Here is the first of two long posts about all the things we did and places we visited while in Phoenix.

Our first day in Phoenix, I had the day off work so we explored the neighborhood. We had a great brunch at the Toasted Owl and checked out the Changing Hands Bookstore and Stinkweed Records.

After work on our second day, we walked to the Joy Lush Club. Joy Lush has an interesting tap list and huge cooler of beers that can be drank there or taken to go. We played trivia and did pretty good. Huss Brewing was there and gave away a lot of stuff. We ended up with a Huss tin tacker and IPA glass. We came in second and a got $20 gift card.
We went back to the Joy Lush Club three more times for trivia but never did as good as the first night.

I traveled to Florida for work. It was a full day of travel to get there, one meeting and dinner, and then a day to get back. It was a good meeting and worth all the travel.

Karla and I went to Don Wood’s Say When. It is a cool roof top bar with fancy drinks and a small menu.
We also went to the Horse & Hyde. We had some drinks, an enjoyable sausage sampler and played some TouchTunes.

We met our friends Paula and Ro at the Bryce Thompson Arboretum. We spent a couple hours there and covered a lot of the trails. Very cool place with a lot of amazing plants.

After the arboretum we went to Old Ellsworth Brewing for lunch. Tasty beers, good food and fun company. We said goodbye to Paula & Ro and headed back. On the way back Karla spotted a brewery sign. So we stopped at Walter Station Brewing. We tried a couple beers and I got a six pack of Hazing Arizona to go.

Karla and I went to Joyride Tacos. They have a happy hour with $6 mini pictures that comes out to $3 a pint. The beer went really well with some tasty tacos.
We visited The Bar Uptown. It was busy and they did not have a good beer selection. We did not go back.

We met up with the Bratvolds a couple times. This first time it was Darrell and Mona at O.H.S.O Brewery. We had some tasty beer and yummy food. It was good to see them again and catch up.
The second time we met at Joyride Tacos. It was Darrell, Mona, Eric and two of Eric’s daughters Hope and Kate. We fit everyone into a big booth and we enjoyed beer, margaritas and tacos. It was fun seeing everyone.

Karla and I went to the Phoenix Art Museum. We spent several hours there. Very big, interesting collection including an Yayoi Kusama Infinity Room. We really enjoyed it. From the museum it was a quick drive to Fate Brewing. We had some beer and food. Everything was delicious. We finished with a small pour of their candy bar stout.

The first weekend in March we went out for brunch at The Greedy Hamster. It is a small place and there was only one person working. The servings were small, but pretty good.
After we ate, we walked to JL Patisserie. We stopped in and we each got a delicious mini cake.
By this time the Melrose Street Fair was going so we headed that way. It was a nice day for a walk. It was a big fair and there were a lot of vendors with tents and lots of people. We looked at a lot of stuff including a lot of vintage stores along the street. After we had made our way to the end of the street, we headed back and checked out the food trucks. I got a pulled pork sandwich and Karla got a quesadilla and we took them to the beer garden. We got some beer and found a place to stand by a table. We finished our beers and food and headed out. The wind really started to pick up and I felt sorry for the vendors trying to hold down their tents. We walked back to our Airbnb satisfied with our day of adventure.

We went to Mesa for lunch and beer with my friend and old eBureau coworker Phil. We had lunch at 12 West Brewing and had one more beer at Oro Brewing. It was good to see Phil again and to catch up.

Phil left and Karla and I walked around downtown Mesa and checked out some vintage stores. We must have worked up a thirst because we made one more stop at Phantom Fox Brewing. They had the best beer of the day.

Karla and I played trivia at the First Draft Book Bar. They have a big room in back and there were at least 23 teams. It was hard to keep track of everything going on with that many teams, so it wasn’t as fun as other trivia nights. We did ok but did not end up with any of the big prizes. Just a hand full of candy. Also, the trivia master said there would be a bonus for a drawing of something old. So I spent all my spare time on a sketch. But the trivia master never said anything about the sketch.

We went to Last Exit Live for some live music. The first band, Celeste, was a lot of fun. Karla said they “sang or sometimes screamed introspective punk songs about their reality.” Some songs started slow but when they kicked in, the fast, loud parts were great. The crowd was attentive and there was even a little mosh pit for a song or two.
Next was Foot Ox. There were a few more people in the crowd. We did not like Foot Ox as much. Mostly because of the lead singer’s voice. But it looked like he was having fun and he was happy to be back in his home territory.
Between bands some kid came up to us and talked with us. He noticed we were a lot older than most of the rest of the crowd. He was nice and happy (and maybe really high).
Last was Pigeon Pit and they were great. The lead singer sings really fast with lots of energy and a folk-punk kind of sound. There was a lot of banter between songs. The crowd was into it and there was a lot of mosh pit action.
It was fun to get out and see some live music.

Look for another post with the rest of our Phoenix stay.