Scottsdale

My sister, Judy and her husband, Dave came to AZ while we were there.  Dave had a conference in Paradise Valley on Thursday  the 24th, and they planned to spend a couple of extra days with us before going home to Kansas City.  While Dave was at his meetings, we met Judy at their hotel.  We sat by the pool and visited, went to lunch, then off to Scottsdale for the afternoon.  We walked through some of the shops and art galleries in Old Town Scottsdale.  One had amazing sketches and bronzes of families.  One sketch looked exactly like Judy's little granddaughter, Zoe.  If only we could have afforded to buy it!  The bronzes in that gallery had incredible detail.  There were some that reminded me of Norman Rockwell scenes - children with grandparents,  vintage toys, etc.  The detail on the toys, the lace on the little girls' anklet socks, the man's suit and shoes were so precise and realistic. 

We decided to take a trolley tour and see a little more of the area.  We got our coffees and were ready to have a relaxed ride.  Not to be.  First off, we couldn't take our drinks along - so much for leisurely sipping.  We had to drink them quickly.  There were two routes, and by the time we were finishing our coffees, one trolley was just leaving.  We missed it.  There was another one right there, so we threw away our cups and climbed aboard.  We had wanted to ride the one that toured the downtown area.  We would see the arts district, the fashion district, the Scottsdale stadium, Old Town, businesses and cafes, etc.  

Well.... we ended up getting on the neighborhood trolley and picked up kids from school, dropped off people from work, saw the REAL Scottsdale - south side, not the wealthy north side.  oh well.  It was interesting, and the trolley really was kind of neat.  Judy is always studying a map wherever we go, and Warren had the Garmin, so we pretty much knew where we were.  Fun memory.

We did a bit more browsing in the shops, then had supper.  Dave & Judy lived in Italy for many years and are always excited to find a place that has a wood fire pizza oven.  We ate at a place called Grimaldi's, where they have a wonderful selection of specialty wood fire pizzas, among other Italian items on their menu.  We thought of Dave, still at his meeting, and knew he would have enjoyed it.  

We ate outside in a lovely courtyard.  It would have been warmer inside with the pizza oven warming us up, but with the outdoor heaters, it was nice out there.  We loved it coming from snow in Montana and Missouri.  Other brave souls did join us - it was such a nice atmosphere.

A couple more scenes from our day in Scottsdale