Here is the video from Ironman that I promised to add last week:
Tempe Beach Park, located just north of Tempe’s Mill Avenue, is host to numerous events throughout the year. Even when there aren’t events going on, the park is a great place to go paddle boating, biking or just for a walk. Last weekend athletes from around the world came out to participate in the Arizona Ironman triathlon. I filmed a broadcast package on the event. Tomorrow I will post the video, but today I have included a few pictures that I took on Friday while organizers were still setting up the event
The Heard Museum features American Indian art and cultural artifacts. It is located conveniently at the Encanto and Central light rail stop in downtown Phoenix. The museum grounds, which are filled with American Indian statues, are often host to community events. I was lucky enough to visit the museum during the museum’s 10th annual Spanish market. The courtyard was filled with colorful artwork including paintings, blankets, jewelry and even hand carved masks. A mariachi band performed on the sidewalk, artists painted canvases on the lawn, and a woman wove blanketson traditional hand loom. I really enjoyed walking around and taking note of the craftsmanship and creativity that went into the various forms of art.
Although entering the museum costs $15 for adults ($13.50 for seniors and $7.50 for students and children), the outdoor events the museum hosts are usually free. The next free event coming up is the Berlin Gallery’s Artists Fall Preview Opening Reception on November 18th from 6 to 8 p.m. On November 19th, the Heard Museum will be hosting a monthly meet and greet with up and coming artists from 10 a.m. until 2, as well as opening a new exhibit called “Native American Bolo Ties: Vintage and Contemporary”.
On Thanksgiving, the museum is hosting an American Indian influenced dinner catered by chef Freddie Bitsoie. The dinner is a unique way to celebrate Thanksgiving from an American Indian perspective. The dinner costs $75 for adults, $60 for Heard Museum members and $30 for children and proceeds go to support the museum’s programs.
The Heard Museum has free events going almost every weekend, as well as hosting paid dinners. You can find more events online at http://www.heardmuseum.org.
When you walk in the door the lights flicker and hum. Shadows fall across the refurbished Victorian armchairs. The red and yellow upholstery is faded. Black and white photographs on the walls show a glimpse of a Phoenix I can barely recognize, although the street signs are familiar.
It’s hard to decide if the Hotel San Carlos is more beautiful or creepy. The staff certainly did not have to decorate for Halloween.
The Ghost Lounge, which is attached to the historic hotel’s lobby, has become one of my favorite happy hour spots downtown. The ambiance is unique, the bartender is friendly, and the bar offers a decent selection of cheap food and drink options.
On my first visit to the Ghost Lounge, the bartender explained some of the spooky history of the hotel. The bodies of three children were apparently found under the bar when the hotel was being remodeled. Several guests had also mysteriously fallen to their deaths from their hotel room windows.
I guess I wasn’t the only one feeling the creepy vibe. Horror.com listed Hotel San Carlos as the third most haunted hotel in the United States.
In honor of Halloween, some friends and I signed up for the Ghosts of Phoenix tour that goes through the hotel. The tour focused pretty heavily on finding ghosts by taking pictures and revealing ‘orbs’. A friend of mine took a photograph in which she swears she can see a ghost. While I wasn’t totally sold on the ‘orb’ phenomenon, it was a lot of fun learning about the hotel’s history.
The most famous ghost in residence, according to our tour guide, was Leone Jensen, a 22-year-old woman who jumped to her death from her hotel balcony in 1928. Hotel guests and staff have since reported seeing her roaming the hallways.
Aside from the deaths and reports of ghostly apparitions, the architecture and décor of the hotel also has an old-fashioned glamour. Celebrities like Marilyn Monroe, Mae West and Clark Gable frequented the hotel in the 1920s. Hollywood style stars line the sidewalk outside and bear the names of celebrities who stayed at the hotel.
I was amazed at how much Phoenix history decorated the walls all over the hotel, including the bar area. One old photograph showed Phoenix in the 1920s, full of men in suits and hats. In some of the pictures you can recognize staples of downtown. Dust rises up from the dirt streets around the men on the street. The Westward Ho and the Hotel San Carlos stand out as familiar beacons of a Phoenix I recognize. The faces of the men on the street are clear enough to make out expressions. Looking at the black and white faces, whether you believe in ghosts or not, you start feeling a sense of history hanging in the air.
Sandwiched between City Hall and the Municipal Court Building you will find Sticklers, a whimsical deli café serving up giant pickles, coffee and other lunch and breakfast fare.
Located just west of the Jefferson and 1st Avenue light rail stop, Stickers is housed within the historic J.W. Walker Central Arizona Light & Power Building, one of the only remaining commercial buildings in the downtown area dating back to the early part of the twentieth century.
I visited Stickler’s a few times while covering city hall meetings for a journalism class. I was impressed with their enormous bagels, their coffee and their malt milkshakes.
While in line, I chatted with a city hall employee who said his favorite part about having lunch at Sticklers was watching the influx of diners from the neighboring municipal court, sometimes crying into their milkshakes about the result of their child support hearing. His second favorite Stickler’s attraction was the giant pickles available as a side dish.
Starting in December, light rail visitors will have another reason to get off at the Jefferson and 1st Ave stop. City Hall is opening up a new art gallery featuring city owned artwork in celebration of Arizona’s centennial. The Desert View Gallery will be open to the public for free, starting in December, on the first floor of City Hall.
So if you want to go look at some local art while enjoying a delicious milkshake or perhaps a hearty BLT, the Jefferson and 1st Avenue stop will have you covered.
Following the advice of strangers I met at my last stop, I got off at the Campbell and Central stop.
Right away this stop struck me as a great place to explore. A picturesque church loomed in the distance. Bright colored apartment towers and small businesses lined the street to the west.
I walked past Brophy College Preparatory toward St. Francis Xavier Church, through a scenic area. I snapped a few pictures, but was distracted by a green building across the street.
Lola Coffee, a spacious café, had an in-house bakery and featured local art for sale. The ambiance inside was great. It looked like a great place to post up with some homework or a good book. I was craving lunch more than coffee, however, so I decided to check out Lola’s neighbor to then north: Hula’s Modern Tiki.
Hula’s had a large patio, filled mostly with business men, an attractive looking bar facing a hexagonal window looking out toward the church across the street, and a spacious dining room. The dining room had a retro feel, but was also filled with tiki themed hawaain décor.
Happy hour at Hula’s goes Monday through Friday from 3:30 to 6 p.m. During happy hour they have $5 specialty drinks and select appetizers ranging from $3 to $5. On Monday’s Hula’s donates 10% of the day’s gross proceeds to a non-profit organization. During October the funds raised will go to 1 in 10, a non-profit group serving LGBTG youth.
Taking advantage of the great happy hour deals, I ordered a Hula’s Mai Tai. Let warn you, this thing is no joke. It came in a small glass, but this thing packed a punch. It was a very well mixed drink, though, not too sweet, like many mai tais, and with lots of lime flavor to balance out the rum.
I ordered a couple of items off the happy hour menu: a $3 slow-roasted pork taco and a $5 Hawaiian ceviche appetizer. Both exceeded my expectations. I was particularly impressed with the pork taco, which was very flavorful and a huge portion for $3. I was glad I didn’t settle for Taco Bell at the previous stop. Hula’s is definitely a spot I will be visiting again.
I decided expand my horizons today and take the westbound light rail to the end of the line.
I have never been as far into Phoenix as the Montebello and 19th Avenue stop, so I was hoping to expand my horizons and maybe find a fun place for lunch.
Unfortunately, in spite of walking between Bethany Home and Missouri, and out to 15th Avenue, I didn’t find much other than a complex of businesses dominated by chains like Walmart and Taco Bell.
Lacking a desire to write about a chalupa supreme or the latest rollback special, I will keep this entry brief.
I did find, however, a YMCA, a Harkins Movie Theater and a public library. I stopped at the library to ask a few locals to recommend places to check out in the area. A library security guard and the couple in the picture below both suggested I take the light rail to Campbell and Central and check out some of attractions near that stop. After exploring the neighborhood a little more and snapping some pictures, I took their advice.
Next Stop: Campbell and Central
Over the weekend the Arizona Diamondbacks qualified for the National League Division Series playoffs. Don’t worry, I will leave sports analysis for other writers who actually pay attention to sports on a regular basis. But, since there will be some exciting games taking place soon, I want to quickly feature another iconic destination near the 3rd street stops: Chase Field- home of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
If you are riding the westbound light rail through downtown Phoenix, you can’t miss this 1,300,000 square foot, domed structure. The field is surrounded by fun sports bars including the Tilted Kilt, Brooklyn’s Pizza, and Sliders, where you can watch the game if you don’t have a ticket. TGIFriday’s Front Row Sports Grill actually offers you a view of the field.
Last Sunday I took the light rail to a Diamondbacks game. I will admit I am not an avid sports fan, but I always enjoy going to see a baseball game. And what could be better, now that the weather is cooling off, than sitting in the bleachers with a cold beer and cheering for the home team?
If you take the light rail, you won’t have to pay for parking or sober up for the drive home. Lots of people have this idea though, so expect packed trains and boisterous commuters the day of a game.
The next Diamondbacks games coming up at Chase Field are on Tuesday October 4 and Wednesday October 5th. Tickets are for sale at: http://arizona.diamondbacks.mlb.com.
This afternoon, while working on a photography project, I found myself with a borrowed camera and a few hours to kill. I hopped on the light rail and headed to the 3rd Street and Washington Stop, which had often caught my eye. When coming from the west, this area can be accessed from the 3rd Street and Jefferson stop, located one block to the south.
I go by each of these stations almost every day, usually while craning my neck to see all of the interesting buildings in the area. Either of these stops will put you in walking distance of Chase Field, the Phoenix Convention Center and numerous other attractions worth visiting.
For today’s post, however, I decided to focus on Heritage and Science Park, which can be found a few blocks north of these stops, between 5th and 7th streets.
As I was wandering around the area in the hundred-degree weather, I was drawn to shaded pavilion beneath a wooden awning in the middle of the square. Wicker chairs with white chipped paint and old-fashioned wooden carved benches invited me to rest and take a few pictures of the surrounding brick houses and green gardens. I wasn’t the only one taking advantage of the shade. It was a relaxing spot to sit down and enjoy the setting.
I stopped at the Rosson House tour center to ask a few questions about the park. The man at the desk invited me to explore wherever I liked. He told me that the Lath House Pavilion, where I had been relaxing in the shade, had been built in 1980 to serve as a community meeting area. He also told me a little about the Rosson House, a Victorian style home that was built in 1895 and now is open for public viewing and tours. The square contains a number of other historic homes adapted into museums for the public to enjoy.
On the southeast side of the square there are a few historic buildings converted into restaurants including Pizzeria Bianco, which used to be the Baird Machine Shop, and the Silva House which is now occupied by a pub called The Rose and Crown.
The Heritage Square section of the park, filled with trees, brick buildings and antique relics contrasts sharply with the modern architecture of the Science Park on the other end of the square. The contrast was more charming, than jarring, and seemed oddly fitting to a city like Phoenix, which is just now coming into its own as it celebrates its centennial. Heritage and Science Park is a great example of how the old and new coexist in downtown Phoenix, where walking down any street you may find glassy skyscrapers looming over dilapidated buildings covered in graffiti. Phoenix is a city of contrasts.
The Science Park is home to the Arizona Science Center and the Phoenix Museum of History. The latter is closed, unfortunately, due to lack of funding. The Arizona Science Center, however, was open for business, and is probably worth an entry all of it’s own. For today, however, I’ll stick to a brief rundown.
The admission to the Science Center was affordable: $14 for an adult ticket (only $11 dollars for a child or $12 for a senior). To visit the planetarium or the IMAX was $8 extra. The Science Center also does deals with local schools to provide reduced admission for students. The Science Center offers a number of interactive exhibits that are great for kids, and some impressive shows at the planetarium or the IMAX that will certainly appeal to adults as well. You can find a listing of the current shows at www.azscience.org.
Seeing a show in the planetarium is a great way to get out of the summer heat for a few hours! After being outside in the September sun, it was a refreshing treat to walk into a cool dark room filled with stars. The planetarium features different shows throughout the afternoon and is definitely worth a stop.
The juxtaposition between the quiet antiquity of heritage square and the airy modernity of the science museum gives Heritage and Science Park a unique vibe. Whichever side appeals to you more, this park is a great place to relax and take a break from the heat!
I would love to visit China someday. Since my bank account lacks sufficient funds, I do not see that day coming any time soon.
The closest I am likely to get, for now, is the Chinese Cultural Center, which I visited today from the light rail. The COFCO center, which features a scenic garden, lots of great Chinese restaurants, and other shops, is a few blocks north of the 44th St. and Washington light rail stop, on 44th St. and Cofco Center Court.
It might not be as good as the real thing, but the small Chinese gardens feature a large koi pond filled with water-lilies, towering pagodas covered in flowering vines, and miniature replicas of famous Chinese architecture. There are benches and shaded areas to rest and maybe eat some take-out. I had fun perusing the signs which contain information about Chinese history.
The Golden Buddha restaurant overlooks the gardens and has generous portions of traditional food for a reasonable price. My boyfriend Brian, who hales from New York City, has often complained about not being able to find good Chinese food in the Phoenix area. The Golden Buddha’s kung pao shrimp met his rigorous standards.
The plaza also has an international ranch market with a variety of interesting foods you won’t find at Safeway. We tried taro flavored mochi ice cream, which is coated in a layer of rice. There are lots of adventurous looking things to try out if you want to experience something new.
Visiting the Chinese Cultural Center might not be as exciting as a trip to China, but it’s a great place to pick up some delicious Chinese food and relax for a while in the scenic garden.
Roaming the Phoenix Light Rail 
