New Mexico

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Introduction

Santa Fe, New Mexico

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New Mexico is one of the more fascinating states in the country. It is one of the few places is in the United States with a long colonial history. This mixture of cultures and natural beauty is what draw most travelers to New Mexico. Today there is also thriving art scene in Santa Fe and Taos, which draw artists from around the world. Along with the art scene is a hippy culture that has created interesting communes and even the 100% off the net work architecture style of Earth Ships. Although if looking for the old New Mexico it is not very hard to find, just step a little off the main tourist avenues and inhale the centuries old stories.

Brief History

Chaco Canyon, New Mexico

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The area was first settled by the Clovis culture people during the last ice age. As the Clovis culture began to die the Pueblo Indian culture was born. Starting around 900 AD the Pueblo culture flourished in New Mexico although it went through many different phases. The Pueblo people are a sedentary farming society that live in adobe homes with similar architecture. Don't be fooled, the different Pueblos have very different cultures with some languages being as different as Chinese compared to Spanish. Evidence of their great culture can be experienced at the ruins of Chaco Canyon or Aztec Ruins National Monument or the current day Pueblos of Taos or Acoma.

In 1540 Coronado, a Spanish Conquistador, organized an expedition to explore the area for the mystical Seven Golden Cities of Cibola. What he found were the Pueblo cities. In 1598 Juan de Onate returned and founded the Province of New Mexico. The plan was to turn the different Pueblo tribes into surf like state with Spanish conquistadors ruling them. The harsh treatment of the conquistadors was only reenforced by the brutal tactics of the missionaries. This eventually reached a boiling point when in 1680 all the Pueblos united and lead the successful Pueblo Revolt, which pushed out or killed all the Spanish in New Mexico. An interesting result of the Pueblo Revolt was that many horses were released and went feral on the plains, which were later recaptured by plains and west coast tribes therefore spreading horses across North America.

The Spanish returned 12 years later in 1692, this time lead by Diego de Vargas. The truce among the Pueblos did not last long and de Vargas returned order to the area. Although brutal at times he stopped the missionaries and set up clear boundaries between Spanish and Native areas. A key difference was before the Pueblo Revolt the Spanish moved into the Pueblos and tried to rule directly from there in many cases. De Vargas would establish a Spanish town close to the Pueblo, at the same time respecting their distance. Also at the same time the Navajos, Apaches and Comanches became more aggressive making it that the Pueblo tribes and the Spanish allied themselves for safety.

Over the next 150 years the area became very isolated and was considered a backwater of the Spanish Empire. With the Spanish economy in decline the settlements along the Rio Grande were left to fend for themselves with little Spanish assistance. When the Mexican War of Independence ended in 1821 New Mexico was given to Mexico. This did little to help the area as even less resources were given to it.

After the Mexican-American War, from 1846 to 1848, the United States took New Mexico and pretty much ignored it until after the civil war. After the civil the United States committed great resources in their own words "to solve the Indian problem." This lead to most tribes being settled on reservations by treaty or by force. During the 20th century New Mexico started to change and was made into a state in 1912. More anglo settlers have moved in and tourism has become a large part of the economy. The last major historic event that took place in New Mexico was the site of the first atomic bomb test in 1945.

Geography

New Mexico

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Cities

• Alamogordo
• Albuquerque, the state's largest city.
• Carlsbad
• Clovis
• Farmington
• Hobbs
• Las Cruces
• Rio Rancho
• Roswell
• Santa Fe, the state capital.
• Taos, is an artist town with an amazing traditional Spanish town-square and Native American Pueblo outside the city.

Sights and Activities

• Carlsbad Caverns National Park.
• Bisti Badlands.
• International UFO Museum.
• White Sands National Monument.
• Gila Cliff Dwelling National Monument.
• Bandero Volcano and Ice Cave.
• El Moro National Monument.
• Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary.
• Choco Canyon National Historical Park - is a stunning ruined city in the desert and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Events and Festivals

Ballooning

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Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is a nine day event held every October and is the largest hot-air balloon festival in the world. Over 700 balloonists participate and the event draws approximately 100,000 spectators. It is a truly spectacular sight to see the sky filled with hundreds of brightly colored balloons of different shapes and sizes. The Fiesta includes day and evening activities.

Weather

Getting There

By Plane

Albuquerque International Airport is the main gateway. Southwest Airlines offers most flights, including to/from Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Oakland, Orlando, Phoenix, St. Louis, Portland, Salt Lake City, San Diego, Seattle and Tucson.
Several other airlines serve San Francisco, Washington D.C., Denver, Cleveland, Atlanta, Minneapolis-Saint Paul and (the only international flight) Chihuahua in Mexico.

By Train

A number of trains stop en route between the central states and California in New Mexico. The trains are operated by Amtrak and include:

• The The Southwest Chief between Chicago and Los Angeles, stopping in Albuquerque and a number of other places.
• The Sunset Limited between New Orleans and Los Angeles. The train only stops in Deming and Lordsburg in the extreme southwest of New Mexico.
• The Texas Eagle travelling between Chicago and Los Angeles. The train operates daily between Chicago and San Antonio, Texas, but only three times a week continues from San Antonio to Los Angeles, stopping in Deming and Lordsburg as well.

By Car

By Bus

Greyhound has bus services throughout the country.

By Boat

Getting Around

By Plane

By Train

By Car

By Bus

By Boat

Eat

Drink

Sleep