After 50+ years of looking at Christmas light displays, I thought I'd seen everything. Then, I moved to Phoenix! This is a very UN-Christmasy city, in the traditional sense. The sun is shining and the temperature is balmy. There's no snow, and no pine trees. But, the locals decorate enchantingly with the native desert plants. Twinkling lights are hung in the palms and palmettos, and around the saguaros and barrel cacti. A fascinating plant, the ocotillo--which looks like an octopus buried with its head down in the sand and its limbs waving up in the air--is quite difficult to string up with lights, but they do it anyway. Another tree that I immediately fell in love with is the GREEN-TRUNKED Palo Verde, which is a treat for the eyes even during the daytime when the twinkly lights are turned off. Also, a number of Gringo families have incorporated the traditional Mexican Christmas decorations--the "luminaria"--into their seasonal decorating. These are small, colorful bags which are lit up by little candles inside them. (You'll see an example in the photos below.) When the grandkids visited at Christmas, we had fun driving past the yard displays of the local residents. I was living in the Ahwatukee Village section of Phoenix at the time, and it's an area noted for the high number of home-owners who participate in this yearly tradition. Ahwatukee Village, itself, decorates the plants in its beautifully landscaped medians--many thousands of lights must undoubtably be used! They have a little festival each year marking the "turning on of the lights," which shine along Chandler Blvd. throughout all the month of December. Another noted light-viewing area is the Mormon temple grounds in Mesa. I haven't seen this display myself, but I hear that it's lovely, and that many desert-native plants are also used there.