Arizona Biltmore cottages

Nestled in the garden courtyard of the Arizona Biltmore hotel are a number of textile block cottages.  These date to the original construction of the hotel in 1929 and believe it or not, were designated for guest's children and nannies to keep them from under foot. Today they are the most desirable addresses within the resort.

The lush grounds are as perfect as a golf course and in fact hold a number of putting greens within their bounds. Each cottage is different and of varying sizes but I especially liked this low slung version above.

I overheard a guest excitedly telling some friends how the hotel had placed him in one of these cottages as the rooms were all full in order to fulfill his reservation. He had a living room, dining room, kitchen, and 2 bedrooms at his disposal (as opposed to one rather standard sized hotel room, no matter how luxurious)!

Those were some lucky nannies! Like the hotel itself the roofs of these bungalows function as terraces.

 The original cantilevered copper awnings are rather spectacular.

 As it is a garden in the midst of a desert water features are to be found everywhere.

 This lush greenery wouldn't be out of place in Beverly Hills or Greenwich.

A number of the larger cottages are actually split into separate units, accessed at different points to remain private.

 I love the textile blocks with copper detailing which are a great foil to the lush vegetation.

Don't forget to visit the cottage court if you find yourself at the Arizona Biltmore!

Hidden from view

I came across this identical row of townhouses on a side street in Georgetown recently which I had never noticed before. They're fairly nondescript row-houses of the type to be found all over the city but it's interesting to see how they have changed in the past century. All have been painted and one in particular has a sort of 'Grey Gardens' vibe to it. While I think this is rather wonderful in its way I'm sure the neighbors don't think so! While I work on lengthier posts while life continually gets in the way, what do you think of this type of 'garden' or lack of gardening?