Taos was awesome. It’s a small and quiet town at the bottom of the mountains. We drove down to Santa Fe through High Road, the scenic route. It took us about two hours to get to Santa Fe, and I was amazed by the changing of scenery and landscape. It was nothing like what I’ve seen before. The culture and everything is so different from what I know.

We stopped at a small town called Las Trampas. There is the famous San José de Gracia Church. It’s an adobe construction. I am always astonished by how people used to build these old buildings with simple materials like straws and mud, and it would stand there for centuries.

We somehow decided to stopped at Chimayo. Without any plan, we arrived at the right timing to see the Palm Sunday pilgrimage at the Santuario de Nuestro Señor de Esquipulas chapel. I was absolutely surprised by the crowd and the ceremony because it was my first time to see a pilgrimage, not even when I was living in Taiwan. And, not to mention that it is a religion and culture that I am not familiar with. It was certainly a great experience for me that opened my eyes.

Fresh Traditions Fashion Show

I have been working with the aspiring designer Yuri Xiong for a little while. I also photographed her and her team at the Fresh Traditions Fashion show on Oct. 5.

Fresh Traditions Fashion Show is a program of the Center for Hmong Arts and Talent that provides a platform for Hmong women who are interested in fashion design.

These are the photographs during rehearsal.

Yuri Xiong takes a moment for herself before the show starts. Yuri’s line is called “Play Time.”

Protected: Field Notes #17 & 18

Going to the West: Taos

Me and a friend had a trip to New Mexico during the spring break. I was excited to visit the western part of the country because I also grew up watching Western movies with my dad.

We drove 14 hours straight from Columbia to Taos, and it was a long drive. I’ve had a few road trips in the past, but this is the first trip that reminded me of the road movies that I’ve watched. Perhaps it’s because of the scenery on the road.