© Courtesy of New Mexico Museum of Art
The heady aroma of burning piñon logs permeates the air every night in Santa Fe, where the altitude—nearly 7,000 feet—ensures that even summer evenings are crisp enough for locals to light up their kiva fireplaces. The scent is a constant presence in this ever-changing city, where thick-walled adobe buildings nearly 400 years old stand cheek-by-jowl with avant-garde art galleries and edgy modern restaurants. It’s a reminder that, despite its vibrant population of skiers and hikers, painters and photographers, alternative healers, hippies, and gays, this city is strongly connected to its Spanish-Native American heritage—and to the pristine landscape that surrounds it. See the slideshow.