There are many things of beauty in the state of Arizona but capturing two such totally different ideas was just a delight.  First there is the beauty of the Prickly Pear cactus that can be seen all over the area.  Take a walk in the desert and you will be surrounded by the different varieties of cactus, all with their own form of beauty.  What a great way to spend some quiet time just enjoying what nature has provided for us.

Then you can go where the noise is adrenaline driven, where the horses are beautiful, the owners so proud and the crowd excited when their horse comes in first.  The track in Phoenix is beautiful with the wide array of flowers around the winners circle and the water ponds in the infield.  Then there is the turf track that looks like a well cared for fairway at a top level golf course. 

Each of these is something to be enjoyed, in their own way.

 

 

 

We had a delightful time with our visitors from Russia this week.  Super nice ladies, each with their own sense of humor and stories.  Hopefully the balance of their trip will be successful too.  Of course, they were tired.  It seems that programmers just don't realize what it is like to be on the road and on the go every minute of the day for weeks on end.  What visitors really appreciate is a down day, where they can sleep if they want, go shopping, go sightseeing at their own pace and not have to be on "the stage" all the time.

Each programmer thinks that it is their duty to fill the time they have the visitors in their town with everything they can think of for them to do and see.  When in fact, if you have traveled a great deal you know that there needs to be a down time.  Just personal time, where you can just be you, can miss your family, friends and home without having to make excuses or try to cover it up.  That comes from an experienced programmer, one that has done a fair bit of traveling herself and knows how exhausted you get after being on the road for long enough that the glammer and charm are gone.  Wish all programmers had to travel for more than a week, stay in different towns, different hotels, eat at different peoples homes and try to stay positive.  If they did, they would realize what a day to themselves would be worth and perhaps would then be kind enough to the visitors to give them a break.  Particularly after the first couple of weeks.  Weeks 3 and 4 are the roughest for the visitors to stay positive, they are tired and homesick by then.  A day of relaxation really helps to bring back the joy of the program.

Regardless of how tired they were our guests were delightful.  I encourage everyone to get involved in the Tucson International Visitor Council and take advantage of the opportunity to host guests for dinner or coffee.  Get to know them, it's well worth the effort it takes.