Trip Report

We had a road trip planned that got postponed until next year by the terrible fires. The only part that we did not cancel was a trip to Phoenix to surprise my long time friend on her 60th birthday. We flew in and weren't at all disappointed by the weather or the scenery. While I've been to Phoenix before, I have never been a tourist there.

My friend's husband said that one of her favorite things to do is to go to the Botanical Gardens on her birthday. He had gotten tickets for all of us.  I could barely contain myself!!!

The Gardens there has different displays and entertainment going on all year round. Since we we were there for Halloween, there was a Halloween theme and also art depicting "El Dia de los Muertes" with an ecological twist. The Gardens is a beautiful  display of native plants laid out in an easy to navigate pattern so that one can enjoy plants that thrive in the desert climate. Unfortunately, we missed the blooms on several cactus varieties.

The paths led us to the butterfly house. It was amazing! There were several types of butterflies in residence for us to ogle. There were plates of fruit slices for their dining pleasure and the garden was set up for more feeding and places for them to lay their eggs. The color scheme was planned to titillate their butterfly senses (and mine).  I left there with thoughts of how I could modify my garden to be more attractive to butterflies. While I doubt that the black butterflies will ever migrate through our area, we do have the beautiful monarchs to admire and help.

And yes, my friend was surprised to find us in her kitchen when she got home from work.

photo by Jenni Dodini

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