A tourist in my own city!
I love being a tourist in my own city, and thanks to a recent visit from my delightful in-laws (from Erie, PA) I took some time out to explore!
Dining: Lucky for us, there is no shortage of great food in Tucson. We had a wonderful lunch at the newly inspired La Cocina in Old Town Artisans, and our server Eric, was friendly, timely and the food fresh and very tasty! Tis been two weeks and my mother-in-law is STILL salivating over the chocolate tofu pie....
Along with 100's of onlookers, we watched the bats emerge from under the Campbell Avenue bridge at the Rillito River, and afterwards we dined at one of my regular favorites: Zona 78 on River & Stone. The food is always great and the service always terrific.
Later in the week we dined at another downtown "must", Cafe Poca Cosa. Bonnie, our server. was excellent! She took such good care of us we almost succumbed to dessert even though we were beyond full of our amazing meal. Cafe Poca Cosa never ceases to amaze!
Excursions: We drove up to Mount Lemmon, marveling at the change of foliage and temperature. From saguaros and 93 degrees on the desert floor to pine trees and 69 degrees at the summit. Plenty of overlooks in all directions with breathtaking taking views from each one. Truly spectacular!
On a whim, we headed to Sonoita on a Sunday afternoon for some wine tasting. Our first stop was Callaghan Vineyards, where our hostess Lisa was busily and efficiently taking care of a full house of visitors. We purchased our glass and tasted through eight fun wines (many made from local fruit) before making a few purchases and heading off to Lightning Ridge Cellars. Lightning Ridge is a relatively new winery whose tasting room has incredible views, southwest hospitality and the largest vineyard dog I have ever seen; a beautiful Great Dane, Bruna. Owners Ron and Ann were terrific hosts and have some fabulous estate wines in the bottle, and in the barrel! If you want a VIP tasting opportunity, this would be a great call! Terrific wines and fun gadgets await.
For some southwestern retail therapy and gifts to take back to Erie, we dove into Tohono Chul Park's gift shops. Not enough time to stroll the grounds, but we will save that for next time.
The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum never disappoints and this time we took a tour with docent Lynne, and got all kinds of welcome insight into the plants and back story on many of the animals. Then a first for me: Running Wild with George Carpenter, which was SO much fun. Who knew you could train a ringtail cat, a quail, a porcupine, a skunk, a pelican and a military McCaw? VERY educational and EXTREMELY entertaining! Thank you Lynne and George (and plant expert Jeff) for creating yet another extraordinary museum experience.
My family had a wonderful time, and even though I live in Tucson, I never cease to learn something new and exciting!
