MLA 2006 Local Assistance Committee: Phoenix

Transitions ... the changing seasons in a garden ....

Bring your hat (or parasol,) and stroll through a garden during your free time at MLA this May. Early mornings are the best time. Many gardens open at 7:00 am MST (10:00am EDT.)

Phoenix Gardens

• Desert Botanical Garden - via car or bus
  A superb introduction to the desert.
• Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix, Arizona - closes at the end of May.
• The Arboretum at Arizona State University - free, except for parking charges.

Within one hour's drive of Phoenix
The freeway speed limit is 75 miles per hour

• Boyce Thompson Arboretum - in the hills and so a bit cooler than Phoenix. The arboreteum has some delightful hikes. Bring a picnic lunch.
  

More than two hours by car

• The Arboretum at Flagstaff - gloriously cool, with pine trees.
  
• Tucson Botanical Gardens - worth seeing if you are in Tucson.
  

Good preparation for visiting Arizona can be acheived by perusing that fascinating tome, Gila Monsters Meet You At the Airport . This guide to Arizona discusses such hazards as rattlesnakes, outlaws and desperate thirst. In order to deal with these dire possiblities, we recommend that all visitors bring a few essential items:

• Broadbrimmed hat (not baseball caps and visors)
• Sunscreen
• Water bottle
• Sunglasses
• And maybe a parasol, too, just in case it does rain.

Now, maybe some of you can recommend a better guide to Arizona than Gila Monsters Meet You At the Airport. We'd like to see some suggestions for guidebooks, web pages or places that you have visited.

The Medical Library Association's 2006 Local Arrangements Committee welcomes you to Phoenix, Arizona in the Valley of the Sun.

The question that we anticipate most is
"Will it be hot? "
Um, well, ... just remember - it's a dry heat!

Typical Phoenix weather in May

• Average temperture: 90 during the day, 70 at night
  
• Humidity: 30% in AM / 12% in PM
• Rain: 0.1"
• Cloudiness: 21 clear days, 10 with some clouds

Recommendation: bring a swim suit and light summery clothes. Leave the umbrella at home.