We have been in Tucson for a little over 6 months! And until 5/13, we lived right next door to an episcopal church in a neighborhood called Armory Park, just south of downtown Tucson. The home we rented was modest but we could cook, do laundry, sleep and hang out in the living room. A big benefit of living in Tucson is that it is a great place to visit (hint, hint).
In the 6 months since we have been here, we have seen old friends more than five times. Although we have a couple of great friends here, we do not have a big group of friends and amazing community of support (YET). A huge change from our life from Rochester, and unique especially for me. So having friends and family come through brings us joy that I cannot describe.
Old friends from college, Eve and Ken, who live in Madison. They make new friends easily!The next couple who we saw, old friends from Rochester, Sheryl and Eli. (and Chris is there on the right side.) We shared the first desert superbloom with them.An old friend, Judy, who I haven’t seen in years. Wonderful to reconnect our friendship, and to meet her husband, Sam, who was lovely to take this picture. This was my new friend (hah! just seeing if you were paying attention.)I have known Rhonda since I was in second grade!Other old friends who live outside Boston, Lealdon and Robin. We were so thrilled to see them. Chris and his sister, Annette. Again those that make fast friends! Annette helped him drive a truck from Rochester, helped us unpack while she was here and visited us in our new home!
And now we own a house here, have moved in, and feel like we are living with so much, even though we reduced our furniture by more than half before we left Rochester. We never reduced anything from our kitchen and are so grateful that we have it now. Lots of smoothies and fake healthy ice cream in this Tucson kitchen! We appreciate our bed and are liking our new smart TV that was a service gift from Paychex. A lot of furniture to buy in our future which could take ten years for the least enthusiastic shoppers you know.
Chris has always been the gardener of the family and he spends time researching plants and how to garden here. Totally different! In front of our house, most of the plants are unwanted types, and there is almost nothing in the back yard. Clean slate for him! So he got our first pup. Agave pup, people – he is still allergic to dogs. A new friend, Amy, is an amazing gardener, who has agaves in front of her house, that throw off “pups’.
This pup is about the size of my thumb.The pup is connected to a root that is about 12 inches long. Someday the pup will grow into this amazing agave which is almost as tall as me.
So I am going to show you some house pictures. I want to remind you that once you see the card table in the dining room with folding chairs, it will really hit you that we sold a lot!
Heading into the front courtyard. Dining room, off the kitchen and out to the back yard. Both images of living room connected to dining area. The only finished room in the house but what else do you need?
If you are looking for our new address, email me or Chris! We hope to see you in Tucson soon. Travel is awesome!
“Do this, don’t do that, can’t you read the sign?”
If you recognize these lines, you probably grew up when I did, or you are an amazing music fan. (And if you don’t, go listen to it on the Internet!) Some of us grew up when signs were taking over, and now we just don’t really notice them. But when we started moving around, we noticed they were unique.
This first set might not be so different but since protest signs are important to me, I have to show you the best of them.
These are from some different protests that I attended.
This one is “duh.”
There was quite a lot of hiking signs that we had never seen before. Some of them really surprised me because I thought everyone knew about these!
I may have hiked and camped too much in my life so I know all the safety rules, but who is stupid enough to feed bears or other wildlife?Another one that seemed kind of self-explanatory. I guess rattlesnakes need to be protected. I still have not seen one, but Chris has seen two while biking. They just hang out on The Loop, the Tucson bike path. He is thrilled each time. I am super okay not ever seeing one. This one was SURPRISING! We found it near the Grand Canyon. Another Grand Canyon sign. Again, I have never seen this sign ( and probbly won’t anywhere else!)One of my favorites!!Lots of venomous creature signs!
Some were just really funny. This first one is real! In New Mexico, and near Los Alamos, there were many of them!
My favorite sign in the world!
This one is not real but made me smile and want to buy it for so many people I know.
And here is another one that is not real, but I may need it in my front yard.
Here is one I got from someone else, but also laughed at it.
I will leave you with two signs seen as part of our breakfast project. The breakfast project is about finding the best breakfast places in Tucson. We have probably tried somewhere between 10-15 so far, and only 1 was just okay. But these had the best signs.
And Bobo’s has great coffee and amazing pancakes even though it is kind of a greasy diner. Another greasy ish diner that has amazing pancakes.
Ciao all! Good friends and new digs is the next to come!
Or unknowns of the Arizona desert (or lots of pictures and fewer words!)
The desert is mysterious. In Arizona, it will be different every spring based a number of factors. There has to be a triggering rainfall in the autumn, as well as some rainfall in January or February, and then no excessive heat (which means over 90).
It definitely all came together this year to produce “super blooms”. It truly was a wonder. Almost like we were in a different place this March and April than we were last year, but we aren’t.
Every week the blooms were different. These are some of the first!
California poppies
Then the super blooms hit. And the experience of hiking in the desert while these flowers bloomed was astonishing. Usually, in many places, it is quiet and oh so pleasant, with no crowds. In every direction, there is a view but usually tans, beiges and some green. But this spring, everywhere you looked in the hills there were colors, mostly yellow and orange . As you got closer, other colors appeared, including blue, purple, red and white. It was impossible to walk through this and not be blown over by the stunning landscape. Every time you turned your head, there was something to look at.
I have never see colors appear in the desert. On this day, there were large swaths of yellow on the hillsides.
Then as you hike, you personally get in the middle of the swaths of yellow and orange, and it becomes apparent that there are many colors, but some of them from tiny flowers.
Also there are many “normal” size flowers.
I believe the red flowers are called coral plants. OcotillaCholla (which for a while I called churros)
Such an amazing feeling as we hiked in the spring, that I never missed a weekend.
Future posts coming up include “Signs, Signs, Everywhere a Sign” and “Old Friends and New Digs”.
We are back in Tucson. Back in Tucson after almost 5 months. After almost 5 months of dealing with a difficult medical problem that I had. We spent June and July 2018 mostly in North Carolina and New York state, seeing friends and family, camping and hiking. We got back to Tucson after stopping in Albuquerque for a couple of days, and on August 11, 2018, I ended up in the hospital in Tucson. They found a brain tumor called a meningioma, which needed surgery. Chris determined that it made the most sense to head to Chicago where the top neurosurgeons worked at Northwestern to get a second opinion, and where friends and family were. I started treatment on September 5th and ended with the ringing of a gong on December 17th. Chris started working remote at University of Arizona on December 3rd, and continues to work there at this time.
Life is boring and interesting, all at the same time. Boring is what happens when you are used to being really active and not used to taking it easy to heal. Boring is making sure you get new license plates and drivers licenses, car insurance in a new state, a new dentist, and a new doctor. Looking for a new home is a combination of boring and interesting.
More interesting is learning how to live in a new place. Tucson is different. People are nicer and more willing to spend time with us in most cases (even those working in customer service jobs at big box stores) and sometimes because of that, I think Chris and I stick out as New Yorkers. We meet lots of people who have similar values, as Tucson is more liberal than other parts of the state. There is a lot going on in the winter because the weather is so delightful. Here are some of the things that happen every year or all the time. There is way more, but I just cannot attend everything these days!
International Gem and Mineral Show in February (the city fills with visitors for this!)
Many theater productions (Recently saw a great production called American Mariachi)
Music, music, music including the Tucson Jazz Festival (Martin Luther King day weekend)
An art theater (The Loft), much like the Little Theater in Rochester
Outside activities!!!
Tucson Festival of Books in early March
Some of the items for sale at the African Village which is part of the Gem and Mineral Show. We talked to mostly men from all over Africa, here to sell some amazing art items. Masks at the African VillagePancho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band at the Tucson Jazz Festival (downtown Tucson)Saw two different panels of authors speak at the Tucson Festival of Books, but forgot to take any pictures. Fashion from the Festival of Books! Javelinas on the front!
We are learning about different housing styles and building methods, the process of a sale (which differs from NY state), and about neighborhoods within 5 miles from where Chris works. He rides his bike to work most days. Many days, since we are close to downtown and a YMCA there, I do not use the car but walk everywhere. We still have The Hive van but are close to getting a smaller car. The Hive name for the car will be transferred, mostly because I can’t let the name go!
I was intensely excited about a license plate with a cactus on it and laughed at myself at the same time! Still really excited about it. Way better than NY plates! (sorry friends!)
Chris is working at a new job at the University of Arizona with a group of plant and data scientists. After almost 30 years of working for small and large companies in Boston and Rochester, the university is a very different environment that challenges him to learn new things most days. As you might know, he is the kind of guy that loves that! In late April, he will travel for work to the Netherlands for the Wageningen Hackathon (love that name!) He is also working on getting back into great bike shape, and seems to be progressing well (70 miles last weekend). I did start to drive again after no driving for 5 months, mostly short distances, but made it to Phoenix last week. I have a very good friend here from college which is absolutely wonderful. It is a little difficult sometimes to have enough energy to make new friends while working out to get stronger most days and trying to figure out what physical activities work for me. It will take more time to heal before I figure out what else to do with my life. I still practice mindfulness and meditation. We still hike within my physical capacity. Some of the rain this winter has created “super blooms in the desert” which have been amazing (there will be another post about spring wildflowers.)
As many of you know, since I always need a “project”, we have a “breakfast project” where we eat breakfast out once a week at different places, and try to find the best places. It is very hard to pick the best places because there are so many good breakfast joints, both divey and nicer. We really have not eaten at any place that is bad, and are enjoying the personalities we find in these places.
Maybe it is elegant elsewhere but it is still really yummy here! Best pancakes!! Breakfast with the most amazing pancakesGreat breakfast south of downtown
Another interesting experience; It snowed on February 22, 2019. It can snow often in the winter up on Mt Lemmon, but it snowed in town. I went to a wonderful yin flow yoga class that morning which was pretty large – between 20-25 people. Just imagine being in a class that size where everyone (except me) was excited about the snow. They could not stop talking about it and ten minutes into the class, 2 large doors in the back were opened so the snow could be seen. 5 minutes later, I had every item of clothing I brought on, and thankfully 5 minutes after that, the doors were closed and heat turned on. I could not complain and ruin the joy being expressed!! After class, I went to my friend’s neighborhood market (Rincon Market), which sells the freshest fish in Tucson. The cashiers were still exclaiming about the joy of the snow!
Me wearing my heaviest coat on the day it was snowing! Very few others wearing a heavy coat because they do not own them!!This is the amount of snow that excited everyone!
More to come in other posts about the spring superbloom, friends that visit, signs and the future!
Totally off topic here, but when Ilana was in kindergarten, she learned this song called Albuquerque Turkey. Chris still remembers most of the words and here they are for you! (If I had to listen to it while we were there, its worth sharing!)
“Albuquerque is a turkey, and so feathered and so fine.
And he wobbles and gobbles and he is absolutely mine.
He’s the best pet that you can get, better than a dog or cat.
He’s my Albuquerque turkey and I am awfully proud of that.
Now my Albuquerque turkey is so happy in his bed,
Because for our Thanksgiving dinner, we’llhave egg fu young instead.”
Well we did not find any turkeys in Albuquerque (ABQ) and much to Chris’ dismay, we did not see rattlesnakes there either. He is fascinated by snakes whereas they give me the creeps. So of course, going back to the parking lot while hiking alone near Sedona, there is an eight foot snake making its way directly in front of me. And on the Bosque bike trail in ABQ, I almost ran over a six foot snake lying there. Even once when we were together, I saw a sidewinder snake and he did not! What is up with snakes? Are they like cats, where they are most interested in the people that are allergic to them?
Other than snakes, we saw lots of rabbits, lizards,and roadrunner with a lizard in mouth. Another off topic question:why do I like lizards but not snakes?
So back to the main topic…
Chilis are big here!
We spent 2 1/2 weeks in Albuquerque. The first 3 ish days, we spent with Ilana and Josh, who were on their way to Alaska. So wonderful to see our younger daughter, and get to know the her “bois.” We did not do very much except soak it in!! We were staying in a house very close to Old Town ABQ, and spent time walking around, eating and drinking, as well as looking at native art, and ABQ decals.
Salinas Mission
Ilana at Salinas Mission
Being in ABQ was a little fateful. On the day we got here, I got a Facebook request from a friend who I have not seen or contacted in over 20 years. When I looked at her profile, I noticed she lived in ABQ. So I messaged her to let her know that we were in ABQ until the end of May. It turned out her daughter was possibly going to spend 2 months in Buffalo, and she was contacting me because she remembered that I lived in Rochester. So very coincidental that she contacted me on the exact day we go in town! We were able to get in touch, and spend some quality tine with Wendy and her husband Joel. Wendy looks and acts exactly as I remember her and it was easy to renew our friendship. Joel is delightful, and loves to ride bikes as well, so both Chris and I got to ride with him.
We also had a visitor while in ABQ. An old family friend from Yonkers where Chris grew up was riding his bicycle from New York city to San Francisco, and stopped to take a rest day with us in ABQ. It was really fun to spend some time and hear about his grand adventure.
ABQ is on the Rio Grande, and has this very complicated system of irrigation ditches that provide water both to farmers and to home owners around the city. It is an amazingly complex system, part of a network of 1200 miles of ditches and aquecias. Many of these predate the 1600’s and were used by native people, where others were built by Spanish settlers in the 1600’s and 1700’s. So water rights are a big thing if you are a home owner and want to have a garden. You pay $20-30 per year, and in return, every couple of weeks, you have to be there when the water comes down the ditch to reroute it into your yard. People take time off their jobs on a regular basis to do this. There is even a job called a ditch rider who is in charge of figuring out how much water needs to be let into the various ditches for those who use the water. The ditch rider is not a guy on a horse with a big hat (which was my assumption), but is an irrigation system operator, who goes around in a pick up truck. If you do not pay your water “tax”, or you do not use your water, you can lose water rights.
The city is at 5000 feet, and close to the east are the Sandia Mountains. Sandia means watermelon .We did get a chance to see them turn purple ish as the sun set At the Level 5 bar at Hotel Chaco, so we could understand why they are called the watermelon mountains. Much of the city is in the river valley. It is pretty low key, easy to get around, and seems like pretty easy living.
Mountains looking kind of pink/purple like watermelon
Sunset from the rooftop bat at Hotel Chaco
The second weekend we were there, there was a yoga festival on Saturday, and a century ride in Sante Fe on Sunday. So I spent much of the day doing yoga at the Railyards. It was an amazing and different experience, being with people who are passionate about yoga, doing 4 or 5 classes with teachers who have different styles, and being absorbed in the world of yoga. I hope I get the chance to do this kind of thing again or maybe even attend a week long yoga retreat. The Railyards is an old and somewhat dilapidated building with railroad tracks going through it. Although from my perspective, it would be really great to renovate it, it gets used for a farmers market on Sundays, as a place for bands to plays,and various other events.
The Railyards, sit of the yoga festival
Before the class began. There were probably 100 people taking this class with a very well known teacher based in Phoenix.
We got up at 5 a.m. on Sunday to drive to Sante Fe so Chris could ride in the Sante Fe Century, 100 miles, over 5000 feet elevation change, with anywhere from 12-18 mile per hour winds. It was pretty challenging for him but he really had a great time. While he was out riding, I drank coffee, published a blog post, took a long walk along a hiking/biking trail, and went to the New Mexico Museum of Art. Then I hightailed it back to the century finish line to see him come over the line. Sante Fe is a beautiful and magical place, but after we fed Chris lots of food, we drove back to ABQ.
All smiles before starting the Century ride.
On my walk in Sante Fe
A lovely small art museum on the main square in Sante Fe.
An interior shot of the art museum which is located in one of the older buildings in Sante Fe.
An art show on the streets of Sante Fe. There is art everywhere in this city!
He is still smiling at the end!
There were tons of other interesting things to do in Albuquerque. We did not get to all but I will tell you more about them next time.
While in Sedona, we went for a balloon ride. I have wanted to do this for a long while and finally justified the expense to myself. Our younger daughter rode in a balloon when she was 13 because her grandfather got her a balloon ride gift. Here I am at 60, letting myself do it.
You get to see the sun rise from the balloon!
It is a full morning experience, where you get picked up at 5:15 am, ride out to the launch site, watch the balloon and basket get unloaded and filled, ride for 90 ish minutes, land, then have breakfast (champagne, OJ, apple fritters and fruit.) Then the balloons get deflated and put away, everything gets loaded again, and we get dropped off at our car.
Filling up the ballon with the basket on the side still.
The ballon is mostly full.
The ride was remarkable. We floated above the buttes, mesas and red rocks with amazing views in all directions. We saw the sun rise. We saw the top of some of the mesas we hiked up. There are other balloons flying. Mostly it is silent except when the burner is turned on. It felt magical enough that I could do this every day and not get tired of it (hence the new career direction.) Our pilot was probably in his early 70’s and had been flying for over 20 years. He was a fountain of ballooning knowledge and shared freely. The balloons launch from a specific spot but where you land is due to winds that day, so there are chase vehicles.
One of the many views from up high in the sky!
Typically other balloons fly at the same time because they all fly when the weather and winds are best.
This is what you see when you look up (when the burner is on.) This is why they tell you to wear a hat!
The fancy table for the after ballooning breakfast. These are the apple fritter and fruit plates.
I am looking pretty happy. It is because of the ride, not at all due to the mimosa!
While in this area we hiked to Cathedral Rock, Brims Mesa, Devil’s Bridge , Bell Rock and did the Courtyard Butte loop. You can hike around in the desert and stay on relatively flat trails, or you can hike up various mesas and buttes. They were all gorgeous. Cathedral Rock, Brim’s Mesa and Bell Rock had the added pleasure of astounding views from the top. We did so much hiking that I had to ask for an afternoon off from my husband after 3 or 4 days!
Looking up at Cathedral Rock.
Looking back while hiking/scrambling up Cathedral Rock. In the middle you see a basket cairn. I had never seen a cairn like this before Sedona. So organized and sturdy!
I liked this tree!
As far as you can go on Brim’s Mesa.
Devil’s Bridge was so special because you not only hike to a natural rock bridge/arch, but you can walk on top of it and across it when you get there (it is about 5 feet wide at a minimum). When we first arrived, there was a yogi doing downward facing dog. He then attempted a head stand but kind of changed his mind in the middle. There is also an amazing view if you hike to the bottom of the arch and walk through it. You see the arch and the landscape behind it.
On top of Devil’s bridge (about 5 feet across).
You can also hike beneath the arch and get a visual looking through it. Most people did not do this but we were really happy we did.
My obsession to visit every national park, monument, recreation area, etc. led us to our next stop on the way to Albuquerque. We have an annual national park pass and have definitely gotten the best deal in town with it. For most, it costs $80 annually, and to get into a park, monument or recreation area usually costs between $10-20. We were surprised to notice how many of these parks there are!
The Petrified Forest National Park is in a desert painted with lots of colors, and strewn with petrified wood. Petrified wood ranges from white to gold to reds to purples, and looks like stone. There is even a natural bridge made from a giant tree that was under water for many years before it appeared again.
First views of the Painted Desert.
It looks like this has been cut up but the petrification process actually did this.
A range of petrified colors
A bridge created by a petrified tree
We have been in Albuquerque for about 2 weeks and got to spend the first few days with Ilana and her boyfriend, Josh. I even got pfankuchen (a special treat – german roll up pancakes by Chris) for breakfast on Mother’s Day before they left for their adventures in Alaska.
We use words like awesome, vast, and enormous all the time. Well, the 10 days we spent traveling from Tucson to the Sedona area and then to Albuquerque put an entirely new spin on those words. Although we knew the Sedona area was not really an option for us as a home, we wanted to see the red rocks, the mesas and buttes, and were lucky to be able to take a side trip to Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon.
On our way, we visited Jerome, an old mining town nestled into the side of a mountain. They take their history seriously here. There is a façade of an old building that hides a glass artist’s studio, and an old jail that slid over 200 feet and still stands. Many buildings are said to be haunted and we had lunch at Haunted Hamurger (no nightmares that evening). There are tons of stairs that connect homes like we saw in Bisbee, lots of kitsch, shops, galleries, bars, and restaurants.
Scary place to eat 🙂
Jerome is right near Tuzigoot National Monument, which besides indulging my new obsession with visiting national parks, recreation areas and monuments, was our first view of pueblo ruins (from 900-1300 AD). The pueblo is on a hilltop, was built by the Sinagua people who were farmers and artists who traded with other Native Americans hundreds of miles away. When they were living at the pueblo, there was more water. They had sophisticated farming methods.
The rooms of Tuzigoot
The Tuzigoot people used these stones to grind flour from mesquite.
Pretty cactus flowers
In all of the historic communities we saw, there used to be much more water, and so I learned something new on our way from Tucson to Sedona. Last fall and winter were relatively dry in many places in the Southwest, so fire restrictions, sometimes rated severe, are everywhere. This means no wood or charcoal fires, and as one sign indicated “Fire Restrictions – No Shooting.” I am such a midwest/northeast city person that Chris had to explain why!
We actually saw our first rain for a couple of months when we got to the Sedona area. It rained on and off much of the next day, so we took it easy in the morning, and visited an amazing building, Chapel of the Holy Cross. The Chapel of the Holy Cross is Catholic, built into the mesa, and designed by a student of Frank Lloyd Wright. When I walked in, I was struck by the design similarities to Temple Sinai in Rochester. The side walls are slightly tipped towards the center, and the back wall is glass with an inspiring view.
Chapel of the Holy Cross
We did spend the rest of the day shopping and eating , at Tlaquepaque (t-lac-apaca) Arts and Crafts Village – an authentic Mexican village (except for the modern stores). I think I might actually like shopping if all malls looked like this. On the way back to our AirB&B, we stopped and I tasted wine at Page Springs Winery.
Tlaquepaque Villlage
About an hour from Flagstaff (outside of Winslow, AZ – any songs come to mind?) is a meteor crater that is 50,000 years old. Although it is not a national park (so I could not indulge my current obsession here), it is nearly one mile across, 2.4 miles in circumference and more than 550 feet deep. Because the local winds swirl and lift any accumulating dust out, it does not get filled in. You can tour the site and get lots of great scientific information.
a very small fragment of the meteor
Trace fossils
On my own one day when Chris was otherwise engaged, I hiked at Fay Canyon, had lunch at a paleo restaurant, did a yoga class in Flagstaff, and had dinner at Criollo. Never fear, the hike was easy and well populated. That night was First Friday in Flagstaff, so there were people and music everywhere, open galleries, and an outdoor creperie.
The first sign one sees on the way into Fay Canyon. Seriously, who feeds bears?
Fay Canyon from the beginning of the hike
I call this goblet rock
View looking out of Fay Canyon
The end of the canyon
Dinner at Criolla
Tequila flight at Criolla
Flagstaff had another great things to offer including one of the best signs I have ever seen about driving drunk. “Drive hammered, get nailed.” True that.
From Flagstaff one day, after breakfast at the tasty and funky retro Tourist Home Café and Market, we went to the Grand Canyon and oh my, is it grand! We biked across the south rim for 5-6 hours stopping along the way. OMG. Awesome. Vast. My mouth nearly hit the ground at the first view point and I continued to truly be in awe the whole day. I have traveled a lot and seen a lot of neat places, but the canyon is indescribable. On our way home that night, in a very dark place, we pulled over to see the stars. Without light, on a clear night, there were so many that it took your breath away.
First view of the canyon – It is called the Grand Canyon for good reason!
The trail we want to hike on our next trip here.
On another day, we went to see two national monuments, Montezuma Castle and Montezuma Well. These monuments preserve and show off cliff dwellings, again built by the Sinagua people. At the castle, there was a man playing music on a traditional flute which made the walk to see the dwellings kind of magical. We also got to eat traditional frybread on our way out, kind of like fried dough but lighter.
Montezuma Castle cliff dwellings
Indian fry bread – Yum
At Montezuma Well, we saw a large limestone sinkhole which is always full due to a natural spring, with cliff dwellings on the side. This pueblo built 7 miles of irrigation canals from the spring to their fields.
Part of a seven mile irrigation canal built by the Sinagua over 900 years ago.
We did a balloon ride, a bunch of really great amazing hikes near Sedona, and visited the Petrified Forest National Park (which includes the painted desert) but that’ll be the topic of my next post.
“You never really leave a place or person you love, part of them you take with you, leaving a part of yourself behind.” (Author unknown)
As we prepare to leave Tucson for now, in my head I start to walk through the recent familiar ritual of leaving. When we preparing to “move”, I think and feel a lot.
About 7-10 days before we leave, I start taking a closer look at what food we buy, making sure to use what’s in the freezer so we have enough space in our coolers to transport it.
Saying good-bye to people starts early. When we left Rochester, it started in November for a late December departure. Here in Tucson, I have already said goodbye to the people at the food bank, some who I only worked together with for a couple weeks, but with whom a connection was made. We talked about life in Tucson as well as shows worth watching on Netflix and Amazon, books and of course, our children. We say goodbye to acquaintances, friends of friends, and eventually any friends who live here. In some cases, there are even goodbyes to our AirB&B hosts, who became a little part of our life.
I start hoping that the next place we stay will be nicer or as nice and go back to the AirB&B or VRBO booking for the next place to check out the amenities. It is hard to remember which place has what; a washer and dryer, dishwasher, patio, etc.
Because we are not really tourists, but looking for a new home, we do not spend every days seeing the sites. But at the same time, I want to see and do everything and realize at the end of our stay that there is no way to do this. So I get a little regretful and a little blue, while anticipating the new adventure. It is like leaving Rochester except on a much smaller scale. Mostly the sadness is about lost possibilities.
I also start planning for what to do in the next place. I reflect on whether this is someplace we are really considering, or just passing through for fun. I check out what grocery stores there are, whether I can get my gas at Costco, and whether we can get our snacks at Trader Joe’s. I review “must-see” sites, look for bike trails, yoga studios, and if we are serious about the possibility of living there, look for community events, activities and institutions, and sometimes at real estate.
I want our last day to happen before it is scheduled. I feel like I am done, kind of edgy and impatient. This is me wanting to avoid the regret and sadness. Of course, there is no excitement in a new place without first leaving where we are now.
At the same time, I do not want to pack until the last minute. For those of you who know my planning side, this must come as a surprise. But we don’t need to decide what to take. We take everything we are traveling with, and it is mostly organized so we know where to pack everything. I don’t want to live from suitcases and bins. When we left Redding for Tucson, it took us 1 ½ hours to pack, do dishes and take out garbage, so it doesn’t take long.
And then, somehow at the end, missing friends, family and the familiar gets a little overwhelming. We face not knowing anyone again, and in the anticipation of that absence, I get pushed back to recent losses. We have to start over. We will lack the social and support network we are used to. We face explaining our journey to everyone we meet, and we frankly face others trying to explain our adventure in a way that makes it familiar and understandable for them. In Tucson, that means that people would say “oh you are snowbirds.” Well not really but that is what folks around here are used to, so I guess it is easiest to put us in the same box.
So that is what I face in the next couple of days. Ciao.
I thought I had captured most of the bridge art but here are a few more nuggets from my long bike ride on Saturday.
From the Rillito Park portion of the Loop
Bisbee – We visited Bisbee, an old mining town, about an hour and a half from Tucson. It seems like an old hippie town now, filled with restaurants, bars, art galleries, and mining history. The town is nestled into the mountains where you would think it should not fit. The streets are connected by hundreds of stairs, and of course, we did the walking tour. For my running/triathlete friends, there is a running event every year called the Bisbee 1000 (The Great Stair Climb). By wandering up and down these stairs (and mostly we went up), you get to see this eccentric, decorated town. We also had some good food and great drinks. We did not get tickets for the copper mine tour soon enough and it was sold out, so clearly another visit is necessary!
A view of one of the main streets in Bisbee with the mountains in view. Below you will see some of house and public art we saw as we marched up and down the city stairs.
Bisbee is a place where old items are reused.
Annette and I enjoying a tequila flight, and Chris cheering us on!
We saw these bedazzled cars on our walk, and did see this one driving around later in the day!
Tohuno Chul – This is a garden, galleries and bistro. Kind of an enchanted place with a non-profit mission to connect people with the magic of nature and art in the Sonoran Desert region, as well as inspire them to care for the world. It is pretty unique. The gardens are stunning when you hike through them, the exhibitions were brilliant, and they have a wonderful gift shop with local art.
Art in the garden
Hiking – We have hiked many trails and mountain ranges but the newest standout for fun and challenge is Picacha Peak. Although the first 2 miles of trail were normal desert trail, the last mile is full of sections where it is necessary to use cables inserted in rock either to haul yourself up or to hold onto to ensure you do not fall sideways down the cliff wall. We love this kind of “almost rock climbing” and really enjoyed scrambing to the top of this peak where there is a 360 degree view of the desert around you! And the saguaros, pencil cholla and prickly pear cacti were blooming in Picacha State Park. This past weekend, we hiked the very challenging Finger Rock Trail for 8 miles and 2000 plus feet of elevation gain on the way to Mount Kimball. It was a challenging hike where at about 4000 feet, the saguaro desert gave way to a totally different landscape where there were still some cacti and agave, but also oaks, pines and manzanitas.
Flowering prickly pear
Chuckwalla lizard – This one was less than a foot away from us, sunning on a rock, could care less that we were there. There was a larger one, 20 feet away on a rock, that had a different color tail. This meant it had lost its original tail, and grew a new one.
Climbing!
View of Picacha Peak.
View from Picacha Peak.
Lunch at the top of Picacha Peak.
View of Finger Rock (rocks in the middle) from the Finger Rock Trail
In a silly moment I called this “Cactus Skeleton with Live Cactus and Live Person”. This is what a saguaro looks like when it dies.
A view going back down.
A rare species on this blog.
Some of the other beautiful items and views on our Finger Rock Trail hike.
Downtown – We haven’t spent much time here but visited on a Saturday night to see some local music at an outdoor venue within the Hotel Congress. The area was jam-packed and there seemed to be many events; huge lines at the Rialto Theater and at the Fox Theater; local vendors selling handcrafted items; a street blocked off with food trucks; a group protesting the U.S. attack on Syria. People walking everywhere! People watching everywhere! We watched a couple of local bands in the coolness of the dusk and neon signs at Hotel Congress, while Chris had coffee and a huge slice of chocolate mousse cake, and I had a cocktail. Everyone’s needs got met!!
A downtown sculpture with a view of a nice building.
Some great neon
at Hotel Congress.
Kartchner Caverns – About 30 minutes from Tucson, there is a state park that contains a cave system discovered in the early 70’s. We have been awed visiting caves before, but this place is different. Two local cavers found a narrow crack in the bottom of a sinkhole, and followed the source of warm, moist air toward what ended up being more than 2.5 miles of pristine cave passages. With the help of a local state biologist, they kept the location a secret for fourteen years, deciding that the best way to preserve the cavern — which was near a freeway — was to develop it as a tour cave through the Arizona State Park system. So this cave is “living” and continues to develop and change. You are able to take two different tours, and for this visit, we chose the Rotunda tour which has types of formations that I have never heard of before and is an active bat maternity ward. This part of the cave is actually closed to visitors from April 15 – October 15th while the bats mate and have babies. Arizonans value bats for their insect eating abilities! The original discoverers found a sloth skeleton from 80,000 years ago in the cave. The care taken to keep this cave “living” is extraordinary! Tour guides give you instructions at the beginning of the tour that if you touch anything besides the built railings, that if you tell them, a flag is placed there so that evening, the cleaning crew can come in, and get the oils that are on your hands cleaned off so the cave continues living!
Tucson Art Museum – We visited on a Thursday night, when it was open ‘til 8 pm, with children’s activities. Although we did not love the special exhibits, they were interesting, and there is some wonderful sculpture and native American art. They also have an incredible café with great coffee, food and art.
Mexican food -There are so many options for authentic Mexican food, it makes your head spin. Standouts have been El Charro and Café Poca Cosa. For breakfast, the Little One Café, owned by sisters of the Poca Cosa chef, excelled for amazing food, great prices, and an even better vibe. And the tamales everywhere! I know I have mentioned how much I love tamales, and we are staying pretty close to the #1 place In Tucson called Tucson Tamales.
The Little One Cafe in downtown Tucson
The music is not that loud. And the hug is for real!
Yes. Tamales for breakfast (sweet green corn tamale).
Tucson Food Bank – Since we were going to be here for 2 months, a great opportunity to learn more about the community was doing community service at the local food bank. The Tucson Food Bank is huge and has many programs; an organic garden, community kitchen, food drives, community garden plots, gardening lessons, weekend backpack programs for children, produce rescue, and senior meals, to name just a few. I volunteered at the food bank directly, taking jobs that required little or no training. Most of the people volunteering for these jobs were court ordered in some way (mostly for parking violations or DUIs), although there were a few others like me who did it because they wanted to give back. There were two high school students from Italy who were in Tucson living with families and doing an internship at the food bank. We packed boxed food that came to the food bank into smaller quantities for people who then picked up at the food bank or other locations. I have never seen so many tomatoes and spaghetti squashes in one day before! Tucson, Pima County and the surrounding area has a lot of hunger, so this resource is a gem in the desert!
The people – We are so fortunate to have my friend from college here. She and her husband have been so welcoming and include us on all kinds of events with their Tucson “family”. After being here for so long, with no actual family here, they have created a community of friends that are their family, and that we have greatly enjoyed! Their daughter visited for 2 weeks and we got the opportunity to get to know her as an adult (along with her lovely boyfriend.) In general, people here are pretty nice; not just exceedingly polite the way folks are in the south, but genuinely interested in talking and helping.
My dear friend Vikki who lives here in Tucson and I on a hike.
We have also had visitors. We welcome anyone who will be in the areas we are visiting, or near these areas to stop in for a visit. Chris’ sister, Annette, was here for a week, and 2 friends from college have visited as well! Quite frankly, there are times when I am a little desperate to have that social interaction that you have with someone that is not your spouse. This has happened less in Tucson than other places because we have a little built in social network.
One more week here and then on to Sedona/Cottonwood and Albuquerque!
The landscape in Tucson, although incredibly stunning, takes some getting used to if you recently lived in the Northeast. Even though it is spring and there are blooming cacti, flowers, trees and bushes, there is a lot of sand. In the Northeast, if there is dirt, most often, it is covered by grass, weeds, or other types of landscaping. Starting in April or May, the green is lush and cannot be missed. But in Tucson, there is a lot of sand and a lot of rock. Anything blooming stands out to you, and viewed from the perspective of the flats of the city, there are mountain ranges in every direction. The sunrises and sunsets decorate the sky on a regular basis like there is a party going on.
Maybe the starkness of the landscape is why there is so much public art and bridge decorations? In any case, we really enjoy the bridge decorations, and wanted to share some of them. These photos are from “the Loop”, 131 miles of bike/pedestrian path around the city. The highway bridges are often decorated as well, but much more difficult to stop and photograph.
There is a pedestrian/bike bridge downtown that is built like a rattlesnake. (Click here for a link to photos of this bridge.)
There is so much fun stuff to do in Tucson that we can’t get to much of it!
Arizona Sonora Desert Museum – Visiting is a “must-do” with anyone who wants to see the sights of Tucson. It is a large, mostly outdoors museum with 98 acres that include a zoo, botanical garden, art gallery, natural history museum and aquarium. Highlights were the raptor free flight show, cactus garden, walk in aviary, and the company!
Great Horned Owl during the Free Flight Raptor Show. These birds fly so close overhead that you could reach up and touch them (is possible but frowned upon because you can hurt them). Birds of a different feather below (the human kind!)
Some of the amazing flowering cacti and agave we saw at the museum.
March for our Lives – The walk and rally was an overwhelmingly moving event. I didn’t know about it until the morning it happened when I overheard some women talking while I was walking down Tumamoc Hill. Luckily they were very happy to have me ask them more about it! I got there late but was able to hear the speakers talking to the crowd on the University of Arizona green space. Since the event was organized by high school students, most speakers were students who spoke about how gun violence impacted them; daughters who lost their mothers; teenagers who worry each day about whether they will leave school on the bus, or in a body bag; adults shot at the same time as Gabby Gifford. The Gabby Gifford shooting occurred here at a Safeway grocery store in Tucson, and is an event that changed lives here forever. Most politicians in AZ still will not embrace any kind of change to gun laws, but there were a couple supporting this, and one of them was shot in the same event as Gabby Giffords. But the most moving for me was to have teenagers (still children!) be so articulate about the events. Their feelings shaped my views on this important issue forever.
“Dinner and a show” (and Shabbat) in the desert – I am visiting synagogues to find out more about them so we attended a hike, service and dinner in the National Saguaro Park East. We sat facing a sunset that was absolutely breathtaking and met some very wonderful welcoming people.
Museum of Contemporary Art – Located in a huge old fire station with garage doors and so much light, this small museum had really interesting exhibits and collections.
Cyclovia Tucson – A day where a 2.5 mile route on Tucson streets is closed for bikes and pedestrians, and there are events and activities along the way. It was really wonderful to ride with hundreds, as well as walk with my friend for part of the way. There were so many families on bikes, and even a couple of young toddlers riding their tricycles. I found an acai food truck and had a great smoothie. And also found a new neighborhood (Lost Barrio) where historic warehouses are being renovated to house businesses.
This is Dead Cow bike, a well known sight. I did not see the man who rides it, but the video online shows how the legs move when the bike is ridden.
Yoga – There are so many studios here in Tucson (and even more massage therapists.) I practice 5 days a week and spent 4 weeks at 4th Avenue Yoga, but am now trying out a variety of studios. The strength and calm that I get each day from this practice is inspiring. Last week, I visited studios called Yoga Oasis and Yoga is Therapy. This week, I plan to visit Sessions Yoga and Om Yoga (where they offer yoga using silks, a tool used in aerial circus work.)
