Rob & Yvonne's Az Living: 2016

Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Boyce Thompson Arboretum

We've been in Mesa for over a month now, enjoying the amenities in Leisure World. We've fully explored the pools, hot tubs and the pickleball courts. Today we decided to venture out to the Boyce Thompson Arboretum, a botanical garden near Superior. There we hike the trails and looked at the countless displays. The park consists of 300+ acres of desert plants and other species from around the world.

The trail that circles the park is over 3 miles long and can easily be walked in a couple hours.

This bridge spans Queen Creek, which is dry at this time of the year.

They look so soft.

Odd to see such a lush place in the middle of the Sonoran Desert.

Ayer Lake is an oasis that attracts countless birds, animals and reptiles.

Monday, October 24, 2016

Heading South 2016

It's been a frustrating fall. In September, we received over 6 inches of rain in a 24 hr period and that rainfall delayed the harvest because the fields were simply too wet to drive in. We finally got into the fields but only managed to work for four days before more rain dampened the crops. After a couple dustings of snow and cool weather, the harvest for 2016 was pretty much over for the part that I participate in.

Early morning view of the back yard.

On the positive side, Joel's laser eye surgery went well and he can toss his contact lenses and glasses. We merged East and West with a Skype visit with Amy in NYC.

We managed to escape Alberta on the 18th of October and stopped in Slocan for a visit with the grandsons. It's always a pleasure.

It's hard to explain the transformation we go through every year. We leave freezing conditions in Alberta for rain in BC and then endless summer in Arizona where it is currently 36 deg C (95 F). Hard to take.

Grand Canyon as seen from the south rim.

Friday, September 2, 2016

Summer Project at Lac La Nonne

Summer Project

We needed a place to sit in the back yard near the BBQ so I put this table and chair set together with left over LVL beams, birch firewood and saskatoon limbs. The table top is made from old scaffolding planks.

Thursday, June 30, 2016

3 weeks in Spain

After an overnight flight, we magically wake up in Spain.

Breakfast in Barcelona. Jet-lag will not get the best of us.

Barcelona and Gaudi go together like Rioja Wine and Aged Goat Cheese.

Jamon is cured ham, and in Spain, you see it everywhere. Thin slices are shaved off and what they serve you looks a lot like Italian prosciutto. Very tasty. Try to ignore the hoof.

The Spanish love their cured meats. Meat served like ice cream. When in Spain….

Barcelona's Sagrada Familia church was designed by Antoni Gaudi.

The interior of the church appears to be completed and there are regular church services taking place.

Unique parachute-style crucifix hangs above the altar.

The ceiling is surreal. A mixture of art and fantasy.

Large text on an exterior wall. Note the skull at the centre right.

Another Gaudi element on the churches exterior.

These block-long, high density structures were designed with a new emerging type of mass transportation system in mind, the steam powered trolley. City planners mandated that the building corners be chamfered to allow the trolley tracks to round the corners. I read somewhere that there were 900 similarly designed buildings in Barcelona. 200 years later, the invention of the automobile put an end to the popular trollies but the hundreds of the unique buildings and street intersections remain today.

Barcelona is a football town. North Americans have a very different opinion of what football is and prefer to call this version soccer.

Plenty of modern architecture around too.

From a tourbus, this is what you see.

Alien antenas? Somebody's idea of art?

This building is apparently where Gaudi lived.

Barcelona sea port.

Gigantic abstract art display.

One of the many beaches in Barcelona. We came back here a couple of times.

La Rambla is a tree-lined pedestrian street that stretches for almost a mile. We were warned to watch for pickpockets.

More Gaudi influence.

The girls are in their element. Shopping!

Side trip to Denia, best known for it's annual "running of the bulls event". Just so happens we were a month early. Too bad. Tito and I were ready to run with those bulls.