![\"Scottsdale,](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Scottsdale-purse.jpg?resize=306%2C306\")
photo: Vicki Weisfeld<\/p><\/div>\n
Scottsdale\u2019s two-year-old Museum of the West<\/a> houses a changing array of artwork, artifacts and memorabilia related to the history and culture of the Southwest. Only two exhibits are permanent: a recreated town street, with the kinds of stuff people needed in the Old West (guns and gambling equipment) and a display of remarkable Indian pottery, in the works.<\/p>\n The special exhibits when I visited included paintings by the Taos Society of Artists and a fantastic collection of fancy saddles, spurs, and other cowboy paraphernalia.<\/p>\n The museum has an enclosed sculpture courtyard, whose walls evoke basket-weaving and the state\u2019s copper-mining history and a nice shop where I bought this handbag.<\/p>\n The museum is in Old Town Scottsdale (3830 North Marshall Way), close to everybody\u2019s favorite 1950s pink palace for desserts, The Sugar Bowl<\/a>.<\/p>\n McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Got the kids? Just a mile or two up Scottsdale Road, this Railroad Park<\/a> may be the perfect \u00a0blowing-off-steam spot after a museum visit and sugar high. The 30-acre park includes playgrounds, a mini-trainride around the property, classic carousel, and loads of fun exhibits. You can tour the actual Presidential Pullman cars used by Presidents Hoover, FDR, Truman, and Eisenhower, which are nothing at all like Amtrak\u2019s Northeast Corridor accommodations, believe me. The museum also boasts a 10,000-square-foot model train exhibit. There\u2019s lots of room to run around, picnic facilities, summer concerts, and snacks too.<\/p>\n photo: Vicki Weisfeld<\/p><\/div>\n Especially noteworthy is the train car emblazoned with coats-of-arms of regions of France. After World War II, the United States sent France a 250-car train packed with donated relief supplies. The following year, the French people reciprocated with the \u201cthank you\u201d (\u201cMerci\u201d) train<\/a>, which had 49 railway cars like this one. The French people had nothing to spare, yet \u201cgenerously gave what was most dear to their hearts\u201d\u2014toys, war medals, wedding dresses, musical instruments, handmade lace, and much, much more.<\/p>\n Tuzigoot National Monument<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n photo: Alan English CPA, creative commons license<\/p><\/div>\n The National Park Service pairs this set of ruins, located north of Phoenix near Sedona, with Montezuma\u2019s Castle. The two make an interesting contrast. The Castle (not visited) is a Sinaguan dwelling nestled in a high cliff, whereas Tuzigoot pueblo<\/a> is located atop a hill with a fantastic 360-degree view of the Verde Valley.<\/p>\n At one time, Tuzigoot was a settlement of some two hundred people near the tree-lined Verde River. (There\u2019s a nice walk along the river from Cottonwood, as well). It was an ideal situation, strategically, though the idea of having to get everything (like water) up that hill is daunting! Today, you can drive it, and will want to do so before the sun gets too hot.<\/p>\n Also near Sedona: Clarkdale\u2019s eye-popping Copper Art Museum<\/a><\/p>\n Southwest Reading Adventures<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n The Crossing<\/a><\/em> by Cormac McCarthy \u2013 Reading McCarthy\u2019s bracing prose is a test of nerves, and unforgettable Next time you saddle up for Scottsdale or Sedona, these tips are for you! Western Spirit: Museum of the West Scottsdale\u2019s two-year-old Museum of the West houses a changing array of artwork, artifacts and memorabilia related to the history and … Continue reading ![\"Scottsdale](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Scottsdale-Railroad-Park.jpg?resize=224%2C170\")
![\"Tuzigoot](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vweisfeld.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/Tuzigoot-Alan-English-CPA.jpg?resize=584%2C328\")
\nThe Far Empty<\/a><\/em> by J. Todd Scott \u2013 one of the best thrillers I read last year, set in west Texas Big Bend Country
\nThe Never-Open Desert Diner<\/em> by James Anderson \u2013 picked up on the recommendation of the crime fiction mavens at The Poisoned Pen<\/a> (your local bookstore, no matter where you live!)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"