Christmas in the Desert

December 24~25

We really felt Christmas was going to be very hard without our kids and while we missed them so much, we really did end up having a nice day.  Went to Christmas Eve Mass at a lovely church in La Quinta, St. Francis Asissi...mobbed, but very, very joyful.  Just couldn't do the fondue that we have done for umpteen years for dinner, but made a Bouef Bourguignon the day before.  Making that in Tor has some issues, mainly when I sear or saute something on high heat, it usually sets the smoke alarms off!  So, I started it in the outdoor kitchen, which I have vowed since we've been here, that I will never live without again!

Christmas morning we saw snow!  Okay, far away on the mountain tops we saw snow....it's was a brillant, sunny day in the mid-60's, palm trees swaying...really miss Kelly, Chip and Ian and miss them opening our gifts to them.  Anyway, we did just fine with our little faux tabletop tree which we found great ornaments for and a wreath for the door and our stockings hung with care!

We had to keep it down this year as we have very little room to put anything else.  Gave Rick a Sunday golf bag so we can throw in a few clubs and walk a few practice holes.  Rick gave me a gorgeous Indian turquoise and silver necklace slide I coveted in Tubac, AZ. We exchanged many games of the board and video variety...my personal favorite is the Wii Iron Chef America that Rick found.  And he also bought "us" a new home entertainment center with surround sound for Tor since he's never liked the way the DVD player worked.

We sat outside by the fire and then brunched on a recipe I had filed away for a Smoked Turkey, Apple, Cheddar Egg Casserole....it was great....we topped off the meal with mimosas made with the oranges we picked  in Tucson.....too tasty!

We had dinner reservations at  Le Vallauris, (levallauris.com) which had scored near perfect ratings in Zagat's,  in Palm Springs.  It's a very pretty spot...the outdoor patio where everyone was eating has walls topped with glass that rise about 12 feet...there's no ceiling, but the room is almost covered by the branches of a half a dozen ficus trees that must be 20 feet tall with trunks the size of an oak tree....never seen them that large.  Since the temperature plummets as soon as the sun goes down, the room is also liberally covered with outdoor heaters.

The food is good, but, to me, doesn't merit the raves.  Our appetizers are the best part and then it seems to go slowly downhill from there.  My foie gras ravioli is perfect,  Rick's ahi tuna tartare is good and large enough for an entire meal.  Both entrees are fine, his a filet, mine a lamb tenderloin, but don't leave us rhapsodizing.  Dessert is a very bland trio of creme brulee for Rick, and an uninspired presentation of mixed berries for me.  What we disliked most about the experience though, was we were seated next to a table of  very thick-necked men who everyone was hovering over...consequently our service was terrible.

Splendiferous is the name given to the extravagant Christmas decorations on Minerva Road in Cathedral City.  The residents of about a three block long section have banded together to create quite a show.  It was a lovely way to cap off Christmas Day.

Merry  Christmas to all from the desert.

Indio, CA ~ aka Heaven!

December 17 ~ 23

Finally we've arrived at the pinnacle of the high road!  I sincerely doubt if we'll ever find another RV resort as fabulous as this!  The Motorcoach Country Club (motorcoachcountryclub.com) in Indio is perfection! It has all the ammenities of the finest "real resorts"...the only difference is you bring your own room! 

Our site (#149) is on the canal, has a huge patio with a pergola, waterfall and complete outdoor kitchen.  The second terrace level has a wonderful gas fire pit and the third level leads to the boat dock.  We're next to the community boat dock (which no one seems to use) with the tennis courts, pool and clubhouse behind us.  It's a perfect space to see everything, but not have anyone else close to you. 

We arrived mid-afternoon in perfect weather in the mid 60's....but we find dusk comes very early here...about 4:30....as the sun drops behind the mountains...the temperature also plummets...but the views remain spectacular and we are totally grateful for our firepit.

We wake way before dawn on our first morning and are so glad we did!

We get into the rythm of long early morning walks and the sights get you revved up for the day ahead.

We are startled one morning by a pair of birds, which, at first,we cannot identify, who seem to think they rule the roost of our temporary home.  Rick thinks they are roadrunners and Sibley's Guide to Birds proves him right.  They become daily visitors and we get used to one another. They are a hoot to watch...almost like the cartoon when they get running!

I love sitting outside with coffee, watching the birds and catching up with Kelly on the phone.

The College of the Desert (codstreetfair.com) holds a street fair and farmer's market every Saturday and Sunday.  It's great fun with hundreds of vendors from the very nice to the tres bizarre.  The few produce vendors have good stuff at good prices.  Rick likes the part he calls street eating.

Tor is filthy and is need of a spa day.  On a walk, we find a crew of eight guys power washing an RV down the way.  Rick immediately hires them to come visit Tor.

Besides savoring the views, we haven't had a chance to take advantage of all the great things to do on the property.  We're scurrying around trying to take care of Christmas stuff for decorating Tor and for gifts for each other.  The golf course will have to wait until after the big day.

Saguaro National Forest

December 16

You know the type of cactus that is reminiscent of an old western?  The really tall straight ones with a couple of arms?  Well, these are called saguaros and there is a whole national forest dedicated to them! (nps.gov/saguaro)  Turns out they're more interesting then one would think!

The park is divided into two sections; on the western edge of town at the base of the Tucson Mountains, and the eastern side, at the base of the Rincon Mountains.  Moon's Handbook of Arizona, says if you're only going to one, pick the east side, so we did.

The drive through is an 8-mile loop that is relatively deserted on this mid-December day. We learn that this cactus springs up under a mesquite tree and that it only grows to about a foot in its first 15 years and it takes at least 75 years to grow an "arm".  These plants can live over 200 years and it's very interesting to look closely at a dead one.  Under their cactus exterior, there is a kind of skeletal system that is hard as bone.

There are a lot of other types of cactus, most of them, frankly, more attractive than the saguaro. The small oval-paddled cactus in the foreground is called a prickly pear.  It's spring blossom is picked as an ingredient for many foods.  I buy a prickly pear jelly that is really tasty.

A number of varities are sporting types of blossoms.  But I've been told the spring is the time to come when the park is in full bloom and very colorful. Saw a falcon....but the only other "wild life" we saw were numerous chipmunks.  Would've like to have seen something more exotic, but must admit the bear sighting signs all over made me a bit nervous!

We were having a grand ol' time when we hear a very, very strange sound from under Jessie's (our Jeep) hood.  It's like from an old movie...out in the middle of the desert, no one around, and the water boiling over!  The difference, we have cell phones!  Rick calls a Jeep dealer, we let the car cool down and limp into the service center.  The repair to the fan is too expensive to merit being fixed.  Looks like we're going to have a big red bow in our driveway for Christmas!

We're leaving for Indio in the morning, but want to try a restaurant in a book called Road Food by Jane and Michael Stern.  El Torero (no website) is in South Tucson, light years away from the fancy downtown restaurants.  It is nearly impossible to find, set back on E. 26th Street near 4th Ave....but keep looking, it's a real treat. 

It's definitely a locals' restaurant, simple, festooned with Mexican ornamentation.  We're kind of surprised it's owned by non-Mexican man, Brad Hultquist, who took it over from his aunt in the 70's.  He joins our table periodically over the course of our dinner and is a grand storyteller.  And the food is terrific.

We start with a small Loca Crisp which is a perfect thin crust Mexican pizza with everything you might imagine with the addition of a wonderful dried beef ....the small is huge and could've been our whole dinner, but we want to try more of their authentic offerings.  I have the Shrimp Platter Vera Cruz Style. The shrimp is perfectly cooked with a tasty red, mildly spicy sauce that includes whole green olives.  I'm not a green olive fan, but it is a perfect counterpoint to other ingredients.  Rick loves his platter of three different kinds of tacos.  Of course all the food is served with the obligatory beans and rice....and then they bring a complimentary enchillada!  We love every morsel and our conversation with Brad.  Half the food comes home with us to live another day!

Heading to the desert early in the morning..tired of being cold...hoping for flip-flops in my near future!

Mr Fix-it Is At It Again and a Visit to San Xavier del Bac

December 12 ~ 15

We've turned the limited space in Gigantor into Santa's Workshop.  Spend two days wrapping, packing and shipping.  Then we have another little catastrophe.  The front heating system breaks down.  We're lucky the back one is working fine, because it's in the low 30's and it's cold. 

Rick calls a couple of repair shops, but they can't come until the next day, so of course, he does what he likes to call "troubleshooting" which means he tears the entire system and ductwork out!  It takes a good 10-12 hours, but we're fixed with a $5 switch and $50 worth of ducting.

After being cooped up for three days, we plan an excursion to a mission just outside of the Tucson city limits.

The San Xavier Del Bac Mission (sanxaviermission.org), founded in 1692 by the same Father Kino who built Tumacacori, is called the "White Dove of the Desert".  It's gleaming white structure virtually glows in the middle of its brown arid surroundings...you can see it for miles. 

The crisp white is set off with sand-colored detailing that produces quite a remarkable effect.

Its blending of Moorish, Byzantine and Mexican elements is considered one of the foremost examples of mission architecture in this country. In the early 1990's a team of art resorationists, lead by a curator from the Gugenheim, embarked on a six year intensive effort to bring it back to its original extravagance. It is now often called America's answer to the Sistine Chapel. 

A small chapel and garden sit next to the main structure.

Apparently, on most days, there are many vendors sitting in the parking area selling their wares.  Today however is a very brisk December day and one lonely family sits attempting to sell drinks.  Would like to have seen a full complement and see what they had to offer.

We are supposed to leave for Indio in the morning, but decide to spend one more day in Tucson.  We really want to see the Saguaro National Park.

Arriving Tucson ~ Tubac & Tumacacori

December 10 ~ 11

We are so often disappointed in the quality of many RV resorts, it was a pleasure to drive into Beaudry RV Resort (beaudryrv.com).  This is not a luxurious place, but it's nice, very well-tended, full of nice facilities, including an onsite restaurant, a nice pool, library, gym, and, my personal favorite, a nice wrought iron table and chairs on our patio.  And in an area that's stark to begin with, they've managed to gentle it up a bit with fruit trees at every site.  We have a chock-full-of-fruit, there-for-the-picking, lemon tree on one side, an orange on the other and grapefruit across the way.  They smell wonderful and what a treat to pick fruit for breakfast and immediately eat it.

Since Tucson is only a couple of hours from Phoenix, we have most of the day to poke around.  Still need to do some more Christmas shopping so we go to the 4th Ave. area, billed as full of unique boutiques...turns out to be very funky, but pick up a couple of things.

Drive and walk around the downtown area....like many cities we've seen, they've been renovated, resurrected and gentrified, but, while attractive, are quiet, very, very quiet.  There doesn't seem to be any residential downtown, so the only activity seems to be in and out of restaurants. 

Read about Cafe Poca Cosa (cafepocacosatuscon.com) in several books and feel woefully undressed in jeans when we walk into this very stylish, chic restaurant....then we gratefully notice everyone else is in jeans also.  A blackboard menu of about a dozen things you've never heard of, are explained by a great waiter who runs through all the multitude of ingredients in every thing.  Then there is one dish that is a sampling of three of the entrees.  The only problem is the chef chooses them for you...not letting that happen.  The waiter makes a rather big deal about no substitutions and the chef doing the sampler choosing, I find it a bit off putting.  But Rick goes for the sampler, I order a chicken mole amarillo which had so many ingredients I couldn't begin to remember them.  A different chicken mole comes for Rick along with a pork something and a vegetarian banana thing.  He likes everything but the veggie thing, my  mole  is very good.  The plates, however, are decorated with a huge salad and non-edible garni with enough food for at least two.  It's next to impossible to even cut your food without all the other stuff landing on the table.  We have enough leftovers for a couple of meals.  Enjoyed it, but don't think I'd return.

Tubac

Tubac (tubacaz.com), a teeny town about 30 miles from the Mexican border, is one of Arizona's largest art communities sporting more than 100 studios and galleries.  It was established in 1752 as a Spanish stronghold to protect early European settlers and local tribes from the more aggressive Apaches. It is charming, the people are wonderful and the shops have wonderful things at wonderful prices and you feel like you're on a backlot movie studio...it's so perfect!  I particularly like The Country Shop, La Paloma de Tubac and Old Presidio Traders.   Find a few more Christmas gifts.

Shelby's Bistro (shelbysbistrotubac.com) is a great American-style restaurant for lunch with a pretty outside space.  Rick has the best southwestern fish and chips ever cooked!...my grilled salmon on a bed of lettuce with pineapple salsa is a close second.  It is not inexpensive for some place truly in the middle of nowhere, but it is good!

Tumacacori

As long as we are this far south of Tucson, we go a bit further to Tumacacori National Historic Park (nps.gov/tuma) where Father Eusebio Francisco Kino established a Spanish mission, San Jose, in 1691.  We have been able to see so  many missions, each extraordinary in its own way.  We found this one particularly striking because it is not renovated and not a working parish today....it seemed to give a deeper insight into how it must have been.

You first see this striking view after leaving the visitor's center. After an very enthusiastic prelude by a park volunter, we are free to roam on our own....and in the middle of December, we are truly alone out there.

This is a hike from Tucson, but I would not miss Tubac or Tumacacori.  Both magnificent in their own very different ways.  We had originally thought about continuing further into Mexico, but were warned by a shop keeper that all of the border towns are pretty dangerous right now.

A kind of weird thing happened on the way back to Tucson.  There was a full-force, large border patrol with canine help stopping every vehicle about 10 miles north of Tubac. Kind of eerie.

We are really beginning to like Tucson.  Decide to stay a full week.

Phoenix 2 ~ The Boulders and a Little Golf

December 2 ~ 10

We spent this week mostly just hanging out.  Christmas presents to shop for and wrap, cleaning, washing etc.  Kind of tired of running around. Phoenix is fortunately a good place to do that, we didn't find a lot of things of interest.  And did I mention it's freezing!  Literally!  In the 50's most daytimes....upper 20's at night.  The storm that hit the midwest and east coast hard was in full force here.  One night we had over 2 inches of rain (which, BTW, is near their yearly total!)  It was the 73 mph winds that scared the heck out of me.  Tor held up fine....I, on the other hand, was not happpy!

One day we went downtown....not much there except convention spaces....we went to what is supposed to be a cute shopping district in Glendale and to see their Christmas decorations....didn't even get out of the car. 

But, then there's The Boulders (theboulders.com)!  It's raining and foggy, but the views on way to the resort are still glorious. 

We come to The Boulders for lunch.  I'd been to the resort many years ago, but wanted Rick to see how deftly this complex has been tucked into the landscape.  You actually don't realize there is a substantial structure there until you're on top of it.

Everything is tucked into, under or around the boulders.

We score definitely the best table in the house and have a wonderful view of the beautiful, but soggy, golf course.  We both order from the appetizers, and start with the Roasted Sweet Corn Chowder....it is terrific.  Rick wins the second appetizer with Blue Corn Crusted Crab Cake with Popcorn Shrimp and Saffron Aioli and a Watercress Salad....it gorgeous and fabulous.  My Sonoran Desert Grilled Quail is good, but I find the Citrus Achiote Glaze a bit odd for the meat.....perhaps it just because you see quail running everywhere around Phoenix and I feel a bit badly about eating one!

Got in a couple of rounds of golf before we left Phoenix.  The Pueblo El Mirage Resort where we are staying has a Fuzzy Zoeller course on property.  It's not bad...not difficult, but challenging enough for the first time out in a long while.  Played lights out until 17, when I pressed too hard and ended with a double/triple to totally destroy a potentially wonderful round.  Next round was like a whole different person holding the club...couldn't hit a thing. 

It's time to move on to Tucson.  Didn't like it here all that much, but we were just tired of moving around.  Think we need to stay places longer.  Looking forward to two whole weeks in Indio for the holidays.

Arriving Phoenix & Taliesin West

December 1

On the way to Phoenix, we make a slight detour to Winslow, Arizona.  Why? Because Rick wants to "stand on the corner in Winslow, Arizona" like the Eagles sang in 1972 in "Take it Easy."  Notice the trump l'oeil of the "girl, my lord, in a flat bed Ford, comin' round to take a look at me".

That's all there is there, but it is good for a good laugh!

The rest of the drive is interesting....a backdrop of mountains all the way. We stopped at a rest stop to gaze at a particularly pretty backdrop.

We haven't a clue where we're going to stay....there are about 150 of these RV resorts in the area.  We concentrate only on the ones that have a 5 star rating, but we've learned these ratings mean little or nothing.  Since we're coming in from the north, we just pick the closest one in the West Valley of Phoenix named Pueblo El Mirage RV Resort (robertsresorts.com/pueblo).  It is yet another tres bizarre place!  The public buildings and facilities are beautiful.

It has a Fuzzy Zoeller course, tennis courts, lawn bowling, clubhouses, fitness center, library and buildings for about every activity you could think of from woodworking to silversmithing.  It could be great.....except

to call this an RV resort is rather ridiculous.  It's mostly what we have learned are called "park models" which are essentially permanently installed mobile homes.  The RVs are stuck out on a dirt field with nary a picnic table, let alone cable TV (things you always find even at very modest resorts.)

It's beyond me....they could charge twice as much (which we and many others would gladly pay) and make it a terrific place.

We don't like it very much, but we have two weeks until we're due in Indio and we decide we'll just stay put for awhile.

Taliesin West

We settle in and immediately head to Scottsdale to Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright's western retreat and school of architecture (franklloydwright.org).  This is one of the most fascinating things that we have done.  Depending on the tour you pick (there are six choices differing in length of time and depth of what you see).  We opt for the 90 minute "Insights Tour" which includes entrance into the architect's personal quarters.  These tours are not inexpensive, but discover they are discounted on Tuesday and Wednesdays, this one to $26 per person. 

Taliesin West is described as one of Wright's greatest masterpieces showcasing his ability to integrate indoor and outdoor spaces.  He and his apprentices literally created this facility out of the desert gathering rocks from the desert floor and sand from the washes. I personally can't imagine living in it, it's very hard edged.  But the overall effect of how it would feel to be living as part of the landscape is captivating.  It is elegant in a ruggd sort of way and so suits the archtects rather electic and eccentric personality.

We are seated in the very large living room in Wright designed furniture. Asian and Southwestern art and artifacts are displayed throughout.  We are told of the grand parties, musical events and speakers that the Wrights hosted in this room and also in a cabaret theater, music pavilion and a lecture hall that he built in out buildings throughout the 550 acre property.  We tour his bedroom which frankly looks stark and rather uncomfortable and peak into the studios where 33 students are currently enrolled. Unfortunately we are not allowed to take pictures of the private quarters nor the studio.

We wander a bit on the property near the house and discover a lovely sculpture garden of pieces designed by a woman who originally approached Wright as a potential student. He felt that sculpting fell outside his discipline, declined her application, but allowed her to display and sell her work, which she still does.

It's funny, both Rick and I leave Taliesin West inspired to build and/or renovate another house!