Chandra Sivaraman
Software Engineering Notes

Phoenix Diary

Phoenix Saguaro National Park

21st November 2021:

Started for Phoenix at 12:30. Gullu came along. The 210-10 route is always traffic heavy. Don’t like it. Some confusion on the way about which route to take. Google maps is routing through San Diego and showing a 7 hour journey— longer than the 6 hours when we started out. After some disagreements, end up staying on 210-10 which shows 5.5 hours.

Reach Phoenix at 8.21 Mountain Time (7:21 Pacific Time) after a non-stop, continuously traffic-laden drive through open desert in the dusk and dark. Too many trucks struggling to overtake each other up inclines and slowing traffic to a crawl in the process. Some gorgeous mountains in the far distance painted magenta in the desert sunset.

Phoenix seems very clean - broad freeways and roads, light traffic, chilled out drivers, driving at 70mph and staying in their lanes compared to frenzied LA drivers switching in and out of lanes.

We are staying at Marriott Springhill suites. Nice suite with kitchenette, fridge, microwave and sink, sofa and living room area, 2 double beds, 2 TVs, fancy lighting on the bathroom mirror.

We have Ching’s noodles and vegan chili for dinner.

22nd November 2021:

Slept soundly and woke up at 7.15. Went down for breakfast while Shonu was sleeping. It was a regular breakfast buffet layout, although people were wearing masks while in common areas.

Had oatmeal, muffin and coffee. Took back fruit loops and muffin for Shonu. We were still tired from the previous day’s journey, so went back to sleep and woke up around 10am.

We got ready and went to Musical Instrument Museum, which is a 20 minute drive. The museum has musical instruments from almost every country. They provided us headphones and a handset to listen to the music. It was very interesting and informative. We first visited a section on Africa, and then moved on to Asia. There was a huge section on Indian music, both Hindustani and Carnatic. A screen showed Bombay Jayshree who is a cousin’s cousin. Curiously, there were also sections for Pakistan and Bangladesh, even though their music is the same as India’s.

It was so interesting to see instruments from Iran and the Middle East with names like setar, tabl, santur etc. It isn’t clear in which direction the imitation went - probably bidirectional.

By the time we got to Europe and America, we were overwhelmed, and ended up just glazing over them. Shonu had been clamoring for Udupi while still in the museum. Unfortunately it would have closed by the time we got there. So we decided to go back to the hotel and have a light lunch, with dinner at Udupi later.

Shonu had Mac and cheese. We had sandwich with frozen cucumber - the fridge temperature was set too low. Followed this by a nice nap till 5. Then had hotel coffee and eagerly set out for Udupi. It was nearby and we reached in 20 minutes, but to our horror, it was closed. We had forgotten that Indian restaurants are closed on Mondays and didn’t phone ahead. What a disappointment. Fortunately, Kamini had set expectations for Shonu beforehand of this being a possibility, so there was no drama.

Did a quick search on phone and decided to go to The Dhaba, a Punjabi restaurant nearby. Called them and they said they were open but needed reservations. We didn’t have any, but fortunately, they accommodated us.

Dhaba turned out to be a much better option than Udupi. The food and service were excellent. The papad served as appetizer was crisp and the chutneys were perfectly balanced. We had paneer tikka masala, tava sabzi, garlic naan and onion kulcha. All expertly seasoned although a tad rich. Shonu had mango lassi, which was freshly made, and she said it tasted like a real mango. I ordered sweet lassi after dinner; it was thick and flavorful unlike typical Indian restaurants in the US. It helped in digesting the rich food.

Got back and watched Shark Tank and HGTV.

23rd November 2021

Woke up at 8:15. Went down to breakfast at around 9. Had trouble finding a place to sit. Finally grabbed a tiny standing table with 2 high chairs. Had some oatmeal, coffee and pineapple. Shonu joined us today and had her usual fruit loop cereal.

Set out for Saguaro National Park at 10.30. Pleasant drive through flat basin with mountains in the distance on either side. Reached at around 12:15.

Went to La Olla Mexican Cafe in Tucson to get lunch. Got tacos, enchiladas and nachos to go. Tucson is well planned, the houses huge and not all cookie cutter, the streets wide and clean. Even the strip malls are spacious and well laid out.

Entered the park at around 1pm. A hilly road takes us through an alien landscape awash in saguaro cactus from next to the road to the hilltops as far as the eye can see. A little reminiscent of Joshua Tree National Park in terms of how bizarre it is and how the cactus have an almost human feel to them.

The road then abruptly exits the park and houses start popping up on either side. The road now turns left and starts undulating like a sine wave. It feels like we are on a roller coaster each time the road dips and we come up on a crest.

We shortly re-enter the park. After a few misses, we manage to find a picnic spot to have lunch, having to drive through an unpaved road. It’s very nicely designed with every spot having its own parking, trash, tables and fire pit. Get a table with a great view of hillside covered in saguaro cactus, and overlooking a great saguaro filled valley. We are surrounded by saguaro, ocotillo, mesquite and several other distinct cactus varieties. It is very peaceful and silent except for the humans talking in the spot next to us. There is a meditative air to the place.

We have a welcome lunch of nachos and tacos from the cafe. We are full by the time we get to the enchiladas, which are saved for dinner. Shonu has filled a bottle with a fruit punch that she made in the hotel. It is very refreshing. Gullu also enjoys the scenery.

After a few photos, we move on to the visitor center. Get a national parks pass and a map. From the map, we learn about a petroglyphs site and a desert walk close by.

We drive to the desert walk first, which is an easy 1 mile hike through the Sonoran desert. There are informative placards at regular intervals telling us about the flora and fauna and the geology of the landscape. The saguaro cactus here are in all kinds of interesting shapes and sizes. It feels like we are intruders in their home.

Next, we head to the Hohokam petroglyphs. This involves a short 10 minute drive on paved road, then a jarring 4-5 mile drive on unpaved road, followed by a brief uphill climb over rough rock staircases built up the hill. We can spot some petroglyphs on the hilltop from below. Signs inform us we are in rattlesnake country. We are much more watchful now.

We shortly reach the top and are greeted by panoramic vistas of the saguaro filled valley below. The petroglyphs are of spirals, animals, the sun, humans, and abstract shapes. The placards tell us they are nearly a thousand years old. Briefly, we are taken back to a different age in our minds.

A path from the hilltop leads to another adjoining hilltop. We take this route and witness another grand panorama of a Saguaro filled valley stretching ahead in the distance.

We now hear thunder rumbling in the distance, and decide to head back. Back in the car, we have some insipid canned coffee which tastes like water, Aussie bites and chivda before heading on the return journey.

The return trip is uneventful except for a low tire pressure warning (which is fixed by filling air at a gas station), and a brief halt to view a spectacular sunset in the far distance. After a cloudy day, the sun emerged just before sunset, heroically breaking free from the shackles only to promptly disappear below the horizon after a little cameo.

Dinner is leftovers from Dhaba and the enchiladas from morning. It is quite adequate. Accompanied by Canada Dry ginger ale while watching Shark Tank. Gullu poses for some photos.

24th November 202

Woke up at 8:15 with some difficulty. Had breakfast of oatmeal, muffin and coffee with amazing pineapple. Shonu slept in. We took her usual fruit loops for her and some pineapple.

Packed, got ready and checked out around 10:30. The mint shampoo was refreshing. Went to tire shop to check the left rear tire that had low pressure yesterday. The tire guy checked the tires, filled some air and said it was all good. Gave him a couple of bucks for his help.

The drive to Camp Verde (where we were going to stay) along highway 17 was smooth. There were some terrific views once we ascended to a plateau. The descent was even more spectacular with dizzying and panoramic vistas of the valley floor as far as the eye could see.

Reached the Cliff Casino Hotel at around 1:30pm. Went in search of lunch and found it at a small vendor selling fry bread, a traditional Native American snack, that is like a bhatura. We got salt and cinnamon sugar flavors. It was very fresh and tasty. A Native American gent and his wife were working the stall, which was setup in an open field. The man was quite talkative and cheerful and was asking customers where they were from. A desi family from Texas was ahead of us. The mother was explaining to her son that it was like chola bhatura (without chola). We got confirmation that no lard or egg was used to make the bread. Just flour and vegetable oil.

Since check-in was only at 4 pm and it was only 3 pm, we went to nearby Montezuma Castle National Monument. Kamini, me and Appa had been here years ago during our trip to Sedona, although I didn’t have a very good memory of it. Gullu comes along in Kamini’s handbag.

The ruins are very well preserved for a 700 year old structure. It was made by ancestors of the Pueblo people called the Sinagua (“without water” which is curious since a stream adjoins the site) people who lived here between 600 and 1400 AD. The complex is much larger than what is visible. This was an ancient high rise colony in a great location — right next to a stream — with good weather and great visibility of surroundings. It must have required considerable effort to construct this elaborate structure on a cliff face. The stream nearby enabled agriculture and the growing of corn, squash and beans.

The place has been preserved almost undisturbed other than building access paths and restorations. There was a diorama display that showed a cutaway of the dwellings with figurines, which helped us imagine what life must have been like here hundreds of years ago.

We exited the monument at around 4 pm and checked into the hotel. We had to pass through a casino to get to the lobby, which was interesting. People were playing on the slot machines like zombies, even though their chances of winning big was very low. Really grand interiors. Our room number 305 was on the 3rd floor near the elevator. It was modern and very well furnished and equipped, with a fridge and Keurig coffee maker, nice bathroom, big screen TV, lovely canvas prints on the walls. A panoramic view of mountains from windows. A room labeled “cantina” near the elevator had a microwave which was a nice convenience.

Had Thai green curry rice for dinner. Warmed in the microwave in the cantina. Had Canada Dry to complement the meal followed by Hershey milk chocolate. Watched Shark Tank and HGTV for some time.

25th November 2021

Woke up at 9am on Thanksgiving day. Chilly outside at 54 degrees. Had breakfast of cereal and coffee.

History of thanksgiving is darker than the official feel good story that is peddled every year. Native Americans don’t celebrate it. Instead they observe a national day of mourning. Learned this from a CNN story, which, amazingly, is the headline story for the day. Slowly, but surely, a race reckoning is sweeping through America, which I hope results in some semblance of justice for the Native Americans.

Got ready and left for Sedona at 12:30. About 30-40 minute drive through hilly terrain. As we turn a bend, the hills suddenly turn red.

Stop at a visitor center which is closed. Pick up maps which are kept outside. A panoramic view of red mountains from here. A chilly wind is blowing. I have only shorts; forgot to bring trousers, so a little concerned. But I did bring a warm night pant.

We pass through the beautiful town of Oak Creek Village on the way with traffic circles. The houses are small and pretty and red. Looks like an expensive town.

Move on to first view point near Bell Rock. Spectacular views of red bell shaped rock and surrounding mountains all around in different shades of red. Park here and take a hike on a trail towards Bell Rock. The trail is busy.

It gets warm as we keep walking. The mountain fills more and more of our visual field as we get closer to it. I see that it is heavily eroded and that small trees and shrubs are growing on it. The rock face is lined with little caves and divots — erosion at work.

There are little fingers of rock that protrude from the mountain. These are halfway up the mountain. They were probably created by water filling cracks, freezing, and expanding the cracks.

After a hike of an hour and a half, we are exhausted. Sit down on a bench under a tree on the trail, and have sandwiches and chips while admiring the mountains.

Get back to car, and drive to other view points. First one, Cathedral view point, has no parking. Another one is a chapel on a hill surrounded by stunning 360 degree views of red mountains. The chapel itself is reached by a drive up a very steep and winding road. The views from the chapel are stunning. The chapel itself is serene and meditative. A massive statue of Jesus adorns it.

Next we drive to Sedona. Sedona is small and pretty and artistic and also has lots of traffic circles. Everything is closed though due to thanksgiving. We stop to fill gas (where they have two varieties of 87 gas - one without ethanol and one with 10% ethanol that is less expensive. Not sure what is good for the car).

Return drive seems much quicker.

Have soup and Ching’s noodles for dinner with Canada Dry.

26th November 2021

Woke up at 8:30. It is the Day after Thanksgiving. Chilly at 42 degrees.

Planning to explore Sedona further today and do one more hike.

End up getting stuck in horrible traffic for 2 hours. Seems like whole of Arizona has descended on Sedona. We decide to halt for lunch in hopes the traffic will ease out. Find a place for lunch— Secret garden cafe- but the parking lot is full and many cars are waiting for parking. Decide to go to the Soldier trail head and just have energy bars and bread which we brought with us. But the tiny parking lot there is already full. Which genius designed a parking lot with a maximum capacity of 14 cars? There is no parking outside the lot either since it seems like a residential area. Sedona seems like it bit off way more than it can chew.

Decide to just have a good lunch since it’s 2 pm. Found an Indian restaurant with an odd name - Mraada India palace. Wait time is 15 minutes. So we wait patiently. Shonu is very keen on Indian food today. She already got her other wish of not hiking. After waiting for nearly an hour, and no sign of being seated despite a reminder, we decide we have had enough and head back to the hotel. Shonu is not happy. Mention of fry bread provides a little solace.

On the way back, we stop by the Native American stall and pick up 3 fry breads. Back at the hotel, we warm up vegan chili and have a kind of chole bhature. It tastes delicious, though it is heavy as a stone. Surprisingly, Shonu is able to finish it. She must have been really hungry.

After hunger is taken care of, we head back to Sedona to view sunset on the red rocks. When we reach Bell Rock trail head, the sun is on the verge of setting and has painted the rocks in deep shades of orange. We walk a little way on the trail and take a few photos. Bell Rock itself is completely in shadow, a deep shade of dark red, and looks somewhat eerie. It is said to be the site of a vortex, which I think is a hoax. But Kamini is open to the possibility.

We move on to Chapel Hill but the gate is already closed. We circle back to Cathedral view point and get some photos of silhouettes and deep red rocks. The whole valley takes on a completely different aura in the dusk. The fading light imbues the rocks with an ethereal, surreal beauty, like a scene from a fairy tale. Refracted sunlight from the sun now well below the mountains generates a subtle palette of colors ranging from beige to orange to rust to magenta.

The drive back through the deep dusk on winding roads is hair raising, but beautiful.

Back at the hotel, we don’t find outdoor parking and have to park in the parking structure. We have a bean soup made by mixing vegan chili and tomato soup. I walk back to the car to get my flip flops, which involves taking two elevators. The bean soup doesn’t satisfy my hunger, so I have to walk back to the car again to get Mac n cheese. Good exercise. Shonu and me warm the Mac n cheese in the cantina.

Shonu and Kamini are watching Undercover Boss, a TV show where a business owner visits one of his facilities incognito, and while fumbling and bumbling his way through menial jobs, comes across hardworking employees who invariably have a sob story to tell. This is convenient, since the boss gets to dole out freebies to them at the end, during the big reveal - such as paying for college or buying them a car or even a house! The only people surprised by this charade are the employees when they learn the identity of their bumbling coworker. The entire drama appears scripted from start to finish.

27th November 2021

Wake up at 8. Chilly outside at 45 degrees. AQI 25; very good.

Returning home today. Oatmeal for breakfast. Shonu had apple and chocolate milk. She doesn’t like oatmeal.

Play an invented game with Shonu called “Are you from X?” Where we take turns asking the question with a different place, real or fictional (though it has to be from a real book or movie). Many interesting places crop up - Jhumri Talaiya, Dibrugarh, Kandivili, Dombivili, US state capitals, Salem, Tughlaqabad, Mughalsarai etc.

Get ready and leave at 10:30. Stop to see Arcosanti community on the way back. This is an artistic, environmentally conscious community. They have organized tours and all tours for the day are sold out. However, we hope to see the place all the same. Take exit and run into an unpaved road. Have already had tire pressure issues with unpaved roads in Saguaro National Park; so decide against tempting fate and turn back.

Light traffic initially; it picks up as we near Phoenix. We play the “Are you from X?” game while listening to New Hindi Songs playlist. We add places from MP, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings etc. Kamini takes over the wheel and I get a good break. We take 303 Phoenix bypass which runs through the Sonoran desert. It’s virtually empty. But this is a mirage, since we hit traffic as soon as the road joins the interstate I-10. Lots of trucks and slow coaches make for an unpleasant drive. We look for a Taco Bell for lunch around 1 pm PT. There is one in 5 minutes, but I make an error in reading the map and think that we can skip this one. There will be many others at 10-20 minute intervals. The next one turns out to be 1 1/2 hours away. Oops.

It is 2:30 MT (1:30 PT) by the time we stop for gas at a 76. I take over the wheel. We stop shortly thereafter for lunch at a small highway town called Blythe just past the California border. We gain back the hour we lost when we enter California since we go from Mountain Time to Pacific Time. We order in the drive through and then park to eat. Chalupa and fiesta potatoes taste especially good when you are hungry. The attendant has given us extra potatoes by mistake. We don’t mind this mistake in the least. We one by three it.

The drive resumes. Gullu gets a good view from the dashboard but then feels too hot and retreats to the back seat. We are running into more traffic now. We stop in Palm Desert for Starbucks coffee. Shonu has Very Berry Hibiscus iced tea as usual and Kamini and I share a Mocha.

As soon as we get back on the freeway, our friend the tire pressure indicator revisits us. We pull off at the next gas station and check the pressure. All seems good. So I reset the TPMS indicator and get back on the freeway. The unpaved roads might have thrown off the sensor.

Traffic is getting worse. Google maps reroutes us through Palm Springs town. It proves to be a nice, scenic detour. Shonu and Kamini are playing a mythology game. The traffic now slows to a crawl as we approach the freeway again. It stays this way for the next hour and half.

It opens up then after San Bernardino. We call and talk to Tatha Patis from the car since it will be too late by the time we get home. Kamini orders food from Woodlands - palak paneer, mixed veg curry and aloo paratha. We pick up food and finally arrive home around 8:15pm.

Thoughts of the day: