Sedona

For the past few days, Sharon has been suffering from a cold, so we have set Sedona as an easygoing period, lots of sleep for her, a bit of catching up on travel chores, kickback.

First, some impressions of Sedona. The setting, in Arizona’s Verde Valley, is stunning. No wonder folks flock here. That said, the town seems, to our eyes, a bit silly. Charming, with it’s new ageness, but silly. Amusing. Perhaps, a cross of Berkeley, Glastonbury and Palm Desert or any other resort town. A few pictures, to let you judge.

A bit of old Sedona and the setting that made it famous

The Sacajewa Plaza directory says more than I ever could

Sharon and the woman herself, or at least as re-imagined here

Crystals and Vorteces and Stores, oh my!

Even before we arrived, we decided on a special dinner and pointed Open Table toward L’Auberge, widely regarded as the town’s best restaurant. The setting, creekside, was superb on a balmy evening, and the food, while good, was a bit fussy and overprepared for our California palates. They were trying too hard. On a scale of 1-5, maybe a 3.8 where San Francisco’s Indigo, one or our favorites, would get 4.2. But enough grading. I am (mostly) retired, no more grading.

We got a late start Monday morning. Sebastien at Desert Rose, offers a minimalist breakfast, something we needed after Hopi breakfasts that neither of us could finish. When we checked in on Sunday I was more than pleased to see an exercise room with a small but carefully chosen set of weights and machines. I spent an hour working on upper body since we have done plenty of walking at least up to now.

At midday we met Beth and Jon Messer who had driven up from Scottsdale. For those who don’t know him, Jon is a longtime friend and consummate penman, at one time editor of Stylus magazine, among other accomplishments. I had not met Beth, and Sharon knew neither of them. But it was still like old friends meeting up. A lovely afternoon.

Afterwards Sharon and I wandered a few of the tourist stops before closing out the day, early.