Our 14th year love anniversary or “loveaversary” as my co-worker/friend Lisa coined it, occurs on the 8th of March every year. We (me and James) decided to celebrate in Arizona this time around so we would literally be situated in a desert, clearly in love, and seeking a new experience.
We chose Phoenix as our city of destination not just because its the capitol of the state of Arizona, but also its largest city, boasting just over 1.6 million residents! And we were eagerly looking forward to the sunny temps all week long, outdoor recreational options, delish Southwestern/Mexican cuisine and a championship class golf course located right at the Hilton Phoenix Tapatio Cliffs Resort.
Day 1
Travel Day – Sunday – Woke up in Connecticut before the crack of dawn (3am) to catch our early morning (6:05am) flight out of Bradley International Airport which, by the way, is looking mighty fine these days. I’m truly loving all the building upgrades and seeing bits and pieces of what’s to come (smile).
After a 3-hour layover at our first stop in Chicago, not including the 1-hour long wait on the airplane for the de-ciing of the aircraft’s wings, we were finally on our way. My legs felt like jelly 3 hours later as we walked off the airplane and into the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. We had quite literally been traveling all day long so we were barking at each other and ‘hangry’ as Hell (smile). The number one place we looked for after we retrieved our bags and picked up our rental car was somewhere to eat. We Googled “American Restaurants near me” and found a place that was not too far away. It was called Culinary Dropout and it was super delish! I was feeling very healthy so I quickly inhaled a Butternut Squash and Kale bowl with grilled chicken.
We drove around Phoenix for a while just to get a feel for things and found a Super Walmart so it was there that we picked up enough bottled waters and snacks to last us for the week.
Finally at the resort we checked in and then drove to Building 24 which was waaaay at the top of a hill. I immediately unpacked my luggage because I’m anal like that (smile), took a shower and went to bed – my 20 hour day (and now officially on Mountain time) had finally come to an end.
Day 2 – Resort Day – The Hilton Phoenix Tapatio Cliffs Resort is located just 20 minutes North of downtown and when you pull up in your car to the entrance, you truly feel like you are in a whole ‘nother world. It is no wonder because the property is nestled into the rugged North Mountain Preserve in Phoenix. The hotel grounds are massive and the views are breathtakingly beautiful. Boasting 7 pools – some with hot tubs, a 138-foot water slide, waterfalls, plenty of lounge chairs with big umbrellas at each pool, spas, dining options from the simple to the sublime, hiking trails, 16,000 square feet of conference and meeting space and a championship golf course. We stayed in a King-sized Premium suite that was situated at the top of a hill so between our rental car, which we parked directly in front of our building, and the 24/7 free shuttle service, we were good to go.
We deemed Day 2 our Rest and Relaxation day for obvious reasons so after we checked out the workout area, the championship golf course and two different pools, we wound up poolside at The Falls (smile) soaking in the sun.
I ordered the delish Arugula salad with grilled chicken from Cascades Cafe. By the way, the weather was awesome – 80s with a cool breeze. And the forecast showed the same all week!
After a while we headed back to our hotel room to sit outside and enjoy the mountain views from our balcony. Then we showered and changed for dinner.
That night we chose A Point in Tyme for dinner – I had a flaky fried Cod fish sandwich on a brioche roll with a side salad and ice water with lemon. It was delish!
After dinner the restaurant rang for our ride (shuttle) which showed up 6 minutes later to take us back to the room where we sat outside again on the balcony to enjoy the cool breezes.
Day 3 – ATV/UTV day
This was a tour that we both looked forward to. Arizona Outdoor Fun & Tours was located about 35 minutes from our resort so we purposely left earlier then we would have since we didn’t know what the morning traffic scene in Phoenix was like. We dressed in long pants and long sleeves which their website recommended except we wore sneakers instead of boots. Upon arrival our tour guide asked us for one credit card and both of our state of CT driving licenses and gave us each a face mask and goggles to protect our eyes. Next we all individually sat on folding chairs under a large tent so the staff could explain how to operate the ATVs and UTVs. We chose the UTV as opposed to the ATV so we could ride together in one jeep and because they promised us a longer ride then we would have with the ATVs. By the way, a UTV or Utility Terrain Vehicle rides like a car and is designed to carry anywhere from two to six people. An ATV or All Terrain Vehicle is designed for one person and uses handlebars for hard steering.
Not surprisingly about 4 or 5 young ladies (maybe in their early 20s) showed up at the tour like they were dressed for a paid Social Media event. They had on these teeny tight outfits and wore inappropriate footwear. I almost felt sorry for them because they chose the ATVs not the UTVs and didn’t know it yet but they were in for a big surprise (smile).
Austin was our Tour Guide. There were about 3 different UTVs groups going out when we left which each had their own Tour Guide. We rode directly behind Austin which was good because in my mind there was less dust to catch (smile). And Austin was the consummate Tour Guide, patient, stopping for breaks if we needed them or just to tell us a story about a particular animal (donkey) or type of terrain. And he always made sure that no one strayed.
It was a long, winding and dusty trail and quite honestly, I don’t know how Austin navigated it, as there are really no markers in the ground or trees to make it easy to remember. He said he had been working at Outdoor Fun Adventures for almost 4 years and enjoyed taking people out for the time of their lives. He also mentioned how the tour guides relied on tips because the pay (with no benefits) was a lot less than it would be at say, a 9 to 5 job.
We were UTVing for 2 hours so when we returned there was dust everywhere – all over our shoes, our hair, our clothes. So much so that I could not wait to get back to our hotel room to shower. But first we stopped at Cascades Cafe on the resort for my fav Arugula salad with Grilled Chicken so I would not be “hangry” for our anniversary dinner at 730pm that evening.
The restaurant we chose to spend our 14th year love anniversary was literally up the hill from our building so even though we could walk, we decided to take a shuttle instead so I wouldn’t be walking up the hill in high heels (smile). A Different Pointe of View (“American Cuisine with European Influences”) was situated right on top of a mountain so it had killer views and sunsets to die for.
Some diners chose not to eat in the dining room at all as the outdoor deck had plenty of seating and you were right in front of the beautiful sunset. The only downside of eating on the outdoor deck was that you could only order drinks and light apps. We stayed on the outdoor deck for a while as it was a perfect photo opp and then headed inside for our coveted table which featured a window view of the sunset.
Our dinner reservations were for 7pm that night in The Terrace Room of the 3-floors restaurant and we had 4 delicious courses. The weather was perfect, the sunset was beautiful and the service was second to none.
Day 4 – Breakfast with Nephew/Driving range
One of my favorite jobs is being an Aunt. I love all of my nieces and nephews and great nieces and great nephews and now grand nieces and grand nephews and they live all over the United States. My 37-year old nephew Jasper lives in Mesa, Arizona which was about 30 minutes away from our resort so I arranged for Jasper to meet us at A Point in Tyme for breakfast. I chose A Point in Tyme because they have a $25 dollar all-you-can-eat buffet as well as the regular breakfast menu. Jasper and I ate from the regular menu and James chose the buffet. Jasper and I had a wonderful time catching up on life before James arrived especially since he and his girlfriend had a beautiful baby boy a few weeks ago. We were all at the restaurant for a good 2 hours before we had to say our goodbyes.
After Jasper left, James and I headed right next door to Lookout Mountain Golf Course to get in some practice shots as we were booked for a 3pm tee time the very next day.
We had a light snack after our practice session since we made reservations for an early 530pm dinner that evening at Restaurant Progress – a place that my gym friend Penthy’s son Scott recommended. As it turns out, Scott and his wife live in Phoenix and know the restaurant scene pretty well. Penthy texted me a long list of places Scott provided – the list included where to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner but between the delish resort restaurants and the places nearby our planned outdoor tours and activities, Restaurant Progress was the only place from the list we had time to try out.
Restaurant Progress (a New American Restaurant) was a short 20 minute drive from our hotel. James and I decided to take our knowledgeable waiter’s recommendation on what to order (small world – our waiter was also our shuttle driver at the resort from the night before) “Garrett” told us he has to work 4 jobs so he can afford his own apartment in Phoenix!
At Garrett’s recommendation we ordered the 5-course Chef’s Pick where the Chef prepared us 2 different dishes each course over the 5 courses so we could swap them out between each other and therefore sample the most variety of dishes. We were sooooo stuffed by the time we got to the last course (dessert) but somehow managed to fit more food in our tummies (smile).
Day 5 – Rainbow Ryders Hot Air Balloon Ride Day
Another early morning start to our day – up at 4am so we could make the check in time of 545am from the meeting point which was about 30 yo 35 minutes from our hotel resort. This experience and tour was completely new to both of us. I have to admit that I did not feel nervous at all. Even after we signed our lives away (waivers) and they packed us all in multiple vans to head to the destination. Each group had it own pilot as well as 2 staff members. The 3 men collectively unfolded and used various equipment to inflate the balloon. It was amazing to watch. And it took a minute. I saw a huge basket nearby and wondered how all 10 of us in the group were going to fit but somehow we did. I remember a question on the waiver pertaining to our weight in pounds and now I understand why they asked. The basket was bigger on the inside than it looked on the outside. And the actual ride was peaceful and serene. It was very early in the morning so the dress code was casual wear with a jacket since it’s cold (55 degrees or less) in Phoenix that early in the morning. I was happy I dressed for the date because the wind was pretty strong and the air was chilly. Lucky for us our Pilot kept firing up our balloon to make it go higher as we benefited from the blasts of heat.
While up in the sky we looked down at multiple housing developments with swimming pools, miniature cars, lots and lots of empty land lots and plenty of mountains. We were floating around for about an hour before we started to head back to the ground. The actual landing was rough like an airplane’s landing but without the fear factor. Climbing out of the basket was definitely one for the books – Ha!
After we all settled our Pilot poured us a glass of Champagne and/or Juice and made a short toast to another successful journey.
The hot air balloon ride’s entire experience made us hungry so we stopped in Glendale, AZ for breakfast at a placed called Biscuits Cafe. We figured you can’t go wrong with that name. I was wrong. I ordered the Biscuit Breakfast Sandwich (Eggs/Sausage/Cheese) with Hash Browns and a Coffee. When the breakfast arrived I asked our waitress (once she got back to our table) how come my sandwich was on a roll and not a biscuit which I expected. She said it’s called Biscuit Breakfast Sandwich because it is named after the restaurant. Aha! She felt bad though and brought me a biscuit to swap the roll out with but by then I had already ate more than half of the sandwich as I was starving from the excitement of the morning (smile).
I spent about 3 hours poolside with my magazine while James took a nap. We had a 3pm tee time at the much anticipated Lookout Mountain Golf course. We borrowed a set of clubs from the resort and they gifted us each our own signature set of golf balls – 6 in all so I knew I had to make as many of my shots as possible (smile).
As all golf clubs do, we were matched up with 2 solo golfers (one named Christian who with his 2 brothers was staying on the same resort as us and the other named Jorge’ who actually lived in Phoenix and had enjoyed playing this course multiple times).
We set out for a sunny and beautiful afternoon of golf with our new golf friends.
James and I played 14 holes before it got too cold for me (it was unusually windy that afternoon which caused the air to become cold). It was also starting to become dark as sunset was near. Christian and Jorge’ were happy to continue golfing but between the impending sunset and the now fierce winds I wanted to get back to our hotel to warm up. We were starving though so we ate first right next door at the clubhouse – I had blackened shrimp tacos, chips and salsa. The food was delish. That night we packed our clothes as (sigh) we were leaving the next day for Connecticut.
Day 6 – Travel Back to Connecticut Day
We got up at 730am, ate a light breakfast, checked out of the resort and then headed to the rental car facility which was not too far from the airport to drop off our car. Then we took the sky train to the airport. Our flight from Phoenix to Denver was delayed by 1 hour which ended up turning into 2 hours and then we discovered that our next flight, where we already had a long 3 hour layover, was now going to be delayed for another 2 and a half hours! By the time we got back to Hartford, Connecticut it was 345am Eastern time. We made it home around 4am so I unpacked (yes I am still that anal girl), showered and slept for 3 hours as I had to get up at 730am for my weekly Saturday morning hair appointment.
Was the trip to the Desert worth it – YES! Will we do it again – YES, but next time we will stay in Sedona or closer to the Grand Canyon for a different kind of experience. #YOLO
Sincerely,
TVFL
