Arizona Day 3

This is Wayne in front of a little baby saguaro cactus.  It is only about 11 feet tall and has no arms yet.  Isn't it, I mean isn't "he" cute?  

This is the cactus uncle.  He has been around a while.  This one is about 30 feet tall.

Seguaro only grow about an inch per year so you can see how old these guys are. They are considered the Arizona state flower and can get up to 50 feet tall.  It's hard to believe just how tall they are until you stand under one.  I don't know how they live so long because their root structure is very shallow.  If they lived in my neck of the woods, the wind would have downed them long ago.

This is a cacti garden in Phoenix.  I had never really thought of them as beautiful before, but now I think they are.  If you enlarge this picture you can really see how lovely this landscaping can be.

This red rock cliff produced a single single cactus in a protected cavity.  It really stood out.

Here are the Mama and Daddy cacti.  Notice how they are hugging. Ahhhh!

This lady is about 25 feet tall but look how many arms she has.  Ladies always like more adornments don't they?  I think we counted 16 arms on her.

The first time I saw this scene I just laughed.  There are whole forests of saguaros.  I didn't really get the whole view with this shot but it just went on forever.

When you see this background don't you just think of the old cowboy movies?  I can just picture John Wayne and Roy Rogers on their horses looking out for outlaws and the Indians that just raided their towns.

This was a red rock formation in Phoenix overlooking the city.  I just love the contrast of the red and green? 

Some of the cactus varities were in bloom when we were there but even when they are not in bloom they are very attractive.  The difference though, is that I don't bend over and sniff these.

I don't know what this variety is, but I loved it.  It is so bright and fuzzy and when mixed with the greener variety, the contrast was really stunning.

Looking down over the red cliff was this little number.  I don't know what it is.  We looked for a sign but there was none, and we came to the conclusion that maybe it is someone's home.  It is massive and very well landscaped and taken care of.  Is that a telescope in the roof?  One thing we noticed about Arizona, especially Sadona, is that there are a LOT of artsy people and even more that believe in vortex spiritual worship.

There are a lot of psychics, aura energy offices, reflexology places that use the healing art of ancient royalty (whatever that means) where you can release your blocked energy, stimulate your body's natural healing,  open your heart, give readings, help you become empowered, help to balance your arura, teach you to let your radiant light shine forth,

offer holistic experiences,  natural healing and counceling retreats etc. etc.

I am beginning to think this home belongs to one of these spiritual advisor founders.

The dome on the top probably is there to open up and channel the vortex.  Yea, that's probably it.

When we were in phoenix, we went to the art museum.  We always love to go to the really good art museums.  This wasa god one. This one had several sections, but because of time constraints we spent most of the time in the Colonial and European sections with a side step through the modern section....and this was how I was greeted....a rat on my face.

OK, not really but Wayne thought she looked like me.  Crazy exhibit huh?

The problem was, I only got pictures of the modern section because I didn't know I was allowed to take pictures when I was in the other sections.  There were paintings from the great Russian and European artists as well as from Picaso, Monet etc.

Here is crazy #2.  A Mona Lisa look alike showing  her pregnany inside and out.  Huh??

This represents the eye, I think, and was carved from wood.  I actually quite liked this one.  Maybe there was some supernatural vortex in it.

This is for Colett.  She collects birds for her mantel.  They wouldn't let me bring it  home though and I guess it would have been hard to find a place on her mantel anyway.

This trees grows everywhere in Arizona.  I was so fascinated with it because it is green from top to bottom. I had never seen green bark before.   Check it out here. Arizona Symbols, Tree: Blue Paloverde - SHG Resources

More red beauty.

Don't you just want to go here and see this?  Me too, again and again.

And yet another beautiful mountain.

Palm trees in a row.  Everywhere you go there are stately palms. Wayne says he is going to grow one here in Utah.  He looked it up and there are actually a few that will grow in our zone.

I got out to take a few pictures, scanned the area....no snakes, no cacti....or so I thought.  There was a tiny cactus about as big around as a golf ball and somehow it jumped onto the bottom of my foot and embedded itself into my shoe.  Each step I took thrust the spikes in farther. I didn't have tweezers with me so I had to pull them all out by hand.  They are nasty little buggers let me tell you.