The trip out west is over, and here I sit again at work, already.
Yes, it is extremely sobering, and I would be lying if I suggested that there was not at least the tiniest bit of depression. There always seems to be that after a vacation, especially one that was this exciting and highly anticipated.
But it is over now. The anticipation about the endless possibilities, then the excitement as the date finally comes closer, then arrives. Leaving for the airport, taking off, landing, and seeing and enjoying the immediately obvious differences.
We saw and were amazed by the site of the different kinds of palm trees and cactus on the roadside. Got to Nogales, Mexico. Then the highlight of the trip for my son came the next day, when we went to Tombstone. A Cardinals game. Then the trip to Flagstaff, and the surrounding mountains. Then, the highlight for me: the Grand Canyon. Ancient native ruins. Then the Petrified Forest and the Painted Desert.
Oh, and swimming almost every day, except for the first day when we arrived late. Had we not arrived four hours later than expected, it might have been a clean sweep of all six days while out there. And of course, there were the wonderful breakfasts available at PJ's. the restaurant associated with Hotel Aspen, the place we spent three nights at while in Flagstaff, and which may very well rank as the best hotel experience that I have ever had, or at least, certainly ranks close to the top.
Now, here I sit again. In New Jersey, again. Back to the drudgery, again.
Vacations often are a break not just from our routine, but from our problems, as well.
As usual after a trip, I find myself continuing the exploring more about a place once I have left it. The problem with that is that you usually find out really cool things that you definitely would have wanted to do or try or taste while out there, but cannot any longer, since you are back home, and back to the boring old routine.
Still, the trip out there made me long to be back in Arizona, admittedly, and made me regret that the trip was not longer. True to form, by reading some of these articles, I only found out about some really cool and interesting things after coming back, when it is basically more of a tease than anything.
Why had I not heard of a Sonoran-Style Dog until literally hours after leaving Arizona? Also, I had no idea that Arizona is known as great wine country, perhaps second in the United States to California! But I did enjoy a glass of wine while in Flagstaff, at least.
Indeed, I knew that Native American culture was more prominent here than in New Jersey, but you really seem to see it everywhere. I saw two Pueblo ruins sites that I was not even aware of prior to the trip, and missed on seeing quite a few more famous ones. A quarter of the territory in the state belongs to Native nations. It's pretty cool!
I had no idea that Arizona hosted a Civil War battle, at Picacho Pass, nor was I aware that the bolo was the official state tie of Arizona (I always loved those types of ties). And no, I admittedly did not know what a "queso" was until reading this article, and I was unaware of vortexes within the state of Arizona. Nor did I know what a haboob was.
But Arizona is huge. I did a decent amount of research prior to the actual trip, and still did not get to do everything that I had wanted. Time and money did not permit. Plus, reading some of these links, I learned even that much more about the state, making me want to start planning for another visit. After all, I knew that Arizona was a huge state in terms of size, but I did not know that it was big enough to fit all six of the New England states, as well as Pennsylvania, combined, or that it has more wilderness space than the entire Midwest. Yet, despite that vastness, only seventeen percent of the state is privately owned! And I bet that you, like me, would never have guessed that the biggest snowflake ever recorded in Phoenix measured one inch across - not once, but twice!
And even though I saw a couple of Arizona sunsets while out there - one in th Grand Canyon! - I nonetheless did not see a sunset in the desert, with the shadow of a cactus plant and some distant mountains off in the horizon. Next time!
Still, maybe not all of those facts are as legitimate as they may at first appear. After all, fact # 33 on one of those lists suggests this:
33. The Arizona Cardinals are the longest running continuous franchise in the NFL, dating back to 1898.
While I was not aware of the whole 1898 thing, I do know one thing about the Cardinals: they did not move to Arizona until the 1988 season, and so Arizona cannot claim credit for the team being that old. Also, if the team has been around for that long, you might think that they would have accomplished more than they have, given all of that time to get it right.
Anyway, the one undeniable thing that becomes apparent whenever one travels in Arizona is that this place really is quite unique, and offers some amazing places to be explored! I got a chance to do that with my son, and despite not visiting as much as I would have liked, it is something to nonetheless be thankful for having seen as much as we did, at least!
21 Things No One Tells You About Leaving Arizona by Spencer McKee:
22 Things You Need To Know About Arizona Before You Move There:
50 Things You Probably Didn′t Know About Arizona by Kristin Norton:
30 Things Someone From Arizona Might Have To Explain To An Out-Of-Towner by Spencer McKee:
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