First Week in Phoenix

Hi friends!

I arrived in Phoenix safe and relatively unscathed after the 17-hour trek from Dallas. I was surprised by how beautiful Texas became as I traveled toward and through El Paso. It was wild, too, to find Juarez, Mexico literally a stone’s throw from the highway running through El Paso. A giant Mexican flag billowed in the wind above the city.

After doing some couch surfing for the night, I got into Phoenix around 2 in the afternoon. Matthew and I spent the next few days sampling the local cuisine (carne asada!), shopping for our extended stay hotel suite, and being generally ridiculous. The space is smaller than I was expecting and we don’t (and likely will never) have internet access in the suite, but the full-sized kitchen appliances and comfy bed were pleasant surprises. It’s been very interesting, after a week of extended stay hotel living, to see how true the Nickel and Dimed story is here in western Phoenix. From my observations and a few conversations with residents, the people staying here will live here for the foreseeable future. They are not transient, white business people as I would have guessed before arriving, but rather a diverse group of residents whose colors and socioeconomic backgrounds seem to mirror those of the surrounding neighborhood folk. This hotel seem to be functioning, for most, as a low-deposit, utilities-included apartment building. I have been most surprised at the community feel here. I’ve starting seeing the same people around. Children who have made friends play soccer together in the courtyards. Toddlers ride their tricycles down the path outside our door. One of the windowsills of a room in an adjacent building is lined with tall candles of patron saints. Children wait for the bus near the hotel marquee outside. Today I helped a young girl carry an overflowing laundry basket up the stairs to her room only to find half of the hotel’s children sitting on the couches, the floors, on the kitchen chairs. Just like us, people have made their homes here.

I started work last Wednesday and am enjoying the experience so far. The staff is exceptionally friendly and knowledgeable in their respective fields. Though the organization doesn’t provide direct services, my need for interaction with community members has been met while manning the phones and referring callers to our partner organizations. I’m also looking forward to the interviews with community leaders and local people as called for in my work plan. Though the office is relatively young, I’m the youngest by several years, so I think I’ll have to pursue other avenues of making friends my own age…

I’ve been treating food shopping as a cultural, recreational activity. Today I went to Food City, a grocery chain catering to the tastes of the Latino population. When I drove up and parked I was surprised to find a grocer set up under a white tent, roasting huge green peppers over a gas flame. The produce section boasted both cactus and banana leaves. The beef portion of the meats/poultry section was perhaps 5 times longer (grocers often measure in linear feet for displays along a wall) than the poultry portion. After experimenting with pulled pork and “season chicken” (mmmm!) in my slow cooker this past week, I bought the fixin’s for teriyaki chicken kabobs, tortilla soup, and fish jambalaya. Expect a report back on the jambalaya—I have my doubts but remain optimistic.

Lastly, Matthew and I made it up to beautiful Sedona, AZ this past Saturday. After impulsive stops at a local, cheap Mexican lunch spot and the Gap outlet, we drove over to Baldwin Trail. The red rock is beautiful beyond belief. Pictures don’t do it justice, but we tried anyway. After a longer-than-expected hike we stopped at a coffee place, and I indulged in an iced tea and carrot muffin. We didn’t get to do much else—I’d love to go back and cliff dive—but it was an exceptionally nice retreat from suburban Phoenix.

I’ve went to First Congregational UCC of Phoenix on Sunday and was so impressed with the progressive feel and genuine hospitality. Unfortunately it’s not as multi-ethnic or young as I would like but isn’t that the truth with too many churches…I’m thinking of going to a lecture series on social justice and the Bible. In any case, very excited about this find in such a conservative state!

Much AZ love,

Marie

P.S. I'm having a hard time uploading my photos to the blog, but, if we're friends, please check them out on my Facebook page!