Be My Valentine?

Prickly Pear Cactus

Prickly Pear Cactus

Today is the last day of our Southwestern adventure. It’s also Valentine’s Day, though in our family we have celebrated our son’s birthday on February 14th more than we celebrated Valentine’s Day. Or at least we have until the last few years.

Fitting that my Valentine’s post is a sweet heart of a prickly cactus from the Sonoran Desert just west of Tucson. Love that desert!

Arches, Columns, and Tiles

Architectural Details

Architectural Details

As part of the walking tour of downtown Tucson, accomplished by following a stripe of turquoise paint on the pavement, you cross through an interior courtyard of the Pima County Courthouse and pass through this columned pathway.

Pima County Courthouse

Tuscon Arizona

in Tucson Arizona

The courthouse, in Tucson’s downtown district, was designed by Tucson architect Roy Place and built in 1929. The building has a Spanish Colonial and Moorish style, and a rather remarkable dome decorated with mosaic tiles. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Catalina State Park

Mountain-Hugging Clouds

Santa Catalina Mountains in Tucson

Much of Catalina State Park was hidden under an early morning cloud cover. It didn’t take long for the sun to burn through the clouds and by mid-morning the sky was Arizona’s trademark – a deep blue.

Turquoise Building

La Placita Village

La Placita Village

The Visitor Center in downtown Tucson is housed in a group of buildings, all painted with bright colors.

Pinks, yellows, blues, and yes, this delicious turquoise color. I love the lines in this photograph, and the reflections in the windows that quite invite you to tell an imaginative story to explain what you might imagine.