Between Albuquerque and the Grand Canyon are the lands of several Native American tribes, like the Zuni, Pueblo, Navaho, Hopi, and many more. We opted to leave the interstate and learn more about the Zuni people.
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| Native American Tribal Areas in Arizona and New Mexico |
We had ended yesterday's drive from
El Malpais in the Pueblo of Zuni, so today began at the
Inn at Halona bed and breakfast with some blue corn pancakes and a wonderful home-cooked meal.
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| Blue corn pancakes! |
After breakfast, we walked a couple of blocks into town, passing through the
middle village. We saw traditional clay ovens billowing black smoke as they were made ready for baking bread, but all around us were signs that said "No photography of religious cultural events or activities". Since I don't know if traditional baking falls into that category, I didn't get any photos...but here's some found online:
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| Clay ovens for baking bread (Source) |
Stopped into the
All Tribes Trading Post and found some beautiful silver/turquoise/opal jewelry and saw the difference between Zuni, Navaho, and Hopi jewelry and pottery. Here are some samples:
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| Zuni jewelry: Colorful stone inlays |
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| Navaho jewelry: Mostly Turquoise on silver |
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| Hopi jewelry: silver with geometric shapes |
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| Zuni pottery: earth tone, abstract shapes |
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| Navaho pottery: terra cotta with geometric shapes |
Before leaving Zuni, we stopped for lunch at the
Village Bistro for some more blue corn pancakes and Zuni nachos. Yum!
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| Not sure what makes them Zuni Nachos, but it's tasty! |
We learned from the owners that tonight is the summer solstice ceremony, with traditional dancing late into the night. There is also an associated pilgrimage, covering some 15+ miles and ending in town. Here's the
Zuni Tourism events schedule.
Of course, we were half a day early, so we'll be at the
Grand Canyon tonight and will unfortunately miss tonight's performance. But we'll keep it in mind for the next time we pass through this way.
Tomorrow, we'll be
driving through Zuni country on our way to spend a couple of days at
Grand Canyon National Park.
« Yesterday: The Badlands of El Malpais -
Tomorrow: Grand Canyon »
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