OVERVIEW The Hotel - THE WYNDHAM

www.wyndham.com/hotels/PHXHT/main.wnt They've really re-vamped their image and are going after the "business" crowd. This was one of their newer hotels. I LOVED it. Just DO NOT order room service or eat in the hotel restaurant, it will ruin your experience. Plus, its a waste of money. Way overpriced and horrible food. Horrible!

Its valet parking only because well, its in the city and there is no where to park except the hotel's lot. Its nice, but its annoying to have to carry so many ones all the time. How much are you suppose to tip a valet? The hotel has the "clean air" technology, and your room has this amazingly fresh filtered air. Its the cleanest air I've ever inhaled in a hotel.. and its just so relaxing.

They focused on "scents" so everything in the hotel had a relaxing scent. The sheets, the air, they even had candles and super cool soap shaped like leaves. I want to find this clear air filtration system they are using and install it in my house. Now I just have to convince Greg!

DAY 1 jobing.com ARENA

The hockey game! Flyers vs. Coyotes! If you were watching, then you could have seen us on TV! We won! GO FLYERS!!! A local from Scottsdale told me that we absolutely must try the Mexican cuisine. She also said there is lots to do in Scottsdale.. very good advice! Getting up and down the stairs? Slightly challenging after surgery. But hey, its was good timing. I'm just starting to feel better. And all those fans that wanted to rush out of the stadium because they lost? Sorry! I was moving kind of slow and well, they had to wait.

Day 2 Cowboys VS Cardinals

www.azcardinals.com/stadium/index

Everyone loves to hate the Cowboys. I found the Cowboys fans spirit totally contagious, so I was routing for them. Little did I know they were going to NOT call a time-out with 20-something seconds left on the clock.. then wait until there was only 7 seconds left, call a time-out and at the same time icing their kicker!!!

They handed the win to the Cardinals, who were clearly outmatched the entire game. I don't know football (although I am learning!), and I could see this as clear as day. So, the game goes to overtime and the Cardinals score first. And the Cowboys have no one to blame but themselves. I just feel bad for their kicker.

Day 3 Grand Canyon www.nps.gov/grca

YAY THE GRAND CANYON!!! One of the 7 Wonders of the World. (Although this depends on what list you use). Its so incredibly amazing. Words can't describe it, and no matter how many pictures I took, I just couldn't capture it on film. Something about going there gives you perspective. On a side note, I learned that I am terrified of heights. Not tall buildings, or flying or mountain climbing.. just the Grand Canyon. You know, 7000 ft. above sea level and a cliff that goes straight down. That being said... its also totally amazing. I want to go back and see more! Apparently the canyon was formed from the Colorado river. Crazy!

Flagstaff - www.flagstaff.az.gov/

This is pretty much the only good place to stop. You are literally in the middle of nowhere. We thought it would be safe to eat seafood at a chain restaurant. All I can say is, Red Lobster is Flagstaff is not the same as anywhere else. I recommend to stay away! Yuck!

We stopped in Flagstaff for food on the way there, and got dinner on our way back. There are other places to stop along the way, but some of them are kindof creepy. I like places that have people. A lot of the trip there is just cactuses and then a small trailer house with maybe some cattle.

Day 4 - FOOD Barrio Cafe barriocafe.com

THE BEST restaurant I've EVER been to. I almost fell off my chair. Completely shocking!!! I've been to 25 states (and counting.. 50, here I come!) and I am insanely surprised to learn that this the best food ever has alluded me! Who would have thought, an authentic Mexican restaurant where the menu is in Spanish would beat Chef Ramsey's "The London" in NY?

If you are in Arizona, you MUST go. I recommend doing it towards the end of your trip, otherwise you will likely want to go there and no where else.

The Dinner Theater www.ipictheaters.com

This Ipic place is super happening. Its in a really nice shopping plaza. Upscale crowd, lots of people there - even on a Tuesday night. This place must be a mad house on the weekends. You can go all out and get pillows, blankets and servers will bring your dinner and drinks. When are we getting this in Reading?!

More FOOD - http://pizzeriabianco.com/

I love AZ! So much good food. This pizzeria was like a wine & pizza place. They make all kinds of amazing brick oven pizzas. We got a white pizza. It was amazing. Greg said it reminds him of the old Casa Grande before it changed over. It reminds me of a different version of Judy's on Cherry's pizzas. Its the only thing I know to compare it to.

The good news is they have an insanely cool cappuccino/coffee machine. The place is small, so its like a sit-down-NY-style. Also, its valet parking so bring some ones!

The ZOO / Zoo Lights www.phoenixzoo.org

We went to see the lights show at the zoo. It was dark, so next trip we'll have to go back to actually see the animals. Its was amazingly festive and kind of magical. It was dark, and most of the animals were asleep so we really only saw the Komodo Dragon. He was planted under the heat lamp. Kindof wish I was too (minus the Komodo Dragan!).

They played Christmas music, and they had so many lights decorated like animals. The trees were all decorated... we literally walked down a lights wonderland. It definitely felt like Christmas in Arizona!

FINAL THOUGHTS Phoenix, AZ = 5 Stars phoenix.gov/

I give Arizona 5 STARS! Its was a completely new experience for us. We've never been to the South West... and it looks like just like the Wild West movies! I've never seen so many caucuses in my life!

Its usually warm, but the weather was pretty much the same as PA when we were there. It can definitely get chilly especially in the canyon. The canyon was between 18-22 degrees when we were there. It seems like most people live in the suburbs, so its a must to go outside of town. Scottsdale was really nice. The canyon is about a 3.5-4 hour drive from Phoenix, so plan to spend the day out there when you go.

Also, make sure you check out the local Mexican cuisine! BIG deal. And however annoying it might be, bring a ton of one dollar bills. There are so many places that you can only valet park.

I'd love to go back and see more of the canyon, see the zoo in the daytime, go back to Barrio, and see more of Scottsdale and a few other tourist spots we just didn't have time for.

Good food, plenty of good sports to keep Greg happy, lots of things to do including the zoo, zoo lights, dinner theater, amazing shopping. Oh, yeah, and the Canyon within driving distance. If you haven't been to AZ, I recommend you add it to your itinerary!