# Who knew AZ could be pretty



## The Empress (Aug 7, 2008)

I took these on my trip to Arizona in July...HOT HOT HOT lol 
C&C def welcome as always...


















P.S. I haven't edited any of these!


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## Antarctican (Aug 7, 2008)

Nice series. The first one is a real attention grabber, with those vibrant colours. And that golf course is beautiful too


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## The Empress (Aug 7, 2008)

Thanks...i loved those flowers from the first one! they were so beautiful


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## Antarctican (Aug 7, 2008)

Do you happen to know what kind of flower they are? They look much like an orchid (both the flower and the bud), but the leaves don't look right.  The flower looks like a flame, and your photo of it shows lots of detail, like the frilly edges, and the long stamens.


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## The Empress (Aug 7, 2008)

I have no idea...sry! They were a large bush...and they were all over our resort.


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## thewand (Aug 7, 2008)

i knew AZ could be pretty 

beautiful shots, especially number 1.  the flower itself is amazing.


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## Phranquey (Aug 7, 2008)

I would have never thought Arizona by looking at those...very nice.


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## Fox Paw (Aug 7, 2008)

Nice shot.

Those of us who live here know it's pretty.  Better still, it's often beautiful.


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## icassell (Aug 7, 2008)

It's hotter now than it was in July 

But it's a dry heat ...

This state is beautiful -- I grew up in the Northeast and moved here from Philly in '99

I don't have to shovel heat


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## clarbin (Aug 8, 2008)

Antarctican said:


> Do you happen to know what kind of flower they are? They look much like an orchid (both the flower and the bud), but the leaves don't look right. The flower looks like a flame, and your photo of it shows lots of detail, like the frilly edges, and the long stamens.


 
That's a Mexican Bird Of Paradise.

Thay come in orange and yellow varieties.


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## bigalbest (Aug 8, 2008)

What golf course is that? I'm guessing the Phoenician.


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## Unmanedpilot (Aug 8, 2008)

I think everyone who lives here knows of the hidden beauty of AZ. Just need to know where to look!

As for that flower its a type of Bird of Paradise. So I figued I do some research to back my claim up, thought I was wrong, second guessed myself, spent 10 minutes looking for it, and then finally found this: Clicky

*Scientific:* Caesalpinia pulcherrima (formerly  known as _Poinciana pulcherrima_)
*Common:* red bird-of-paradise, Barbados pride, dwarf Poinciana (there are several other common names too)
*Family:* Fabaceae (bean family)
*Origin:* West Indies, Mexico

Gotta love Google 
 
Very common to use for landscaping, at least in Tucson it is. :mrgreen:


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## wlsmoku (Aug 8, 2008)

that 1st flower is stunning! nice shots!


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## Sirashley (Aug 8, 2008)

I had a layover at a private airport in Arizona in June. It was 97 degrees but the dry heat to me isn't as bad as the South Florida Swamp heat...LOL...Come to think of it, I have photos of that airport somewhere...Anyway, I actually like the second one the best, I think it has an interesting DoF, and the golf course one make me want to go and play...


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## Antarctican (Aug 8, 2008)

Thanks for the info about the flower. It's quite different than the flower we call a bird of paradise here (strelizia).


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## andrew99 (Aug 8, 2008)

Nice shots!


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## The Empress (Aug 8, 2008)

bigalbest said:


> What golf course is that? I'm guessing the Phoenician.


You would be correct...we didnt stay there but thats where we had our golf tourny.


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## NJMAN (Aug 10, 2008)

Awesome job on these Empress!  I try to seek out your posts whenever possible. 

NJ


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## fug.li (Aug 10, 2008)

Shweet. Yeah, I knew..


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## snowthedirtbub (Aug 10, 2008)

Who knew arizona was pretty? Whats that suppose to mean?


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## The Empress (Aug 10, 2008)

snowthedirtbub said:


> Who knew arizona was pretty? Whats that suppose to mean?


 Most people just think hot and desert when they think of AZ, nothing green and nothing beautiful...but it really has many beautiful elements!!


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## icassell (Aug 10, 2008)

The Empress said:


> Most people just think hot and desert when they think of AZ, nothing green and nothing beautiful...but it really has many beautiful elements!!



Sure does! We saw all sorts of cool stuff on our Meetup in Jerome yesterday ...


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## snowthedirtbub (Aug 10, 2008)

The Empress said:


> Most people just think hot and desert when they think of AZ, nothing green and nothing beautiful...but it really has many beautiful elements!!



Yea I know, if you ever have a chance i suggest picking up a magazine called Arizona Highways, that will show the true beauty of Arizona they have a website www.arizonahighways.com , but it doesn't show many good pics unless you get the virtual subscription.  They also have some books to.


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