Natural Beauty Makes for Breathtaking Scenery

Arizona

My husband and I just returned from a December trip to Arizona that put us in touch with nature’s most magnificent landforms and simplest enjoyments.

SEDONA

Sedona, AZ

The red and white colors of Red Rock Country’s breathtaking mesas, buttes, and mountains surrounded us everywhere, especially at our hotel. We stayed at L’Auberge de Sedona, a luxury resort where we had our own private, creekside cottage along Oak Creek that included a deck, wood-burning fireplace, and enclosed outdoor shower. We could hear the plump, beautiful ducks quacking nearby and got to watch their feeding in the morning. The outdoor Sunday buffet brunch along the creek was exquisitely peaceful, and my spa treatment was blissful. It was one of the nicest hotel experiences I’ve had, even when compared to slightly fancier ones where I’ve stayed, because we were so blended with nature, but not in an overly rustic, outdoorsy kind of way (we’re too prissy for that). Might I also add that we were able to pay the AAA rate for a room two notches below our cottage, meaning we got our cottage a couple hundred dollars cheaper than what it normally goes for! That’s thanks to some good bargaining skills and a nice free upgrade from the hotel, whose name means “inn” in French.

We enjoyed the slow pace of dining and shopping at Tlaquepaque (which resembles a Guadalajara square) and Sedona Center in Uptown. It was a nice escape from big-city life and travels, which we’re all too used to. I also got to enjoy my favorite dessert – homemade ice cream. We went off the beaten path on a Pink Jeep Tour, which I highly recommend for seeing parts of Sedona you would have a hard time reaching on your own, unless you’re a serious hiker or biker, or really know how to maximize a Jeep’s capabilities (but you’d still be restricted from certain areas Pink Jeep Tours are allowed and your Jeep might not be souped up enough to handle the treacherous landscape). Our guide took us on the Broken Arrow Tour – a roller coaster ride through forest and over steep, rocky terrain I didn’t know could be driven over! I was sore from it the rest of the day, but the adventure was worth it. We were able to take in stunning views and capture some amazing photos of them.

view from our L'Auberge de Sedona cottage

We headed north out of town along State Route 89A, a scenic route that was one of the most beautiful sights I’ve seen. And as the sun set, the sky became pitch black and revealed thousands of stars – a sight you miss when living in the city because of all the smog and light pollution.

FLAGSTAFF
On our way through northern Arizona, we drove through the college town of Flagstaff. We stopped only for dinner in downtown at Mountain Oasis, which served pretty tasty food from various parts of the world, including Middle Eastern, Asian, and European. The cozy ambience and international music playing over the speakers were a perfect combination for a cold winter night.

WILLIAMS/GRAND CANYON
Both times I’ve been to the Grand Canyon, I’ve arrived in a different way. The first time was by helicopter. I departed from Las Vegas. We flew into the canyon and hovered down inside it. I felt like I could almost reach out and touch the canyon wall, we were so close to it. The aerial view was just like what you see in those nature videos or shows on TV.

Grand Canyon

This time, we stayed overnight in Williams and took the train – first class on the Grand Canyon Railway. It was a great, old-timey way to travel the winding path to the Grand Canyon – complete with a Wild West show at the train depot, a café car on the train with an old-fashioned diner atmosphere, and a fake railroad robbery while we were on board. The cowboys rode their horses alongside our train at one point and hopped on to “rob” us passengers. People throughout history have traveled to the Grand Canyon using the same railroad, which still has telegraph poles along it. We looked over the Grand Canyon from a few different points. I don’t need to say much about it because just about everyone knows how vast and visually stunning the natural wonder is. What’s particularly mind boggling about its size is when you’re standing along the rim and you look out into the canyon, the opposite wall can be miles away but appear so much closer.

The sun set on our return trip, so we could see the Christmas lights and decorations along the tracks and back at the depot — decked out for The Polar Express, a special train ride that reenacts the storybook and movie.

PHOENIX

US Airways Center in downtown Phoenix

We stayed in Arizona’s largest city, Phoenix, on the first and last night of our trip. The first night, we were hungry and tired after landing at the airport, but fortunately, we stayed at a hotel near the airport, which was near the COFCO Chinese Cultural Center (a mini Chinatown)! Usually, I don’t like having Chinese food in cities that don’t have a lot of Chinese people and thus don’t have very good Chinese restaurants. But we checked it out anyway. The food wasn’t the best but wasn’t bad.

The last night, we stayed at a chic, modern downtown hotel, where, for the third time on this trip, we managed to convince the reservation/check-in desk to give us a free upgrade! All you have to do is smile and ask nicely, and most of the time, hotels will oblige.

All in all, we found Arizona to be a naturally beautiful state full of friendly, laid-back people.