We call this our "church" day. Here I am playing tour guide (and eating a handmade tortilla). Get ready for your history lesson!
Mission San Xavier del Bac (southwest of Tucson, AZ)
"Built in the 1700s by Spanish missionaries, this oldest Catholic church in the United States still serves the community for which it was built - the Tohono O'ooham Indians. Called the 'White Dove of the Desert' the mission was founded in 1692 by Father Eusebio Franciso Kino, who established 22 missions in northern Mexico and southern Arizona. The current structure was constructed out of native materials by Francisan missionaries between 1777 and 1797 and is one of the finest examples of mission architecture in the United States. Mass is still celebrated at 8:30 a.m. daily." - Fodor's The Old West, Travel Historic America
Preservation is always ongoing. Professional historians and artists train the local Tohono O'ooham Indians so they can be involved in the process.
Jason ordered some fry bread for us to try at a small lunch "shack" right outside San Xavier. Mine was covered with honey and cinnamon and his had a variety of melted cheese. Very tasty.
Further southwest of Tucson you come to Tubac where we visited Tumacacori National Historic Park
"Father Eusebio Franciso Kino founded this mission in 1691, but the Jesuits didn't build a church here until 1751. You can still see some ruins of the simple early structure, but the main attraction is the mission of San Jose de Tumacacori, built by the Franciscans around 1799-1803. A combination of circumstances - Apache attacks, a bad winter, and Mexico's withdrawl of funds and priests - caused the inhabitants to flee in 1848 to San Javier de Bac. Persistent rumors of wealth left behind by both the Franciscans and the Jesuits led treasure seekers to pillage the site unceccessfully. The ruined mission still bears those scars. It was finally protected in 1908, when it became a national monument." - Fodor's The Old West, Travel Historic America 
Trey below, taking the picture, above.
Jason, the camera man! 
1 comment:
these are amazing and the christmas tree hunting looked pretty fun. How much of the tree did you guys end up cutting off. Ha ha. No it looks great. I wish our snow was still around. It lasted about a week and now we are back up in the 50's during the day. Gotta love missouri. Well miss you guys much and hope you have an amazing Christmas! kmg
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