Arizona Discovery Map The Southwest: Arizona Carefree Cave Creek Discovery Map Flagstaff Grand Canyon North Scottsdale Sedona Southwest
by maribeth
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Top Reasons to Go to the Grand Canyon and Flagstaff, Arizona
The Mighty Grand Canyon
Happy 100th birthday to you, Grand Canyon! February 26, 2019 marked the 100-year anniversary of when the Grand Canyon was designated a national park, however, events to commemorate this great milestone are taking place all year long. Find out more at the Grand Canyon National Park Centennial page of the National Park Service.
I’ve been twice and was awestruck each time. My most memorable visit was with my parents in 2010. It was always my father’s dream to see the Grand Canyon before he passed and he sure wasn’t disappointed. You can read about that trip and also our travels to Monument Valley at Touring the Southwest with My Parents.
Dad Flanked by Mom and Me at the Grand Canyon
I revisited this magnificent site (in my mind this time) when I wrote it up recently for Discovery Map. Check out Historic Highlights of the Grand Canyon and Historic Highlights of Williams to find out why you should plan a good amount of time for traveling in this part of the Southwest.
Only about eighty miles from the Grand Canyon, people often combine a trip to Flagstaff with one to the Grand Canyon. It’s a must for lovers of the outdoors! Read Flagstaff Outdoors and Flagstaff History to learn about some of the highlights that I think are noteworthy.
Arizona Discovery Map Hotels & Lodging Restaurants Shopping The Southwest: Arizona Carefree Cave Creek Discovery Map North Scottsdale top picks
by maribeth
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Top Reasons to Go to Carefree, Cave Creek and North Scottsdale, Arizona
Desert Owls
Last week in my story Feeling English at Teatime in Arizona, I highlighted the English Rose Tea Room in Carefree, Arizona. This spurred me into thinking about this destination, one of my favorite places in the Southwest. If you’re going to Phoenix or Scottsdale, you must add on a few days and spend some time in Carefree, Cave Creek and North Scottsdale. Or, you could make it a destination in and of itself–there’s that much to do there. From the natural beauty of the Sonoran Desert to terrific dining, lodging, shopping and spa-going, this area enchants me in so many ways and I’m sure you’ll feel the same.
Picture Perfect Sonoran Desert
Sonoran Desert
It was the first destination I wrote up for Discovery Map; check out Embrace the Desert and Desert Dining and Shopping to find out the top reasons why you should visit this part of America. I also chose to start with this destination because Discovery Map Carefree, Cave Creek and North Scottsdale is owned by Margie Hans, a childhood friend. She lives in Carefree, practically across the street from the breathtaking Boulders Resort & Spa (more on this fabulous place later). She became involved in the map business via her brother, Peter Hans, another old friend of mine, who is the owner of Discovery Map International. Yes, it’s a franchise business with well over 150 maps across the U.S. and beyond.
Arizona Restaurants Shopping The Southwest: Afternoon Tea Arizona Arizona Biltmore Carefree drinking hot drinks in the desert English Rose Tea Room English teatime Phoenix
by maribeth
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Feeling English at Teatime in Arizona
Mom and Me Having Tea at the Arizona Biltmore
Sigh. It was just over a week ago that our minds and hearts were flooded with images of the Royal Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, now the Duke and Duchesse of Sussex. I drank English Breakfast Tea and nibbled on scones as I watched the coverage and yes, I even donned a fascinator to accessorize my silk pajamas. Didn’t you? There were so many reasons to be enchanted by this marvelous show of pomp and elegance, love and inclusion. I think most of us wanted to feel part English, part Black and oh yes, part royal. At least for a day.
The Recent Royal Wedding
It all reminded me of two exquisite teatimes I shared with my mother in Arizona, one at the charming English Rose Tea Room in Carefree, the other at the resplendent Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix. Mom and I dressed the part on two different occasions and even donned large picture hats that I had transported in an over-sized shopping bag as my carryon piece of luggage from Colorado. We savored every sip and tasty treat and indeed we felt oh-so British. It was most memorable and I know we have both thought about all the fun we had during these two special outings many times over.
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by maribeth
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Touring Iconic Monument Valley
Deep Within Monument Valley
We’ve delighted in exceptionally warm and sunny weather these past five to six weeks here in Colorado. And the colors have been glorious. A cold front blew in over the weekend, however, and now most of the trees are bare. It’s been raining a lot these past twenty-four hours and although the peaks are capped in white, our mountain landscapes appear ready for a big snowstorm. Let’s hope the fluffy white stuff starts piling up from here on out and that we have a great ski season in Telluride and the rest of Colorado.
Until that happens though, many Coloradans will be heading to the desert; it’s not far for most of us and it’s a great way to extend summer. Plus, the crowds of tourists have dispersed, which makes experiencing these wondrous places of nature more enjoyable. I’ve taken some of my best trips to Utah, Arizona and New Mexico during the fall and spring and I’m sure I’ll hit the road to one of my favorite Southwestern destinations within the next few weeks as well.
Monument Valley Is Calling Me
Touring Monument Valley with Goulding’s
Less than a four-hour drive from southwest Colorado, Monument Valley, one of America’s most spectacular sites, is one of my top choices. Situated both in Arizona and Utah, the panoply of sun-baked reds, russets, ochres and golds of the monuments appears even more magical beneath the burnished glow of autumn. In Touring the Southwest with My Parents, you can read about a trip I took to this part of the West with my parents during fall a while back. My parents loved it although I think they might have thought I was a little crazy with all my oohing and aahing. But at least I didn’t let my commentaries interfere with the solitude one feels at such an awe-inspiring place.
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by maribeth
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A Scintillating Sanctuary in Phoenix
Sultry Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain Resort & Spa
Elements: Where the Quality of the Views Rival the Food
It has been cold, rainy, snowy and windy here in Telluride, Colorado all week. I don’t mind because we always need moisture in the West and it’s also good catch-up-at-my-desk weather. But still, I can’t help daydreaming about more sunny, hot-as-a-baked-potato-fresh-out-of-the-oven environs.
I’m letting my thoughts drift to the desert, the Sonoran Desert to be exact, which I’m sure is in glorious bloom right now. Heating up nicely, too. I enjoyed a terrific visit there–within greater Phoenix/Scottsdale/Carefree–last summer with my mom, my fourth trip to that part of Arizona since I was young. And each time, I love it even more. Yes, we went last summer. It was a sunbaked sojourn and we reveled in it. (You just have to make sure you’re not basking in the sun during the heat of the day.)
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by maribeth
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Road Tripping in the Great American West
Mt. Crested Butte
Monument Valley
There’s nothing like a good, old fashioned road trip to give you a terrific sense of freedom. Perhaps it’s due to the fact that you go under your own steam–that you’re not reliant on a plane, train, bus or boat to get you to your destination. The fact that you’re the captain of your ship means that you can leave when you want, go where you want and stop at whatever strikes your fancy along the way. Maybe it’s liberating because if you take your own vehicle, it’s like bringing your personal living room on the road. Whatever the reason, road tripping is so damned much fun. And there’s no doubt that it’s even better in the great American West.
Arizona Art & Culture Music & Dance: Arizona Art & Culture Museums Music & Dance
by maribeth
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Making Memories at the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix
Inside the Musical Instrument Museum
It has been almost a week that I returned from a wonderful nine-day trip with my mother to the Phoenix/Scottsdale/Carefree, Arizona area. We visited many fine establishments, so expect to see posts on this glorious, sun-drenched part of the United States in the upcoming months.
We shared such a special mother/daughter time that I’ve, of course, been missing her. Thankfully I have many photos, mementos and music to remind me of the times we had together. Yes, some fabulous music that I discovered has taken me right back there with mom.
Are you familiar with French gypsy music? I’m talking about swinging gypsy jazz, moody boleros and tangos à la Django Reinhart. It’s the music of Paris from 1910 through the mid 1920s. You hear it and you imagine a smoky nightclub scene in the City of Light as you tap your foot and swing to the zippy beat. We heard this music performed by Zazu, a local French orchestra of Phoenix, during the Bastille Day celebration concert at the Musical Instrument Museum. Quelle découverte! Experiencing this music and this stunning museum was one of the highlights of our trip.
Arizona Restaurants The Southwest Travel: Arizona Restaurants The Southwest Travel
by maribeth
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My Mom: A True Original
My Mom: Mary Ellen Trigger Rogers Clemente
“I was great for telling stories,” my mom, née Mary Ellen Rogers, told me as we sipped frosty beers and munched on chips and salsa in an old cowboy bar in Scottsdale, Arizona. “When I was a young girl, my neighbor had a beautiful horse called Suntan,” she continued. “I dreamed of having a horse, so I started telling the story that Roy Rogers was my uncle. It was a plausible story, since my father was from Wyoming and, of course, my last name was Rogers.”
As I listened to my mom recount this tale—one that I had heard before but was relishing even more beneath the sweltering summer heat of Arizona here in this beloved watering hole where so many had come before–I sensed that she had lived this story so much that she almost believed it to be true. “When I was in the sixth grade, I had a leather belt with letters that hung down, spelling out TRIG. You know, as in Trigger, Roy Rogers’s horse. I was tall with long, bushy, blond hair, so I did sort of look like a horse.”
“I remember people calling you Trig,” I said.
“Yes, a few people—those that are still alive—still do,” my mom added as she scooped up the chunky salsa with her tortilla chip.
