Phoenix, Arizona

Our flight back to Vancouver had the drawback of an 8-hour layover in Phoenix. We were travelling with carry-on luggage only and would like to have left our bags at the airport and taken public transport around the city, but of course airports no longer have luggage lockers for security reasons. The solution was to hire a car for the day, and we were glad we did since Phoenix was not a place to get around in by other means: there are such huge distances between its various attractions.

Phoenix art museum was largely closed for renovations, but was still charging full price admission to see a much diminished part of its collection. We decided against supporting such shameless money-grabbing and went instead to the Heard Museum of American Indian Art. Before touring its exhibitions we paused for lunch in its shady courtyard.

The best part of the day however, was our late afternoon visit to the Desert Botanical Garden, where we saw some spectacular cacti among equally spectacular scenery.

 

Even the entrance to the site is dramatic, thanks to Dale Chihuly's amazing glass sculptures.