Among the most strikingly memorable of all the Spanish colonial missions in the Southwest, Mission San Xavier del Bac was built over 200 years ago and still serves the native Tohono O’odham (aka Papago) people. Known as the “White Dove of the Desert” because of the gleaming white plaster that covers its adobe walls, balustrades, and twin bell towers—one of which is domed, the other not—this landmark edifice was designed and built by Franciscan missionaries beginning in 1778.

  Rising up from the flat desert plain, San Xavier presents an impressive silhouette, but what’s most unforgettable is the Mexican folk-baroque interior, covered in intensely wrought sculptures and paintings of saints and religious imagery. Currently under restoration by a team brought in from Italy, these paintings and figurines are among the country’s finest example of folk art, using painted mud to simulate marble, tiles, and crystal chandeliers.

  The mission (daily; donations; 520/294-2624) is well-signed and easy to reach, just 10 miles south of downtown Tucson off I-19 exit 92, then a half mile west. Across the plaza from the church is a small Tohono-owned and -operated complex of craft galleries, plus a very good taco stand.