No matter where I go or what I do… in the back of my mind is Real Estate! I recently took a road trip from San Antonio to Albuquerque to Santa Fe then back home to San Antonio. While in Santa Fe, we came across “The Oldest House in the U.S.A.!” This was the “Pot O’ Gold” at the end of the rainbow for me! I was standing inside history, I walked through the oldest doorway framed by wood, clay and hay. I walked through the rooms where stories were shared.
The walls of the exterior were cool to the touch. The adobe, the clay… I was able to see the hay still protruding from the structure. The doorways were short and narrow. I certainly felt taller than 5′-1″ standing next to them. The single-story structure was once a two-story home for three families. The rooms were tiny yet functional. The fireplace had an opening too small for Santa Claus!
A TALE OF TWO WITCHES, A DESPERATE MAN AND A LOVE SPELL GONE BAD…
Much to my surprise, there was a coffin in one of the living areas. It had an opening where you could take a look at its contents. There appeared to be human remains and hanging above the eerie choice of decoration was a story… the tale of two witches, a desperate man and a spell!
Once upon a time, there lived a man… a man who was so in love with a woman, he was desperately seeking her affection. In his attempt to capture her heart, he visited the “Brujas” of this De Vargas Street house. The Brujas were witches who offered spells to their patrons.
With his bar of gold, the man (Juan Espinoza) made his request and purchased a Love Spell for the woman he was after. The Brujas took the gold and worked up their magic. Whether the stars were misaligned or the moon was not full enough, whatever went wrong… the Spell did not work. This beautiful woman married another… and this man… this heart-broken, desperate man grew furious!
Displeased with the results and unhappy with his purchase, this fierce customer returned to the Brujas demanding a refund! He wanted his gold bar back! Well, it must not have been posted on the walls, but the policy was… NO REFUNDS! NO RETURNS!
The man pulled out his sword and lunged toward the Brujas. One of the witches made a swift move and tripped him… he fell to the ground and lost grip of his sword. A witch grabbed the sword and in self-defense, separated the man from his head! They were never charged!
Moral of the story? Ask about the refund policy ahead of time and get it in writing! 🙂 Another tip to grasp from this story… while it may make for an interesting story, a coffin in the living room may not be the best piece of furniture for staging!
THE OLDEST CHURCH – The Spiritual Side of the Road
Just across the street from “The Oldest House,” is “The Oldest Church.” The San Miguel Chapel is said to be built around 1610 A.D. The inside of the church is quaint with original artifacts and artwork.
Now that my New Mexico journey is over, I can now announce that I’ve walked the OLDEST HOME and I’ve toured the NEWEST HOME in my twelve years of Real Estate! From sticks and stones to bricks and limestone, I’ve seen an array of construction, design and architecture.
If you plan to build a home in Texas… if you plan to construct an Adobe in San Antonio, call on someone you can trust! If you don’t have a personal Realtor, I hope my name pops into your mind! I coach first-time home buyers and sellers and I’m always on-call. Even when I’m on “vacation,” I’m just a call/text/tweet/facebook message away!
~Val J Aranda, REALTOR® & Traveler~
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