"A Mountain" and the Tucson Visitors Center

The locals call it "A Mountain" and when you see it you know the reason. It has huge letter "A", the logo of the University of Arizona, embedded on it so large that you can see it from throughout the city.

Actually, the small mountain (large hill?) is a volcanic mound thousands of years old that is in the heart of the city's west side. It's referred to by historians as the place the city of Tucson was founded.

I drove to the top of Sentinel Peak, it's real name, and looked at the gorgeous panoramic views from on high. I had a 360-degree view of the Tucson area from high above the city. The drive up was a little scary, with only a narrow two-lane road leading the way.

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I took these photos from the top of Sentinel Peak.

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The Tucson Visitors Center

In downtown, the Visitors Center is a funky looking place located off a shady park area in the heart of the city. I was happy to see "Visitors Center" signs posted from the highway showing me the way.

This is Mickie (right) and friend, volunteers at the Visitors Center. Mickie was helpful in pointing out local attractions and gave me some Halloween candy (candy corn). She took a map of the city, and armed with a highlighter, marked it up with all kinds of suggestions for me as a newcomer. I took her picture and told her I was going to post it on my blog. "We're going to be famous," she said.

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Much is being written locally about the revitalization plans for downtown Tucson. The downtown area is nothing to brag about, yet. They hope to bring life back to it through residential development, an entertainment and retail district, plus improving their art and museum sites. So far, according to local papers, the business community has failed to get on board with the city to make things happen. Like many cities around the country, the major growth of the city is occurring in the surrounding suburbs and developers have abandoned the downtown area.