Arizona is dry. Dry as the desert of Egypt. And as in Egypt, its dry preserves relics of ancient civilizations. The fabulous cliff cities of the Anasazi, the petroglyphs in the Canyon de Chelly, the 2500 ancienct sites in Wupatki National Monument.

Canyon de Chelly National Monument

No one knows the real name of the earliest inhabitants of Arizona. Contemporary Native Americans call them Hohokam, wich means "people who have gone"

European settlement in Arizona began in 1540 when Francisco Vasquez de Coronado led an expedition in search of the fabled Seven Cities of Cibola. Coronado never found the golden cities, and his discovery of the Grand Canyon carried no weight with Spain.

With the Gadsden Purchase of 1853, Arizona was joined to the United States. As Americans moved into the territory, Arizona began its most colorful period, epitomized by the "anything goes" town of Tombstone 30 miles noth of the Mexican borders.

The most famous incident in the annals of Tombstone is the gunfight at the O.K. Corral where, at 2:30 P.M. on October 26, 1881, cattle rustlers Billy Clanton and Frank and Tom McLaury were 2hurled into eternity" as the Tombstone Epitaph put it, by Doc Holliday and the Earp brothers.

Throughout the 19th century, Native Americans made up the largest percentage of Arizona's inhabitants. Even today, the state has one of the largest Native American populations in the U.S. Furthermore, tribally owned land occupies half of Arizona's territory, more than in other state- Oraibi, for example, has been continuosly occupied by the Hopi tribe for more than 800 years.

Organ Pipe and Saguaro cactus bloom in the desert

You can still see plenty of cowboys in Arizona (the first competitive annual rodeo began in Prescott on July 4, 1888), and the bola tie is the official State Neckwear, but these days most residents are urbanites, living in and around Phoenix, Tucson and Sun City.

The dry climate has attracted new-comers from every part of the U.S. so that Arizona's population has tripled since World War II and risen 35% since 1980.

In a state rich in natural treasures, the Grand Canyon is Arizona's hottest attraction. Visitors explore it on foot, by mule and in rafts. It is 2 billion years old, 277 miles long, 17 miles across at its widest spot, and so deep that irs climate changes from level to level. It is a natural marvel that gives an adrenaline rush to even the most jaded traveler.