The English Kitchen

When I saw the sign for "English Kitchen", I wasn't real thrilled with the prospect of English food for lunch.  But it was actually the smell of  Bobby D's BBQ that we followed in to the building. 

Turns out, the English Kitchen is a historical landmark as a building--the food, though, is much changed.

The building has a fascinating old west story of miners, opium, Chinese people and not one bite of English food.
The "English" of English Kitchen referred to the menu, which was in English (instead of Chinese).  It contained a full list of English foods, just as the name promised.  But what was served by the Chinese owner to every patron--no matter what they ordered--was the same chow mein.
Having been in some Asian kitchens with "English" menus, I can absolutely imagine that happening.

Land slide

In the 1930s, part of Jerome, Arizona, started sliding down hill.  The mining underground had made the surface unstable.
The jail was one of the buildings caught up in the slide.

It went downhill about 225 feet.  It still sits there today--a strange, partial building in a the middle of a parking area.

Maybe it's not original, but there's still a bunk in one of the cells.

A few other buildings, like the post office, also slid down hill.

Some of them left behind a facade of very different era.

It's almost like the Roman Forum...


...almost.

Jerome

The wickedest town in the west?  The fourth largest town in Arizona territory?

These are the things Jerome used to be known for.

Now it's known as a good day trip from Phoenix and the home of several art galleries.

It's hillside 1930s state is mostly preserved and it gets enough attention to save it from being a complete ghost town. 

Tonto natural bridge

Tonto natural bridge is a 400 ft long limestone cave that forms a bridge over a small creek.

Pictures really don't convey how big it is.

Or how slippery the rocks were when climbing on them.

Or how deep that quiet looking pool of water is.

It was while resting at this point I asked some questions of the park ranger nearby. 
I asked him if the park had changed much during his ten years working there.  He said, "Oh a lot," and I expect him to tell me how the water run off had shifted rocks or that some edge of the cave wall had fallen in.  "We built all new bathrooms this year and we lengthened the parking area.  All the picnic areas are new...." 
Not what I meant, Mr. Ranger.
Though, an hour or so later, I really was glad for those fully modern and updated bathrooms. 

Agate bridge

This is how the Agate bridge at the Petrified Forest looked when I saw it.
The tree-turned-to-rock used to support itself over the canyon beneath it, but now it needs the extra concrete bracing. 








To see how visitors used to experience it, here are some fun historical photos of the Agate Bridge from around 100 years ago...

Petroglyphs in the desert

People used to live in the Painted Desert.  They've left behind some marks of their presence.
Petroglyphs.

These are some of the best preserved petroglyphs in the U.S.  They're around 1000 years old, so most of their meanings are lost.
Maybe they were solar calendar markings.
Maybe they were messages to other migrating tribes.
Maybe they commemorated important events.

Maybe one day we'll figure it out.

Painted desert

I saw the Painted Desert National Park once a long while ago, before I had done much traveling and seen much of the world's wonders.  I was blown away then by the color and vastness of the desert at that time.

I wondered if it would still be so amazing the second time around.

I was not disappointed.

The Grand Canyon

No matter which view you take of it...

...the Grand Canyon always looks different and amazing...

...it is always grand.

Elk in the park

I went to the Grand Canyon to see the magnificent rocks and cliffs and buttes.

I didn't expect to see elk.

Apparently they were imported from California and have taken a liking to the park's vegetation and water sources.
They also became accustomed to the tourists who consistently visit their home.  I wouldn't recommend petting the elk, as some tourists were attempting, but take home a photograph instead.

Vulture Mine

I drove a long, lonely road to find a real, non-touristy ghost town; one that would be cotton candy and kitschy souvenir free.

Vulture Mine promised to be just such a place, but I couldn't get in to see.  My arrival was not timed well with the limited touring schedule.

Vulture Mine began in the 1860s and was a thriving mining town until 1942.  With a population of around 5000, it was bigger even than my home town. It was Arizona's most wealthy mine, and the reason Phoenix grew up as a city.
But when the mine was closed, it became a ghost town almost over night.  Today it is quickly falling apart and mostly closed to the public. 

But if you show up at the right time on a Saturday, you can get in to see the old mining equipment, the hanging tree where men were hung for stealing gold, and several of the other buildings--if you go soon, you'll see it before the desert winds blow it all away.

State capital museum

Arizona out grew its capital building after the territory became a state, so when the legislators and governor moved out, part of the building was turned into a museum with all sorts of state trivia.

Winged Victory, a seventeen foot weather vane sits atop the building.

The room where the state congress used to meet looks sort of like a school room.

The Arizona state seal--incorrectly designed--is at the center of the building.

This was an interesting display.
There was a law that to enter town, a man must be wearing pants.  Some of the native tribes didn't have the custom of wearing them.  So there was a pair of jeans which hung on a tree outside the town.  A man could wear the jeans into town and put them back on the tree branch when he went home again.
Wow. 

Arizona state capital

I visited the state capitol building of Arizona.
Inside is a museum, outside is a nice park.

Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza is the stretch of park between the Arizona state courthouse and the capitol building museum.
The park holds numerous different war and veteran memorials.

As a plus, Arizona's blue sky makes a fantastic backdrop to it all.