We are settled in Arizona now, just outside of Phoenix! The landscape takes some getting used to after the green hills and beaches of the Puget Sound. But, it is beautiful in a dry, sometimes extremely hot, way.
There are trees with oranges, lemons, limes, and grapefruits growing in the yards, the parks, and along the streets. This is reminiscent of Spain, where one of the social agreements with government seems to be that fruit trees on public property are there for all citizens to harvest for their own use.
There are palm trees everywhere. They are being planted daily and you'll find outdoor pools at apartment complexes, homes, and at public facilities.
The Mesa Community College has a wonderful rose garden that covers the whole front of the campus and roses are planted all over the rest of the campus. It's maintained by the campus landscapers, but volunteers come regularly and trim the roses year round.
Churches and emergency facilities have fake trees built to use as cell towers and emergency communication devices. Yes, this is a false fir tree and it is actually inside the wall of this church.
The shopping center parking lots have many trees planted across the blacktop for shade (these are Palo Verde, which are indigenous), but also for esthetics and air quality, I think. Here is a double rainbow over a local shopping center after a short Arizona shower.
The Glendale Library is right next door to Suhuaro Ranch Park where many kinds of domestic and wild animals live. Some are kept in pens in a sort of petting zoo, but the peacocks go where they want. And, where they want to go is into the trees around the Library next door and all over the parking lot and Library grounds. Here are two of them, both females in their plain feathers that make them almost invisible in the right location and light. Compared to the males, these peahens are drab, but they have a beauty of their own, like the landscape.
These male peacocks are the real strutting show. They are normally unafraid, but now and then one will spread that magnificent tail and give you a real show.
Suhuaro Ranch Park in Glendale has many hidden fascinations, among them the animal life. Here's a rather tame rabbit who has just finished snacking on roses. There are lots and lots of these little fuzz buckets, hopping all over the park. There are also many kinds of birds, including the gorgeous peacocks.
The roses are only getting started right now. Our 60-70 degree winter is over and the blossoms are coming fast. This park has about 400 rose bushes. So many varieties and this is in a dry, extremely hot environment that I would have thought would be the last place where roses would flourish. But... here they are and they grow everywhere: parks, private yards, public facilities, climbing roses, tea roses, but mostly Florabundas. When the weather is extremely hot, the roses are not trimmed or even deadheaded because the plants need the shade of their own branches and blossoms. This park has the same arrangement as Mesa Community College - the park employees maintain the gardens, but volunteers do the trimming. My husband is now one of those volunteers!
And... when you don't have roses, you can plant a rose sculpture, like this one at Surprise City Hall!
Desert Botanical Gardens
Now, if you are very lucky and have a local library card, you can checkout a free pass to one of many local cultural attractions for you and your family or a guest. This is a big deal because, if you are a non-resident (read "tourist"), you will pay $26 per adult to get into the Desert Botanical Gardens in Papago Park on the edge of Phoenix.
Because Steve and I are now officially residents, what you see below is the decorative entrance to the Desert Botanical Gardens and those tall yellow-looking plants are actually made of glass. When night falls, those glass cacti light up like nobody's business.
Look closely. These next two photos have butterflies in them. These were taken in the new, beautiful Butterfly Garden at the Desert Botanical Gardens.
Even though the desert environment is still trying to grow on me, the contrasts of leafless branches against the backdrop of green Palo Verde trees, the blue of the clear sky, or the variations on tan of the desert demand attention and appreciation. I've always loved the silhouette of trees against the darkening skyline at twilight in the Pacific Northwest. These are different, but just as beautiful in their own way.
The Desert Botanical Gardens also includes surprising artwork exhibitions around some corners. This sculpture is by Jun Kaneko. There are numerous variations on this head throughout the park and some more whimsical, all by Kaneko.
Cacti and more cacti, many of which will flower in the loveliest colors. Perhaps that is how the desert "blooms" some times of the year. I haven't seen this yet, but I understand it can be breathtakingly beautiful. Still not loving the desert, but liking it... yeah, probably.
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| My brain after a few hours in the sun. :) |
The Lake!
I thought I would be giving up all "bodies of water" (other than swimming pools and man-made ponds) when I left the Puget Sound to live in Arizona for a while. But, just a short drive from the Phoenix area is THIS! Maybe it's man-made, but it's a LAKE!
Lake Pleasant is a gorgeous deep, dark blue. The air feels several degrees cooler on the shore, especially walking along the floating dock boardwalk to the Scorpion Bay Marina, where you can eat at a little restaurant, rent a boat, or moor your own boat.
There are two marinas here. The other is called Pleasant Harbor Marina and it has its own BBQ restaurant and facilities. I hear that marina now has the tallest slide in the world floating on this lake and some kind of separate inflated island thing that bounces you into the water - you stand on the inflated island, your friend jumps onto the other side, and you go flying into the lake. Sounds like a great spectator sport, but no army is getting me on either of those things - I promise.
The little shed you see on the left in this photo is the lower housing where you exit one of the trams that take you from the top of the Scorpion Bay Marina entrance down to the floating dock. There are two trams, in addition to a long flight of stairs. It's the first marina entrance that I have noticed that gives those with disabilities the access that able-bodied sailors take for granted. And, of course, it's fun - more fun, I'm sure, than the world's highest slide and the human bouncer.
This is the top entrance to the Scorpion Bay Marina trams and stairs.
Just so you know, the city and suburbs of this desert also have ducks, coyotes, and lizards. Here below is my parents own lizard neighbor, Spots. Another lizard that they named Henry (like the one in the British TV mystery, Death in Paradise) seems to have left the area. So, I bought a wrought iron sculpture of a lizard that is literally laying on the patio below this sliding glass door. Spots, new to the neighborhood, is hanging onto and creeping all over the screen door while he watches that faux lizard below him. Yes, the sculpture worked. It's a lizard whisperer!
And, we have celestial happenings now and again. The Supermoon was just as beautiful over Arizona. It was surprising how few stars were visible, though. Guess this part of Arizona has it's share of smog and light pollution.
There is much more to come from Arizona. There is an amazing amount of wildlife and plant life - many kinds of birds - that I didn't expect to see in the desert. It surprises me every day. We, also, hope to explore farther afield and see Sedona, Tucson, ghost towns, the Grand Canyon, and maybe a few cowboys. There is a great deal of Spanish and Mexican culture to explore and I haven't even gotten started on the local artisans.
Since leaving Europe and losing the jewelry that I brought with me for the trip, I realize that I will only be able to stop grieving for my loss when I start replacing those loved items, most of which were Native American pieces. Where better to do that than Arizona and New Mexico! Shopping has never been so sweet! [Do read the sign below. The photo was taken at Fashion Square in Scottsdale and it's a hoot; although it appears to be completely serious.]
