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| Christmas was merrier with the visit of Ales and Ling of Phoenix, Arizona! |
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| Superstition Mountain and Bill and Carol + the Saguaro |
Phoenix is the fifth largest city with a population of 1.6M,
following Houston, Chicago, LA, and New York (in the reverse order)! Because of relatively warm and sunny winters,
its suburbs abound with good RV Parks. We particularly like the Viewpoint Ridge
RV Resort that surrounds a 9-hole executive course plus adjoins an 18-hole golf course. It also boasts of 6 tennis courts, a ball field, a bar/grille and many other amenities for its 1,900 sites! It certainly competes with Voyager RV Resort in Tucson which has a grocery, massage parlor, two restaurants, plus many other
amenities for its 1,500 sites! But, we have to wait for what we may
find in Yuma and San Diego though before we make a decision!
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| Canyon Lake on the Apache Trail |
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| Elvis Chapel at the foreground with Superstition Mountain at the back |
I was actually surprised to find Phoenix a pretty city.
Superstition Mountain on the Apache Trail hovered around us at the Golden Sun
RV Resort. It is in Apache Junction, a Phoenix burb, where we stayed as part of our
Thousand Trails Network. On the Apache Trail we found unusually scenic sites, even an Elvis Chapel at the Superstition Visitor Center and Museum. The chapel was blasted in one of the movies he made but restored for tourism. Then three lakes surround the Trail although we were only able to go to the first one, Canyon Lake. And part of the magic is the Goldfield Ghost Town where they reenact a 'gunfight' every day!
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| Carol's looks probably knocked them dead! |
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| Carol resting at the Hole in the Rock |
The unique Desert Botanical Garden offered unusual
greenery that has adapted to an otherwise arid land. The Hole in the Rock
nearby was a special place for Bill and me. It was as nice to look up to the blue
sky in the Hole or to peer down from the hole to the valley below after a
little hike! From there we had great views of the Hunt’s Tomb, using our
higher-powered lens. Then Dobbins’ Lookout in South Mountain offered a stunning
aerial view of the city.
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| Bill and Carol at Dobbins' Lookout, with a view of the city |
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| St.Mary's Basilica in dowtpwn Phoenix |
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| Tovrea Castle |
Many unique architectural sites are also around Phoenix. The
Tovrea Castle looks like a huge wedding cake and the waiting line is already up
to April! The Mystery Castle is a Dad’s interpretation of his daughter’s
fantasy! The Wrigley Mansion is part of the legacy of the chewing gum magnate.
And Taliesin West is the companion masterpiece of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin
East in Wisconsin (please see
http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2011/07/peeling-intriguing-layers-of-wisconsin.html
). Then, when we were atop the Hole in the Rock, we saw this glistening white
pyramid atop the other Rock across the one with the Hole. We found out later
that it is Hunt’s Tomb is where the very first governor of the state of Arizona
is laid to rest in 1934 after a record seven terms. Both Rocks are actually
part of Papago Park.
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| Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West |
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| Hunt's Tomb |
But the best part of our stay in Phoenix was the visit of
Alex and Ling of Gilbert, Arizona, another burb in the city SMSA. Alex is the
Global IT go-to person for Amkor Industries, one of the semiconductor companies
that have a plant in the Philippines plus many others in Asia and here in North
America. I was glad they were in for Indian food because I prepared one of
Bill’s favorites, slow-cooked chicken tikka tandoori served with three kinds of
naan. Ling who worked previously at BPI in the Philippines brought me lengua de
gato, a favorite Filipino sweet cookie! And Alex brought special red wine for
Bill! It was a night of chatter and banter, a trek down a Filipino memory lane.
If we choose Phoenix, they will certainly be constant companions for Alex and
Bill shared a liking for some guy things!
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| even the Christmas tree is uniquely un-red! |
I can’t wait to complete this search for a base! Phoenix
stays up there with Tucson for now! Yuma
and San Diego, here we come!
Wow!! Some great pics! Particularly liked the hole in the rock.
ReplyDeleteGood luck in your search.
Yeah we like it so much! Must have taken a hundred pics! Yeah we will finish our search soon! We are in Yuma and will be in San Diego soon.
DeleteIf you are still looking for a base in AZ we recommend Verde Valley TTN... Its at 3000 feet, so cooler than Phoenix, lower than Flagstaff, so it never gets that cold. Below the snowline, so it usually snows once a year, which lasts until about 11am at the latest. Cottonwood is big enough so you can get pretty much anything you want. Has a Walmart as well as other chain food stores. A theater, a couple of state parks in an hours driving distance. Garages that are reasonable, some also handle RV's. Restaurants with good food, and is centrally located, so anywhere in the state and places line Las Vegas or parks in Utah are within a few hours driving distance. Weve leased in VV TTN for four years now, and can say the Manager is one of the best in 37 parks that we have visited.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this. We were in Verde Valley or 3 weeks last November and, altjough we had a lot of fun visiting all those places (I have s a post on it) it was a bit cold for me so i wondered how much colder it gets in dec-mar??? But now I am finding out that Phoenix, Tucson, Yuma, and San Diego also get cold. So we are still in a quandary as to where we can have a base!I am from the Philippines and am not used to very cool weather and also from Manila so I like big cities!
DeleteVerde Valley TTN is a great place for a Base. Centrally Located, go anywhere in a couple of hours. In three hours, any National or State park in AZ, some in NM, NV... Half a day to most places in southern CA. We have been Leasing Here 4 years now after extended visits to 37 TTN parks. The manager is as good as any, better than many. At 3000 feet, much cooler than Phoenix in summer and warmer in winter than Flagstaff. Four state parks we enjoy within about 20 miles, many more a two hour drive. Three National parks in 2-3 hours at about 55mph... Numerous Golf courses, restaurants in Cottonwood of all kinds. Garages with reasonable prices, some take RVs..Theater, and more nearby in Sedona. Could write a book about this area, plan to stay, forever. Though we make trips to the New England every other year.... Great Library, AZ registration is about the lowest in the country. Compared to CA, we pay less for FIVE years, than we paid in CA for one year... You get your license and plates the same day you apply, and when we walked in, were FIRST in line. No waiting in line for hours in CA then had to wait over two months for it to be delivered in the mail.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this. We were in Verde Valley or 3 weeks last November and, altjough we had a lot of fun visiting all those places (I have s a post on it) it was a bit cold for me so i wondered how much colder it gets in dec-mar??? But now I am finding out that Phoenix, Tucson, Yuma, and San Diego also get cold. So we are still in a quandary as to where we can have a base!I am from the Philippines and am not used to very cool weather and also from Manila so I like big cities!
DeleteIt would be fun to look for a base here, I have never visited Arizona when in the USA but it looks so pretty. It also looks hot! Phoenix also has plenty to offer visitors it seems.
ReplyDelete