My friend Diane in Arizona had an important birthday coming up and so we decided to celebrate with a visit to the Chihuly in the Desert exhibition and a ride on the old train to the breathtaking Grand Canyon. Both were overwhelming experiences.

Chihuly in the Desert is an exhibition at the Desert Botanical Garden near Phoenix, Arizona. The exhibition combines native desert plants with art works by the artist Dale Patrick Chihuly. Dale Chihuly – Wikipedia

We got there just before the sun set and were able to see the great variety of desert plants and the sculptures by daylight. After sunset, the art works lit up and created a magical atmosphere. Here are a few pictures.

After sunset, the sculptures lit up and illuminated the desert plants.

When you drive through the desert in summer when it’s hot and dusty, you can barely imagine that there is anything else but flat, dried-out landscape. In Spring, however, after some rainfall (unfortunately rare these days of climate change), the desert can burst with color from a blanket of wildflowers. Even in the hot summer months, you can enjoy many desert plants, above all a great variety of cacti.

Walking through the desert garden after sunset, admiring the illuminated plants and works of glass art, we realized how magical the desert can be.

Stay tuned for more exciting adventures on our train ride from Williams, Arizona, to the Great Canyon.

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