While I normally do not use this column for a travel dialogue, I cannot help but tell you about a recent vacation trip to Arizona. Except for brief business excursions, I had never been to the state, and it was a first time experience for my wife. Neither of us were disappointed.

We made our home base in Scottsdale and traveled almost 800 miles over six days. Fortunately, we were able to dodge El Nino as we had the good fortune to visit indoor attractions during some rare Arizona rainstorms. Interestingly, the TV reporters focused on the rain like we would a blizzard.

On the way north from Scottsdale, we could not help but observe the changes in the landscape. On the outskirts of Scottsdale, we were in a desert -- gravel-like rocks on clay with every version of cactus, and mountains which required a sharp climb in our car.

As we came closer to Sedona -- less than two hours -- the scene had changed to scrub pines and low profile foliage. Leaving the red mountains of Sedona, we soon came to tall pines and the snow of Flagstaff. The contrasts are far more vivid than I can describe in words alone.

As we drove to Sedona and took in the beautiful red rock mountains, something different was observed over each new crest. One of the red mountains was even shaped like a bell. The views were spectacular and worth the extra hour of drive time as we headed north for the Grand Canyon.

Before reaching Flagstaff, some 90 minutes from the Canyon, snow had covered the ground from a previous storm. Reaching the Grand Canyon National Park grounds, it started to snow again and clouds hung low in the sky. Could it be that our five hour trip from Scottsdale would be in vain? With great anticipation we started our walk to the Canyon's rim. Good fortune was with us as the snow stopped and the clouds lifted. Stretched out before us was the magnificent Grand Canyon. No photo or video can ever do justice to what we viewed. Even without direct sunshine, the Canyon stretched before us in glorious shades of color. As we walked, our rim path took us, at times, within two feet of the sheer Canyon wall. It was almost straight down -- close to one mile in depth.

Stopping for a late luncheon at a park restaurant, we could not get over the grandeur of what we had witnessed. The Grand Canyon is truly one of the wonders of the world.

On our return trip, we unexpectedly came upon the most glorious sunset we had ever seen. Coming over the crest of a mountain, not too far north of Sedona, the colors, red, pink, yellow and blue covered the entire horizon. Patches of clouds made it ever more glorious.

In the Scottsdale area, our visit to Frank Lloyd Wright's winter home and architectural school was another fascination. The tour of his home and a combined desert walk, presented by excellent guides, should not be missed if you visit Arizona.

As walkers, there were mountains to climb and sights to see. Sampling western fare and dancing to western music in the evening helped make the trip unique. And we even found a Scottsdale sushi restaurant comparable to Tokyo.