Sunday 11 December 2011

Welcome to My Hometown - Phoenix, Arizona


The Desert Botanical Gardens
We're really glad to see you. Phoenix, Arizona loves tourists. Let me show you a few of my favorites spots around town. Of course I've only lived here for ten years, but that's long enough to come to love this town. In fact, my wife and I fell in love with it the first day of our first visit. Maybe it was the welcoming arms of the saguaro; those are the tall cacti that dot our landscape. Warning, in case you don't know a lot about cacti, they come equipped with sharp spines so don't go hugging them. Want to learn more about them and other local flora? Visit one of our top attractions, The Desert Botanical Gardens. Stroll through this 145 acre delight, sip an ice tea on the patio, some days listen to music on others check out the visiting sculpture, and many more special events. Nature tame and delightful.

Camelback Mountain
Of course many visitors like their nature more rugged and challenging. For them we have trails - miles and miles of hiking trails. Two of the favorites involve mountains. What would you expect? Phoenix is in the Rocky Mountains. Camelback Mountain is one of the most popular landmarks in North Central Phoenix. The top of the mountain is a preserve which was created not by government initiative but by a local businessman who operated a spa part way up the mountain. He traded off land to create this place of climbing fun and great views. Remember, before you climb it that the trail up is not an easy romp. Every year a few folks get hurt up there. One guy even got turned to stone - not really, but on the west side of Camelback there's a rock formation that looks like a climbing monk. Speaking of men turned to stone, just north of Camelback, at the intersection of Tatum and Lincoln, there is a small park with a statue (bronze) of one of Arizona's favorite sons, Barry Goldwater. It's a tiny park but a gem with some lovely plantings and reminders of Barry's best speeches.

Downtown Phoenix in front of Piestewa Pea
Getting back to mountains: Piestewa Peak is the highest in town. The climb up this 2,600-foot mountain is actually easier than Camelback, but it is still demanding. If you are going to climb either mountain or do any hiking remember to bring water. This is a desert area, and your body will be losing water constantly even though you won't know it. 

Tempe Town Lake
Water is important in deserts. Rain, which we do occasionally get, is great, but most of the water comes from snow in the mountains way north of the city. Years ago, before man created dams and canals to organize the flow, there were huge rivers of runoff that surged through the Phoenix area. Indeed, downtown Phoenix was often flooded. One of the major such rivers is the Salt. Along its course, separating Phoenix from Tempe, is Tempe Town Lake. I love to visit it just to say hi to water. Like almost all of the lakes in this area, Tempe Town Lake is manmade. The water is held in place by an inflatable dam, which is kind of interesting. 

Arizona State University,
More interesting is Arizona State University, which is centered in Tempe. Looking for the college scene? Want to find intelligent discussions and great inexpensive arts performances? Want to take in some college sports? Tempe is the place for it, and ASU is fast becoming one of the nation's top universities. By the way you can make your visit to Tempe and downtown Phoenix easier by using the light-rail and avoiding the hassle of trying to park, especially in Tempe. 

There are far too many spots worth seeing at ASU for me to tell you about them. Some of my favourites are the organ hall in the music building, the ceramics center near the college art museum, the football stadium which is beautifully nestled into surrounding hills, and 

Gammage Hall - a giant performance space designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.
Gammage Hall
Wright made Arizona his winter home. His studio, Taliesin West, still offers architectural training. It also offers fascinating tours. By the way, the stories about Wright's eccentricity are legion. My favorite - his trying to get President Truman to remove power lines which Wright felt interfered with his vista. Wright is also commemorated at the corner of Scottsdale Road and Frank Lloyd Wright Blvd. There stands a strange, perhaps art deco, blue spire, which he designed to top the state house. It was never erected on that building, but now it stands in front of an adaptation of one of his other never used designs. That design had been for a drive-through bank, which at the time was dismissed as something nobody would ever want.

Fort McDowell
Who wants what or perhaps whom is a pretty important question around here. We've got quite a few different cultures intersecting in the Valley of the Sun. There are Native Americans, Mexican Americans, and the rest of us just plain Americans. No visit to Phoenix would be complete without learning something about our Native American community. If you are into the casino scene, be sure to check out one of the many Native America operated ones that surround the city. My own favorite is Fort McDowell. Part of that preference is because of the drive to it, which goes out Shea to the Beeline Highway. On the way you pass by Fountain Hills with its spectacular views. (And if you drive into town you can check out the small town lake with its fountain, which shoots the world's highest plume into the air each hour.)

Heard Museum
Of course you may prefer learning something more serious about the Native American community. For that purpose I suggest visiting the Heard Museum, one of the best collections of Native Americana in the world. This is one of the gems of the Phoenix museum community. The other museum which I highly recommend as unique is the Musical Instrument Museum. There are also a science museum, an art museum, a zoo, and other museums worth visiting in nearby Mesa. If there were more rain, you might actually get to a bunch during your stay, but rain is unlikely. There is one small gem that I do recommend and that is relatively unknown. The Basha family, who operate a large, local chain of grocery stores, has its own museum of Western art in Chandler. 

Now we get to a problem: You're exhausted. You've hiked, gambled, learned - and you are running out of town. You still haven't shopped. Get to downtown Scottsdale for that. You haven't gone horseback riding. Up to Carefree, which is a town that will capture your heart with its combination of old west and whimsy. Played golf. That's everywhere. Learned more about Mexican-Americans. A side trip to Tucson. And of course there are Sedona, Flagstaff, and the Grand Canyon waiting for you to the north. 

Sky Harbor Airport
Sorry, time to take you back to Sky Harbor Airport and see you off, but I know you'll be back to catch all those other wonderful sites, sounds, and experiences. 

*written by Guest Writer Kenneth Weene. In addition to boosting his new hometown of Phoenix, Ken Weene is a novelist. You can check out his writing at http://www.authorkenweene.com He has a new book coming out this winter, 'Tales From the Dew Drop Inne: Because there's one in every town' is set not in Phoenix but Albuquerque. Asked why? Ken answered, "Because Phoenix isn't every town, it's my hometown."

* An open invitation is given to any reader to submit an article listing the top 5 places that they would show to visitors in their home village, town, or city. Just email me the short article and I will post it for you. Thanks, Max.

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