Trip to Arizona - the Wild West

This Thanksgiving marked my first experience as a "snow bird"; taking a short break from Chicago and flocking to warmer weather. I've traveled to Arizona numerous times as a kid on family vacations, but this trip was my first as an adult. I definitely took notice of different aspects than I had as a child.

Constantly immersed in urban living, I was shocked at how remote Gold Canyon, AZ felt to me. Walking to restaurants or shops is laughable. While this may seem inconvenient to someone who is always on the go, this type of location also comes with beautiful views and an up close relationship with nature. Morning coffee was serene, and sunsets picturesque. I saw wildlife beyond the usual city pigeons and squirrels (I will NOT acknowledge any rats).

I was lucky enough to have an aunt who lives there and planned an amazing itinerary for us all; I left Arizona feeling like I had experienced the perfect smattering of Gold Canyon.

View from our rental house in Gold Canyon - appreciating a different kind of skyline.

Day 1 in AZ - hike at the Boyce Thompson Arboretum. It wasn't a real challenging hike but we were able to see a lot of cool sights. If we had stayed another day I would have liked to hike a larger mountain.

The Saguaro cactus - these are all over the place in AZ; it's actually illegal to cut them down. This type of cactus can only be found in the Sonoran Desert, which is mostly just in Arizona and little in Mexico and Cali.  It takes 50 years for the cactus to grow an arm and they can live up to 150 years. I loved keeping an eye out for these guys and trying to guess how old they were. (source: Uncle Mick)

After our hike we wanted to grab a bite to eat. I searched on my phone and saw that the town of Superior was nearby and seemed to have a few restaurant choices. Man oh man. Superior was the epitome of an abandoned ghost town. It literally looked like a wild west movie set, tumble weeds and all. We came across Porter's Cafe and by default it was our lunch selection. Dollar bills graced the wall behind the bar, with relics and nick-nacs in abundance. It was the perfect amount of strange. 

As hesitant as our group may have been to order at Porter's Cafe, I was happy as clam with my chicken tacos and Modelo Especial.

Found myself a rough and tough cowboy in Scottsdale. My mom, sister and I took a day trip to Scottsdale (about an hour away from Gold Canyon). There are lots of shops and restaurants to enjoy and we had the perfect weather to spend the day outside walking around. We spent most of our time in Old Scottsdale, a mix of wild west shops, jewelers, and art galleries.

Lunch in Old Town Scottsdale at The House Brasserie - such a PERFECT spot. This is actually the second oldest house in Scottsdale (built in the 1930's, shows how young the town is).

Inside the house is a warm and welcoming space with a bar and dining area.

Beautiful weather in late November (almost December!) OF COURSE we are sitting on the patio! Shaded by trees...drinking wine...ladies who lunch...gotta love it.

You knew the food pic was coming - and what a great meal it was. Left to right: Pork Belly on English muffin with Asian Kimchee sauce and fried egg; perfectly put together Chicken Parmesan with smoked tomato, fresh mozz, arugula and basil; Arizona Arugula Salad with crispy shallot, roast strawberry, Mission figs, Maytag blue cheese and sesame balsamic dressing. All three of us enjoyed a glass of Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc with our meal. All dishes had an emphasis on fresh and local. The ketchup was homemade from their garden and the fries were dusted with fresh celery salt...made with celery from the garden out back...really?! Really.

We took a drive through the mountains (note: winding mountain roads + sitting in back of large SUV = get the barf bag ready). Our group was able to secure primo seating on the top deck of the Dolly boat for the sightseeing tour.

Yes, Arizona has water. On this boat tour we saw two Bald Eagles and two Long Horned Rams - really amazing. We also saw climbers scaling a huge mountain, over 300 feet in the air - I can't even imagine. 

Seeing new places and having new experiences is one of my favorite things in the world, and this trip to Arizona did not disappoint. While I loved hiking, golfing, dining and touring - the best part of this trip was spending time with family I don't get to see very often. It was easy to think of what I was thankful for this year.