Reflection on why I love Phoenix (Glendale, Scottsdale: real estate, how much, hotel)

[SpeedyAZ]

This past week I've been on a business trip to New York City and as I sat on my return flight yesterday, I reflected on how much I really enjoy living in Phoenix and those little things I take for granted everyday. My NYC trip was fun; stayed at the Trump Intl Hotel & Tower which was quite posh (not on my dime though), took in a few of the tourist attraction, went to Central Park, and rented a Town Car to give me a tour of the city. All in all it was a great trip and since I didn't have to pay for much, it made the trip even better. But anyway, as I sat in my seat, I started to jot down notes on how much I missed Phoenix that New York just couldn't offer me.

I missed seeing the sunrises and sunsets over the mountains which are unequal in beauty.
I missed being able to walk out on my patio at 7 a.m. with my cup of coffee and not be freezing to death.
I missed being able to go 1 mile without having to wait 10 minutes.
I missed the desert scenery.
I missed seeing a variety of vehicles and spotting out the exotics (Ford Crown Vic's aren't exactly my cup of tea).
I missed being able to walk outside and hear the quietness of the desert.
I missed being able to wear a t-shirt in February.
I missed being able to see the sun without thousands of buildings blocking it.
I missed seeing the mountains in every direction.
I missed the smoothness of Arizona streets/freeways without all the potholes.
I missed the 24-Hour Walgreens everywhere.
I missed Filiberto's (I've taken a liking to their burritos).
I missed the Palm Trees!
I missed being able to golf after a long day of work.
I missed my family, most of whom either live in Phoenix or are Snowbirds.
Last but not least, I missed tranquility of living away from the "city" but close enough that I can drive there in reasonable time.

Anyone else car to chime in on what they love about Phoenix, no haters please.

[olegk]

After visiting New York first and hope last time I realized I am not going to miss anything there.

[HX_Guy]

I don't know...most of the stuff you mentioned is a bit boring...sunsets, warm weather, palm trees, and golf. I don't know your age, but for me...give me busy...nightlife...walk to everything...things to see and do etc etc.

[SpeedyAZ]

I don't know...most of the stuff you mentioned is a bit boring...sunsets, warm weather, palm trees, and golf. I don't know your age, but for me...give me busy...nightlife...walk to everything...things to see and do etc etc.

I'm 28, I don't consider myself too old! I have enough busy with working 8-10 hour days, I'd rather come home and relax! I've never been into the whole nightlife scene, I go to the bar or out to eat but nightlife isn't me, I'm usually home by midnight. I would like a nice walkable neighborhood, Downtown Scottsdale just has too much traffic to walk everywhere. The area near the Cardinal's Stadium in Glendale is pretty neat, I do enjoy walking around there since you don't have to look out for any vehicles. As far as things to see...Once I've seen it, I really don't feel a need to go see it again. This goes for most attractions such as statues, historic buildings, etc. Phoenix does have plenty of things to do; football games, basketball games, hockey games, baseball games, basketball games, hiking, biking, offroading, just about ANYTHING you'd want to do can be found here!

I just different strokes for different folks...

[xlx_sparkz_xlx]

Aww see now that post makes me want to move to Arizona even more! T-shirt in Feb that would be divine

[azriverfan.]

Great post Speedy! The way I look at it, if I really want to visit NY or any other large city, I can always fly there for a weekend. I can stay at a posh hotel, eat at great restaurants, see shows and when I'm through with that, I can come back and live in paradise away from all of the inconveniences that NY and other cities have to offer. The day-to-day living in Phoenix/Valley is unbeatable and is really taken for granted until you go to a city like Philly or NY and realize that while those cities have fun things to offer, the day-to-day lifestyle is horrendous there. I know a few people that moved to those cities for grad school and were excited to leave Phoenix because of all the complaints you usually hear about. The funny thing is once those people lived there for a year and got all the fun stuff out of their system, they realized it was a real pain in the a$#$# to live there and they ultimately returned to Phoenix after grad school.

My reasons for liking AZ
1. I love how we have every chain restaurant, store etc and then how we plenty of our own unique restaurants etc. You get the best of both worlds

2. I love our sports environment. Sure we are not Boston but our teams are always competitive and we host big sporting events like the Superbowl, All-Star game, Fiesta Bowl. Sports is a big part of my life and this is one of the few cities in America that has all 4 major pro sports.

3. I love the people. People in the valley have that laid back and down-to-earth approachable quality yet enough "LA" in them to provide enough of an edge to be fun. In Phoenix, I feel like I can walk up to anyone and joke around and have a good time and it not be weird. I feel like on the east coast, you have to keep your guard up and act tough before people respect you enough to let you in. In Phoenix, you can bypass that drama and just be yourself.

4. I love how this city is always growing even during the turbulent times. It's fun to be on the ground floor of a city that is evolving and growing. I was here for so many of these special moments and it was a pure delight to be a part of the light rail. I love how downtown is growing

5. I feel safe and love our law enforcement (Sherrif Joe is an exception) but I love how the police here are approachable and not too pompous or overbearing as I've witnessed in other cities. I never feel like I will get pulled over for something trivial in this city and i feel the police are pretty reasonable about pulling people who do something egregious.

Okay I could go on but these are things I'm thankful for

[TransporterG]

[quote=SpeedyAZ;7528268]I'm 28, I don't consider myself too old! I have enough busy with working 8-10 hour days

Wow, at 28 and only working 8-10 hour days?!? If your business is showing you the money with so little pressure on performance, maybe you need to advertise this more and all those homes in Maricopa and elsewhere will be absorbed quickly and keep our real estate values.

I appreciated your reflections.

[jlhct]

Originally Posted by SpeedyAZ

This past week I've been on a business trip to New York City and as I sat on my return flight yesterday, I reflected on how much I really enjoy living in Phoenix and those little things I take for granted everyday. My NYC trip was fun; stayed at the Trump Intl Hotel & Tower which was quite posh (not on my dime though), took in a few of the tourist attraction, went to Central Park, and rented a Town Car to give me a tour of the city. All in all it was a great trip and since I didn't have to pay for much, it made the trip even better. But anyway, as I sat in my seat, I started to jot down notes on how much I missed Phoenix that New York just couldn't offer me.

I missed seeing the sunrises and sunsets over the mountains which are unequal in beauty.
I missed being able to walk out on my patio at 7 a.m. with my cup of coffee and not be freezing to death.
I missed being able to go 1 mile without having to wait 10 minutes.
I missed the desert scenery.
I missed seeing a variety of vehicles and spotting out the exotics (Ford Crown Vic's aren't exactly my cup of tea).
I missed being able to walk outside and hear the quietness of the desert.
I missed being able to wear a t-shirt in February.
I missed being able to see the sun without thousands of buildings blocking it.
I missed seeing the mountains in every direction.
I missed the smoothness of Arizona streets/freeways without all the potholes.
I missed the 24-Hour Walgreens everywhere.
I missed Filiberto's (I've taken a liking to their burritos).
I missed the Palm Trees!
I missed being able to golf after a long day of work.
I missed my family, most of whom either live in Phoenix or are Snowbirds.
Last but not least, I missed tranquility of living away from the "city" but close enough that I can drive there in reasonable time.

Anyone else car to chime in on what they love about Phoenix, no haters please.

I just had to respond to this because I have similar feelings!

I grew up in the tri-state area and fly back to NYC quite often for visits. I always feel so relaxed when going to Sky Harbor. When I land in LGA or JFK, the pressure is on I love going back home to visit, but when I return to Sky Harbor, I feel relaxed and glad to be back. To me, it just seems that most times things, life just flows easier. That's what I enjoy most about living here.

[ArizonaBear]

I too am from back east and have yet to return-----------even for a visit after 30 years.

In all fairness; I vastly prefer the older enclaves of Phx and Tempe over the outlying areas for a number of reasons but SpeedyAz's points are all still valid

[city_data91]

Arizona is on my list of places to relocate. The climate, scenery, palm trees, cacti, mountains, desert, and Mexican food. I look forward to being able to enjoy my time spent outdoors in the winter. After putting up with so much cold, it will be hard to complain about the heat. I want to live somewhere where snow is a novelty, not a nuisance.