huge; maybe even monolithic. (I tend to get carried away like that.)
But when we arrived we found it to be a small two lane road on the Ute Indian Reservation leading up to what, at first, appeared to be a market, with little stalls all connected in a row and circling the monument. By the way, the prices for the Native American jewelry and pottery was really reasonable compared to what they charge in any of the towns we've visited. But I digress....
To take photos of the monument, there is a scaffold that is eerily similar to the ones you see on old westerns that are used for hanging the horse thieves. But since there were no ropes in sight, I climbed up for a photo op of John and Sandy, who obliged by doing their Super Hero impersonations.
Next, it was Mark and my turn to have our photos taken, but I just could not pick a state to stand in, so I opted to try to stand on the dividing line. I just happen to think it's best not to show favoritism and to cover all my bases! Yeah, that's it...I'm not wishy-washy...really.
That done, we were in the car and off to see Mesa Verde, which is ancient cliff dwellings of the Anasazi Indians. These were incredible structures; and it's difficult to imagine people living their daily lives on the sides of a mountain. The guide there explained that, in the time of the Anasazi, the land was much greener and the Indians were farmers. They farmed the land above their dwellings and lived in the cliff dwellings as a way to escape the harsh summer heat, winter cold and high mountain winds.
Below is one of Mark's soon to be infamous panoramic views of the cliff dwellings. Notice the ladders and carved staircases? And the round structures are called kivas, which were sacred rooms used for religious ceremonies. They sure seem to have needed a lot of kivas back then.
Also, I couldn't resist adding this photo of another tourist visiting the cliff dwellings. He was such a happy, cheerful guy. And talk about style!! I've been assured that plaid "goes" with plaid, so perhaps I'm just not as style conscious as I should be. Whatever the case may be, I could not help but appreciate this gentleman's complete disregard for color coordination and ANY sytle rules ever known to man in favor of what made him happy! Go Mister!!
