With apologies to the Fifth Dimension and the great song writer Jimmy Webb, would you like to ride in this beautiful balloon? If so, you can visit the Phoenix area as I did on a recent trip to Tempe, Mesa, and Chandler, Arizona. I was on a familiarization trip (what we "insiders" call a fam). It was my first trip in a hot air balloon and I was impressed by how calm and relaxing it was despite the height.

      The ride was provided by Hot Air Expeditions . One of the fun parts was flying over some very inviting swimming pools. As I am not the most accurate diver, I decided to stay in the balloon.

     Another highlight of this trip to "Sunny Arizona" was the Desert Botanical Gardens in Phoenix. Not only were the plants beautiful, there was also a magnificent exhibit of Chihuly glass fashioned after desert plants. (See photo below)

           We stayed in a very nice Four Points by Sheraton in Tempe. The weather was a little cool in December, but as a hardy travel agent I just had to try the outdoor pool. We toured some additional hotels, a few of which really were unique. The Buttes, a Marriott resort had particularly striking views and a dramatic setting built into the mountain. Another hotel in downtown Tempe is the Mission Palms which features a magnificent courtyard and an outdoor lounge with a fireplace.

     No vacation is complete without talking about the food. One of the restaurants in our fam was a wonderful southwestern restaurant named Z Tejas in Tempe. The food in Arizona is somewhat different than the variety we know as Tex-Mex. The Arizona southwestern food style is influenced by the Mexican state of Sonora. A highlight of Z Tejas was a flight of margarita samplers, something I had not encountered before. All the flavors were great, but they ran out of pomegranate. I think I might want to invest in pomegranate commodity futures.

     In Chandler, we enjoyed a great dinner and learned some of the properties of different types of tea at Urban Tea Loft.   I also enjoyed seeing the Frank Lloyd Wright architecture at Arizona State University in Tempe.  Any other Arizona recommendations?