Created through the valiant efforts of community volunteers, Desert Awareness Park is 26 acres of educational and outstanding natural wealth. There are self-guided tours through the Park to allow for exploration of the land’s desert plants and flowers. Significant changes can be seen through the seasons: autumn brings lush leaves, winter brings flowers, seeds, and berries, and spring brings a bounty of cacti with delightfully colored flowers. Ramadas and barbecues enable visitors to enjoy lunch in the outdoors, and there’s a playground for the kids.

Scottsdale’s theme of bonding man and nature continues with the Taliesin West. Built by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1937, the desert escape served as Wright’s winter home. Make the trip to the foothills of the McDowell Mountains in the Sonoran Desert and discover one of Wright’s masterpieces. Both the Taliesin West’s indoor and outdoor spaces will impress.

The embankment walls of the Danube Canal form a single, giant canvas. The area is open to graffiti artists who have turned the concrete walls into their very own art gallery in Vienna. From generic scribbles to political messages and intricate artworks: stroll along the banks and explore this tangible example of Viennese cultural life. For the most interesting works, walk down the track between Schwedenplatz and Schottenring.