Went back to Mesa Verde after 15 years and noticed something weird

I visited Mesa Verde last weekend for the first time since high school. The cliff dwellings looked smaller than I remembered, but what really got me was how close the souvenir shop is to the actual ruins now. Does anyone else feel like the commercialization is getting out of hand at these sites?

3 comments

3 Comments

davis.noah25d ago

Honestly, @jordan_anderson90, I get what you're saying about the "ancient sacred site" vibe but is it really that deep? Like, I was there last summer and yeah the gift shop is closer than it used to be, but I just walked past it and focused on the ruins. Kids with inflatable t-rexes are annoying but that's just life now, not some conspiracy to ruin your spiritual connection with the Ancestral Puebloans. Ngl, I think people get too hung up on the commercialization thing when really they could just ignore the bumper stickers and look at the cool thousand-year-old buildings instead.

jordan_anderson9026d ago

Did they move the gift shop closer or did they just build a new one? I remember the old one was down by the entrance, but last time I was there they had a whole new building practically under the Balcony House overlook (which felt super weird, honestly). I get that they need to sell stuff to keep the place running, but it kind of takes away from the whole "ancient sacred site" vibe when you're trying to imagine people living there a thousand years ago and then you turn around and see a rack of bumper stickers. I had a similar experience at Chaco Canyon a few years back where they were setting up a little pop-up tent for snacks right next to one of the kivas, which just felt wrong. Maybe they just don't have enough space to keep everything separated, but it does make you wonder where they'll draw the line eventually.

lilyg8326d ago

Heard a buddy of mine talking about that exact same thing last month @jordan_anderson90. He said he was standing at the Balcony House overlook trying to picture the whole cliff dwelling scene and then some kid walked by with a giant inflatable t-rex from the gift shop. Totally killed the moment for him. I get they gotta fund the place, but maybe keep the bumper stickers and plush toys back near the parking lot where people are already done with the whole spiritual experience.