Downtown Glendale Sights
Besides the shopping for antiques and crafts
that attract many visitors, you can tour several unusual museums. Glendale Visitor
Center (5800 W. Glenn Dr., Suite 140, 623/930-4500 or 877/800-2601,
www.visitglendale.com, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Mon.-Sat.) makes a fine place to start. Turn north one block on 58th Avenue from
Glendale Avenue; there's lots of free parking.
Head east across
the street for The Bead Museum (5754 W. Glenn Dr., 623/931-2737,
www.thebeadmuseum.com, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
Sun., 10a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sat., to 8 p.m. Thurs., $4 adult, $2 children). Beautiful
examples illustrate the long history and diversity of beads from around the world.
The museum shop sells beads and supplies.
Fans of country-western
singer Marty Robbins will enjoy a visit to the Marty Robbins Glendale Exhibit
(5804 W. Myrtle Ave., 623/847-7047,
http://www.smecc.org/marty_robbins_museum.htm,
10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat., check for summer hours, donations welcome). It's two
blocks north of Glendale Visitor Center in the Historic Catlin Court District.
Life doesn't get much sweeter than at the Cerreta Candy Company factory (5345
W. Glendale Ave., 623/930-9000, www.cerreta.com,
8 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Sat., free). Monday to Thursday is best to see the candy making;
call for times of free tours.
Ever pet a water puppy? The
Katydid Insect Museum (5060 W. Bethany Home Rd. #7, 623/931-8718, 11a.m.-4 p.m.
Mon.-Fri., also noon-4 p.m. Sat., Oct.-Feb., $4 adult, $3 student and senior, $2
ages 7-11, $1 kids 3-6) features hand-on experiences with docile reptiles, amphibians,
arthropods, and insects. Kids—and many adults—love it. The museum is
in a little shopping center at the northeast corner of 51st Avenue and Bethany Home
Road.
Historic Sahuaro Ranch
A visit will take you back in time when orchards
and ranches dotted the Valley (9802 N. 59th Ave., 623/930-4200, free). You can step
inside the 1887 adobe house, the first permanent building at the ranch, and take
a tour of the luxurious 1895 main house. Nearby to the north, the 1899 foreman's
house has a gift shop, and the 1891 fruit packing shed now contains art and historical
exhibits. A stroll around the grounds offers views of the historic citrus orchards,
date palms, olive groves, and a large rose garden. Peacocks and other fowl strut
about. You can take a self-guided audio tour of the grounds and the Xeriscape Botanical
Garden just to the north; pick up an audio wand from the gift shop or Glendale Public
Library, which has longer hours. The garden surrounds the library parking area.
Buildings on the ranch are open noon-4 p.m. Sun., 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Wed.-Fri., and
10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat.; they close in summer. Grounds are open 6 a.m.-sunset daily
year-round. There's a small fee for a half-hour tour of the main house. From downtown
Glendale, head north about 2.5 miles on 59th Avenue; the entrance is on the left
between Olive and Peoria Avenues.
Wildlife World Zoo & Aquarium
Begun in 1974 as a breeding farm
for rare and endangered species, this zoo (16501 W. Northern Ave., 623/935-9453,
www.wildlifeworld.com, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
every day of the year, $14 adults, $6 children 3-12) opened to the public 10 years
later and today houses Arizona's largest collection of exotic wildlife. You'll meet
the patas monkey, fastest of all primates, which can run doglike across the ground
at 35 miles per hour. Larger animals include the scimitar-horned oryx, dama gazelle,
addax (an antelope of the Sahara Desert), rhino, tapir, zebra, giraffe, camel, kangaroo,
and white tiger. The zoo's impressive bird collection displays pheasants, toucans,
cockatoos, macaws, curassows, ostriches (all five of the world's species), and some
birds exhibited nowhere else in the country. A large, walk-in African aviary contains
Abdim's storks and other unusual birds. Penguins from South Africa keep their "cool."
Additional creatures live in the small mammal, reptile, and aquarium exhibits. Wildlife
Encounters Shows and feedings take place several times daily. A Safari Train takes
visitors on a narrated excursion past animals of Africa. The Australian boat ride
wends its way around an island inhabited by wildlife from "Down Under."
A skyride offers a bird's-eye view of the zoo. Children enjoy meeting domestic animals
in a petting area and taking a spin on the carousel. The zoo has a restaurant with
aquarium views and a gift shop.
From Phoenix, head west 18
miles on I-10 to Cotton Lane/303 Loop (Exit 124), then turn north six miles to Northern
Avenue. From the northern Valley, it's fastest to take the 101 Loop to Northern
Avenue, then follow Northern west eight miles.
West Valley Art Museum
The museum had to close its doors in September
2009. Check the website www.wvam.org to see if
it has reopened or contact museum staff at P.O. Box 6377, Peoria, AZ 85385.