Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Santa Fe


Night time in a downtown street in Santa Fe the capital city of New Mexico leading to the Cathedral of Saint Francis of Assisi. 

New Mexico's second governor, Don Pedro de Peralta, founded the city at the foot of the Sangre de Christo Mountains in 1607 and made it the capital of the new territory.  He called it La Villa Real de la Santa Fe de San Francisco de Asís, meaning the Royal Town of the Holy Faith of Saint Francis of Assisi. The Governors’ Mansion in the city’s plaza is the site of a colorful market of Native American Art.  This is where men purchase jewelry for the women they love.

The Museum of Modern Indian Art is one of many interesting museums in Santa Fe.

SanMiguel Chapel is the oldest church in the Continental United States built in 1610.

New houses follow tradition and are built in the Pueblo style.
A beautiful wooden door leading to the yard of a Santa Fe house.    

It is still winter at the Sangre de Christo Mountains (which means Blood of Christ in Spanish).   The cottonwoods trees in the park have to wait for spring to arrive.

Santa Fe’s climate is arid with warm sunny days and cold nights.  Snow can fall as late as the end of April! 
It was the town of Santa Fe my friend Gianfranco Fizzotti and his wife Pia selected to live during the last period of their lives in the United States.  I was fortunate to be invited and stay in their house and celebrate one of the most memorable Easter Sundays of my life.  I was blessed because Gianfranco and Pia had attained a perfect, kindred, deep and trusting love something I had never seen before.  I was lucky that I met Gianfranco when we were both Radiology residents in Chicago the city where he also met Pia.  In addition to being colleagues we were lifetime friends.  Gianfranco passed on September 20th, 2015 and was buried in Pernate a small town in the Province of Novara in northern Italy where he was born. He is deeply missed by his beloved wife Pia, his siblings and his nephews and nieces, and his many friends.    

2 comments:

  1. Night time in Santa Fe is very colorful! Looks like a fun place.

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  2. He was my friend. He had a gift by being himself, he lit up all the rooms of his life, people came alive around him. And he's so very much still alive to me. Ciao Gianfranco! Viva bene.

    leland

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