More Arizona Memories!

A few days after leaving Flagstaff on my virtual walk along Route 66, I find that I'm already in Williams, Arizona.

On my ACTUAL trip to Arizona in September 2019, my son and I, together with his family, flew to Phoenix, then rented a car to drive to Flagstaff. The following day, we drove to Williams...

Or was it Williams Junction? I don't remember...

There we boarded an old fashioned steam train that would take us to Grand Canyon Village and back.

It was an exciting adventure...

And now I'm back in Williams - on a virtual trek.

I'm pinching myself! I can't believe I've walked not only from Flagstaff to Williams, but from Chicago to there!

What Will a Three-Year-Old Remember?!

One of the things that makes travel memorable is sharing the experience with others.

Our Grand Canyon vacation was the first time I've taken a trip with my three-year-old granddaughter. Though she probably won't remember much about it, in the grand scheme of things, I will remember...

Her independence - as she insisted on pulling a suitcase  through the airport - just like the rest of us...

Her resourcefulness in finding "toys" to play with - like this sponge that became a pretend piece of bread.

The fish crackers she poured into a glass to make her own fish pond - after watching the koi fish in a pond at the mall.

(Later, when her fish began to disintegrate in the water, I suggested making fish ice cubes - which later "swam" down the drain...!)

Our enjoyment riding on a train...

Fun looking through a telescope... (I remember doing that as a child...)

Special fun at the end of the day, with mom and dad in the hotel pool.

Will she remember helping a flight attendant serve water on the flight back to Toronto?

Or that final nap on the plane?

Probably not - but her parents and I will remember how much fun we had because she was there!

Enjoying the World ... From Above

I took a course in physical geography during my first year at university. The course taught us about land formations - and weather...

It made me look at rivers, hills, deltas - and even the sky in a different way.

I still think of that course, whenever I fly in a plane on a clear day - looking down at the land formations below.

I only wish all planes had maps - as some do - so I can see where I am...

It's so beautiful - I wish I knew where this is!

Cactus Garden in Phoenix, Arizona

On our return to Phoenix - to fly back to Toronto - our family thought it would be interesting to visit the extensive cactus collection at Phoenix's Desert Botanical Garden.

It was conveniently located near our hotel - and near the airport...

We headed over, but the heat outdoors got the best of us.

Again it felt too hot to walk outdoors for several hours.

We were told that the main loop was a 45 minute walk - and there were other interesting garden loops as well.

So we enjoyed the plants at the entrance...

... promising ourselves that we'd return to see the rest of the cactus garden...

... if we ever came back in cooler weather!

A Fun Mall

Our five-day trip to Arizona to visit the Grand Canyon was full of serendipity - wonderful surprises...

None more so than the mall we discovered our first evening in Flagstaff...

We had headed downtown for supper...

Discovered an outdoor cafe...

Saturday evening - there was also outdoor music in a downtown square...

The mall next to the restaurant...  had a koi fish pond in the basement - where children could feed the fish...

We just happened upon it!

This became Ivy's favorite Flagstaff place...

(We came back a second time to feed the fish just before leaving Flagstaff to return to Canada...)

Such fun!

Flagstaff's Lowell Observatory

One of our travel surprises in Flagstaff, Arizona, was visiting the Lowell Observatory - built 125 years ago...

I didn't even know that Flagstaff was home to this famous observatory, where Pluto was originally seen.

We took a tour that showed us the original telescope...

And told the story of how the observatory was built - by the Lowell family of Lowell, Massechusetts.

So interesting!

This was an outdoor telescope - that was later dismantled.

Glad my son happened to find out about it!

(Our Grand Canyon trip was full of surprises!)

Food Memories...

It's always nice to find excellent places to eat when you're traveling.

This can be hard, as you're always passing through...

But we did luck out on this trip.

Not sure how my son discovered this coffee place - a former service station and garage, now used to roast coffee beans: Matador Coffee

But once we discovered it, we came back again and again.

Another great place to eat was a diner recommended by the front desk guy at our hotel. When asked where the best burger in Flagstaff could be found, he quickly replied: Mama Burger.

After we ate there, whenever we asked Ivy what she wanted to eat, she always replied: Mama Burger...

Our most-memorable meal in Flagstaff was at a steakhouse found in an RV park...

Black Barts Steakhouse - with its singing waiters... We found it by googling: best steakhouse in Flagstaff.

Ivy was enthralled!

The music was great...

And so was the food!

Back to the Grand Canyon by Car...

The day after our train ride from Williams, AZ to Grand Canyon Village, we headed back by car to see more of the south rim of the canyon from other perspectives.

There are so many beautiful views - because the canyon is so large: 277 river miles long (446 kilometers)... 

Eighteen miles (28 kilometers) wide...

And more than one mile (1.6 kilometers) down.

We found a beautiful view at the Desert View Watchtower, a rustic tower that first opened in 1932...

We climbed the stairs to the top of the four-story tower and looked at the canyon from there.

There was a telescope for a closer view...

Later we drove west, stopping at several other lookouts.

Unlike the previous day, when we took the train to Grand Canyon village, the day we drove was very  windy - both in Flagstaff, where we were staying, and at the canyon.

Fortunately, the wind pushed us away from the canyon - not towards it!

It did make us realize that we were out in nature...

Such a beautiful sight - from every lookout.

I'm so glad we came... 

2019 also happens to be the 100th anniversary of Grand Canyon National Park, esbablished in 1919...

For over 100 years, people have been coming here to marvel at the beauty of nature!