Arthur Frommer, meet the real Arizona

http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/LaurieRoberts/


Poor Arthur Frommer, traveler extraordinaire. His sensibilities were so upset this week by the footage of rifle toting publicity seeking protesters on the mean streets of Phoenix that he's made an announcement.
Henceforth and perhaps for all time, he won't be visiting our fair state and he may advise his followers to give us the cold shoulder as well.

*snip*

First of all, I'm afraid you may be limiting your future travel options. Now that the national media has had heart palpitations over this thing, I expect the wackos will come out across the country toting their arms as they are, in most places, legally allowed to do. Why, already New Hampshire must be off your travel itinerary given last week's health-care town hall, wherein a guy showed up with a pistol strapped to his leg. (Funny, I don't recall any angst flowing forth on your blog about that.)

Secondly, I'm pretty sure that you'll be OK if you come for a gander at the Grand Canyon, unless you happen to be one of those tourists who gets too close to the dang thing and falls in.

*snip*

Respectfully, Mr. Frommer, I've lived in Arizona for 27 years and I've yet to ever see anyone walking down the street with an Uzi. If a publicity stunt really scares you that much, then perhaps it is best that you avoid our fine state. But I hope you're made of stronger stuff than that. I hope you give us a second look.

Come and be awed by the majesty of Monument Valley at sunrise. Go rafting down the Colorado River or sit beside the waterfall at Havasu Creek, surrounded by the massive red walls of the grandest canyon in the world.
Head to the White Mountains and strap on a snowboard this winter or take a ride through the Sonoran desert in the spring, when the wildflowers light up this land that exists nowhere else on earth. Come see the saguaros and the hawks that soar silently in the sky above.

Miller Peak, at 9466 feet, is the highest, most southern mountain in the US.(Nothing higher further south) There are some bleak parts of Az, but some very beautiful places too.
Edit to correct the elevation.

I still miss the beautiful mountain views and all the wildlife we had there.
Glendale is my home now and I love it here too but... oh those mountain views!

It's folks like us that are starting to turn AZ a bit bluer... and darn proud of it too. :)

for 5 years from '62 to 67' and loved the Desert Beauty. Turns out I'm more of a Pacific Ocean kinda girl but I'll always have my fond memories of Tucson, Phoenix, Flagstaff, and points in between.

It's a Confederate outpost in the Southwest.




Corrected the impersonal pronoun referring to the authors sex on edit.

Every area I've lived in or visited has its share of nutcases. AZ is certainly no different but it is a beautiful state.
I hope some day you'll change your mind and come to see this wonderful place. Dinner and drinks are on me.

Uhm, funny you should mention that.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Picacho_Pass

Yeah, the civil war was fought in Arizona, in a small way.

retiring there, soon I hope.

We need all the good liberals we can get! :hi:

However, there are also places where the indigenous primates have turned it into a shithole impossible to enjoy. Somalia, North Korea, and Arizona are high on that list. I'll bet the beaches in Somalia and the mountains in North Korea would be nice to visit too, but like McCain's visit to Baghdad, I wouldn't want to go trekking in any of those places without the 101st Airborne protecting me.

Arizona has one of the largest indigenous people populations in the US, as well as a vast number of historical sites related to their history....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_peoples_in_Arizona

(Former Tucson native, here. Sun Devils suck, BTW. :P )
Monsoons
Flash floods
Rattlesnakes
Scorpions
114 degrees in the shade
Dust devils
Mountain lions

Interestingly enough, the stuff I miss most about Arizona, the drastic, dangerous, harsh beauty, is the same kinds of stuff that can make other people avoid the place.