Santa Fe Selection Travel Guide

According to the calendar, October 31st through November 2nd sees a convergence of cultures in the Halloween and Día de Los Muertos celebrations. Over time, as more and more cultures have adopted variants of these two festivals, a few distinctions about their origins and meanings have become a little blurred.

The Mexican El Día de los Muertos celebrations are said to trace back to the Aztecs as many as 3,000 years ago. From October 31^st through November 2^nd, the dearly departed are welcomed back for a visit to the hearts, minds and homes of the living. Death is considered a welcome guest during such celebrations. Often depicted by the skeleton La Catrina, death reminds us, with her toothy grin, to enjoy life while we can, seize the moment, and honor our ancestors that connect us to our cultural roots. Many costumes today are in representation of La Catrina, with the ornate death mask make-up.

A traditional altar or ofrendas is created in the home, and decorated with those essentials that help the dead on their journey between worlds. It’s a time of celebration – a time for joyful memories of the departed and how they touched our lives. Sharing stories with those who knew them and those who didn’t, makes their presence more strongly felt.

I recently visited a traditional altar in Casa Chimayo Restaurante. It honors owner Roberto Timoteo Cordova’s grandparents, Timoteo and Sophia. In the early 1930s, they built the adobe house that the restaurant occupies now.

Roberto’s good friend Minerva created the altar according to the authentic Mexican traditions she learned as a child from her mother.

“Marigolds are the flowers used most,” she said. “They have a distinct, almost sour odor that is meant to catch the soul’s attention, and their brilliant colors are the lights that guide the dead to the altars that honor them. Salt is considered the essence of life, in Mexico, and is intended to rejuvenate them. Water is to quench their thirst after the long journey. And often a dish of the person’s favorite food is placed out for them on the actual day. The sugar skulls and ornately decorative make-up and costumes are a way of poking fun at the Grim Reaper. In a way, they say that death has no power over the bonds that connect us to those who are gone. It is a celebration of the lives of those who have passed on, and an appreciation for life by those who are still here.”

Minerva remembers the first time she attended a traditional Mexican Día de Los Muertos. “I was very, very young, maybe only four or five years old. My mother took me to Juarez to meet up with our relatives and visit the gravesites of our ancestors. It was a little scary for me at first, with all the skeleton imagery, but it actually became so amazing, so beautiful.

All the graves in the cemetery were beautifully decorated and there were so many people there. It was a vibrant place. At night, everyone lit candles and small bonfires, told stories, laughed, and played music. It was such a happy time. The celebration is an odd juxtaposition of happiness and sadness. But that first experience made a big, lasting impression on me.”

For centuries, and despite its spread across the globe into many diverse cultures, Día de los Muertos has maintained its traditional meaning.

The origins of Halloween date back 2000 years to the ancient Celtic New Year’s harvest festival called Samhain (pronounced sow-in). November 1st marked the end of summer and the start of cold, short winter days. It was a time to harvest and prepare for adverse conditions. Superstition and fear were prevalent in the themes of the festivals.

To honor and appease the Celtic gods, they built sacred bonfires and gathered to burn sacrificial crops and animals. They wore costumes of animal heads, skins and skulls. It was a time for divination and attempts at predicting the future. It was also a time to appease and honor the gods, to ensure spring’s return as they felt the onset of the harsh winter season. The Celts believed that the eve of November 1^st was when the veils between the living and dead were weaker, and ghosts returned to earth to wreak havoc by damaging crops and playing tricks.

Though factual records are scarce it is said offerings of food and wine were placed outside homes in an effort to distract the ghosts and prevent them from entering the house. It is also said that people didn’t go out after dark for fear the ghosts would attack them. To be safe, those who did venture outside wore ghastly masks in the hopes the ghosts wouldn’t notice the living were among them.

Over the centuries, many influences have brought variants to the original Druid tradition. In the first century A.D., the Romans invaded Britain, bringing their seasonal harvest tradition of worshipping Pomona, the goddess of fruit and vegetables with them.  In the 8th century A.D., the Roman Catholic church declared November 1st the day to honor their saints. It was originally called All-hallows, or All-hallowmas, and later the church chose November 2nd as All Soul’s Day, to honor all dead. Over time, October 31st became the Celtic Samhain or harvest festival, and was known as All-hallows Eve, All Hallows E’en (short for ‘evening’) and subsequently Halloween.

In early America, colonial New England was the first area to celebrate Halloween. As more diverse ethnic groups arrived and people interacted with Native American harvest traditions, Halloween began to emerge as its own American identity.

It became a time of community, dancing, singing, telling fortunes and stories of the dead, ghosts and playing pranks. Even by the mid-1800s, the annual festival was not yet nationwide. A big shift happened when an influx of Irish immigrants fleeing the perils of the 1846 potato famine brought their Celtic influences with them.

It was then that Americans began adopting the tradition of dressing up in ghoulish costumes and knocking on neighbors’ doors asking for food or money, and “trick-or-treating” became common practice.  By 1900, Halloween was more about community gatherings for all ages that included games, seasonal foods and festivities. Costume themes expanded beyond the gory ghosts and ghouls to include everything from movie stars to fairytale and comic book characters. After these changes, the religious and superstitious elements took a back seat.

So, whatever you’re up to this fall weekend, remember to enjoy yourself!! Here are a few of the fun events going on around Santa Fe to help you celebrate.

Oct 31st – Canyon Road Trick or Treating 4pm – 6pm. Cruise the galleries of historic Canyon Road. Kids in costumes get free treats at participating locales. Look for the Jack-O-Lanterns.

Oct 31^st – Monster’s Ball at El Farol Restaurant and Cantina: Have a blast with live music from Girl’s Night Out Band, and costume prizes. $5 cover 8:30pm – 11:30pm

Oct 31^st – Halloween BASH at The Cowgirl: Live music with Chango, Santa Fe’s favorite dance-band, 8:30pm – Midnight. Lots of fun! $5 cover.

Nov 1st – Museum of International Folk Art: Día de los Muertos 5pm -7pm. Create a community ofrenda (shrine or altar). Bring a picture or memento you do not need back to add your loved one to the altar. Mariachi music and refreshments. FREE event for all ages.

Nov 2^nd – Museum of International Folk Art: Día de los Muertos 1pm – 4pm. Decorate sugar skulls, make memory boxes/muertos nichos, enjoy live music and Aztec dance and sample pan de muerto. Museum Admission. NM residents FREE every Sunday.

Here’s wishing you a safe and festive Día de Los Muertos, Halloween, All Saints Day from Santa Fe!!

Thank you for reading my blog article. If you’d like to receive my posts via email, please send your request to [email protected].

Indian Detours were the idea of the legendary Fred Harvey Company, renowned in part for their chain of ‘eating houses’ hosted by Harvey Girls along the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad between 1876 and 1968. In response to economic hardships of the early 1900s, the Harvey Company developed a unique collaboration with the Native American pueblos throughout the Southwest that permanently changed the traveler’s experience.

Initially, Harvey’s famous eating houses helped boost rail travel in the late 1800s. His inspiration came from working as a mobile mail clerk on the railroad during the civil war, enduring bad food and service. In 1876, Harvey began his first lunchroom in the AT&SF train depot in Topeka, Kansas. Harvey’s trained staff provided good, wholesome dishes, and polite, professional service to passengers, earning him the name “Civilizer of the West.”

By 1891, the booming business had expanded to 15 Harvey House restaurants. At the time of his death in 1901, the Fred Harvey empire had spread to 12 states, with 45 restaurants and 20 dining cars. Harvey was 65 years old when he died from cancer. His son Ford took over.

In 1902, train travel and Southwest tourism was waning.  To help rejuvenate enthusiasm, the Harvey Company created an “Indian Department”, which commissioned artists, photographers and ethnographers to depict the Southwest’s unique “Indian” lifestyle and culture. Images portraying the “romance and mystique of the Southwest” appeared on brochures, pamphlets, menus and postcards.

During this time, they built the first Harvey Indian Building and Museum in Albuquerque at the El Alvarado Hotel Harvey House (neither of which exist today).

The Indian Building exhibited Native American arts, crafts, cultures and people. During a one-to-two-hour respite, travelers were invited to wander through the extensive displays of art, and “live exhibits” that included Native Americans from many tribes around New Mexico – Navajo, Isleta, San Ildefonso and Santa Clara to name a few. Indians would be in traditional dress and often situated working on arts and crafts that were available for sale, such as pottery, weavings, and beading.

INDIAN DETOURS

In 1925, up against the slump of business caused by the increasing popularity of automobile, and airplane travel, the Harvey Company began developing the idea of “Indian Detours” at their Southwest hotel locations, from the Grand Canyon to Santa Fe. The specialized tours by car were to divert passengers from the train for 1 to 3 days and drive them through the “wilderness panoramas” of Northern New Mexico to Indian ruin sites, and living pueblos.  Cars were bought, and drivers and couriers were educated by field trips and up to four months of in-depth study on the area. In May, 1926, the Indian Detours officially began.

The fleet of “Harveycars” included Packards, Franklins, Cadillacs and White Motor Co. Buses. They whisked “detourists” or “dudes” (as they became known) away into the heart of the rugged New Mexico terrain in style. Harvey Drivers were always men, wearing a western, cowboy-style outfit. The tricky effects of New Mexico’s steep dirt roads on those big, beautiful cars called for each driver to have at least four years experience as a mechanic. Cars were inspected regularly, cleaned thoroughly after every tour, and replaced every other year.

The success of the Harvey Girls in the dining rooms and hotels across the country inspired the continuation of hiring only women for the role of tour guides or “couriers.” Harvey Couriers were dressed in “Navajo-style” costumes, which included velveteen skirts, concha belts, and squash blossom necklaces.

By the 1930s, a one-day tour cost $14 per person, two days was $30, and three days was about $40 (ahh! The good ol’ days). Keep in mind, $14 dollars was equal to about $190 today, and $40 would be about $550 now. These rates didn’t include meals, but did include the hotel stay and any fees that were required to enter the pueblos. And a tip for packing your suitcase was:

Tours included stops at the pueblos such as San Ildefonso, Santa Clara, and Taos. The three-day detour was the “most comprehensive.” Guests were driven from Santa Fe to Frijoles Canyon, Puye Cliffs, Taos and back. They often included a drive through the Spanish land grant villages on the road now known as The Scenic High Road to Taos, with a stop in Truchas. Travelers would “stroll about” the various ruin sites and pueblos and often bought Native art as souvenirs.

Sometimes there was a partial dance performed in authentic ceremonial dress. The full ceremonies were not then open to outsiders.

The Harvey Indian Detours were the most successful tours being offered at the time. And telling of the times, the interaction between detourists and pueblo people was limited. The experience was like being a museum patron observing live exhibits, with Harvey brochures and couriers providing detailed information, as seen from the Harvey perspective. A Harvey brochure sets a scene of an ancient culture caught in time as the fancy car zooms by on the way to Puye Cliffs: On the broad highway modernity flashes past horse-back Indians and tiny burros packing firewood to Santa Fe just as they did three centuries ago…Everywhere on the open upland above are evidences of the Forgotten People.

The Great Depression of the 1930s brought fewer and fewer travelers to the area. After WWII, many roads in New Mexico were improved and travelers preferred to drive their own vehicles.

By the late 1930s, Harvey Indian Detours were verging on obsolete, but not without having radically changed tourism in the Southwest. The tours had brought outsider awareness to the distinct, complex societies of the agrarian, pueblo-dwelling Indians of the area. With this awareness came an appreciation for the unique art and traditions that remain a source of income for Native artists, and are valued by travelers, collectors, ethnographers, artists and photographers to this day.

Attempts were made to revive the Indian Detours in the late 1940s, and early 50s, but by then, times were very different and they dwindled. Fred Harvey’s sons and grandsons ran the business until 1968 when it was sold to a hospitality business based in Hawaii.

The original Harvey Indian Detours sign still hangs in the La Fonda lobby by the Concierge desk.

For more memorabilia and history on the Fred Harvey Company in Santa Fe, visit the New Mexico History Museum’s long term exhibit: Telling New Mexico: Stories from Then and Now.

DETOURS TODAY

With nineteen pueblos in New Mexico, eight in the northern territory, there are numerous villages to visit. Today, travelers prefer to gain an insider perspective of other cultures and make more meaningful connections — I know I do. But it can still be difficult, unless you connect with someone they know.

Thanks to Robbie O’Neill’s Cultural Treasures Tours and her personal connections at many northern pueblos, I recently had the pleasure of meeting Andrew Garcia, an important elder at the Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo just north of Santa Fe. He is a Storyteller and educator, teaching of his people’s ancient customs, dances and songs. Since 1974, he has travelled the world with his dance troupe, Tewa Dancers From The North. “We’ve performed in India, Singapore, Columbia, Brazil, Canada, Spain, Mexico and all over the U.S. It’s important to share cultures.” Andy says.  “We performed the Buffalo and Eagle Dances for a quarter of a million people in the Washington Monument Mall at President Bill Clinton’s Inauguration.”

In his pueblo home, Andy showed us some of the ceremonial costumes, many of which he and his family have made. Andy has been pivotal in keeping the knowledge of his pueblo’s ancient dances and songs alive, sharing with other cultures, and ensuring it is passed down through further generations.

One of the many dances at the Ohkay Owingeh pueblo is the Annual Feast Day on June 24^th. They celebrate with the Buffalo and Comanche Dances. An interesting insight I learned from Andy is that the Comanche Dances and songs were created by the Pueblo people, probably around the mid-1800s (when more Comanche were in the area, and raids were a regular occurrence.) “It was a sign of respect for them,” explains Andy. “Not all Comanches were bad. Some were, but some were peaceful. It depended on the tribe. When they went to war or performed ceremonies, their outfits, body paint and regalia were very impressive. The Comanche Dance is a way to show admiration for their culture’.”

Part of the Cultural Treasures tour included a home-cooked lunch at another friend’s home, this time at the San Ildefonso Pueblo. The traditional meal included beans, squash and Indian Tea made from plants picked from the land. To learn more about Cultural Treasures Tours, go to: http://santafeselection.com/tours/cultural-treasures  You can also call (505) 231-0855, or email: [email protected].

Throughout the year, many pueblos are open to visitors, except on certain holidays. There are Ceremonials and Feast Days that visitors are welcome to watch, but not always allowed to photograph (see here for a complete calendar). The Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo does welcome visitors to photograph and video most of their dances, once you’ve paid a nominal fee for a permit. (See below for June 24th Annual Feast Day Info.)

Researching this article, I saw so many images of the area’s ruins and sites taken in the 1920s. It was comforting to see that many places have changed little since then. One of the great things about New Mexico is that there are still many areas that feel untouched by “modernity” today. Being an incurable romantic with a nostalgia for the “good ol’ days,” I’m in the right place.

MORE GREAT DETOURS

Among their many custom tour options, Sue and Georges of Santa Fe Mountain Adventures offer fun trips to Puye Cliffs, Frijoles Canyon, Bandelier, and Taos Pueblo.  They also have a terrific Pinzgauer off-road vehicle that makes light work of any rugged terrain and is a lot of fun. Call (505) 988-4000) and mention Santa Fe Selection when you call.

June 24^th Ohkay Owingeh Annual Feast Day : The dancers will perform in the Pueblo’s plaza from around 10.30 a.m till around 5.30 or 6 p.m. It’s free to the public. There’s only a nominal fee, usually around $10 – $20 if you want to photograph or video. You can find an official, who’ll be in the pueblo’s plaza area, and ask them for a permit. (Click here for map to San Juan/Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo north of Santa Fe approximately 25 miles.)

For more tour options go to: SantaFeSelection.com

Thank you for reading my blog article. If you’d like to receive my posts via email, please send your request to [email protected].

Links: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Harvey_(entrepreneur)

http://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/fred-harvey/15507

http://mactavers.hubpages.com/hub/The-Fred-Harvey-Company-and-the-Southwestern-Indian-Detours-1926-1940s