Highway 77 - Livonia to Grosse Tete

While on a trip to Baton Rouge, we left US 190 at Livonia and meandered down LA 77 to Grosse Tete where we got on I10.  What a grand country road this is, passing by the sugarcane fields and through the charming towns of Maringouin and Rosedale.  We enjoyed lunch at Joe's Dreyfus Store Restaurant outside of Livonia.

The Grand Canyon - May 7-9 2012

The beauty of the Grand Canyon is hard to describe with words.  I won't try.

Being there was a wonderful experience; these photos help me to remember.

Sedona, AZ - the red rocks

On the way to the Grand Canyon, we spent two wonderful days in Sedona - May 5, 6.  We stayed at the Canyon Wren Cabins in the Oak Creek Canyon, enjoying a beautiful view of the red rocks from our patio and upstairs deck.  The innkeepers were very helpful at aiming us at good places to drive to as we explored the beauty around Sedona.

(Link to more photos)

Phoenix - Desert Botanical Gardens

On our second day in Arizona, we visited the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix.  This is a very worthwhile garden to visit.   Seeing so many desert plants in their natural habitat is quite a sight, even though the temperature was in the upper 90s.  We went on a grand guided walking tour.  Although we didn't have the opportunity, we understand that in the evening it is beautiful.

View more photos.

Chihuly glass sculpture

Arizona - Taliesin West and Cosanti

On our first morning in Arizona, we visited Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West which he built in 1937.  It was his  winter home and studio, an architectural campus in the Sonoran desert northeast of Scottsdale.  Architects are trained here in this amazing setting to this day.  We saw beauty in the simplicity, use of color in the architecture and in nature.

In the afternoon, we visited Cosanti, where Paolo Soleri has created an interesting environment in which his special Soleri bells are cast in bronze.

View my album of photos from Taliesin and Cosanti.