I went on a work trip to Phoenix earlier this spring. It was my first time visiting the area, so I opted to fly in the weekend before to do some exploring. I wandered around both Downtown Phoenix and Midtown Phoenix, then headed off to Tempe, Mesa, and Scottsdale. Here’s what I saw along the way.
1. I took the PHX Sky Train from the airport to the nearby light rail station.
2. The light rail train happened to be pulling up to the station just as I arrived at the platform!
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4. Arriving in downtown Phoenix.
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6. First stop, coffee!
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14. Maricopa County Courthouse is a lovely building!
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16. The NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes still existed when I was there and they were playing a home game that evening. I almost went!
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31. The light rail platform seen here is the new line that will extend south from downtown. It’s not quite open yet.
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35. Plenty of construction happening near Civic Space Park and to the east associated with Arizona State University’s downtown Phoenix campus.
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37. Another great art deco building. It’s a Hilton Garden Inn. I headed to their rooftop bar for a drink.
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41. The next morning as I headed off for coffee I snapped some photos from the ASU downtown Phoenix campus area, though there was more construction going on than I captured in these few photos.
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43. Lovely patio at this coffee shop.
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46. Now heading up Central Avenue from downtown towards Midtown. I opted to walk this route to do a little exploring off the main route, but the light rail line runs through this corridor too.
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50. Nice neighborhood with some old but updated homes just east of Central Ave.
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57. Back to the main corridor along Central Ave. Heading into Midtown now.
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59. Now walking back south towards downtown.
60. The Central Arts Plaza is a nice park oasis in the Central Arts District.
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63. I-10 is capped here with a nice park.
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65. The Portland Street corridor just to the northwest of downtown Phoenix has some nice older homes, including some bungalows (I love bungalows!).
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71. Just to the east of the older historic section of Portland Street is Portland Parkway Park, which is lined with new mixed use development. It’s a decent area to stroll as a pedestrian.
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74. Now off to Tempe to explore the city and the main campus of Arizona State University.
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76. Among my first stops in Tempe was ASU’s football stadium, which hosted the Fiesta Bowl back in January 2003 when my Buckeyes won the first Bowl Championship Series (BCS) National Championship! I was a junior at OSU back then. Great memories!
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79. Some caffeine to give me energy for the rest of the day. I walked about 17 miles that day around Phoenix and Tempe!
80. Exploring the ASU campus. There are some older buildings but it’s very much a new/modern campus.
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93. Heading into downtown Tempe which was vibrant. In addition to having multiple light rail stations for the Valley’s light rail system, Tempe has its own modern streetcar.
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106. I stayed for one night in downtown Tempe. This was the view from my room of several newer high rise developments adding density near the light rail and streetcar lines.
107. The view looking west from the roof of my hotel towards Phoenix.
108. And the view looking northeast from the hotel rooftop of Hayden Butte and the football stadium.
109. Back to downtown for a little more exploring.
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118. The Tempe Transportation Center with Hayden Butte in the background.
119. Time to hike up the hill as the sun is setting.
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128. The next morning (Sunday), I hopped on the light rail and headed further east to Mesa.
129. Arriving in Mesa to some sunshine.
130. First stop in Mes was for coffee.
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132. Because it was relatively early on a Sunday morning, downtown Mesa was rather quiet.
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141. Mesa is a center for Mormans in the Phoenix area. The Temple grounds are gorgeous!
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150. Back to downtown Mesa.
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153. Time to head back to Tempe.
154. My train is arriving.
155. After arriving back in Tempe and checking out of my hotel, I headed to Scottsdale, where I was staying for the next several days for work. This is Old Town Scottsdale.
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157. The Scottsdale “waterfront.”
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165. Off to the Main Street corridor of downtown Scottsdale.
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170. Scottsdale Civic Center Park Path
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173. Scottsdale City Hall
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176. A few other scenes from downtown Scottsdale during the workweek.
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