Monthly Archives: July 2017

Moving to Michigan … To Who Knows Where

American University of the Caribbean, AUC, Spouses Organization, Uncategorized, United States, , , , , , ,

Surprise! We are moving to Michigan! Actually, it was more a surprise for us. 


Now that Ben is done with the first two years of medical school, the books and exams are behind him. Now he gets to do the fun part- shadowing doctors in hospitals! 

Ben’s medical school, American University of the Caribbean, has partnerships with hospitals all over the United States. While students do get to submit a list of prefered locations, the school assigns us to the hospital that fits best, depending on availability. It feels like one of those surprise grab bags we used to get at convenience stores as a kid. And while it made me a little nervous, it was kind of fun to have someone else decide where our next home would be. 


We had hoped to go to Bakersfield, California, the closest hospital to our home in Phoenix. However, we heard rumors that it was full, along with Baton Rouge and Detroit. That left Miami as the only available location on our list, so we planned for a Florida move. Tank tops and Spanish! We were getting prepared. 


Imagine our surprise when we got a call telling us that someone dropped out of the Michigan clinical rotations and we were next in line! We would be joining the previous class’s schedule, starting a few weeks earlier than Ben’s class and making up the Pediatrics rotation at another hospital later. We agreed! 


Ben’s clinical rotations start on August 14, so we had to leave 10 days after we got the news. Not a lot of time! We left Saturday, and we have been driving for two and a half days. We are almost there! 


We still don’t know where we are going to live, and the more we hear about Detroit, the less we know what to do. Go for a 15 thousand dollar home and risk the rough neighborhoods? Let more money slip into the black hole of rental properties but live in a safer area? I don’t know anything about Michigan, except for a little town called Fruitport that so visted two years ago for a wedding. Fruitport is a long way from Detroit. 


Well, I guess that is what we will figure out in the next couple days. We’ve know what it’s like to move far away to a place we had never been, but we’ve never showed up in a new place as a couple of homeless people and a dog! What will Michigan bring? I guess we will find out soon! This is all part od the adventure. 

Palatki National Monument: Hidden Ruins in Sedona

Arizona, Blog, International Travel, Nature, United States, , , , , , ,

 

Palatki? Where’s that? Even people who know Sedona aren’t always familiar with Palatki. However, you are about to be in the know! Here’s a little bit about the Sinagua Native ruins at Palatki, how to get there, and good things to know.

 

 

What to Expect

Palatki is a collection of Sinagua ruins that are thought to be at least 800 years old. They are located on the former homestead of a Mormon settler who actually lived in some of the ruins as he was building his house! Today, the site is a national monument where you can come take a look at the ancient homes and petroglyphs hidden in the Sedona red rock cliffs.

 

 

If you’ve been following this blog for at least a week, you know that Ben and I took a trip all the way up the state of Arizona to visit ancient pueblos. Palatki was number three on our list, and it was definitely different than either Tuzigoot or Pueblo la Plata, the first two we visited!

 

 

For one thing, these particular ruins are located in the shadow of a huge cliff. They also feature ancient rock art spanning probably thousands of years. Pretty cool! It can be hard to find well-preserved petroglyphs.

 

 

Palatki is managed by National Park volunteers who live onsite. Um… where do I sign up? The volunteers give complementary tours of both sites within Palatki. I’m not usually a tour person, but this was awesome. We had a great time and learned a lot!

 

 

How to Get There

Palatki is a bit far from the beaten path, but no so far as to make it hard to get there. It’s worth it, so be sure to go sometime!

 

 

If you are coming from Phoenix, head north on the I-17 until you get to Camp Verde. Then go left on the 260 until you get to Cottonwood. From there, go north on the 89A. Finally, turn left on Loy Butte Road. At the fork, go right on Boynton Point Road. This will take you to Palatki!

 

 

Good Things to Know

  • You will need a Red Rocks Pass, which I believe is $5, or a U.S. National Parks Pass, which is $80. We have the National Parks Pass.
  • The park is open from 9:30 to 3:00, seven days a week.
  • You have to take the tour to see the ruins. This sounds complicated, but it is not. Just call (928) 282-3854 and ask to get a reservation at the time you intend to visit.

 

 

Other Nearby Ruins

Can’t make Palatki, or want to see more? Check out other nearby ruins:

Want more posts on Arizona ruins? Follow 3rd Culture Wife on Facebook for more posts later this week!

Tuzigoot National Monument

Arizona, Blog, International Travel, Uncategorized, United States, , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

Tuzigoot is one of those places I’ve always see the signs for but never actually visited. During our Pueblos-of-Arizona road trip, though, Ben and I finally stopped to see it! This reconstructed ancient dwelling is located between Cottonwood and Jerome in central Arizona. It’s a great place to go if you want to see what pueblos actually looked like once-upon-a-time.

 

 

Ben and I invested in a National Parks Annual Pass, which is $80 and gives up to four adults and unlimited children admission into any United States National Park for a year. This includes national monuments, so we invited my parents to come with us and witness this awesome bit of history!

 

 

What to Expect 

Tuzigoot National Monument is the site of a large ancient pueblo that is thought to have housed the Sinagua people about 800 to 600 years ago. the pueblo is pretty big- it has over a hundred rooms!

 

 

The main room has been reconstructed so that visitors can actually walk inside and onto the roof. It’s obviously not exactly like the original, since it has stairs and a concrete floor. But it’s about as close as you can get and still be up to code! While we there, the large room was infested with flying ants. I hate ants with a deadly passion, but it didn’t stop me from going inside anyway!

 

 

My dad gave us an interesting history lesson while we were there. He works for Freeport-McMoRan, the mining company that was formerly Phelps Dodge. Phelps Dodge owns the land surrounding Tuzigoot and used to own the site as well, but they donated it to Yavapai County so that the site could be excavated and serve as a center of history and education.

 

 

Tuzigoot has an awesome visitor center attached where you can enjoy the (hallelujah) air conditioning. There is a museum here, and it hosts demonstrations once a month. You can also buy Native art and baskets here, if you like.

 

 

When to Go

The best time to go to Tuzigoot is in the spring or fall, when the weather is nicest. The summer wasn’t bad, but be prepared for a warm experience!

 

 

If you can, try to go on the third Saturday morning if the month. They do demonstrations from 10:00 to noon at the visitor’s center! When we went, we saw a demonstration on ancient weaving and dying techniques, which was pretty cool. Arrowheads and shoes are up for August and September of 2017.

 

 

How to Get There

If you’re coming from Phoenix, take the I-17 north to Camp Verde. Here, you’ll turn onto the 260 toward Cottonwood and Clarkdale. When the 260 turns into Main Street, continue on this road. Main Street becomes Broadway, and soon you’ll see the turn-off to Tuzigoot on your right.

 

 

Good Things to Know

  • The fee for the park is $10 if you don’t have a National Parks Pass. This fee also covers your visit to Montezuma Castle, should you choose to visit both in the same day.
  • You can get a National Parks Pass online or at one of many offices around the country.
  • Dogs are permitted as long as they are on leashes.
  • Go to Hog Wild Barbecue for lunch. This is not a sponsored link. It is a delicious place that my parents took us to after our trip to Tuzigoot!

 

 

More Pueblos to Visit

Montezuma Well

Montezuma Castle

Agua Fria National Monument

Palatki

Elden Pueblo

Wupatki National Park

The Ruins of Pueblo La Plata in Agua Fria

Arizona, Blog, International Travel, Nature, Uncategorized, United States, , , , , , , , , , ,

 

Do you ever wonder what it was like to live in prehistoric times? I wonder this all the time. We have so much information on how the ancient Romans lived, but there’s so little verifiable evidence about the life and times of the ancient Native tribes in the American Southwest. We do, however, have the remains of many of their homes! Agua Fria National Monument in Arizona alone contains about 500 of them, including Pueblo La Plata. Here’s a little bit about my excursion here and how to find it!

 

Pueblo La Plata

Although there are a ton of ruins in Agua Fria Monument, there’s one in particular that’s pretty well known and has a maintained trail. Pueblo La Plata is a great destination for your trip to Agua Fria National Park, especially if you don’t have the time or ability to take a longer trek into the hills to search out other ruins.

 

 

Although Pueblo La Plata is the easiest pueblo to reach, it’s still pretty far into the park. It took Ben and I about 40 minutes to drive from the park entrance to the end of the road. We actually didn’t quite get to the end of the road, because it’s a pretty rough road and we weren’t in a jeep or anything. That was OK, because it was a beautiful morning for walking around outside!

 

 

Once we walked about ten minutes, we got to the parking area. There was a path from the parking lot to the pueblo that took about five minutes. Once we arrived, we saw the heaps of stones and outlines of walls that had housed generations for perhaps hundreds of years. Visitors have found shards of pottery and left them on flat stones for the rest of us to see. Like in all archaeological sites, removing objects is not allowed. Thank goodness these things are protected for everyone to enjoy!

 

 

Standing by the walls, we looked out over the hills and canyons. How incredible it must have been to wake up every day to this view! The desert is so beautiful, with so many colors. The red dirt and greenery of the prairie is split suddenly by jagged black canyons, and in the distance the purple mountains meld into the blue of the sky. It’s so remote, and ruggedly stunning.

 

How to Get to Pueblo La Plata

Pueblo La Plata is located in Agua Fria National Monument. This national park area is located between Phoenix and Camp Verde, just south of the Sunset Point Lookout by the Bradshaw Mountains.

 

 

Turn off the I-17 onto Bloody Basin Road going east. You’ll see the sign for Agua Fria National Monument. Head down the dirt road. You’ll cross a stream (it might be dry), pass a restroom (which reminds me of descriptions I’ve read of Soviet prison cells– use at your own risk), and head uphill. Follow the signs to Pueblo La Plata. Eventually, you’ll see a sign directing you to turn left. Continue on this road until your car can’t make it anymore and then walk the rest of the way. Eventually, you’ll get to the path leading to the ruins.

 

 

More Awesome Pueblo Sites

There are a lot of great pueblo sites not far from Agua Fria National Monument! Look for Montezuma Well, Montezuma Castle, Tuzigoot, and Palatki.

I visited several sites on a ruins road trip last weekend, and I’ll be posting a new one every day this week! Subscribe or follow me on Facebook to get notified about each new post.

Chapel of the Holy Cross in Sedona, Arizona

Arizona, Blog, International Travel, Nature, United States, , , , , , ,

 

Sedona is one of Arizona’s most intriguing and beautiful locations. You’ve never experienced the magic of Arizona if you’ve been here! This town is built in a geological wonderland, where breathtaking red rock formations rise from the valley floor to create mystical shapes that inspire hikers and painters alike. Ben and I decided to take Kito here and experience some of the things we hadn’t visited before.

 

 

Although Sedona has become famous as a place where New Age mystics come to seek out vortexes, its most recognizable structure is actually Christian. The Chapel of the Holy Cross was built to honor the God whose hands carved these mysterious mountains. On Sundays it is a place of worship, and during the rest of the week it is a popular destination for people of all belief systems.

 

 

The Chapel of the Holy Cross is built right into the a red rock formation in the heart of Sedona. Although I can’t really see the likeness, the church was inspired by the Empire State Building around the time of its construction. The chapel was finished in the 1950s, and since then it has served as a Catholic place of worship.

 

 

 

The chapel is pretty far out off the I-17, but many people stream into its parking lot every day. I have to admit that we were a bit surprised at how busy it was. I guess when it’s too hot to hike, there isn’t much else to do in Sedona. Besides, the Chapel of the Holy Cross is simply stunning!

We walked up the ramp to the chapel and found ourselves gazing out over the beautiful red-rock landscape. Wow! There are few places in the world quite like this.

 

 

Since Kito couldn’t go into the church, Ben and I took turns sitting inside the chapel. There is a huge window that looks out over Sedona, and I’m pretty sure it’s the best view for a hundred miles around. If it had been quieter in there, that chapel would have been a wonderful place to sit and pray in silence. I was a little bit disappointed that the chapel’s popularity has turned it into such a tourist attraction that it’s pretty much impossible to engage in private worship. Maybe it’s different at other times of the day or when it’s not tourist season.

Even though I didn’t find the atmosphere of the Chapel of the Holy Cross to be conducive to devotional activities while I was there, it was well worth the trip! There’s a lot to love about it: the architecture, the view, the town, and so much more. It’s a great stop for any trip to Sedona. Even just half an hour at the chapel was a wonderful Arizona experience.

 

 

Half an hour was as long as we stayed, although you might want to stay longer. It was pretty warm outside and Kito wasn’t enjoying the crowds, so we decided to drive on to Flagstaff. Kito loved the forest, since it was the first time she had seen one!

Stay tuned for more Arizona adventures! I haven’t been posting much since I’ve been busy doing a lot of things, but pretty soon the 3rd Culture Wife blog will be filled with plenty of new posts on interesting things to see in the Western United States.

By the way, we are moving again soon! We still don’t know where, but I will keep you posted. Subscribe and follow on Facebook to stay connected! Until next time.