Monsoon Season

I was in Raindance Pass, the store at Miraval, at about 4:30 this afternoon and a guest who had just arrived said mournfully, "It is a bit gray out there, it looks like it might rain." Angela, who works in the store responded with great excitement, "Yes, it's monsoon season!" I don't know where the guest is from, but she looked confused by someone responding with joy to the threat of rain on her vacation with her husband. I spoke up to say we haven't seen any meaningful rain (meaning more than 5/100 of an inch) since December, so we get excited about it. Angela chimed in to say that in the July and August monsoon season it usually rains for only an hour or so (I said sometimes just 10 - 15 minutes), and then the sun comes back out and there are beautiful sunsets.

As I walked home, there was a flash of lightening, and a crack and then rumble of thunder. The mountains to the south of us became a shadow of themselves as it started raining down there. Tom and I watched the clouds move up the Catalinas toward us, and within 20 minutes we had the first monsoon storm! First the wind blew dramatically, even whistling around doors, then the first splatters of rain hit the patio like blooming polka dots. We went outside to smell the moisture on the sandy soil and to feel the cooling drops of water on our skin. The polka dots ran together to create uniform wetness and even little puddles.

The thermometer says the temperature has dropped to 77 degrees. Angela had just been telling me that today was the 32nd day this year with triple digit temperatures. We'll continue to get that hot, but it will be broken periodically by the rainstorms, which people hope come every afternoon. They haven't been that consistent since we have lived here, but many days in July and August include some cloud cover that builds up into big gray clouds that often bring refreshing rain along with shade.

It is interesting how differently I think of rain here in the desert where we average about 11" of rain a year versus New Jersey with over 40" of rain a year, and frequent occurrences of gray days where you never see the sun. Here we celebrate the rain and its impact on nature is very visible. Over the next few days we'll see the desert start to turn green. Cactus plants that have been getting desiccated will start to plump back out.

The plants and animals are happy. One of these rains will bring the frogs out of estivation, which is like hibernation but related to avoiding arid conditions. Last year they burrowed into the muddy soil at the end of monsoon season, which hardens without rain and they'll re-emerge soon as the monsoons turn the hard packed soil back to mud.

We'll hear the frog calls as they frantically try to mate soon enough that the tadpoles can grow their legs and be able to burrow before the ground dries out and gets too hard. In 2012 we were coming home from a concert one evening and were amazed to see at least a hundred frogs hopping all over the two miles of Lago del Oro (the road to Miraval). Dozens didn't survive the road as they hopped around to find a mate.

We have lots of hummingbirds here - some we see all year. This one is drinking in the rain.

We also get beautiful rainbows here. Miraval has big, black umbrellas by every doorway so guests can just take one as you walk out of a building into the rain, and then you leave it off as you enter the building at your destination. It is a nice system, and we just saw new umbrellas being added to the umbrella stands on Sunday morning in anticipation of monsoon season.

Yes, it is hot in Tucson in the summer, but the natives all love monsoon season. When Karen and I would visit in the summer (cheaper rates at Miraval), we would enjoy them too. Monsoon can interfere with your plans, as my friend Phyllis can tell you. In 2011 we waited about an hour in the welcome center because even with an umbrella the rain would have soaked us. So while Tucson is HOT in the summer, it is also beautiful and interesting in monsoon season.

We have gotten about 3/10 of an inch of rain over the last three hours in a number of bursts of rain. The power blinked off a couple of times, but a nice thing about being at Miraval is that there are generators so we never lose power for hours and days like we used to in NJ.

The best months to visit are October and January through April (we get some winter rains in November, December and January), but if you are willing to accept weather as it happens, any season is nice. I think we'll continue to travel in June (you can see this year's travel blog at www.mollystranahan.blogspot.com) because the hot and sunny weather gets tiring, and June is a lovely time in other areas. But consider coming to visit us any season that works for  you to get away. We look forward to welcoming you.

Spring Flowers in the Desert

March and April are filled with wildflowers here in the desert. Yellow California poppies start the color show. We hiked in Catalina State Park on March 4 and saw these lovely flowers all over. It was in the eighties and lovely. There were also lupine and owl's clover.

By March 3 the Tombstone rose bushes surrounding the waterfalls at the resort were in full bloom.  They don't have thorns!

The palo verde trees are covered in yellow blossoms, Tom said they reminded him of forsythia although the blooms last much longer and the flowers look rather like little orchids.  As I write this there are still some blossoms on trees outside the window about two months after they started.

Lots of yellow, but wait until you see the cacti!

February in Tucson

We have had lots of visitors since the last post. The world's largest gem show takes place in Tucson in early February and both Karen and Mary visited to shop and see some of earth's amazing creations. Marybeth Johnson (www.mialena.com) took Karen and me to a couple of venues and Bones and Stone lapidarist Kevin Graham took Mary and me to some of his favorite shows. On the right is a malachite crystal I couldn't resist. Arizona is a big mining state (copper and uranium), and there are many gorgeous minerals. It makes me want to go exploring mines! Bisbee is on our list of places in Arizona to visit.

Tom and I visited the artist's colony, Tubac, in between visitors. Tubac is so close to Mexico you go through a border checkpoint on the way back.

It snowed here on Valentine's Day. Here is the snow coming down in our courtyard. It had been 80 on Saturday! The snow was gone within a half an hour. It is pretty much an ideal snow experience.

I've started whacking tennis balls after a thirty-year break. Everyone who has gone to one of Coach Leigh's tennis classes (Zen-nis Tennis and Just Play) has had a blast. She even worked with five-year-old Francisco yesterday when he had a family lesson with his parents. Consider bringing your racquet, although Leigh has some available.

Tom and I are both fans of the new Naga treatment (Thai massage with silks that hang from the ceiling for the service provider to use to moderate the weight they put on you as you lie on a futon mat). Tom talked Linda into getting one, and she raved. Stu enjoyed his Athlete's Massage with Michael. I wish Stu had experienced the Sensorium - an amazing auditory-vibratory experience. You feel like you are inside the sounds that come through the headphones.

Last evening one of the resident bobcats crossed our patio - thrilling Stu, Linda and Cisco. It is early spring here - we are starting to see lizards out (one was sunning himself inside our house as Cisco arrived - Stu caught him and relocated him outside, sans a piece of his tail,

to Cisco's consternation). Ian, who took us all on a nature hike yesterday said that when you start seeing lots of lizards, start watching out for snakes, so we will. We are on Waterbreak Hill on the right - Cisco burrowed there - he loves playing in the sand.

There are lovely yellow poppies popping up all over the place and the desert is turning green. Many of the trees (mesquite, I think) are dropping their little leaflets so our views are changing a little bit, reminding me of 8 Wilrich Glen where the views changed so dramatically.

We've gotten our Arizona driver's licenses, and Tom has his new license plates. We had a big classical music weekend with three concerts last weekend - violinist Midori with the Tucson Symphony Saturday night, the Symphony's celebration of the Arizona Centennial Sunday afternoon followed by a recital by Itzhak Perlman. This Sunday will be LeAnn Rimes for something completely different. The Centennial concert (Arizona became the 48th state on Feb. 14, 1912) was great - we particularly loved photochoreographer James Westwater's photographs of the Grand Canyon which were choreographed to Ferde Grofe's Grand Canyon Suite.

February is a big month in Tucson - besides the gem show, there is a big rodeo and the Accenture Golf Tournament at the Ritz at Dove Mountain. I won't make either of them this year as I'll be out of town at conferences Feb. 23-28. Tom will be on his own at Miraval. This weekend there is a 24 hour bike race - there are lots of outdoors activities around here.

Wildlife at Miraval

There are lots of wild animals on the property here. We have seen coyotes just off the patio several times, and we hear them close by most nights. They are a little less loud in the guest casita.

We have been hearing about the bobcat family at Miraval, but I didn't see any until Dec. 14 when this 'kitty' came and sat on the corner of our patio, just the other side of the fire pit. The next afternoon I was walking down to take a photo of Albert (a sculpture of Einstein out by the entrance of Miraval) and saw a bobcat sitting on the sidewalk by the Exclusive Resorts villas. As it moved at my approach, I saw the other two were there too! They trotted off up the hill. By the way, you can see Albert's photo elsewhere on this site.

On Monday night we finally saw javelinas - wild pigs that live in this area. Clark and Natalie (visiting from Pennsylvania) got to see them too. I saw some at Miraval a few years ago, but we hadn't seen the since moving here despite reports of a herd of about 20 including babies on the property. Monday there were at least six in the wash behind our patio.

There are lots of birds - my favorites are the quail with their little topnots and the roadrunners. We saw a hummingbird a few days ago - in January! A nice thing about the winter - the snakes hibernate.

So come visit us and drink in the natural beauty of Miraval and the desert. There is such a variety of plant life - and so far there is always some kind of flower in bloom. The night skies are beautiful, and you can see some of the sunsets around the site.

Starting the Blog

After many chilly days in December, the weather has been warming up all week. Today it was 75 - short sleeves and sandals weather. It has been beautifully sunny all week with the deep blue sky we get out here. The air is so clear that with this week's crescent moon setting in the early evening, we have been able to see the dark side of the moon every night as we walk to dinner.

On Christmas afternoon we sat on the patio around the firepit before dinner. The air was still chilly last weekend, but yesterday I got a sunburn when we played golf at Vistoso with the Feeneys. I remembered sunscreen for my face, but forgot my arms!

We have been meeting our new neighbors, several have been around in December. A pattern is to have people over for drinks before dinner, then everyone walks over to the dining room to eat together. Very easy!

I find I'm not very good at celebrity spotting - perhaps in part because I don't spend much time at the spa and I don't think they necessarily go to the classes, or eat in the dining room. There are lots of rumors about who is coming for the grand reopening of the spa which will be somewhere in April - May. Oprah, of course, is the most honored of all - she really put Miraval into the public eye. Ellen Degeneres, who gave away three day stays to her audience members during her Twelve Days of Giving, is rumored to be coming back too.

I made it to Cardio Drumming twice this week - I'm trying for three times next week! I am working at getting fully into the Miraval lifestyle in the new year - going to at least seven classes a week and getting at least one treatment (a massage or body treatment) each week. Today I indulged in the Jin Shou-Tui Na - a blend of Chinese massage and cranio-sacral performed by a lovely young woman, Kari. I also had the two-part Renew & Restore Facial Series which includes a fruit peel to bring back 'your skin's natural luster and youthful vitality.' Right now there are some flaky patches, but my skin feels tightened and very soft. The best part of any facial is the time I get to spend with the wonderful Darlene Murphy who pours love into your face.

There is a psychic who comes monthly from Los Angeles and she is offering Predictions and Prognostications on New Year's Eve. Last year she predicted that bin Laden would be caught and that a female politician would be shot. We'll see what she predicts for 2012. We got a preview from her last night over dinner - she says the year will get better after February.

May 2012 be a wonderful year of adventure, joy, good health and good fortune for you! We hope to host many friends in our new home this year, so please check out the website and call us to ask questions and make plans.