Heat Doesn't Rise When You Leave the Valley

It is no secret that I am not the biggest fan of the heat in the valley.  The husband planned a romantic weekend get away because he loves me...and possibly wanted me to shut up already about the million degree temps in the valley.

We had a whirl-wind two days in Tombstone, Bisbee, Sierra Vista (Ft. Huachuca), and Tucson.  We left out house in Tempe early in the morning on Saturday. 

OK -- Time for some back story.  The husband celebrated finishing several quizzes and decided to take the motorcycle out.  I am usually totally okay with him riding around, but when 2am rolled around I was getting more than a little worried.  (He made it home fine; he's a big boy and is capable of riding in the dark.)  Needless to say, I didn't sleep well *read: at all* until he got home Saturday morning. 

Regardless, we left the house early Saturday morning and headed south.  Our first stop in Tombstone was breakfast at The Longhorn Restaurant. (http://bignosekates.info/longhorn.html)  My omelet was great - and the hubby's food didn't last long enough for him to taste it.

 
 
The Buffalo soldiers were being celebrated in Tombstone, so we saw a parade and then walked around the town waiting for the comedy gun show to start at  Helldorado Town.  This was the best show that we have seen in a while, and I got to be part of the action...I did, however, shoot the wrong man.  I said then and I'll say it again - It happens! 

We left Tombstone and made our way to Bisbee to have lunch with a friend that the hubby deployed with in Afghanistan.  We ate at Santiagos (http://santiagosmexican.blogspot.com/).  I wanted to like the food.  I really did.  The nicest thing I can say is that the food didn't live up to the atmosphere.  I had the enchiladas from the specials menu - and I left more than half of them on my plate.

We took the trolley tour of the town and learned a lot about this great little slice of AZ.  I'm trying to figure out how to support us in a tourist town, so we can go back.  (The current plan is to let me live there if the hubby ends up at Ft. Huachuca again, so we'll see.)

No trip down south would be complete without the hubby showing me some of his old stomping grounds.  He was stationed at Ft. Huachuca for over a year and took me on a tour that included things like running up this hill sucks and this d-fac is where I ate. 

We spent the night in Tucson, and headed out to Mt. Lemmon in the morning.  (Not too early this time since we were both working on less than 4 hours' sleep.)  The drive up to the Meadow Trail was spectacular and was one of those times where I am grateful/thankful to have the little red sports car.  We decided to hike the Meadow Trail, and while the meadow looked surprisingly like a mountain, the views were well worth the huffing and puffing it took to get there. 

I also want to take the time to thank the unknown motorcycle rider who warned us about the Sheriff running radar and saved us a ticket.  Like I said, my car is zippy and the road was awesome. 

We headed down to 4th Ave. for lunch after our hike since the restaurants up on the mountain thought that a pulled pork sandwich and some chips were worth over $12.  I used the UrbanSpoon app on my phone to find the Surly Wench Pub (424 North 4th Avenue Tucson, AZ).  It was listed as somewhere to find a burger, and we were both hungry from the hike.  We both ate the "Cooter Burger" (and amazing concoction of nacho cheese and jalapenos on a hamburger).  They were spicy, messy and perfectly delicious.

Tucson for Rocks and Scones

Last weekend, we traveled South of town to Tucson for what I am told is one of the biggest gem and mineral shows in the United States.  Being a girl and all of that, I was more than excited to go to a show that featured all things sparkly!  I loved learning about how to cut my own opals.  I don't think that I am ever going to take up that particular hobby, but it was very interesting to learn how gets a beautiful opal out of a chunk of unimpressive rock.  I also left fervently wishing that my skills and talents were such that I could make my own jewelry since there were so many stones that needed to be set - I still find myself thinking about these pieces that reminded me of Japanese water color paintings.  (I may look for some already made into jewelry online...thank God for the power of the Internet!)

One can only walk around looking at rocks for so long, even when the rocks are as magnificent as the Hooker emerald.  (74 carats!)  So, John took me over to 6th Street for lunch and shopping.  He lived and and trained at Fort Huachuca for about 18 months when he first joined the Army, so he is very familiar with Tucson.  I loved the little shops that we founds, and I wish that we had enough time (and appetite) to try all the restaurants that lined the street.  We decided to have Italian food for lunch and stopped in to Carusos.  (http://www.carusositalian.com/)  I had the minestrone soup and was very impressed with how deep the flavor was, however; my favorite part of our meal was my lemonade.  I could be wrong, but I am positive that it started the day out as real lemons.  We walked around a little and then decided to have something sweet.  We decided to try out the Chocolate Iguana.  (http://www.chocolateiguanaon4th.com/)  We had a chocolate chip scone with orange icing, and I am here to tell you that it was one of the best things I have ever eaten.  I'm on one of those dreaded after-the-holidays diets, and it is definitely worth the calories. 

I certainly will be after the hubby to take me back to Tucson so I can explore some more.  I specifically will be back to 6th Street to eat at some of those restaurants.