On the way back to Phoenix, Grandma Slator suggests we stop at Montezuma's Castle. It is not a castle, and Montezuma was never there. Go figure.
This is a very cool, old and abandoned, cliff dwelling site. It is tucked away under an overhang, which helps explain why it has lasted so long.
The Sinagua people who built this disappeared mysteriously 600 years ago (they moved in around 900, built the 'castle' around 1200, and by 1425 they were gone).
The structure is five stories with 20 rooms. It would have been home to about 200 people (I think that's the right figure).
It is a pretty cool spot, nestled in the Verde Valley, with Beaver Creek flowing right past.
You cannot climb up to the dwellings, so I use my fantastic camera zoom to reveal the cracking walls. Recent rains have damaged the site, and repairing the walls is a frequent event.
It looks like a safe place.
I took this picture, intending it would book-end the story. This is the same wayside overlook we visited on the way up to Sedona. At that time, we thought it was fantastic scenery - we marveled. Now, having been to Sedona, Flagstaff, and the Grand Canyon, this spot looks pale and pedestrian. We have had our eyes opened.
We returned the trusty Dodge Caravan, and then sat around for an hour or so waiting for a shuttle to the airport. We plotted our scheme to meet up in the airport, even though Grandma Slator was flying out of Terminal 2, while Rita, Brian, Megan, and Ree where flying out of Terminal 3, and Adam was flying out of Terminal 4.
Rita was worried about getting together in the airport, since we were in three different terminals. I said, "Honey, we found each other in the frigging Grand Canyon, I think we can do this."
And we did, easy peasy.
We have assembled in the Phoenix airport, according to plan, to wait for our flights. Rita, Brian, Ree, and Megan are the first to go, at about 5:30 PM. Adam, who was expecting to be there until very late, has re-booked to a 6:30 PM flight. Grandma Slator is scheduled to depart at about 7:30.
We sit and chat. But, there is apparently a news-worthy event happening in the airport
It turns out there are five Ukranian sisters being adopted by a single family.
The father is flying in with with the whole brood.
A group is waiting with balloons, and a camera crew is filming.
People get off the plane saying things like, "they were sitting right behind me - they were great."
You can sort of see the girls, if you squint. They are all quite little.
It's not exactly our story, but it's a pretty good story anyway, and not a bad conclusion.
Two families are now joined, for better or worse,
in sickness and in health, 'til death do us part
(as we say, in the Great White North).
That's the story.
Contact: slator@cs.ndsu.edu; Modified: 8Feb06