Taos, NM - Habitat for Humanity (Post 2)

With the toll of the church bells and Cara's several alarms, day two in Taos began. To our surprise we were welcomed with a light snow fall and a bit of mountain chill in the air. One by one we all rolled out of bed like sloths and got dressed so we could start our amazing journey through Taos. After a delicious breakfast of cereal, bagels, and what not, we packed our lunches and were off to the Rio Grande River Gorge. We finally arrived at the river to discover a view that could only be described as breathtaking. We all stood in awe. Papa Nick gathered all of us together for several photo ops (including a picture of all of us taking bridge selfies). Next on our journey we were off to the EARTHSHIPS! Despite how they may sound, they are actually not space ships limited to Earth's atmosphere, but instead are self sustainable houses! The Earthships are composed of recycled materials including: old tires, bottles, and cans. Just in case you were curious, if you own an Earthship your toilet water can be used over four times! YAY for innovative thinking! The Earthships were awesome, the hippies were cool, and their vans... even cooler.





All of us college kids worked up a pretty big appetite taking pics and heading to space, so we decided it was about time to head back to the main plaza of Taos to eat our sack lunches. While we ate we were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of a ceremonial native tribal dance (a.k.a. what we call the sun dance because out of nowhere the clouds opened and the sun reigned down.) It was like winning the Cotton Bowl all over again. After our yummy PB and J's, turkey, and ham sandwiches we were ready to shop till we drop. Our personal favorite local shop, Cowboys and Indians, displayed an array of knick knacks and patty whacks which we all thoroughly enjoyed. After shopping it was time to load up and head for the hills! After Michaela's near breakdown and several winding roads later we made it to Bandelier National Monument, and there, we began our trek. Some of us conquered fears (heights) while others demonstrated natural ladder climbing ability (or in Emmitt's case pro ladder status *ALWAYS CLIMB DOWN FACING THE MOUNTAIN*). The park had many caverns in the mountainside which were once home to the Natives thousands of years ago. We were able to put ourselves in their shoes for awhile and climb in to some of these old caverns. Finally, we were on a short hike to reach the big boy (the 140 ft alcove). Three incredibly steep ladders and lots of heavy breathing later, we had reached our destination. The view, simply incredible. Although we tried, it's difficult to capture such beauty through a lens. We all sat in silence for a while and took in the moment, however it was ruined by our inability to walk on gravel covered mountains.





Although the journey was great it sadly had come to an end, so we began our descent down the mountainside. Luckily, we left with as many as we came, in other words Cara and Nick had supervised sufficiently (thanks Mom and Dad!). We were pretty exhausted so the car rides back were quiet, but the excitement in the anticipation of kindergarden dinner could no longer be contained. Nautical creature nuggets, mac n' cheese, and juice boxes awaited our rumbling bellies. We were surprised to see that our fellow comrades for the week, the air-force boys had arrived as well (a Russian connection has already started forming *cough* Dani *cough*). With a few introductions we are already on our way to becoming great friends (we just know it). The dinner was haphazardly cooked and the nugs almost burned but all was well and enjoyed. We cannot wait to see what is in store for us tomorrow, as we begin our service on the Mares' Family home. Happy trails to you, until we meet again!

Love Sara and Alexus

P.S. we are no where near journalism majors so sorry... there's that.