ARRIVAL AT THE RENTAL CONDO

What does it look like when you rent a condo for the duration? First of all, I recommend that you arrive in daylight to find your specific apartment. We paused in Palm Springs to wash the car… visit a flea market… and meet up with some friends from home for lunch. So by the time we arrived in Phoenix, it was dark and all we had was an address. The condo addresses were hidden in alcoves and impossible to read from the street! It took us forever, scurrying from building-to-building, before realizing there was no logical pattern to their numbering system. Thankfully, just when we thought we’d be spending the first night in the parking lot with the coyotes, we stumbled upon a map at the entrance to the complex …DUH! NOT SURE HOW WE MISSED IT on the way in! We gratefully collapsed into our new digs, once we had unloaded the overburdened car.

The condo belongs to a family member and we were so pleased to have the opportunity to use it. The location is a lovely subdivision of Phoenix (AUWATUKEE) and the patio doors butt up against a desert mountain- complete with javelinas, coyote packs, and desert rabbits. (Notice I don’t mention SNAKES!) That’s right, here we were in the middle of the city and right outside our apartment, we were smack up against the wild desert. Quite a contrast! We slept with our window open and got so that we missed the coyote packs howling when the night was silent. (I’m serious! Okay, I didn’t miss hearing them tear some innocent little animal apart outside our window; I’ll admit that!)

FUNNY PIGGY-LIKE CREATURES

CAN YOU SEE IT?

Living in a condo for an extended period, in contrast to vacationing on a cruise ship or an all-inclusive, meant actually setting up house – just like at home. Thus, the day-to-day drudgery of cleaning, laundry, bathrooms, grocery and supplies shopping, etc. became an integral part of one’s day. (Do you denote a bit of spoiled attitude coming through?) As well, this condo complex is not filled with Canadian Snow Birds who have social gatherings together or special activities coordinated for them. No, we were immersed with real, live working Americans who were making a living and raising kids. It was so real that the neighbors above us appeared to be working on different shifts from each other. The nights were filled with the woman literally running overhead- we nicknamed her “BIG FOOT”. What was she doing up there? Really? Her husband snored his way through the nights and made sure husband Ryan was up and at it early with his alarm clock going off at 5:00 am.  (No vacationing, sleepy SNOW BIRDS here!)

Please use the COMMENT SECTION below and tell us about the accommodations that you’ve rented, bought or borrowed, while spending an extended time in the desert. My readers and I would love to explore what alternatives are out there. My husband and I think we had the best of all worlds with our niece’s condo, but I’m sure some of you have some interesting options to share. Let’s get a conversation going people!