A Must See: Mesa Verde

Yesterday we traveled about 2 hrs west of here to Mesa Verde National Park. Hubby, always the multitasker, had to leave us at the park for a couple hours while he went in search of a cell phone signal so he could join in on an important conference call (or at least bill enough hours to finance this adventure.) Before he left, he challenged the Things to learn three facts and report back to him.Here's what Thing Two told his dad:

"Dad, I learned that the Nanasazi tribe had been pneumatic tribe and then they became farmers. They used Yakima to make things and built homes called...oh gee I forgot"

Which is just as well that he ran out of steam, because we were rolling with laughter...

nAAAnasazi-Anasazis, Nomads-pneumads, Yakima-Yucca....I suppose when you are 9 it is all the same to you.But all laughing aside, Mesa Verde was a pretty amazing place to visit. I complain when the cable goes out for less than a day. I can't imagine a day without a shower. And here these resourceful native Americans figured out ways to live in this very rugged terrain...and they not just survived, they were able to create a community that has withstood the tortures of time. It really does boggle the mind to think of what their life must have been like.I highly encourage everyone to put this on their list of thing's to do sometime in their life. This National Park is the only one dedicated to the preservation of a culture and tells the story of these people.
Oh, and to be politically correct, we no longer call them the Anasazi people (or the NanAsazi people if you ask Thing Two). Instead, they are the Ancestral Puebloans. Regardless of what you call them...learning more about their way of life is well worth the effort spent to get there.