Keith had a job offer in Cleveland and the possibility of an offer in Phoenix. Keith, Kate, and the kids were planning on visiting us in Baltimore for the long weekend but had offered to change their plans once they heard Keith was looking for a new job. So, we changed plans the week before and coordinated a weekend in Phoenix and Cleveland to check out the areas.
Keith had been in Phoenix at the Hotel Valley Ho since the Tuesday night so he extended the stay for the weekend. Shawna flew in from Hartford on the Friday landing at 7:30pm. Since it was a three hour time zone difference, Shawna did not need dinner, so Keith ate at the hotel while Shawna joined him for a glass of wine. The hotel is a 1950s era hotel that is funky/cool while still retaining the mid-century modern architecture. It has a great vibe.
Shawna had researched neighborhoods to live in. We first walked from the hotel to old town Scottsdale. It was not really our scene - more of a gallery district for visitors than a fun place to live. We returned to the hotel, grabbed the car and then drove north through the various residential areas. We could not get into most of them since they are gated communities but could get a flavor of the area. We returned south through Paradise Valley - which is gorgeous but the houses were FANTASTICALLY outside our price range! But...fun to dream. We also checked out Arcadia and Camelback East neighborhoods. For lunch we went to the Cornish Pasty Shop where Keith had eaten the prior three lunches. We ate at the outside bar under the misters and shared a greek salad and southwestern pasty. Both were delicious. The day was getting hot so we decided to see a movie - Captain America / Civil War, which was exactly what we expected it to be. We returned to the hotel to relax before driving over to the Hermosa Inn to meet Matt and Andrea (Keith's potential boss and wife) for drinks. It was a gorgeous outdoor area and we had a great chat with them. After drinks, we ate dinner at The Henry which was a five minute drive from the Inn. The food was tasty and the restaurant has a lively atmosphere.
Our flight to Cleveland did not leave until 3pm so we were able to sleep in the Sunday morning. We had breakfast at the hotel and then headed out for a walk along the canal. There were heaps of people walking and cycling, all of whom were super-friendly. After the walk, we cooled down, showered, then headed to the airport via downtown Phoenix to check out that area. It was a 3.5 hour flight to Cleveland where we picked up a rental car and went straight to the Marriott by the airport.
On Monday, we drove around several Cleveland neighborhoods including Tremont, Edgewater, Ohio City and University Circle. The nicest part was the eastern section by the office - some gorgeous old houses with mature landscaping. We met Paul, the owner of the company, for lunch at Town Hall in Ohio City. Following that, we drove around the Flats and downtown before going to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The museum was well done - over 25,000 artifacts. We went back to the hotel with the idea of eating dinner and grabbing a movie. We did eat dinner at the well-rated hotel restaurant Amp 150. But, after a couple of glasses of wine, Keith suggested that we skip going out and instead watch a movie on demand in the room. Shawna put up zero argument to that so we watched Zootopia. Unfortunately, we had to be up at 3:30am the next morning to catch our 5:45am flight to BWI where Shawna would go home and Keith would transfer for a return flight to Phoenix for his final round of interviews.
 |
| Keith and Shawna on the Scottsdale Canal |
Shawna had researched neighborhoods to live in. We first walked from the hotel to old town Scottsdale. It was not really our scene - more of a gallery district for visitors than a fun place to live. We returned to the hotel, grabbed the car and then drove north through the various residential areas. We could not get into most of them since they are gated communities but could get a flavor of the area. We returned south through Paradise Valley - which is gorgeous but the houses were FANTASTICALLY outside our price range! But...fun to dream. We also checked out Arcadia and Camelback East neighborhoods. For lunch we went to the Cornish Pasty Shop where Keith had eaten the prior three lunches. We ate at the outside bar under the misters and shared a greek salad and southwestern pasty. Both were delicious. The day was getting hot so we decided to see a movie - Captain America / Civil War, which was exactly what we expected it to be. We returned to the hotel to relax before driving over to the Hermosa Inn to meet Matt and Andrea (Keith's potential boss and wife) for drinks. It was a gorgeous outdoor area and we had a great chat with them. After drinks, we ate dinner at The Henry which was a five minute drive from the Inn. The food was tasty and the restaurant has a lively atmosphere.
Our flight to Cleveland did not leave until 3pm so we were able to sleep in the Sunday morning. We had breakfast at the hotel and then headed out for a walk along the canal. There were heaps of people walking and cycling, all of whom were super-friendly. After the walk, we cooled down, showered, then headed to the airport via downtown Phoenix to check out that area. It was a 3.5 hour flight to Cleveland where we picked up a rental car and went straight to the Marriott by the airport.
On Monday, we drove around several Cleveland neighborhoods including Tremont, Edgewater, Ohio City and University Circle. The nicest part was the eastern section by the office - some gorgeous old houses with mature landscaping. We met Paul, the owner of the company, for lunch at Town Hall in Ohio City. Following that, we drove around the Flats and downtown before going to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The museum was well done - over 25,000 artifacts. We went back to the hotel with the idea of eating dinner and grabbing a movie. We did eat dinner at the well-rated hotel restaurant Amp 150. But, after a couple of glasses of wine, Keith suggested that we skip going out and instead watch a movie on demand in the room. Shawna put up zero argument to that so we watched Zootopia. Unfortunately, we had to be up at 3:30am the next morning to catch our 5:45am flight to BWI where Shawna would go home and Keith would transfer for a return flight to Phoenix for his final round of interviews.
