Southwest (2)

On our way north, Camp Verde is home to the world’s largest Kokopelli, a religious figure showing a flute player. We continue to Montezuma Castle National Monument, a well-preserved rock castle. The next accommodation is in Sedona, also called “Beverly Hills on the Rocks”. The distinctive rocks of Red Rock County are glowing in the sun and have names like Cathedral Rock, Bell Rock or Teapot Rock. From Sedona it is only a short trip to Flagstaff and to Walnut Canyon National Monument, a rather impressive gorge again with rock dwellings.

We are heading west again. Between the two cowboy towns of Cottonwood and Clarkdale lies the Tuzigoot National Monument, another former native American settlement. Via Jerome (located like on the Amalfi Coast), Prescott (once the provisional capital of Arizona) and Kingman (without any charm) we reach Lake Havasu at the lake with the same name. There are two outstanding sights here: London Bridge, imported from London and rebuilt true to the original, and Parker Dam with the highest dam in the world. Last destination in Arizona is Quartzsite where we see a little pyramid crowned by a small camel, the grave of Hi Jolly, a camel driver from Syria.

When we reach Joshua Tree National Park, we are back in California. The joshua palm lilies only exist in this part of the Mojave Desert. A last excursion into nature is waiting in Palm Springs, where we take the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway up to Mount San Jacinto. Then we are ready for the big city – Los Angeles, America’s second largest metropolis is waiting for us. The next two days we spend in Downtown LA, in Hollywood and Beverly Hills and on the beaches of Santa Monica, Venice Beach and Malibu.

As we also want to visit friends, we last saw 27 (!) years ago, we follow the Pacific coast northwards. Via Santa Barbara with the most expensive residential area in the whole USA and San Luis Obispo with Bubblegum Alley, a small alley of 21 meters length, decorated exclusively with used chewing gums, we finally reach Arroyo Grande.

Returning to the southwest is relatively uneventful. We struggle our way through the greater Los Angeles area, have a little stroll through Oceanside (with the longest wooden pier on the west coast), take a few pictures of Legoland in Carlsbad and finish the tour at the beach of La Jolla, a suburb of San Diego.