Headed Down the Mission Trail

Today we decided to travel the El Paso Mission Trail, which consists of three Spanish missions, two of which are the oldest continuously operational Catholic missions in the United States.  These three missions are still owned by the Catholic diocese and are not under public control or funded by government money.  Consequently, while there are historical markers and signs established by the State of Texas, and while the locals in El Paso are very proud of the missions and their history, the poor little churches have had to rely essentially on the resources of their respective parishes, as well as tourist and other private contributions, for survival.  Even with that, each of the churches has been restored and each is maintained in exquisite condition.

We were looking for lunch as we drove down Socorro Road on the Mission Trail, when we passed a little sketchy-looking taqueria unabashedly named, "Tacos el Charly," with Mexican music blaring unbearably loudly from outside loudspeakers on its porch.  We agreed, "This is it!" and screeched to a stop (as much as Great White can screech to a stop) across the street, hopped out of the truck, and walked in.  It was all we hoped it would be:  the absolutely very best taco chips we've ever had, with a roasted poblano pepper salsa and a cilantro/green chile salsa (both the best of each type we've ever tasted).  Kathy ordered a Quatro Mulitas (4 little meat tacos on soft-shell fried corn tortillas) and David ordered Quesadillas.  They were each scrumptious and we wouldn't hesitate to order them again.

Here's Kathy looking happy after our meal, with the cafe's decor in the background:

To get to the missions we drove down Socorro Road, southeast along the Rio Grande River from El Paso.  Socorro Road is part of the historic El Camino Real, which was the royal Spanish road that stretched from Mexico City to Santa Fe and Taos, New Mexico.  Portions of the road have been established as the El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail, and with sufficient time, there are many features of the historic trail that we'd like to visit when we return.

We can provide lots of details about the three missions, but everything worth knowing is available on the El Paso Mission Trail website, including old photos of the missions, which are remarkably similar to how the missions look today in the photos below.

The three missions were built in 1680 by three different Native American tribes, under the supervision of Catholic missionary priests, when those native Americans, who were loyal to the Spanish, were fleeing New Mexico after the Pueblo Indian Revolt:

Mission Ysleta:

Mission Socorro:

(here is a photo of the inside of Mission Socorro, which still has the original decorated wooden ceiling beams)

and Presidio Chapel San Elizario, first seen through its plaza --

-- and then alone in all its glory:

San Elizario is a little village which still has many historic buildings, and clearly has been trying to promote tourism.  There are several artist enclaves, but many of the shops are vacant.  One interesting surprise is the county's original jail, which is notable for the fact Billy the Kid broke INTO the jail to free one of his "associates."  The event and place are memorialized by a Texas state historical marker and a statue of Billy the Kid:

Having finished our little trip through El Paso history, we headed home to finish some chores and just relax.  The weather today was exceptionally cool, and probably didn't even exceed 60F, with winds up to 24 mph.  So we enjoyed our little respite from 90F-plus weather.