1 • Tucson, Arizona
Vibe•Latin culture embraces Native American spirit,
cowboy grit, and Sunbelt growth
Population•525,500
Median housing price•$155,500
Average commute•
24 minutes
Average number of sunny days•286 per year
Most relaxing way to spend an afternoon•Enjoying the
cool breezes and plentiful hiking in the Santa Catalina
Mountains, just north of town
Simple fun for less than $10•Drinking a beer at the Hotel
Congress, where famous criminal John Dillinger was
nabbed back in 1934
Who knew?• The saguaro cacti that grow all over
Tucson have an average life span of 150 years.
IT’S HARD TO PIN DOWN RESIDENTS on what exactly is so
mesmerizing about this desert town, just an hour north of
the Mexican border. Maybe it’s the beautiful wilderness
that rings the city, including about 1. 8 million acres of the
Coronado National Forest, with its 12
different mountain ranges. Or maybe
it’s the sweet smell of pan dulce that
drifts from the Mexican bakeries. Or
maybe it’s the unique way the city’s
Mexican, Native American, and frontier
roots have mingled to create a mosaic all
its own. “This atmosphere just doesn’t
exist anywhere else—the people, the
natural beauty, the cultural mix,” says
Elizabeth Rodriguez Miller, 55, who
retired last year from her job as assistant
city manager. “I feel lucky to live in a place where people
can move so graciously from one culture to another.” She
and her husband, Marc, 57, also like the buzz of downtown—
with its plentiful restaurants (a favorite is Casa Vicente),
funky Fourth Avenue arts district, and world-renowned annual Mariachi Conference. And for simple pleasures, there’s
incomparable hiking and camping.
OLD WES T FLAVOR
A vintage sign on
a highway near
Tucson.
48 AARP SEP TEMBER&OC TOBER 2009
DAM PRE T T Y Falls Park is perfect for walkers.
•
Vibe•Family-friendly fun, from “penny candy”
to goat-cheese pizza
Population•
59,000
Median housing price•$151,080
Average commute•
19 minutes
Average number of sunny days•220 per year
Most relaxing way to spend an afternoon•Hiking the
pristine mountain woodlands of Jones Gap State Park,
just 25 miles outside Greenville
Simple fun for less than $10•Grabbing a cup of coffee
or an ice-cream cone at Spill the Beans
Who knew?•Home to companies such as Fluor, BMW, and
Michelin, the Greenville area claims one of the highest
international-investment-per-capita levels in the nation.
BACK IN THE LATE 1960s downtown Greenville was withering away, suffering the same fate that wiped out thousands
of Main Streets. Now, thanks to 30 years of redevelopment—
including a pedestrian-friendly Main Street, a performing
arts center, condos, and the stunning Liberty Bridge—what
was once a desolate stretch of offices is now a vibrant town
center. The genius of Greenville’s reinvention isn’t just its
downtown, though, but the way the city’s center is linked
to surrounding neighborhoods. Wide, walkable sidewalks
make it an easy stroll for many residents, and the city has
converted an abandoned rail line into a multiuse trail,
linking neighborhoods, parks, and downtown. Margaret
McJunkin, 73, a Greenville native, especially enjoys Cleveland Park, which borders her neighborhood. “I use the
walking paths that wind along the river—there are flowering trees and a zoo,” she says.
