The Monument to the Great Fire of London, or the Monument for short, is in London, of course, at the northern end of the London Bridge (not the one that was moved to Arizona).

The Monument is impressive from the outside, but this spiral stairway from inside the structure is rather impressive in its own right. The staircase has 311 steps. The monument serves as a scientific instrument and a mount for a panoramic camera system overseeing the city, both of which make it one of the more practical monuments out there.

This post is part of Uptake’s Monday Museums, Monuments and Memorials Series.

Photo: David Barrie via Flickr

Although it’s still football season here in New England (go Pats!), I’m excited for baseball season to start.  While my beloved Red Sox don’t play in the Cactus League, many other great teams do.  If you are looking for a March getaway, and want to catch some great spring training games, consider visiting the greater Phoenix area.

Last year, I had the opportunity to visit Phoenix during spring training, and I had such a great time that I decided to visit this year with my family.  We are visiting in March, and plan to check out several games.

During spring training, there’s no such thing as a bad (or expensive) seat.  I went to three games at three different stadiums, and loved feeling like I am part of the action.  Although Fenway Park is small, I never get that kind of up-close experience during the regular season.  Plus, the warm weather makes it such a fabulous outdoor activity.  We plan to get lawn seats, like those shown in the photo above, and just spread out and enjoy.

Spring training in Phoenix starts March 2, 2012.

Photo credit: Jodi Grundig

Disclosure: The Greater Phoenix Convention and Visitor’s Bureau covered the expenses for my spring training and family fun trip last year.

Madera Canyon is a lovely little tucked-away spot in southern Arizona. My husband and I discovered it one weekend while we were whiling away the day in the Tucson area. We followed a winding road that crossed over low desert, then started to climb until we suddenly found ourselves among tall trees and greenery. Madera Canyon and Madera Creek traverse four different “life zones” which supports a variety of flora and fauna in a relatively small area.

The area is considered to be the third-best birding destination in the United States – ornithology enthusiasts will be able to sight over 256 documented species of birds, including 15 different kinds of hummingbirds and 36 species of wood warblers. Patrons of the canyon’s parks and trails will frequently come across small herds of deer and flocks of wild turkeys – even black bears, mountain lions and bobcats have been spotted on occasion.

Read More »

My husband and I are avid Jeep fans, and new Jeep owners. We’ve been eager to have a Jeep for quite some time, and were finally able to “give” ourselves a Jeep this past Christmas. We love to explore around our home state of Arizona and have been finding all kinds of new and exciting places that our Jeep can navigate.

A couple of weekends ago we headed out to Lower Sycamore Creek, which is in the Tonto National Forest in the Mesa area. This is an extremely active and busy system of trails traversed by Jeeps, dirt bikes, ATV’s, and other off-road recreational vehicles. Normally my husband and I choose more remote and private areas, but Lower Sycamore’s proximity to our home (only about a half-hour away) drew us in its direction.

Some general advice about going off-roading:

- If you’re not sure of your route, DON’T GO ALONE.
- If it looks like the trail is too hard to traverse, TURN AROUND.
- Take plenty of water, extra gas, a spare tire, a basic tool kit, a first aid kit, a change of footwear and a couple of blankets.
- Take a ration of high-protein snacks that keep well – jerky, nuts, granola bars, and trail mix are great.
- Take an actual folding map or atlas as well as a GPS, so you’re not depending on a battery.
- Tell people where you’re going and when you expect to be back. If you change your plans, let them know.
- Lots of areas lose cell phone reception, so don’t depend on your cell. Better yet, if your vehicle has OnStar, which depends on satellites and not sketchy cell reception, you’re much better off.

Read More »