Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum

It was Fall Family Day at the Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum. This is a once a year event with free admission, many interactive exhibits just for the kids and a lot of friendly volunteers. This was my first visit to the museum and I was impressed. I was a bit of an amateur rockhound growing up and Alex has inherited the love of rocks. He had a great time and brought home a lot of stuff.

While I'm not thrilled that it's a bit congratulatory of the joys of strip mining by companies like ASARCO, the museum is really more about rocks than mining. They have a very nice collection of many rare and valuable rocks and minerals.



Wrapped up the day with lunch at the Original Hamburger Works at 15th Ave and Thomas in Phoenix. Great non-chain restaurant with grilled burgers made to order at a reasonable price. You add your own fixings. I tried something I hadn't had before today ... a grilled chicken breast with a wheat bun and hot sauce. Yum.

T-bird Park - PHX - Oct 15-21 '06

Thunderbird Park in the north valley. Just north of 59th Ave. and 101 Loop.







When I saw that 2nd cloud picture, I couldn't help thinking about Mordor (Lord of the Rings):

California -- Day 3 (final day) .... crap!

Again, it's all about the grub. Started off the day great at the famous Uncle Bill's Pancake House, a local legend for 50 years. We hit this spot every time we come out. Though it's usually packed and there is a wait, we're always able to get right in as Michelle's aunt has some pull having lived in Manhattan Beach for a long time. She even has her picture on the wall in the restaurant. I had eggs with mild green chiles and cream cheese and also the obligatory pancakes. Nice.

After breakfast, we walked down to the beach and went on to the pier. Though a bit overcast, it was still a gorgeous day.





Notice the t-shirt. "It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong." -- Voltaire. Even on vacation, I'm trying to stick it to the man. But wait, I'm on vacation and spending money. Maybe, I'm the man. (sigh). At least I tried. We did not eat at any chain restaurants in LA. All the food places I linked to in the blog are long-established and locally owned. And the Manhattan Beach Old Hometown Fair raised money for local charities. It's tough to try and watch where your money goes and still have fun on vacation. But it can be done. The thing is, if you seek out the small local places, you get better food and a better experience anyway.

But, alas, our stay here was done and it was back on the road and back to the grind in Phoenix. Don't think we'll have the time or the money to get out of town for awhile. But I'm going to try and write about some local hikes and some local dining establishments over the next month or so.

California -- Day 2

We started the day off with exercise at Sand Dune Park, a favorite spot for many professional athletes due to it's 100 ft. high sand dune.


Next was the Manhattan Beach Old Hometown Fair for food, games, music and checking out local artists. It was packed and a lot of fun. After a nice walk home:


and a rest:


(don't ask about the Easter bucket ... I have no logical explanation why he has it or why he sleeps with it)

It was time for dinner at Catalini's Salerno Beach Restaurant in Playa del Rey, a favorite of Michelle's uncle Marty. I had the Gnocci Salerno which was fantastic and absolutely loaded with carbs that I'm going to be working off for the next month. That's OK ... it was worth it.


We're heading back home tomorrow morning (Monday) but not until we catch breakfast and go check out the pier and the ocean.

Going Back to Cali ...

We're on the road for a short vacation (3 days) at Michelle's aunt in Manhattan Beach, CA. Here's an accounting of our exploits so far:

Dropped Duchess (our pug) off at my folks' in Kingman and then proceeded on to Barstow, CA to stay for the night (Friday). That way we don't suprise Michelle's aunt in the middle of the night. Barstow is basically just another armpit-of-existence stop in the middle of nowhere similar to Needles and Blythe ... places that you only stop in to stay or eat. You honestly wonder how people live there, but, oh well. The stay at the Red Roof Inn was actually pleasant, clean, quiet and inexpensive. And the breakfast Saturday morning at the nearby truck stop was delish.


Brings to mind cross-country vacations of my youth. I don't think there was a truck stop between Iowa and Oregon that we didn't hit at least once. Couldn't help thinking that I might get lynched with my Amnesty International t-shirt and earrings but the people were actually very nice.

Before getting to Manhattan Beach on Saturday, we went to a place that I've been meaning to go to for years and a place that I know Alex would enjoy immensely -- The La Brea Tar Pits and the Page Museum. Like any boy of his age, he's a huge dinosaur nerd. Before all you eggheads start correcting me and telling me that they didn't discover any dinosaurs at the La Brea Tar Pits, let me say that you are correct. It was mammals and birds ranging from 12,000 to 40,000 years old that were discovered there (millions of years after the extinction of dinosaurs). The point is, 5 years olds barely know the difference. They just think it is cool to see old bones and saber-tooth cats. And they'd be correct. From the website: " ... The Page Museum is located at the Rancho La Brea Tar Pits in the heart of Los Angeles. Rancho La Brea is one of the world’s most famous fossil localities, recognized for having the largest and most diverse assemblage of extinct Ice Age plants and animals in the world. Visitors can learn about Los Angeles as it was between 10,000 and 40,000 years ago, during the last Ice Age, when animals such as saber-toothed cats and mammoths roamed the Los Angeles Basin. Through windows at the Page Museum Laboratory, visitors can watch bones being cleaned and repaired. Outside the Museum, in Hancock Park, life-size replicas of several extinct mammals are featured."

Finally we arrive at Manhattan Beach after wading through traffic heading to the USC-Washington football game and the Dodgers-Mets playoff game. Saturday evening we went to dinner at the Broadway Deli on The Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica. The food was good. The weather was gorgeous. And the people were pretty entertaining, ranging from breakdancers to flamenco guitarists to evangelists all in the course of a few blocks.

More pics and comments tomorrow. We're hitting the Manhattan Beach Old Hometown Fair.

Flagstaff - 9-30-06

Sometimes you plan an excursion and you just get unbelievably lucky and everything not only meets your expectations but exceeds them. Our trip this Saturday up to Flagstaff was one of those trips.

The wife's mom and niece were in town visiting and we wanted to take a day trip somewhere to get out of the heat. It had been awhile since we'd been to Flagstaff, so we planned a trip up there. It's only a 2 hour drive. Getting out about 8:00 am, we first headed to Sunset Crater. This is a volcano that erupted about 900 years ago and many of the results of that eruption are still visible. Most notably the lava beds. We've been here before but the time before, we were rushed and didn't get to take the longer trails. The contrast between the barren fields of lava and the colorful trees and foliage of the Flagstaff area is absolutely stunning.

Here is a shot of the cinder cone of the volcano itself and a shot of Alex in the middle of one of the lava beds:


Here is the family (sans moi ... consider yourself lucky) descending some stairs into a lava bed. The second photo is of Michelle and Alex in a fumarole. This is a vent where gases escaped from the lava.


Further into the same National Park is the Wupatki National Monument. These are abandone ruins from approximately 800 years ago. Many local Indian tribes consider this sacred ground. Bordering on the lava beds to the south and descending into the land that becomes the Grand Canyon to the north, the ruins not only have a historical significance but they look beautiful against the backdrop of those surroundings.


Trekking to just the other side of Flagstaff, we arrived at Arizona Snowbowl in midafternoon. They keep it open year round for things other than skiing, such as hiking and events. But one of the best times to come is in the fall as the aspen trees' leaves are changing colors. Aspens have the distinct white bark and their leaves turn bright yellow, orange and red.

What I didn't know about the Snowbowl is that they ran their Scenic Skyride in the offseason. I only discovered that the night before when I was doing a little research and planning for our trip. The Skyride was an absolute blast and the kids loved it. It is a bit scary (even for adults) but well worth it. You climb from 9,500 feet to 11,500. I'm pretty sure that is is the highest point (not in an airplane) that I've ever been. The views from the tram and the top are breathtaking. And the temperature difference from where we'd started that day, Phoenix (about 100) to Sunset Crater (probably about 80) to the lodge (high 60's) to the top of the mountain (mid 50's) is drastic.



And the perfect day was capped off with a perfect meal at the Downtown Diner in Flagstaff, including homemade caramel apple pie. Yum.