Phoenix, Arizona

MEM-PHX
Feb 29-Mar 2, 2008
Baseball Spring Training

• Flew from Memphis to Phoenix. Arrived on the afternoon of the 29th and checked into the Homewood Suites in Chandler, a suburb.
• Settled in then made our way to the Spring Training game. We had tickets for 3 Cubs games in 3 days. Cubs play in the Cactus League of MLB Spring Training.
  
• Friday - Game 1: Cubs vs Giants at HoHoKam Park in Mesa. Gametime weather is perfect - sunny and not a cloud in the sky. Nick bought a new Cubs hat and Brad got a new Cubs t-shirt. Cubs lose.
• A banner advertising a place called Culver's in the outfield bragged about something called 'butter burgers'. This is something that can clog arteries just reading/learning about. It is a burger on a bun that has been buttered so generously that the sandwich itself sits in a deep pool of melted butter on the plate. A Google Image search turned up some interesting-looking burgers.
• Went to a bar in the area and had a few beers after the game. Ate dinner then went back to the hotel.
• The next day we went for a hike in South Mountain Park/Preserve. It took some effort to get to the park where the trail starts, off the Maricopa Freeway. It was hard as hell to find. When we arrived, there was nowhere to park, so we essentially had to go to the other side of the park and come in from the north, which ended up working out well anyway, since there was nobody hiking in the area we went. The highest mountain in the park (opened in 1924) is a little over 2,500 elevation. On the hike, we came across some great scenery and lots of wildflowers.
• Saturday - Game 2: Cubs vs Angels at Tempe Diablo Stadium. This stadium is easier to access, but was a bit smaller than HoHoKam. Good game, but...Cubs lose.
• That evening we were in Chandler and drove around looking for a place to eat. Ended up stopping at a Greek restaurant called My Big Fat Greek Restaurant (a chain restaurant that clearly had no sense of originality...we ate there anyway). Good food. Annoying belly dancers all over the place.
  
• Sunday - Game 3: Cubs vs Giants at HoHoKam. Entertaining crowd...including the drunk guy in front of us, yelling and waving around a Miller Chill (duh, it's a light lime beer with only 100 calories). Met a couple fans from Chicago visiting Phoenix for Spring Training. Cubs lose.
• After the game, we trek 10 minutes to the PHX Airport and back to Memphis.