San Xavier Weekend

This has been a good weekend for me. Not only did I spend the week getting lots of photography and journalism practice, but this weekend capped it off perfectly. Yesterday my friend Britain and I spent the afternoon at the Mission San Xavier del Bac, which is a National Historic Landmark.

The actual building dates back to 1797 but the mission was founded in 1692. It is located on the San Xavier Reservation, which is part of the reservation for the Tohono O’odham nation, located just south of Tucson. The mission is apparently considered to be the “finest example of Spanish Colonial architecture in the United States” (www.sanxaviermission.org).

Regardless, it’s a beautiful structure both inside and out, with an unusual and intriguing mix of Catholic, Spanish, and Tohono O’odham (Native American) influences.