Santa Fe Local Customs

We were traveling with friends, one of whom ordered a bottle of Sol Beer when we stopped for lunch at the Eating House restaurant in Pajoaque.

SOL BEER is an import from Mexico and is light and bubbly, like champagne. The first barrel, produced by the Cuauhtemoc Brewing Company in the late 1890's, won first prize at the Chicago and Paris World Fairs.

The Moctezuma Brewing Company of Monterrey acquired the original company in 1985 and now has breweries in Tecate, Navojoa, Guadalajara, Toluca and Orizaba, Mexico. I've read that SOL is also available in Texas.

Both the brewery and beer garden can be toured--visitors receive a free glass of draft beer.

I had to look twice to realize I was watching two small tractors with shovel attachments clear the streets of Santa Fe after a fairly decent snowfall.

Coming from the Northeast where there are BIG snowplows and cinder trucks, these seem too small to do the job. But, they must accomplish what they set out to do because the roads were perfectly passable after an afternoon and evening of snow.

Please click to see the entire picture.

Never having had the pleasure of tasting Prickly Pear Lemonade before, I had no idea it was so good! We experienced this taste sensation at Rancho de Chimayo.

Our delicious drink was made from the Prickly Pear cactus, which comes from the genus 'Opuntia'. The dictionary describes it as having "flattened, usually spiny stem joints, yellow, orange or reddish flowers with ovoid, often edible fruit."

I would highly recommend trying this unique lemonade--you might also want to taste some prickly pear jelly if you happen upon it on your travels through the southwest.

Rancho de Chimayo served up our drink with a slice of orange with a pretty paper flower stirrer.

The Burning of Zozobra is not some rite that's been practiced for centuries, it's a fairly modern creation by a very imaginative artist named Will Shuster.

Will was one of the 'Cinco de Pintores' who settled along Canyon Road in the l920's. He got the idea to celebrate Autumn and the end of the tourist season. The bonfire has evolved into quite a spectacle and coincides with opera season and Fiesta de Santa Fe.

This painting represents the burning of Zozobra, which has become an important part of the Fall social scene here in Santa Fe.

I had to travel to New Mexico to sample my first sopaipilla! Actually, I understand that I could have found these in Texas, but I've never seen them.

Sopaipillas are flaky puffs of fried dough that can be used to sop juices off your plate or as a dessert drizzled with honey or cinnamon and sugar.

That first bite was telling...I knew I would have to seek these little treasures out wherever they would be. My sopaipilla was with honey, but anyway they come I'm willing and anxious to try them again.

When you're traveling to the southwest, search for these tasty treats!

4 more images

The winter holidays in Santa Fe represent so much of the culture of the region. Yes, there are traditional Christmas lights with lots of colors, but there are other lights more unique to the region. If you know of luminarias, you may think of them as those lunch bags that glow .... technically you would be correct as that is what the name has come to mean. In Santa Fe, those same little lights are called farolitos. Santa Fe is unique in that they consider the bonfires luminarias (which is historically correct)... During the holiday season you can see them all!

On Christmas eve in particular ...... Santa Fe closes Canyon Road to vehicles, the art galleries and shops stay open late, and the folks of the city different and surrounding areas come out to play! You'll find so called normal folks, folks in costumes, pets in costumes, carolers, hot chocolate stands, and lights galore! It's simply magical ......

On the 7th of September every year is the fiestas. If you want to see locals and the true Santa Fe Culture check out this event. It has been tradition for decades and the town is probably at its hieght for excitment. The locals will be out, the bars will be crazy and the people will be out of control. If you want to see true Santa Fe come for the 3 days of fiestas.

1 more image

Chiles can be bought everywhere throughout Santa Fe for use in cooking or for decorative use. Santa Feans order either red or green chile. Red chile is dried; green chile is fresh. The red chile reputedly has more "fire," but I personally prefer the green. If you can't make up your mind, order your entree "Chrismas" style, with BOTH red & green chile!