Not only did I have a change in scenery, but also changes in color perception. I am one lucky woman, still trying to process all I saw and learned from a week in New Mexico.

I will report on it all peu à peu, but will start with a palette of colors while I get settled at home, do the laundry and appease the dog who wasn’t happy with my absence.

Here’s the thing about color at hight altitudes – Santa Fe is at 7199 ft (2194 m): Because there is less air to scatter, all colors (wavelength) are darkened. This is particularly true for the sky: It is actually black, but during the daytime it’s illuminated by mostly blue scattered sunlight. The higher the altitude, the dimmer is the blue scattered illumination, so you start to see more of the basic black of the sky. Let me tell you, the sky is insanely dark blue up there! You’ll get to see more of it when I’ll describe my hikes, but for now this should give you a taste.

In addition, the customary pairing of blue accents on orange adobe buildings of the region maximizes color intensity since these two colors are complimentary on opposing sites of the color wheel.

Enjoy the sampling, before I hit you with the history of the state….. and of course other colors ruled, too:

Music today is a contemporary folk group – a tiny bit of delay at the beginning of the clip, but then a wonderful rendition of diverse NM traditions wedded to new music.