Trying to escape the heat

Yesterday (Saturday), we decided to take a day trip up to Prescott.

Purposes of the trip:

1. Try to escape the heat in Phoenix (forecast of 110 degrees for the day)
   
2. Go somewhere we've never been to before
3. Check out the area - Prescott's real estate market has been booming the past few years (wanted to see why)
4. Do something other than seeing a movie or going to the mall
   

We arrived in Prescott at around noon.

The temperature was around 95 degrees. It was still pretty warm but tolerable enough to be walking around outside. For lunch we went to the Prescott Brewing Company, the "Most Awarded Brewery in Arizona". Patty ordered the "Bordello Bowtie" and I had a half order of the Fish & Chips. We also ordered two beers - a "Prescott Pale Ale" and a "Bumbleberry Ale". The pale ale was pretty good. The Bumbleberry Ale tasted a bit strange. I regretted not trying the "Lodgepole Light" - the brewery's winningest beer (including a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival). Both dishes were pretty good. Sorry no pictures - they turned out a bit too dark. The pasta was pretty tasty, although it was a bit too salty. The fish was good - crispy beer-battered fish...yum. The chips (fried potato wedges) were a bit over salted. I think the over salting might be a strategy to get people to drink more!

After lunch we walked around the downtown/"Whiskey Row" area. There was an art festival - "Fair on the Square", which surrounded the Yavapai County Court House.




It was nice being able to walk outside in the sunshine (something you can't do for an extended amount of time in Phoenix...unless you enjoy being tortured). While we were enjoying a caramel apple, Patty spotted this large butterfly:


I thought this plaque was funny:


Around 3pm, it started raining so we ducked into the Hassayampa Inn to wait for the rain to subside. After twenty minutes or so, the rain died down a bit and we decided to head back to Phoenix.

For dinner (back in Phoenix), we went to Pho Avina. Patty and I have been there many times before. It's one of the better Vietnamese places in town. We had a Bun Bo Hue (spicy beef soup) and grilled beef w/ rice vermicelli, salad, and egg roll. Both were good (as usual).