A Southwest Christmas is almost here

Some Decembers my husband, Wayne, and I go out of town for the holidays, searching for the elusive perfect setting to enjoy Christmas.  We have traveled to several cities in Texas; Auckland, New Zealand; Melbourne, Australia; and Santa Fe, New Mexico.  This year, however, we decided to again explore holiday activities in our home town of El Paso, Texas. Christmas in the Southwest has a special flavor because we live on the US-Mexico border, where languages and cultures swirl together to create a memorable experience.

Our first stop was the newly renovated San Jacinto Plaza, located in the heart of downtown El Paso.  It was a chilly Saturday evening (well, at least 50 degrees F!)  when we joined the crowds to ooh and ahh over the holiday park decorations

and, of course, the giant Christmas tree.

And no El Paso celebration would be complete without mariachi music and traditional Mexican dances.

The visit to San Jacinto Plaza was a great excuse to break a diet regime and line up at the food truck selling churros, served warm and covered with sugar, with a delicious caramel filling. Every bite of churro was worth the extra calories.

Our next hometown holiday experience came on a tour of El Paso's Lower Valley.  We spent a few quiet moments in the Socorro Mission, a beautiful, welcoming church located on what is known as the Mission Trail. The simple exterior of the church contrasts with the ornate interior.

A few miles drive to the south took us to the historic town of San Elizario, where a traditional community celebration was in progress in the plaza.

Upon arrival, we headed straight for the booth selling homemade tamales and champurrado, a special warm drink made with cornmeal, cinnamon and brown sugar. Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus arrived to greet the Amigo Man, an El Paso mascot.

I was especially impressed with the live animals that were waiting to take part in a posada, a reenactment of Joseph and Mary's search for shelter on a long ago night. The young goats gamboled as their mother watched placidly.

The San Elizario Chapel overlooking the plaza provided just the right tone for the religious celebration.

Last night, we stopped in the L&J cafe, an iconic El Paso Mexican restaurant, for dinner.  The atmosphere was lively, with a bar filled with holiday merrymakers and tables occupied with couples and families.  Waiters and waitresses rushed around, making a valiant effort to make everyone happy.

Wayne looked out at the scene contentedly and said, "I love El Paso."  Yes, I do too.  It's a great place to spend the Christmas holiday season.

Enjoy the Southwest - seasonally

Each area of the United States provides its inhabitants with a unique lifestyle.  What images come to mind when you read the words "Southwestern Lifestyle"?  Do you see people dressed in cowboy boots and hats, desert landscapes, and bowls of salsa and tostadas?  Perhaps, but a glance beneath the surface reveals so much more about life in the Desert Southwest.

I was born in El Paso, Texas and have made that city my home all of my life.  El Paso is located on the United States/Mexico border in the Chihuahuan Desert.  It is a bilingual, bicultural city. Even though I love to travel to far off lands, one of the best parts of a trip is coming home. When I am gone, I miss our mountains, the dry air, spectacular sunsets, and spicy food.

Life in El Paso can be enjoyed in varied ways, depending on the season of the year.

Yes, we do have four seasons in the Desert Southwest!  They may not be traditional seasons with snowdrifts in December, showers in April, and welcome sunshine in July, but every three months, we have an opportunity to enjoy changing weather and activities, including preparing special dishes for friends and family.

Winter will arrive in less than two weeks. We are already experiencing frosty nights and cool days.  What a great excuse to build a fire in the fireplace in the early morning and drink coffee. Winter brings the promise of a Christmas season with customs from both sides of the border. As the weather cools, I feel an urge to spend the afternoon in the kitchen, making red chile sauce for enchiladas by hand with an old-fashioned vegetable press.  My thoughts go to homemade tamales.  Should we host a tamale-making party this year or order them from a local bakery?

Spring arrives earlier in the Desert Southwest than in other areas of the country.  This season does not greet us with gentle rains but rather with strong winds that howl interminably. In the springtime, I begin dreaming of a yard full of fragrant flowers and a garden full of tomatoes and herbs.  I wait anxiously for the projected last frost date, usually around April 1st.  Mother Nature has occasionally tricked me, however, and brought one last snowstorm in April.  I make special dishes for spring holidays, like Irish-American Soda Bread on St. Patrick's Day and Eggs Delmonico on Easter.

Summer is a very long season in El Paso, lasting from approximately May through September. And how hot is it?  Darn hot!  As soon as the sun dips below the horizon, summer evenings can be enjoyed outdoors at festivals, musical entertainment, and sporting events. Thirsty hummingbirds begin appearing at the feeder. Summer is the season for crisp salads with homegrown tomatoes and guacamole made from plentiful avocados.  I use the weather as an excuse to make up a three-ingredient recipe for Coconut Ice Cream.

By the time summer releases its fiery hold, El Pasoans are mentally and physically ready for cooler weather.  The yard needs a fall clean up, and pears need harvesting before birds peck at them all.  Autumn is greeted locally with a burst of activities — church bazaars, Renaissance Fairs, and, of course, football.  I can finally bear to turn on the stove and oven in the kitchen again.  It's time to plan a Southwestern Thanksgiving Dinner with chipotle cranberry sauce and pumpkin chiffon pie.

Four seasons with unique weather, food and activities make for an enjoyable Southwestern lifestyle. If you are interested in reading more about living in the Southwest, I have recently published a book — Seasons and Seasonings of the Southwest, available on amazon.com or Create Space for $12.00 ( and soon to be available on Kindle).  I have written short creative non-fiction pieces and included recipes for each season of the year.

Comments and suggestions are always welcome! Happy Holidays to all, Southwestern or otherwise!

               

  

  

Escape to the Renaissance Fair

On a cold, blustery November morning, the last thing I wanted to do was leave my warm bed to drive an hour to Las Cruces, New Mexico from my home town of El Paso, Texas to attend the Renaissance Fair, now celebrating its 45th year. And, as is usually the case, I'm really glad my husband, Wayne, and I decided to attend, because the fair provided an afternoon of great escapism (much needed nowadays!).

The Fair was held at Young Park, a spacious, green area set up with numerous booths and pavilions. A dragon in the charming center lake put us in a festive, playful mood.

Dragon in lake

What to do first?  We followed paths around the park to investigate offerings, giving food booths a wide berth so we could maintain our slimming plans.  I  had to avoid booths selling seductive funnel cakes, although I did give in and buy one small bag of cinnamon cashews.

I was impressed by the high quality of arts and crafts offered by local area artisans.  We purchased an attractive French butter dish which allows butter to be kept out of the refrigerator for a whole month. You may be wondering how having softer butter supports our diet plan.  Good question!  We must have been carried away by the spirit of fun that the Fair offered.

Arts and crafts vendor

One of the highlights of the day was the parade which wound its way through the park around noon. The sounds of bagpipes and drums sent our minds drifting to the Highlands of Scotland, one of our favorite vacation spots.

Empyre Pipes and Drums

 Well-dressed pilgrims, and especially their classy dogs, were getting attention from the crowd.

Parade participants

  Some re-enactors were very serious about staying true to their characters.

Authentic parade participants

Others risked life and limb by walking on stilts to provide a wow factor for the admiring crowd.

Parade participants on stilts

The jousting contest was another highlight of the day.

Principal combatants in jousting

My champion was the gentleman standing with his hand on his sword, representing the side dubbed  "Chaos."  He encouraged his supporters to yell unchivalrous phrases like, "Cheat to win, cheat to win."  Female counterparts of the jousters entertained the crowd as well, sparring vigorously with swords.

Female jousters

The crowd watched as the combatants raced menacingly down the field toward each other, mounted on beautiful horses.

Combatants on field

As the day was drawing to a close, we reluctantly located the shuttle bus to take us back to our vehicle and modern day life.  Often we seek escapism from the cares of daily life through travel to other places.  The Las Cruces Renaissance Fair transported us not so much to another place, but to another time, centuries ago, which now lives in myth and legend.   And it was a delightful, relaxing experience.

Ah! Autumn in New Mexico!

Autumn weather has not yet arrived in my home town of El Paso, Texas, even though the calendar says it should have arrived weeks ago.  No worries!  A four-day trip to our neighboring state of New Mexico fulfilled my longing for colorful leaves, crisp air, and fragrant burning piñon wood.

My husband, Wayne, and I recently made a road trip to meet family members in the small town of Chama, New Mexico for a nostalgic ride on the Cumbres and Toltec Railroad.

Our first ride on this historic railroad was several years ago.  The experience was so unforgettable that we were inspired to write a novella about a fictional train robbery on the line. (Rails, Robbers and Wraiths, by Wayne and Linda Calk, available on amazon.com)

Chama is within striking distance of El Paso by car, about seven and a half hours as the crow flies. Not being the efficient travelers that crows are, we made the trip in about nine and a half hours, including a stopover for shopping at the REI store in Albuquerque.

Travelers in other parts of the world may consider a road trip of that length too long, but in the Southwest, it is not unusual. Traffic is usually light, and roads are good, that is, with the exception of the unpaved road we encountered between Cuba, New Mexico and Chama.  Our reward for bouncing around in the car for about 20 miles was the view of a large dam and long bridge, which led us to pavement again.

Arriving in Chama, we found our hotel, the Chama Station Inn, and settled in for an evening in front of the kiva fireplace.

The next morning we rode the train from Chama NM to Antonito,CO with a stopover in Osier for a home-style meal for lunch.

The scenery was engaging, with aspens displaying golden autumn finery. Good photo ops were plentiful, especially when the train rounded a curve.

Our next stop was Santa Fe, NM, where we stayed at a new hotel to us, the Hotel Chimayó, well located right off the central plaza. Breakfast the next morning was a splurge at La Plazuela, the dining room of the Hotel La Fonda on the Plaza.

Santa Fe offers a variety of activities for tourists.  In one day, we visited a folk art store, relaxed in the plaza, shopped at a Farmer's Market in the newly developed Railyard District, and even took in a movie in the new Velvet Crown theater.

That evening we were sitting at an outdoor cafe, sharing chips and salsa, when we heard the sound of drums coming from the plaza.  Three young performers were drumming and chanting for a small attentive crowd.  I felt transported to another time and culture.

Another day's drive and we were back in our home town with memories of train whistles, autumn colors, spicy food, and Native American drums.  How fortunate we are to live in the Southwest where a diversity of cultures and experiences can be found within a day's drive.

Can you tell I love New Mexico in autumn?

Volunteer plants need loving home

I love to walk around the garden and discover a new "volunteer" plant peeking up at me.  Just imagine!  A new plant that doesn't require driving to the nursery, purchasing, and deciding where to dig a hole.  A volunteer plant is a ready-made treasure.

In my gardener's imagination, volunteer plants want to live in my garden because they find welcoming conditions- soil, light, and water.  They decide for themselves where they want to grow up.  Several times in my life, I tried to outsmart Mother Nature by transplanting volunteers to a location I thought would please me more.  Few plants survived the move. Recently I developed a live-and-let live philosophy and just appreciate the new additions to the flower beds and yards, wherever that may be.

Here are some of the volunteer plants that we have adopted as our own.

Creosote Bush

A familiar desert plant that grows in abundance in the wild is the Creosote Bush or Greasewood. The aroma of wet greasewood plants perfumes the desert after our infrequent rains.  It is a clean aroma, similar to that of witch hazel.  We have tried unsuccessfully to transplant this bush from the wild into our desert landscape with no luck.  This year, however, Mother Nature decided it was the year of the greasewoods and provided us with at least twenty plants of various sizes, all free of charge.  I am anxious to see if the plants survive the sometimes adverse conditions of a high desert winter.

Desert Marigolds

These beautiful yellow flowers are the product of a volunteer plant whose seed jumped over a high garden wall where I had previously planted a purchased desert marigold.  I had been cautioned not to overwater this plant. Unfortunately, the volunteer plant decided to homestead in a bed that is on a watering system.  I think it likes its home anyway.

Desert Fan Palm

This Desert Fan Palm, a volunteer from several years ago, has admittedly gotten out of hand.  It decided to sprout in a very small flower bed around the perimeter of the swimming pool.  I love the tropical look it provides, but wow, is it getting huge!

Candelilla plants

My husband Wayne took this wonderful picture of a bed where small volunteer candelilla plants are growing.  From the angle he took the picture, the plants appear to be large, but they are in reality tiny. And will probably stay that way for a while.  Candelillas are notoriously slow growing.

Peach tree

My favorite volunteer plant may be the peach tree in front of our sun room. Since we have no peach trees on the property, the tree must have grown from a peach pit.  We often wander around the garden in the summertime, munching on fruit, so I can imagine a pit landing in the flowerbed. Last winter, the tree was tiny, and I covered it with a can for protection.  This year, the tree has come into its own. The only problem is its location right in front of a picture window.  Ah well, I'm not looking a gift horse in the mouth.

Fire Bush

The volunteer Fire Bushes may be getting out of hand because I find new ones in the back yard frequently.  But they provide a splash of red color, so I nourish each one that I find.

Wild Lantana

One of the biggest surprises has been the growth of two very large Wild Lantana plants in our yards. Their mother plant has survived on her own for years in a neglected part of the property we call the "back forty."  Now she has spread her seed to produce two grown daughters who receive much more attention than their mama ever did.

Gardening encourages homespun philosophy.  I think what volunteer plants encourage us to do is let go of the notion that we can control the world and instead appreciate what the world has to offer, even if it is not perfect. 

I can't resist welcoming volunteer plants into our garden.

Chiles en Nogada - An Autumn Culinary Delight!

Pomegranate tree

The pomegranate tree in our courtyard has been a vigorous grower this season.  It has even deigned to provide us with a few pomegranate fruits.

Pomegranate fruits

Pomegranates are a gorgeous fruit, with the promise of luscious, juicy seeds inside.  If the truth be known, however, we usually don't even bother to harvest the fruits, so they split open and the birds have a feast.  After all, is there a delicate way to eat a pomegranate?

Recently I was reminded of the Mexican tradition of using pomegranate seeds in a dish called chiles en nogada, stuffed chiles in walnut sauce.

Chiles en nogada

Several traditional restaurants in my home town of El Paso, Texas, are now featuring chiles en nogada on their menus as a seasonal dish.  I will probably have my next plate of these delicacies at a restaurant.   The recipe to prepare them is not for the faint of heart.

The Essential Cuisines of Mexico by Diana Kennedy (2000) has an extensive write-up on chiles en nogada.  One story has it that the dish was concocted with ingredients the color of the Mexican flag, green chiles, white sauce, and red pomegranate seeds, to celebrate the signing of a treaty.  Another story describes the origin of the dish as a result of the yearly harvest of poblano chiles, fruits, and walnuts.

Like many traditional recipes, many variations of chiles en nogada can be found in cookbooks and on the Internet.  Diana Kennedy makes hers with pork, tomatoes, fruit, plantains, raisins, poblano chiles, and almonds.  Other cooks use ground meat and vary the other ingredients as well.  The basic procedure is to stuff the chiles, fry them in a batter, and serve covered with the nut sauce. The finished product is decorated with pomegranate seeds and parsley.  Chiles en nogada are generally served alone on a plate as a main course, perhaps accompanied by corn tortillas.

Just in case you get inspired to make this autumn culinary delight,  I am including a recipe from the Food Network.  And if you decide to prepare this dish at home, please invite me to dinner, but after all the work is done, please.

Recipe for Chiles en Nogada

Celebrating the 16th of September in High Style

A new restaurant/night club in El Paso, Texas

A new restaurant sign in my home town of El Paso, Texas always intrigues me. This sign, "Cuñado's," was especially interesting because of the combination of two languages, Spanish and English. Being a city on the US-Mexico border, El Paso welcomes both languages into its cultural mix, often with creative results. 

The Spanish word cuñado means "brother-in-law" in English.  So this is the brother-in-law's restaurant. But the apostrophe (') is not used in Spanish to show that someone possesses something. The phrase in standard Spanish would be " el restaurante del cuñado," the restaurant of the brother-in-law.  By adding the English construction of apostrophe s to the noun cuñado, we have a new phrase, created by combining features of two languages.  I thought it was quite clever.

But enough of the language lesson.  On to the tequila drinking!  This friendly waitress at Cuñado's was circulating, offering shots of tequila for $5. 

Tequila shot, anyone?

The occasion for celebration was the 16th of September, a holiday in Mexico commemorating the beginning of the war of independence from Spain.  As with other national holidays around the world, citizens of the country and others with ties or even a fondness for the country celebrate with costumes, traditional colors, food, drink, music, and dancing. Cuñado's Restaurant offered all of this on the eve of the 16th.

Mexican flag

The Mexican flag, red, white and green, with an eagle in the middle holding a serpent in its mouth
was on display.  Many restaurant patrons had also dressed in the traditional colors of the flag.

Colorful restaurant patrons

 Buffet food offerings added to the celebration of Mexican culture with dishes such as red and green enchiladas, carnitas, corn on the cob, squash with corn, ceviche, and posole.  But this is the dish that had us ooing and ahing.

Dish on left is chiles en nogada

Chiles en nogada (chiles in nut sauce) is a special, fancy dish traditionally offered beginning in September and going through the holiday season.  The dish echoes the colors of the Mexican flag with a base of a stuffed green chile poblano, the white of a nut sauce, and the red of pomegranate seeds sprinkled on top.  The recipe to make this scrumptious dish is not for the faint-hearted!

Music was of course part of the celebration.

Singer at Cuñado's 

The energetic singer reflected a melding of two cultures, belting out songs in both Spanish and English.  A few hardy patrons found space to dance to the music.

We left Cuñado's before the traditional cry at midnight of "¡Viva México!" (long live Mexico) to which the crowd responds, ¡Viva!   But we patted ourselves on the back for having celebrated the 16th of September in high style.

Note:  Thanks to my husband, Wayne Calk, for the photographs!  I couldn't write these blog posts without his contributions.

One Sunday Afternoon in the Park

A lazy Sunday loomed before us.  Too lazy if the truth be known.  Where could we go for entertainment in our home town of El Paso, Texas that we hadn't been to at least a dozen times 

before?

Maybe the answer could be found in investigating a new project in our city, the revitalization of Downtown El Paso.  The renovation of the central square of El Paso, San Jacinto Plaza, had taken what seemed like ages to complete (it was really only three years).  We wanted to see if we had received good value for our tax dollars.

San Jacinto Plaza

San Jacinto Plaza, located at the corner of Oregon and Mills Streets, has a proud history, dating from the first part of the 20th century.  It was a transportation hub, first for horse drawn carriages, then for trolleys, and later for city buses and taxicabs, which is when my memories of the park began.  I remember the park as being leafy and green, with benches around the perimeter.  A highlight was the alligator pond inhabited by live alligators.  Later, the plaza fell into disrepair, the alligators had to be moved because of vandalism, and the park atmosphere was anything but welcoming.

How delighted I was as a native El Pasoan to experience the new and improved San Jacinto Plaza, dedicated in April of this year.

"Los Lagartos" -The Alligators

A fiberglass alligator sculpture by Luis Jiménez retains the memory of the live alligators who lived in the pool until the 1970s.

Diners at the plaza cafe

A full-service cafe serves a variety of dishes, including this cup of corn with typical southwestern seasonings.

Another nod to local culture is a court for the game of pitching washers, which goes by the name of huachas in our border region. The game is similar to pitching horseshoes.

Huachas court

Ping-pong tables are also available in the park.  Equipment for playing both huachas and ping-pong is available at the plaza cafe. You may get a sudden inspiration to try out your game skills.

Splash pond

Children cooling off in the splash pond, monitored carefully by moms and dads on benches, reminded me how much fun it can be to be a child, and uninhibited.

I took a moment to soak up the atmosphere of our urban park.  The details on a historic building visible from the park reminded me of an earlier, more elegant era in El Paso.

Historical Building

And I especially enjoyed the flora of the park and made note of which plants I could use in our southwestern style yard.  I love the hardy native and adapted plants that survive and even flourish in the Desert Southwest.  This plant looked to me like a type of bush called "Yellow Bells"or "Esperanza (Hope)" in our region.

Flowering bush in plaza

My husband, Wayne, and I sat on a bench in the park for quite a long time, feeling the excitement and pride of living in a city with a downtown park that is not only an attractive place but an exciting place as well.  Will our out-of-town visitors for Thanksgiving enjoy the park as much as we did?  We have our fingers crossed.