Today I talk not about work which is where I'm at {hopefully}
{I'm writing this a couple of days before work starts again because I
anticipate a lot of business and tiredness what with a 12 hour drive
ahead of us along with getting ready for work the next day...I digress}
but I'm writing about "fun outings" and "local color".
I'm a big fan of things that are unique to their geographical locale
and that are not a big "traditional" attraction. Some examples:
I'm
sure know
that there are many, many more in our great country {& world}
but these are places I know. Anyway, this past week in Arizona I added a
new one to the list. It even uses the seemingly prerequisite word
"mystery" in the title.
The Mystery Castle.
 |
| Emmy Award? |
The
back story is a Seattle man in the 1930s {more or less} who was
diagnosed with The Consumption/Tuberculosis and a six month life
expectancy. He fled, abandoning his wife and young daughter, to Arizona
to live out his days. He was actually cured, lived another 15 years and
spent that time building an elaborate "sand castle" for his daughter
whom he never saw again. This man was dedicated to using found materials
and reusing things that others might discard so picture a stone and
mortar structure with lots of
interesting and non-traditional
building materials {hubcaps and a Saguaro cactus, for example}. It
certainly doesn't look like a Disney castle.
The
daughter, upon her father's death, received notice that she was the
proud new recipient and owner of several hundred acres in the Arizona
desert which included this
building.
She came and lived the rest of her life in what came to be known as the Mystery Castle until she died in 2010.
At
some point Life magazine did an expose on this little gem and people
started coming for tours which the proprietress welcomed and these tours
continue to this day though her bedroom is off limits because her
geriatric cat still resides there.
The
actual structure is pretty great; it incorporates the land, for sure,
being made mostly of stones and mortar but including old bricks and
found/salvaged glass.
The
interior reflects the eclectic decorating/collecting style of the
builder and his daughter. It reminded me of a grandmother's house; there
was so.much.stuff.
Apart
from some neat-o relics {an old oven built into the stone wall, a
tamale cart from Nogales circa 1930s as seen above} there were TONS of
tchotchkes {knick knacks}...TONS of them. Many focused on cats
and clever phrases.
I loved it.
 |
| I enjoyed the rock-pet collection. |
We
had a fun time taking the short tour and meandering around while
enjoying the view of the Phoenix Valley. I can't imagine having lived
there like the "princess" did for so long!! I love visiting places like
this one where history, even if it's not perfect {stuffed cats
everywhere}, is preserved and embraced. I think that maintaining where
we come from, we being society in general, is exceptionally important
when we live in such a transitory time {constantly changing technology,
news, diet fads, etc.} because it helps...it helps
me at
least...to keep track of the "big picture" - the newest things aren't
the most important. Certain things always remain the same. Traditional
ways of doing things {building homes, for example} aren't always the
best.
Plus I love collecting trivia.
What sort of unique local attractions do you love?
xoxo, natty ♥
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