A day in Santa Fe

Tonight my parents watched Penny while Kevin and I went to Santa Fe for the evening. Of course we spent much of our time talking about her, but it was really nice to have a few hours to ourselves. Penny wouldn't have been patient enough to enjoy it.

We walked around the Plaza, which is the touristy, artsy center of old Santa Fe. I love the old buildings, tiny streets, fancy shops, and of course, the people watching: women in flowy skirts and sun hats, one guy with long hair and carrying a parrot (?), a French woman in a red-and-white horizontal striped shirt carrying a cigarette vertically in her knuckles and emphatically agreeing with her friend: "Oui, oui, oui!" Is there any wonder why we stereotype the French?

We were aimlessly window shopping, which is a great way to enjoy a city like Santa Fe. We tootled into a Persian rug shop, where we got talking to the proprietor. We talked to him about the history of the Turkish people, who span from Turkey through Central Asia all the way into China. He told us about the history of the great Islamic empires through the ages, about the Mongols and their 4 empires, about the Persians and Turks, and of course, about his rugs. Did you know that Istanbul really means Islam-pul. They changed the name after taking it over from Constantine's Christians?

Even though we're not in the market for Persian rugs (heck, we're not even in the market for Ikea rugs!), we had fun asking him questions and hearing his stories about the antique rugs from various parts of the world, their different knotting techniques, and enjoying the quiet atmosphere of Mohammed's rug shop.

Next door, there was the Nambe shop, which is really expensive, artistic, and beautiful bowls, vases, and tableware. It's made here in Northern New Mexico, and it made me happy to see people leaving the store with big shopping bags full of Nambe ware. We got one piece for our wedding (it was a combined gift from a few families in our ward), and my dad got a tiny piece from the Lab after working there for 20 years. I may or may not have used it at Thanksgiving that year to serve pickles with a metal fork. It may or may not be a little bit ruined from it. Sorry again.

Across the street was an art fair, and we wandered in there to admire some photographs in the first booth. Man, they were gorgeous! They were pictures of New Mexico in all its colorful, textured, rich beauty. The artist's name was Amadeus Leitner, and when he came over to chat with us, I asked him if he knew a Franz Leitner.

"I might," he said. Then he said nothing else but kind of smirked.

"Are you related to him or something?" I asked. I know Franz had a pretty big family.

The smirk broke into a smile. "That's me!"

Huh? I just stared, and I know I was squinting and trying to place his face. I know what he looked like 10 years ago, and it made me feel kind of old to meet a classmate and not even recognize him.

"I've kind of grown into myself," he said.

Ahhh, haven't we all.

We got his card and website, and honestly, we're thinking of buying one before we leave for overseas-- a little bit of New Mexico to bring with us. They're beautiful! Check out his website.

The only thing that could top of an already great evening out would be a great meal, so we headed to Tomasita's for chile rellenos and sopapillas.

Full and happy, we drove back home, where Penny burst into tears at the sight of us.