Mesa Verde, an architectural marvel!

                                Mesa Verde , as well as a few other destinations we've been to
                               during these weeks, has so  lived up to our expectations ,
                               or surpassed them.
            
                                
                            

This is the Yucca plant , one of the most important plants for the people
native to this region.Some uses they   would have had for it would be as food  ,
or they  would fashion shoes or rope from it's stalks.

The cliff dwellings!
A very convenient place to live , it might seem , but to get there , up and down
the mountain side, would be something to get used to ...
Apparently they built cliff dwelling like this one (there were over 600 like
this one scattered around the mountain sides),but stayed in them for about 100
years before they moved elsewhere in the 1300s.

Luckily for us tourists there are now ladders and steps carved into
the mountain side , and narrow crevices at one spot, for us to get up and down
and through the mountain.

The circular shapes are 'kivas' , used for  ceremonial purposes, as well as weaving
and other domestic activities.

We had very early morning in Mesa Verde , but after a rest we had out first
encounter with mini golf this trip . In Sweden more or less every campground
 seems to have one , but it's not so common around here!
If you look super closely you can see that on Sylvain's club sits Kokopelli .
Loki said he could bring you luck if you asked him *politely* for help,
but I don't think it works , especially as I did ask him for help , and still lost...

An evening campfire has so many advantages;it's warming , cozy , keeps
the bugs away ,and whatever you cook it does not create a pile of dishes !
We even had some , oh so sweet, marshmallows , to make us feel like
real vacationers, if we needed to be reminded....