On Saturday March 13th, I arrived at my host's home, which is about 20 minutes outside of Silver City, NM in the Gila National Forest. My host designed her home herself; it's made out of adobe and is entirely off-the-grid (she even installed self-composting toilets). I have a wealth of respect for people who make their homes and lives exactly as they wish, even when their choices are different from what mine would be (provided those choices don't include hobbling college girls and hanging up their severed ears like Christmas lights or something).
The Buddha statue in her living room is from India and weighs 300lbs.
The only thing I disliked about staying here was the satellite internet, which was about as fast as a dial-up modem. This minor irritation was more than outweighed by everything else, though, including being served tasty raw vegan food and getting to play with my host's dog Trinity.
That rock Trinity is sleeping next to is from India too.
After wandering around a few art galleries, I went to the Silver City Museum in the hopes of learning more about Billy the Kid. Unfortunately, it turns out that Billy the Kid was only raised in Silver City; he wasn't born there, he didn't die there, and he didn't commit any crimes there. As you can imagine, the exhibit on him was rather small.
Old timey coins only recognized in Silver City.
That rock Trinity is sleeping next to is from India too.
On Sunday March 14th, I explored Silver City, NM. Its population of 9,000 is a blend of miners, artsy hippies/yuppies, and college students, which is a weird but surprisingly common combination in New Mexico.
Downtown Silver City, NM.
This bunny belongs in "Donnie Darko."
This bunny belongs in "Donnie Darko."
After wandering around a few art galleries, I went to the Silver City Museum in the hopes of learning more about Billy the Kid. Unfortunately, it turns out that Billy the Kid was only raised in Silver City; he wasn't born there, he didn't die there, and he didn't commit any crimes there. As you can imagine, the exhibit on him was rather small.
Old timey coins only recognized in Silver City.
After exploring the museum, I went to La Capilla Heritage Park, which overlooks the whole city. Here's a semi-panoramic video I took (please excuse the wind noise):
On Monday March 15th, I drove north to the cliff-dwellings in the Gila National Forest. The drive was absolutely gorgeous:
While walking the mile from the parking lot to the cliff-dwellings, I passed some ancient Mogollon paintings:
My inner anthropologist had a field day with this one (get it? "Field day"?).
My inner anthropologist had a field day with this one (get it? "Field day"?).
I also passed by an old cave-dwelling:
Exterior.
Interior, looking from one room to the next.
Exterior.
Interior, looking from one room to the next.
Eventually I made my way to the cliff:
View from the trail back down the cliff.
View from the trail back down the cliff.
The next day, I left the Gila National Forest for the city of Truth or Consequences, but that's a story for my next post.
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