All About This Year’s Sojourn in Scottsdale

We have started a habit of visiting Scottsdale every fall. So after Asheville and a short stop in the Bay Area, we headed to Arizona. You might ask, why do we go to Scottsdale every year?

Why We Visit Scottsdale

There are several reasons we go to Scottsdale each year. First, we like it there in the summer and in the fall. We spent an entire summer in Scottsdale during COVID. You know, “it’s a dry heat”. We are comfortable there and know our way around for shopping, dining, and entertainment.

The second reason we visit Scottsdale is to create a way for Mike’s brother to have a vacation each year. It is fairly easy to go to the Bay Area and escort him to Scottsdale with us. He seems to still do OK returning on his own, so we can stay longer after he departs.

Finally, since I’ve been on Medicare, it is in my best interest to get my routine medical taken care of in the US. We found a full complement of providers we can work with in Arizona, and getting in to see a doctor is so much easier in Arizona than in the Bay Area.

It doens’t hurt that there are some good eats in Scottsdale, too. You can see lots of food p*rn at the end.

Our routine over the last few years has been to go for two weeks. One week with my brother-in-law and one week on our own. The doctor visits are spread out to make things easier. This year, we also stayed at two different timeshare resorts. We had access to the swanky pool at a JW Marriott adjacent to the first timeshare, so we spent a lazy day there between checkout and check-in.

Doctor Visits

In addition to both of us visiting the GP, I needed my three-month hip X-ray. So I went to my orthopedist, who has an X-ray machine in his office, making life easier. He told me everything looked good and that I could ski as soon as I felt strong enough. Yeah, no restrictions. Of course, I will still wear the crash pants I got last year, and I’ll take it easy.

I also took the opportunity to go to a podiatrist and get a few new pairs of glasses. Both of these visits turned out to be only marginally acceptable. We routinely take care of all of our dental and dermatology in Playa, so we don’t need that in Scottsdale.

I also spent some quality time shopping for warmer clothes I would need for ski season, with an occasional pair of golf shorts thrown in.

Visiting Friends

In addition to Mike’s aunt and a cousin, we have friends who live in the Phoenix area. We always make a point to visit with everyone if possible. This year, we enjoyed a happy hour pontoon boat ride on a small lake in the backyard of some of our friends from the nomad Facebook group. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see everyone because it just seemed like we didn’t have enough time. Therefore, we decided that we would spend an additional week or two in Scottsdale in the future.

New Golf Clubs

One of the things we really like to do in Arizona is play golf. We can play pretty cheaply there during the shoulder season. However, this year was a little different. We both decided to get a new set of clubs this year. So, we left our old golf clubs, bags, and paraphernalia in the Bay Area so we can play when we are there.

That meant that before we could actually go play golf in Scottsdale, we had to acquire new clubs. We couldn’t think of a better place to find golf stuff than Arizona. Mike did some research and found a club fitter at Second Swing with loads of used clubs. The fitting involved swinging clubs in front of a camera, and everything was measured. I could see the flight time, where each ball landed, and how far it actually went. This process was so much better than just trying to decide how clubs feel to you.

Over the course of an hour and a half, I swung a lot of clubs, irons first. Different types of clubs were compared using a 7-iron. It was a really interesting and enlightening process. My specific issue is around the twist necessary to get different clubs to go different distances. Every time I’ve played golf over the last few years, my back has been the limiting factor. Using the computer, I learned that it wasn’t my imagination, all of my clubs went the same 120 yards. Bummer.

That said, I did find a set of used hybrid irons that seemed to make it easier to let the club do its job. The pro that I was working with told me I shouldn’t bother with woods at this point because they don’t work. I did supplement the irons with a hybrid 6 wood that was easy to hit. I also got a new bag to hold everything and new shoes that fit properly.

Actually Playing Golf

After we got our new clubs, we went out to play twice. The first round was awful. I couldn’t hit half as well as I did in the shop. At that point, I decided I needed some lessons to help me adapt to the limitations of my back. But when we went out again, I was hitting the clubs pretty well. During that round, I realized that I needed at least one longer club that would provide a decent roll.

After the second round, I conned Mike into going back to the shop so I could buy a wood. It managed to find a 5 wood that worked, so I grabbed it and we left.

Concert at the MIM

Wherever we go, Mike looks for live music and concerts we can attend. In Scottsdale, the Musical Instrument Museum has a lovely small theater, and it is wonderful to attend events there. This time we saw Elvin Bishop, who is now in his 80s, but he can still play some great music. Unlike other venues we have attended lately, the acoustics in the theater are great, and I could actually hear the music and not just noise.

Eating Out in Scottsdale

As usual, we made the rounds of some of our favorite places. Mike’s brother seems to live to eat, but he usually orders a hamburger if there is one on the menu, so we didn’t go anywhere fancy the week he was with us. Otherwise, we went to White Chocolate Grill, Soul Café, Ling and Louie’s, Richardsons, Benihana’s, and PF Chang’s for Chinese food, the one type of food we miss in Playa. Benihana did have an issue with excessive smoke in the restaurant that made it hard for me to breathe, but it cleared just before I got up to leave. It might be a while before we return to “chop and splatter.”  There were a few new places too, the Fat Ox and the Maui Fish House.

What would you do during a week in Scottsdale?