It’s a beautiful state, far prettier than I thought it would be. Even though I’m from Colorado, I’ve been living on the east coast for so long that whenever I travel out west I’m amazed by all the open space and the great big skies. Arizona did not disappoint.

I’ve been to big western cities, and exploring the immense sprawl that is Phoenix was not high on my agenda. What I really wanted to see was the desert, and I logged 800 miles in three days on my rental car seeing all that I could. It was different than I expected, with a lot more trees spread among the cacti and sagebrush.

The weather was also a surprise. It was definitely hot, but not uncomfortably so. Prior to this trip, my only experience with extreme heat was either in Florida (a humid messy tropical climate) or Boston (surprisingly hot and muggy in the summer). Even with highs of nearly 110˚F, I was comfortable in my Levis and a T-shirt.

Our hotel was exactly what I expected, a giant extravagant resort twenty miles away from Phoenix directly across the street from an enormous shopping center. The resort had three swimming pools, a lazy river, five restaurants, a Starbucks, its own shopping plaza, an 18-hole Nick Faldo/Arnold Palmer designed golf course, and a spa. It was ridiculous, and I never would have stayed there without someone else paying for it (in this case, my wife’s employer). The room was nice and comfortable though, and had a great patio where we would sit and enjoy the sunrise. 

Overall it was a great time. I loved the weather and the scenery, and the people I met were extremely polite and nice.