I just spent a week in Arizona with my parents and Justin. Our resort was in Phoenix, but we drove all over the state.

I had no idea what to expect from AZ. I knew there was desert... and that was about it. But after spending a week there, it is at the top of my list of favorite places ever.

The resort was amazing. It was on a HUGE plot of land, with a gorgeous view of the mountains and nature everywhere you looked. Along with the main hotel there were pools, a golf course, an equestrian area and a spa. Much like Arizona, the hotel was strongly influenced by the surrounding western and Native American culture.

You can see below that they had American Indian paintings on the ceiling. Also, every time you went into the lobby you had a GREAT view of the mountains (they're kind of hard to see in this pic, but they're right outside the windows). They also had very calming Native American music playing in the hotel 24/7 (I downloaded a few songs by Nakai, one of the artists on their soundtrack).



One of the paintings on the ceiling.



We LOVED the spa. It was the first time we had taken advantage of a spa on a vacation. They had all of these rooms for you to just sit and relax in, drink tea, use hot towels and eat healthy looking snacks. They had indoor and outdoor jacuzzi tubs, steam rooms, saunas, and all of the things you would think to find at a spa (most of it men and women separate). Then, outside there was a relaxing, adult-only, co-ed pool. It was SO nice because on the first visit there were only like 3-5 other people in it, and then on the second visit we had it to ourselves! Also, they give you this SUPER COMFY robe and slippers that you can wear around while you're being pampered. My mom and I even got a facial one day!


Behind my mom is a replica of an Indian hut, made specifically for meditating.



Along with the many amenities the resort had to offer, there was this little imitation western town called Rawhide a motor boat's ride away. The boat picked us up in a (man-made) lake right behind our hotel and and took us about a mile down to the town. It was really cute. We ate dinner at Rawhide Steakhouse on two of the nights. They even had entertainment! One night we went there was a group of maybe 60-something year old cowboy looking men playing music, another night there was a man on the keyboard and a woman singing old country songs.








Here's a shot of the lake.



My dad loves baseball, so whenever we are on vacation we see a ballgame. We saw the Arizona Diamondbacks play the L.A. Dodgers at Chase field. They were giving away Kirk Gibson bobbleheads so we got there early to make sure we got one (or four). We even had time to eat at a TGIF's located in the stadium! In the photo below you can see us eating right next to the open window, looking out on the field as the players warmed up!









Here's a shot outside the stadium.



We took three different day trips, the first being to Sedona. On the way there, we visited Camelback Church of Christ (we really loved it there-- they had an amazing service and seemed like a really warm and friendly congregation). If you haven't been to Sedona you HAVE to put it on your list of things to do. There are all of these huge, red rock formations, and such gorgeous landscape, which the pictures can't do justice. We drove all around to different parts taking pics. It's SO quiet and most of the time you can't even see any signs of civilization. It was a really cool experience.

This is the Chapel of the Holy Cross. The person who commissioned it was a student of Frank Lloyd Wright, hence the influence of blending the outside with the inside. The building is nestled right in with the surrounding rock. It's a Catholic church, and pretty small inside, and I imagine it has to be a pretty spiritual experience getting to worship there every Sunday and seeing all of this around you.



The rock formation below is called Cathedral Rock (they have different names for all of their rocks, there's even a "Snoopy" and a "Coffee Pot"... once you see them you know exactly why they named them that). The "Cathedral" aspect of this rock is on the other side.







There were tons of trails for hiking. We're really not "hikers", so we didn't go on any crazy hikes, but if you love that kind of thing, I would imagine this would be the perfect place for you. But, you don't have to be a hiker to enjoy Sedona (good for us!).










I've mentioned how beautiful Sedona is, and how at times you can't even see civilization. That goes for their "city" part as well. Most of their buildings and businesses blend in with the local scenery. We read that when McDonalds moved in, the people of Sedona were worried that the yellow arches would clash with their red rock. When they requested another color, turquoise was the first color that McDonalds came back with. Sedona accepted. Apparently, this is the only McDonald's in the world with turquoise arches.




Our next day trip was to the Grand Canyon. On our way we stopped off at "Montezuma's Castle". A "castle" made hundreds of years ago by the Pre-Columbian Sinagua people. Despite the name, Montezuma never actually lived here.



Here's some cacti we passed after seeing the castle.



Now, in Phoenix the weather had been averaging a crazy hot 105. We heard it would be cooler in the Grand Canyon, but when you're in 100+ degrees, it's hard to imagine ever being too cold. So my mom and I dressed for super hot weather, while my dad dressed for temperatures in the 80's. We were like "Dad! You're going to burn up!".

But, instead...

We were freezing!!! We got there and it was pouring rain! And windy. And super cold. And I'm wearing jean cut offs and a tank top. Luckily my mom had a sweater in the car, along with an airplane blanket. I wore both.

It was the weirdest thing, though. It was down pouring and freezing, but then after like ten minutes it stopped. The sun came out, it warmed up, and I was able to go without the airplane blanket!

Here's a gorgeous shot of a rainbow over the Grand Canyon, right after the rain.



Right before the rain let up.


After the rain, there was this fog on the top of this rock. I love how it looks!



At one point it was raining so hard we had to take cover under a tree!




Now, the Grand Canyon was way different than I thought it would be. There are a bunch of areas where you can go see it, so maybe I've seen pics of a different part or something. But it was very cool! I had no idea how the Grand Canyon came to be. The little learning center (the Geology Museum, where you can also look out over the Canyon) explained that basically (and don't quote me on this) the Colorado River, along with it's tributaries (which are rivers that flow into the Colorado River) is like a saw or liquid sand paper, and just keeps cutting deeper and deeper into the rock. Then, when it cuts deeper, the side rocks wear away (I forget how...). Anyway, it's taken like, millions of years to do, and it's still doing it!



There were people getting so close to the edge! Like, sitting-and-dangling-their-feet-over-the-edge-with-their-hands-in-the-air kind of close, or having-a-picnic-and-not-watching-their-kids-while-their-kids-get-really-close-to-the-edge kind of close. Looking at this picture I feel like we're too close!











I forgot to take my sweater off for this pic. It comes past my shorts, and kind of makes me look like I'm wearing a cape.





Our last day trip was to Tombstone. I had heard of Tombstone, but didn't know ANYTHING about it. But I do now! There is a lot of pioneer and mining history there, but the thing that it's most famous for is the gunfight at the O.K. Corral (I didn't know anything about that either).

Basically, back in 1881 there were a bunch of cowboys shooting at each other; some died, some lived. Click here for an even more descriptive re-telling.



The town still has an old west feel.


We went to Boot Hill Cemetery to see some of the infamous graves. A new cemetery, called the "city cemetery" was started in 1884, leaving Boothill closed down and neglected. It's unclear when it was restored (we read both the 20's and the 40's), but by that time grave markers were missing. They relied on public records and accounts of family and friends as to who was buried there and where.



The three cowboys killed in the O.K. Corral shoot out.



I saw this old building on the way into town and thought the turquoise paint coming off the wood looked interesting!



When traveling, It's always fun to eat at places that are only in that area. My mom had read about this restaurant in Phoenix that was on the Food Network's "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives" with Guy Fieri. I've always wanted to go to those restaurants you see on the Food Network! So we were really excited to try out Matt's Big Breakfast!

The food was really good! And I will say they are the best pancakes I've ever had.







My mom had also read about an olive oil press that was worth visiting. It was called "Queen Creek Olive Mill", and it was really cool. It's basically an olive farm and they grow all their own olives (along with a lot of other fruits and vegetables). We took a tour and they explained how they grow and press their olives (which was really interesting!). Afterwards we shopped for some oils (they had every kind of olive oil you could imagine, all made right their on their farm), and had lunch. Their food was super tasty, and if you're going to Phoenix anytime soon I suggest you take an afternoon and head out there. They, too, have been featured on TV, on an episode of Mike Rowe's "Dirty Jobs".







We had such an amazing time!!! The week flew by! We got to see so much and still had time to relax and enjoy Arizona's gorgeous scenery!!! I think this is one of my favorite vacations. Definitely take a trip here if you get a chance!!!