Emily and Linda’s Travel Blog

Friday we headed into downtown Tucson and stopped at the Visitor Center there to get some info and meet the super helpful guide, Ann, that Chris and Marg had met earlier in the week.  She gave us some good tips, especially to check out the Etherton Photography Gallery which Linda really enjoyed .  For those of you who know Linda’s work, you’ll see why she was taken with Ellen McMahonn’s photos especially:

The Visitor Center is located in the Pima County Courthouse, built in 1868 

It’s famous as a the place where John Dillinger, “Public Enemy No. 1” was held after being arrested in Tucson.  You can also tour the courtroom where he and his gang were arraigned in 1834

Outside is a reminder of more recent history - a monument to the 6 people killed on January 8, 2011 during an attempt to assassinate Congresswoman Gabby Giffords at a local shopping mall. The monument with its sweeping lines and reflecting pools is a peaceful place, but reminds us of our persistent unwillingness to end gun violence. The video had some trouble loading to this site, but if you click on the link you should be able to see it.  

There’s also a smaller monument outside the Safeway where the shootings occurred:

We’ve been in Tucson, AZ since last week, but somehow I haven’t found the time to blog about it yet.  We flew into Phoenix and rented a car to drive down to visit our friends Marg and Chris who have taken a house just outside Tucson proper for a month and invited us to stay with them for part of that time.  

Our overnight motel in Phoenix was very forgettable, but it was right next door to a Denny’s, which brought back memories from college days of late night breakfast runs - cheap and reliable with big booths that a bunch of us could crowd into.  Changed a bit over the decades, but still recognizable (not sure I’ve had that kind of hash browns in decades).  In a nod to the times, there’s an option for a gluten free english muffin now.  

Arrived in Tucson later that day and checked out the pretty grand house C&M rented.  

Today we were in Elizabeth, NJ famous for Ikea and the Sopranos intro. We were there for a different purpose, perhaps best not discussed online, but let’s just say it had to do with being seniors with joint pain and sleep issues. 

For lunch though we headed to the Columbian District 

Where we ate at Sabor y Arte since it had appealing looking sidewalk tables. 

It ended up being a bit noisy - a lot of passing trucks. But the food was good. Linda had Arroz con Pollo and I had a Cazuela de Mariscos. Both accompanied by salad and tostones. The service was excellent and I was grateful our server didn’t immediately switch to English when faced with my patchy Spanish  

Took this shot on the way back to the car. 

Wednesday we headed out to Brighton Beach - off the tourist track and again a perfect day for an outing by the shore. 

First we wandered along Brighton Beach Ave. - the shopping street under the elevated train line. This area is sometimes called Little Odessa. Fabulous produce markets and specialty shops with Ukrainian and Russian goods. It can feel like you’re in a different part of the world. Caleb was able to find some piroshki's which he remembered from San Francisco's Russian bakeries. 

Our friends Denise and Caleb visited last week on their way home to Oakland. Billy was an instant fan - especially of Caleb 

Today it was 31 degrees outside.  We love our Saturday brunch out, but Gov. Hochul's lift of the mask mandate notwithstanding, we're not ready for indoor dining.  What are 2 Brooklyn gals to do? Answer: the new Italian restaurant on Montague St. that has individual heated pods outside (click on the video for the 360:

It was a little chilly at first, but by the time our food arrived, we had opened our jackets. The food was fabulous.  Linda had a breakfast sandwich with thin strips of grilled zucchini, parmesano, and eggs (truffles held at her request). I had a tarted up avocado toast on gluten free bread with poached eggs and a remoulade on the side. Both were accompanied by delicious roasted yellow potatoes. 

We'll definitely be back for dinner - it’s quite lovely at night. Friends said it was even more so one night as the snow fell  

Today we had temps almost to 60 so we went out for brunch at Friend of the Farmer on Irving Place

The food was simple, but well prepared  Linda said it might be the best French toast she'd  ever had  

Next we strolled around the Union Square Farmers Market

Smaller and lacked the variety of spring and summer, but we managed to score 6 pounds of bread , both regular and gluten free. Not a lot of produce beyond potatoes and squash, but a lot of prepared foods, meat, and fish. This one was new to me:

Next we went to a movie theater for the first time since 2019 !!!  We actually went to see the Met Opera HD showing of Fire Shut Up In My Bones by Terrence Blanchard. Really moving and the singing was fabulous. Angel Blue in particular really blew my socks off. I was sorry we missed it when the Met reopened so glad to catch it this way  

Today we met up with Chris, Margaret, Chris's brother Michael and her sister Julie and another friend Phyllis. We started with lunch at a really sweet little restaurant called Alison on Lexington and 103rd Street. A little chilly for outdoor dining, but none of us are ready for indoor dining yet.  

The food was really tasty and unusual (sorry no pictures). Several of us had Mediterranean eggs with cous-cous, tomatoes,cucumbers, labneh, and salad. Also recommended were the grilled chicken sandwich and the quinoa bowl ( with avocado, tomatoes, spinach, spaghetti squash and shrimp). They didn’t have unsweetened iced tea on the menu, but made some for us anyway. Such great service.  We'll definitely be back for another visit. 

Next we visited the Graffiti Hall of Fame which surrounds a school playground on 106th St at Park Avenue 

Our next stop was Central Park where we visited the boat basin.  Phyllis and I remembered it fondly from childhood row boating and I also remembered it as the setting of an old B&W children’s series Journey to the Beginning of Time where a group of boys start out rowing on the lake after a visit to the Museum of Natural History and end up hanging with mastodons and other creatures. 

From there we walked over to the Conservatory gardens. We were surprised to find that the North Garden was very much in bloom, despite it being late October

All in all a good "staycation" day in NYC and a lovely afternoon with old friends during this still-restricted time. 

Once we returned to NYC, we got ourselves tested to make sure we weren’t bringing home any California Delta variety. Negative, so cleared for careful local travel. We took the train to visit our friend Phyllis up in Scarsdale. We decided to take Billy on the Metro North for the first time. We spent the week before getting him used to the carrier by putting treats in it randomly. By Saturdayhe was pretty up for whatever went with that magic treat box. 

He had a few qualms about the train, but mostly seemed OK

Once there, he showed his usual excellent lap dog skills

By the trip home he was kind of over the whole business. But he'd reached the pliable stage of fatigue  

We declared it a success. Next goal Greenport by train (which is about 2 hours longer). Better get out the treats and chew toys. 

While we were there, Phyllis put out an amazing spread including shrimp cocktail, brussels sprouts with bacon and almonds, fall off the bone fabulous ribs, torched sausage for Max, pigs in blankets, crudite (which people actually ate), and fresh fruit with ice cream and cookies.

Then she asked us what we wanted for dinner!?! 

Saturday we met up with my old friend Diana Cushway from Oak Park, IL days. We met in middle school more than 50 years ago, but hadn’t seen each other since the late 1960s. So great to see the grown women we've become and to find that we still have so much to connect about. Also wonderful to know that we have both found supportive and loving partners. We should have taken more photos to include Linda and Diana’s husband Bill, but once again the conversation crowded out that thought. Next day I ran back over to Jack London Square for a quick photo of two old friends.  

The one below is from our 8th grade graduation photo