As my husband and I continue our exploration of our new home state, we are running into some interesting places and clearing up some misconceptions.  Turns out the Glendale train of Jesse James fame was NOT in Arizona – guess that would be good news for the locals of that time.  But we managed to find Glendale’s Old Towne section (which includes Catlin Court) and walk around.  While the town looks like it could use an infusion of activity (there are a ton of parking lots, many of which were empty – and this on a Friday afternoon) it has a lot of antique shops, clothing, art, food, coffee/tea shops and plenty of window shopping.  The Catlin Court area shops are mostly in converted homes that reminded me of some of the Northern California town centers in the Bay area.

It’s a good thing to go to the Visitor’s Center first.  We have been discovering that they usually have some great suggestions for places to eat.  And there is a wide selection in Glendale – who would have thought?  And some have been interviewed on TV, such as Haus Murphy on Check, Please!  and La Piazza al Forno on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.  We opted for the pizza because it had been a while since we had one, and the promise of an authentic Italian pizza was irresistible.  We were not disappointed. I had the Marinara DOC and Denny had the Italian Stallion (a popular choice by the other  men in the restaurant as well).  What a delight!  It brought me back to the pizza margherita I had when I was in Italy with my mother in 1971, just outside of Rome.  Needless to say, this is definitely on the list, and we’ll probably stop by there again.

Other fun surprises for me were discovering that there are TWO tea houses in town – The Spicery in Our 1985 Home (the oldest home in Glendale), and Kimberly Ann’s Victorian Tearoom and Cafe.  They are within a block of each other on 59th Avenue, and both look compelling from the outside.  Since Sally’s Knits was closed for vacation, I can see a return trip with a fiber arts friend or two to hit both the yarn shop and an afternoon tea.

Till then!