scottsdale

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i enjoy rooting for the lesser known city in a pair: the moorhead of fargo-moorhead, the st. paul of minneapolis-st. paul, the east grand forks of "the greater grand forks area" (aka our future place of residency, aka the butt of everyone's jokes around here), for really no other reason than i feel bad that more people know about their bigger sibling. so when the eggdad told us we'd better explore scottsdale instead of phoenix, i was extra excited. 

so excited that i wore my favorite grey t-shirt.

our first stop was the cutest farm fantasyland i ever did see. singh farms is a little farm in the middle of the desert that primps itself for visitors every saturday. chickens and a horsy greet you and then you can walk around the winding wooded paths that are lined with herbs, onions, flowers, and other cute things. you may come across a yoga class, you may find a jam stand, and you most certainly should buy a fresh english muffin. eggboy did a hot pepper juice shot at a little juice truck and only winced once. it was the greatest place ever! eggboy actually took a lot of these pictures so that he could get ideas for his farm. (i hope that means a pony is in my future!!!)

after the farm, we danced around old town scottsdale, eating yummy thing after yummy thing. there was the best darn cauliflower i ever had, some crispy polenta topped with fresh tomatoes, a salad with a facebook page, and pastrami with rye spaetzle. 

at night the city lit up with string lights everywhere. it was so pretty and welcoming.

we had the perfect amount of time to explore. we saw the sun again, i filled my pockets with vitamin d, and i filled eggboy's pockets with the rosemary that grew along the sidewalks all around town. such wonderfulness. 

here is a little list of restaurants that we tried and loved. (i wish i could hug all of you guys who gave me these recommendations!! alas, i am far away and haven't showered in three days.)

america's taco shop // the old town scottsdale location is in a cute little house with a patio out back that has ping pong and a massive chalkboard wall. you feel like you're in somebody's home! my favorite taco was the carne asada.

fnb // fnb is basically everything you want in a restaurant when you want to counter all of the blobby feelings of eating too many tacos: local fresh vegetables done incredibly well, really nice service, and just a few great options. we had a perfect lunch with perfect cauliflower and polenta.

citizen public house // fancy cocktails, great creative food. i'd totally have my birthday party here if i was a scottsdale gal.

pizzeria bianco (phoenix) // valentine's day fell on pizza night! so we spent the evening at pizzeria bianco's second location (not their downtown phoenix location, which we heard would have a super long wait) and it was just the loveliest experience. everyone was so sweet and the decor was a really hip mix of vintage and new, and the pizza! ok once you get out of the mindset that it isn't supposed to be the chewy and slightly soggy goodness that is kesté or motorino (even though it kind of looks like it), you can really get into it. it's a bit thinner and crisper, but oh! is it good. i'd recommend the sonny boy. 

gallo blanco (phoenix) // any place that will allow me to order a breakfast torta at 10pm with a margarita pitcher has my heart. furthermore the waiter had a man bun. furthermore there was a pretty good crowd on a monday night. egg and i got to catch up with two of our juilliard friends on the patio and it was the awesomeist!!!! and i loved the torta. 

-yeh!

ARIZONA HIKING

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hiking and i go together like cinnamon and tomato sauce. an itsy bitsy pinch of cinnamon in tomato sauce makes it like wow what is going on in my mouth this is otherworldly amazing and an itsy bitsy amount of hiking in my life makes me all wow i feel great i wanna take over the world watch out everyone. if it's just the slightest bit too much the tomato sauce sucks and i shut down and i whine and i just want to eat all the turkey jerky and absolutely not pee in a bush. 

i have done but a handful of hikes and they were all so drastically different. there was the worst hike in the history of hikes, there was the shortest hike in the history of hikes, there was the most humid and asian hike, and then the most historically pleasing and jewish hike. they have gotten progressively less sucky and have lead me to the decision that, yes, i really do enjoy hiking with the correct company, the correct outfit, the correct hydration, and the correct snackees.

hiking in arizona was not unlike hiking the masada. it was hot and dry and rocky. one big difference was that in arizona we didn't have dafna the tour guide giving us a rundown of what before-the-common-era battles happened where and how our very trail shaped history. in place of that we had lots of cactus friends being all erect and hilarious, reminding me of super mario when he bounces through the desert trying to avoid the quick sand.

we went on two hikes, which was not many compared to the rest of the egg family. they are hikers with a capital h.

camelback // wonderful! awesome! a really great challenge for my short little legs and really great overhead views of super swanky mansions.

and

flatiron // we walked around a little, ate a bunch of jerky, and then ended up here:

i mean isn't it the cutest?

why would you want to be scrambling when you could be eating half a cobb salad with no dressing at an old timey saloon with a fatty dinner bell out front? yeah that's what i thought!

p.s. how hipster does eggboy look? he dressed himself.

 -yeh!

A HOT AIR BALLOON RIDE!

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i did not barf and mum did not freak upon reading my obligatory tweet from a hot air balloon. i'd call that a success right there! so when you add the egg family, the arizona views, and a celebratory toast complete with cake and champagne, oh yes, i'd call that a quadruple success.

with the prettiest rainbow balloon, we floated ever so daintily 2,000 feet above the ground in a little wicker basket. we looked down at cacti, swimming pools, and doggies who went wild at a high pitch from the balloon. we waved to new friends down below and dropped little plastic parachute men. it was a moment i'll remember forever.

we are back from arizona! 

and what a joy it was. that state, as it turns out, is for more than retiring, eating tacos, and going to party schools. (forgive me for ever thinking that.) arizona is for achieving hikes you never thought you could, 25 mile walks, and margaritas with friends you last saw at midnight in hong kong. 

i am off to unpack and launder my grotesquely dirty hiking clothes but i will be back soon with pictures of my new cactus friends and tales of tacos and tortas.

-yeh!!!!