If you wish to participate in this walk and are not a member of the Walking Group, please go to the Newcomers Website and click on Interest Tab and select Walking Group.
Alice Harris will lead us on an exploration of the Barrio de Analco and the surrounding area. This is an easy walk on mostly paved sidewalks, including stairs and curbs, and perhaps a short dirt path.
Our adventure will begin and end at Kakawa Chocolate House. Kakawa is an Olmec word, meaning cacao or chocolate. The shop’s specialty is chocolate elixirs based on historic recipes based on archeological research and written accounts from Spanish conquistadors and colonists.
We will begin our tour by walking down Paseo de Peralta to Alameda Street to view the 7 wooden Angels carved by artist Jos Lucero that stand in the Santa Fe River Park. They are inspired by 18th century prints and represent the communion between the earthly parts of our world and celestial ones. Wood-carved angels are traditional in Santa Fe and New Mexico.
Next, we will walk over to Santa Fe Trail and enter the Barrio de Analco. Analco is a Nahuatl word meaning “other side of the water.” This is the oldest settlement of European origin in Santa Fe, except for the Plaza, and therefore one of the oldest in the U.S. This area was settled by Nahuatl speaking Mesoamerican Indians in the 1600s, servants who came with Franciscan missionaries and Spanish officials.
The main event of our walk in this historic area will be a tour of the San Miguel Chapel and a presentation about its history. An optional donation of between $2 and $10 to support the maintenance of San Miguel Chapel is requested. Known as the oldest church in the U.S. and believed by some to possibly be the site of the earliest Christian worship in the country, the chapel was built perhaps as early as 1610 to serve as the mission church. By 1776 the Barrio de Analco was occupied by married soldiers, genízario servants (individuals of various tribes who grew up in Spanish society) and other laborers. We will also peek inside “The Oldest House” located across from the Chapel (this site requests a $2 donation) and stroll down E. De Vargas St. past the “Inn of the Five Graces” (and perhaps look in) and view some of the original buildings on the street. Our walk of the area will culminate with a quick history/art tour of the Round House.
Newcomers is not sponsoring lunch gatherings at the present time but individual members may choose to get together for lunch. There are a number of restaurants near Barrio de Analco. Some walkers may enjoy Raaga Go, an Indian restaurant where there will be a private room available for us. Upper Crust pizza is known for delicious pizza and patio dining, and there are numerous other restaurants in the vicinity.