Day two, we got up at a reasonable hour, had a little breakfast, and were off to Desert Botanical Garden for a lovely bird, desert plant and cactus experience.  DBG is a really large, well-laid-out botanical garden.  It’s a beautiful place.

I was happy to see that the Chihuly stuff at the entrance is still there.  It looks perfect.  Here is a nice cactus-scape, and a picture of two tourists.

It’s pretty hard to take a bad photo here.  However, somehow I managed.  The blur in the third photo is an Anna’s Hummingbird.

We ate lunch at the garden cafe, and while we were eating, there was quite a show on the trashcan.  All kinds of birds were checking out the trash and the trays on top.  First, a Curve-Billed Thrasher and a Gambel’s Quail.  Second, a European Starling and a Curve-Billed Thrasher.  Third, a Cactus Wren.

Also making an appearance was a curious Greater Roadrunner.  He didn’t stay long, but I did get ONE good photo of him.

Here’s a Curve-Billed Thrasher who is protecting his prized cactus fruit with his life, and a Verdin, clinging to some Ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens) flowers.

Some more lovely flowers (the first one is a fancy lavender, the second is a scorpion-weed).

After the gardens, we went to the Phoenix Zoo.  So many great animals!  Below are some Watusi Cows, a strange and colorful stork, and some cute African River Otters:

Sleeping warthogs (awwww…), an Egyptian Goose (why does he remind me of a little old balding man?!), and a pelican whose reflection I liked:

A Black Vulture who looked like he was whistling, and Mr. and Mrs. Northern Shoveler:

…and a Ring-Necked Duck (new to my bird list, and not in captivity):

Last but not least, we have some photos from the ‘On A Stick’ department.

Where do the sticks GO when it lays down?!

After the zoo, we went back to the motel room, and sat for a while.  Ahhhh.  For dinner, we went to Cafe Istanbul, which is a favorite.  It was great.  That was pretty much the end of our day.

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