By Stacy Davies

Just a bit north of the 10 freeway, perched above Palm Springs, Cathedral City, and all other Coachella Valley towns, you’ll find the still rather undiscovered land of Desert Hot Springs, or DHS, as it’s locally known. Formerly called simply Miracle Hill, the region sits on a single geothermal field with roughly 200 wells that with the help of fractures from the San Andreas Fault, push mineral waters of 120–160 degrees above ground, a process shaped over thousands of years. The waters were first utilized by the Cahuilla peoples, who referred to it as sec-he, meaning “boiling water,” and over the centuries played an important role in their creation myths long before the first settler, Welsh immigrant Hilda Maud Gray, staked her claim in 1908.

The following years, the region saw a few more pioneers snatch up land, but it was after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Homestead Act in 1862 that colonizers began arriving in herds—including some less threatening explorers such as Cabot Yerxa, a homesteader who deeply revered both the land and its people and preserved much of that heritage in his 35-room pueblo turned museum. In 1941, L.W. Coffee opened the first bathhouse and kicked off the spa developments that would eventually give the land its current moniker, “The Mineral Water Capital of the World.”

Since those early decades, the city has ebbed and flowed in its growth and is now home to around 20 mineral spring resorts. From quaint respites for lovers to family-friendly fare that capitalizes on the waterworks, there’s something for every disposition on the hill, especially for those seeking adults-only Zen hideaways like Azure Hot Springs Resort and Spa.

Overlooking Mt. San Jacinto on the edge of what is known as the “Miracle Hill Spa Zone,” Azure Hot Springs offers 10 free-flowing mineral pools and small tubs in their oasis garden, which also includes a pebble-stream “reflexology walk” that’s sure to activate your plantar pressure points and realign your energy. In fact, realignment is the main focus of every aspect of the resort.

“People come here specifically to relax, recharge, and rejuvenate,” says resort spokesman Richard Lambakis. “And not all spas can get you there.”

This six-acre arid escape is the brainchild of Maria Lease, who refurbished the grounds about five years ago according to her personal vision. The result is simply spectacular—with emphasis on the word simple. While most spa experiences promise a meditative modus vivendi, Azure Resort specifically wants you to de-amplify. In fact, there’s even a cap on the noise level (and, if you happen to have what Richard refers to as “a strong voice,” be prepared to quiet yourself—and my apologies to both Richard and the guests that day!). They also encourage minimal phone usage and have built-in sanctuary pockets where if one absolutely must take a call in the public space, you’re far enough away to not disrupt the rejuvenation of your fellow guests.

In addition to the expected yoga, massage, facials, juice cleanses and sauna sessions, the resort also features a Himalayan salt rock room built entirely from salt bricks and heated by copper pipes—especially try this for antibacterial, antiviral halo-therapy that helps you catch those Z’s at night. If you’re not quite ready for bed, however, instead head over to the frosted-over “cold room,” an icebox-like shock to the system that’ll jolt those impurities clean out of your system—or at least keep your vicious perimenopause temporarily at bay.

Azure offers “spa suite” rooms with their own mineral spring tub, as well as “balcony view” rooms that overlook the Zen garden and Santa Rosa Mountains. They even donate a dollar per person from each day spa visit to DHS Opening Doors, a nonprofit that offers the children of Desert Hot Springs excursions outside of the region, including trips to Griffith Park and Disney Concert Hall. So, whether you need a weekend or a single day spa escape, or maybe just a healthy, from-scratch pesto chicken and squash bowl at their café, Azure Hot Springs Resort and Spa Oasis most definitely fits your bill.

By Stacy Davies

Everyone knows the best Mexican food comes from little pink houses. That color, “Mexican pink,” or, more properly, rosa mexicano, is a cultural signpost, a symbol of Mexican identity that not only denotes joy and festivities, but was even once the celebrated centerpiece of fashion collections by journalist and designer Ramón Valdiosera. Formerly known as “bougainvillea pink,” Valdiosera introduced the cheery hue to the New York fashion scene in the mid-1950s, a revolutionary act that contributed to his legendary moniker, The Father of Mexican Fashion. Likewise, when it comes to Mexican restaurants, rosa mexicano not only promises authenticity on the menu, but can also offer an appetizing excursion to Mexican destinations as yet unexplored.

All of the recipes come from Mexico City, but, as Angie points out, that translates into multiculturalism, not homogeny.

“There are so many people from different states in Mexico City and they share their recipes. Our mole poblano with chicken and chocolate is from the state of Puebla, the mole verde with beef and pumpkin seeds is from the state of Guerrero, and the mole pipián with peanuts and almonds is from the state of Veracruz. They make up our dish, ‘Tres moles,’ all three in one, but it’s only made on weekends because it’s a huge process.”

And that’s just the tip of the tostada. Don’t miss the Churros French Toast with vanilla ice cream, the Vulcan Taco topped with crispy melted cheese, or the Pambazo—a crispy-crusted bread torta filled with potatoes and chorizo, dipped in guajillo sauce, and served with queso fresco. You’ll find it, among other delectables, in their “Street Food on Your Table” section. And definitely don’t miss the cactus tlacoyos.

For my lunch, I opted for the Chiles Gueritos appetizer: six fried yellow peppers stuffed with shrimp and melted Monterey Jack, served with chipotle aioli and soy sauce on the side. There was no passing up the Cochinita Pibil plate for my main dish, with its cazuelita of slow-cooked pork in orange-and-spice sauce, a side of rice and corn tortillas, and pickled red onion with pineapple-habanero sauce.

This incredible dish, which originates from Yucatán—the farthest southeastern point of Mexico—will have you ruing the day you must return to your boring old stateside diet. And that’s later today, of course.

Delicias also offers a kids’ menu and a full bar with cocktails as exotic as their comida creations—far too many to name here, but if you’re looking for unusual ingredients such as wildflower honey, homemade lavender syrup, chocolate liqueur, coconut cream, jalapeño-infused tequila, or edible flowers, their mixologist is sure to satisfy your spirits.

Open seven days a week, Delicias hosts special events and live music, and offers catering, so if you want to win friends or simply treat yourself to a satisfying, savory excursion, head to Desert Hot Springs’ little pink house—it’s the casita rosa that can’t be beat.

Wonder Valley performance artist Tanya Gagné blows your mind!

By Stacy Davies

There are about a dozen different ways one can experience the big bang in the small package that is Tanya Gagné. You might be lassoed from your audience seat and pulled onstage by her rootin’, tootin’ cowgirl, Joy Rides, or you may have the plucky pleasure of hanging with Goldie Hen, the world’s only hula-hooping chicken.

If you inhabit Las Vegas, New York, London, or myriad other metropolises, you may have stumbled upon neo-vaudevillian sensation The Wau-Wau Sisters, the “scandalous circus sideshow striptease spectacular” Night of Joy, the magic-and-ballet burlesque comedy of Birds of Play, or the surreal, western-themed mobile theatre project The Horses Mouth.

She’s sold-out the Sydney Opera House and won at the Edinburgh Fringe and Joshua Awards, and any way you slice it, swing it, saw it in two or spin it around on its glammy, glittery, harebrained head, you’ve just been granted temporary access to the frenzied imagination and fiery form of this petite, rural-New-England-native-turned Wonder Valley powerhouse—who was once a rigger and deckhand aboard Baltic trading ships.

Yucca Brevifolia Magazine:
From sea legs to air legs! How did this happen?!

Tanya Gagné: [laughs] I was living in New York City and attending Tisch School of the Arts for dramatic writing, but I just wasn’t ready. I wanted to trip around, I wanted to travel the world.

And what did you see?

Everything! I sailed on tall ships from Sweden to Africa to South America. Crossing the Atlantic, hands down, was one of the most profound experiences of my life—like, not seeing land for 40 days! I hopped off the ship in New York three years later.

That’s a far cry from Salem, Massachusetts where you were born. In New York you created an aerial and circus school—in your loft?

Yes. I was obsessed with trapeze and trained with Russian coach Irina Gold, a former Soviet Olympic gymnast. Later, I found one of my mentors, Jennifer Miller—a bearded lady and Yale Scholar who created Circus Amok, a very “bread and puppet”-style circus, which means socio-political content rooted in the idea that art should be accessible to the public, not just a privilege for the rich. We did free shows all around the parks of New York City. I was like, “I’m going to save the world!” [laughs]

I performed and studied both here and abroad for about five years, and then I opened the first aerial school in Brooklyn. It was mostly women—privates and groups—and I learned so much about craft and process. But, yeah, it was in my loft, which was not big. Almost twenty years later, I was ready to leave New York, so when they said they were going to demo my building, it was my ticket out.

Serendipity at work! Why Wonder Valley?

I knew I was coming West and that I was on some weird vision quest. I ended up in an artist commune in Washington State for a while, and then during Covid, my friend Kevin Bone, who runs The Palms in Wonder Valley with his wife Laura Sibley, offered me a rental house. Being in all that wide-open space was amazing. I could still train and have my outdoor shows, and I just met all of these amazing freaks.

You were even wrangled into an episode of America’s Got Talent!

Well, I didn’t get the Golden Buzzer or anything, but Simon [Cowell] said Goldie Hen was the funniest act he’d seen all year!

He hates everything—well done! So, what’s next?

I’m definitely going to keep working in Las Vegas, and I’ll still make time for my touring shows like Birds of Play and The Horses Mouth. All of these characters are so special to me, and their mission really is to spread joy, love and magic wherever they go. That connection and inspiration are what it’s all about.